William Hastings, 1st Baron Hastings of Ashby de La Zouche

William Hastings came from one of the branches of the English Hastings clan. The possessions of this branch were in Kirby in the county of Leicestershire . After the death of his father in 1455, William inherited Kirby.

In his youth, William was sent to the court of the Duke of York, Richard , where he became friends with his son - Edward , Earl of March . Thanks to this friendship, William remained his whole faithful companion all his life, choosing his side during the Scarlet and White Roses .

On February 2, 1461, the Battle of Mortimers Cross took place , in which the Yorkist army under the command of Edward Marchsky, who became the head of the York home after the death of his father, defeated the Welsh army, commanded by supporters of King Henry VI Jasper and Owen Tudor . William Hastings also participated in this battle. Victory paved the way for Edward to London , where he was crowned king of England on March 4 under the name Edward IV.

Immediately after the coronation, Edward IV began to distribute titles and positions to his supporters. Among the recipients was William Hastings, who received the title of Baron Hastings from Ashby de la Zouche, as well as a number of government posts, including he was appointed Lord High Chamberlain of England, as well as the head of the Mint. He also received estates in the Midlands confiscated from Lancaster supporters. And on March 6, he married Catherine Neville, the sister of the powerful Richard Neville , Earl of Warwick , and a close relative of King Edward. Her first husband, William Bonville , 6th Baron Harington , died at the Battle of Wakefield on December 31, 1460. William Hastings also took care of William Bonville's 6-month-old daughter, Cecily Bonville, the 7th Baroness Harington , who inherited her father's possessions. She was later married to Thomas Gray , 1st Marquis of Dorset , stepson of Edward IV.

On March 29, 1461, William Hastings participated in the Battle of Tauton , in which the main forces of the Lancaster were defeated, and King Henry VI and his wife, Queen Margarita of Anjou , fled the country.

In 1462, William Hastings became a knight of the Order of the Garter .

In 1470, the Yorkists were forced to flee England, William Hastings followed King Edward IV and was deprived of all court posts by the Lancastrians. However, already in 1471, Edward returned to England, having gathered a large army, along with him was William, who was one of the commanders in the battles of Barnet ( April 14 ) and Tewkesbury (May 4). As a result, Lancaster supporters were defeated, and Henry VI was captured and soon died. Edward IV was reinstated on the throne, and his supporters, including William, got their posts back. In addition, William was appointed Governor of Calais .

On April 9, 1483, Edward IV unexpectedly died. According to the will, the regent with his young son, Edward V , was to become the younger brother of Edward IV, Richard , Duke of Gloucester , who at that time was in the north of England. But relatives of the widow of Edward, Elizabeth Woodville , organized a conspiracy, as a result of which Elizabeth was to become the regent. Most of the nobility, hostile to the Queen’s numerous relatives, came out in support of Richard. Among them was William Hastings, who sent a message to Richard of Gloucester about what happened in London. As a result, the conspiracy failed, and on May 4, Richard of Gloucester was proclaimed Lord Protector of England.

Soon, however, events occurred that shook William Hastings' loyalty to Richard. On June 9, the Royal Council announced that the children of Edward IV were illegitimate ^[2] . And already on June 13 during a meeting of the Royal Council, Richard, according to meager reports of chroniclers, ordered the arrest of two bishops and two Lords, including William Hastings, accusing them of conspiracy, and William was executed without trial immediately after his arrest ^[1] . The same version was reflected in Thomas More 's The Story of Richard III . There is a version that the trial was still, and William Hastings was executed a week later, on June 20 ^[3] .

It is not known exactly what charges were brought against him. Historians suggest that William planned to maintain his influence under the young king Edward V and could resist recognition of his illegitimate birth and may have been pulled into a new plot by relatives of Elizabeth Woodville. At the same time, William's possessions were not confiscated, and they were inherited by his eldest son, Edward .

William Hastings is one of the characters in William Shakespeare’s historical chronicle Richard III .

1st wife: from approx. 1451 Elizabeth Walden . There were no children from this marriage.

2nd wife: from February 6, 1461, Catherine Neville (c. 1435-1503 / 1504), daughter of Richard Neville , 5th Earl of Salisbury

• Ralph (c. 1463 -?)
• Elizabeth (c. 1464 -?)
• Edward (November 26, 1466 - November 8, 1506/1507), 2nd Lord Ashby de la Zouche from 1483; wife: Mary Hungerford , daughter of Sir Thomas Hungerford
• Richard (c. 1468 -?)
• William (c. 1470 -?)
• Ann (c. 1471-1481 / 1507); husband: George Talbot (1468 - July 26, 1538), 4th Earl of Shrewsbury
• George (c. 1471 -?)

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• Ustinov V.G. Wars of the Roses. Yorkie vs. Lancaster - M .: Veche, 2012 .-- 432 p. - (History files). - 2000 copies. - ISBN 978-5-9533-5294-9 .
• Seward Desmond. A Brief History of the Wars of the Roses. - Robinson, 1995.
• Ross Charles Edward IV . - Berkeley, 1974.
• Carpenter, Christine. The Wars of the Roses . - Cambridge, 1997.
• Horrox Rosemary. Richard III: a study of service . - Cambridge, 1989.
• Dunham William Huse. Lord Hastings' indentured retainers, 1461-1483 . - New Haven, 1955.

• Hastings of Ashby de la Zouch, Hastings of Kirby . Stirnet. Date of treatment May 10, 2010. Archived on April 25, 2012.
• HASTINGS (1º B. Ashby Zouche) HASTINGS FAMILY. HUNTINGDON LINE . The Tudorplace. Date of treatment May 10, 2010.