Joan Beaufort, Countess of Westmorland

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Tomb of Joan Beaufort and her mother Catherine Swynford

Lady Joan Beaufort LG (* 1379 in Beaufort-en-Champagne , † November 13, 1440 ) was an English noblewoman . By marriage she was at times both Baroness Ferrers of Wemme and Countess of Westmoreland .

She was the fourth child and only daughter of John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster , and his lover Catherine Swynford . She was born out of wedlock but was legitimized by parliament in 1397 after her father married her mother. Shortly afterwards she was accepted into the Order of the Garter.

In 1391 she married Robert de Ferrers, 2nd Baron Ferrers of Wemme († 1396), with whom she had two daughters:

After the death of her husband and her legitimation, she married Ralph Neville, 1st Earl of Westmorland, as his second wife in 1397 . She had the following children with him:

Ralph Neville left all his fortune to his widow after his death in 1425, resulting in an estrangement between Joan and her stepchildren. When Joan died on November 13, 1440, the wealthy Neville fortune was divided among her children. Joan herself was buried next to her mother in a magnificent tomb in Lincoln Cathedral.

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