Walter Devereux, 7th Baron Ferrers of Chartley

Walter Devereux, jure uxoris 7th Baron Ferrers of Chartley (c. 1431 - 22 August, 1485) was a minor member of the English peerage and a loyal supporter of the Yorkist cause during the Wars of the Roses. He was killed at the Battle of Bosworth Field, fighting for Richard III.

Family

Walter was born in Weobley, Herefordshire. His parents were Walter Devereux, Lord Chancellor of Ireland from 1449 to about 1451 and his wife Elizabeth Merbury.

His mother was the daughter and heiress of Sir John Merbury, Chief Justice of South Wales.

Marriage

At the age of only thirteen, Walter married Anne Ferrers, 7th Baroness Ferrers of Chartley - who predeceased him by seventeen years - and became Baron Ferrers of Chartley in right of his wife in 1462. They had at least five children:

*John Devereux, 8th Baron Ferrers of Chartley (1463 - 3 May, 1501).
*Elizabeth Devereux. Married first Sir Richard Corbet of Morton Corbet and secondly Sir Thomas Leighton of Watlesborough.
*Isabel "Sybil" Devereux. Married Sir James Baskerville.
*Sir Richard Devereux.
*Sir Thomas Devereux.

Career

As a Yorkist, he held many offices under Edward IV. In 1461 and 1469, Walter was commissioner of array for Herefordshire, Shropshire and Gloucestershire, as well as Worcestershire in 1469. He also served in 1470 and 1471, as joint commissioner of array for Herefordshire, and then again in 1474 for Herefordshire and Shropshire.Walter's military career was also thorough. He fought at Towton in 1461, where he was made a Knight of the Garter. He also fought at Barnet and Tewkesbury.

Death

Walter Devereux supported Richard III of England during his reign, and fought on his side at the Battle of Bosworth Field (22 August 1485). There, Lord Ferrers commanded in the vanguard under John Howard, Duke of Norfolk, alongside Sir Robert Brackenbury and Thomas Howard, Earl of Surrey. Devereux was slain during the initial fight with the opposing van under John de Vere, 13th Earl of Oxford, fighting next to the young John, Lord Zouche. An in-law, Sir John Ferrers, was also killed at Bosworth.

External links

* [http://www.stirnet.com/HTML/genie/british/dd/devereux1.htm#link1 A listing of the Devereux family]
* [http://www.tudorplace.com.ar/DEVEREUX.htm#Walter%20DEVEREUX%20(Sir)1 A short profile of his father]