Sir John Savage, KG, KB, PC (1444–1492), was an English knight of the Savage family, who was a noted military commander of the late 15th-century. Savage most notably fought at the Battle of Bosworth Field in 1485, where he commanded the left flank of the Tudor (Lancastrian) army to victory and is said to have personally slain the Duke of Norfolk in single combat. Earlier in the Wars of the Roses, Savage had been a supporter and friend of the Yorkist King Edward IV, fighting alongside him and helping him to victories at the Battle of Barnet in April 1471 and the Battle of Tewkesbury the following month. He returned to active military service in 1482 when he joined the invasion of Scotland led by the King's brother Richard, Duke of Gloucester, where the Duke made him a Knight banneret.
However, following the death of Edward and the Duke of Gloucester's ascension to the throne as Richard III, the Savage family was viewed with suspicion due to their familial connection to the Stanleys, who were in turn connected to the Tudors. Consequently, Savage was one of the prominent figures who invited Henry Tudor to invade England in 1485, a struggle which culminated in the Battle of Bosworth Field. After his victory, Henry Tudor received the circlet of Richard from Savage's uncle, Lord Stanley, and was crowned King of England on the field of battle, taking the throne as Henry VII of England.
The year following his victory at Bosworth, Henry VII sent Savage to arrest Sir Humphrey Stafford and his brother Thomas Stafford, who had risen up against the king in the first major challenge to Henry's reign. Savage led a force to Culham where the two were seeking sanctuary and had them forcibly removed. The brothers were tried and found guilty, Sir Humphrey was executed whilst Thomas was pardoned. This event was notable enough for Pope Innocent VIII to announce a papal bull which established modifications affecting the privilege of sanctuary, significantly limiting its practical use and vindicating the actions taken by Savage on behalf of the King.
Savage later served as one of two main cavalry commanders at the Battle of Stoke Field on 16 June 1487, where leading Yorkists fought to put the pretender Lambert Simnel on the throne. This was the final battle of the Wars of the Roses, with the engagement ending in a decisive victory for the Tudors and leaving nearly all of Henry's Yorkist opponents dead. In 1492, Savage raised a force of men-at-arms and archers and joined Henry's expeditionary force to France. The campaign was intended to stop the French King Charles VIII's support of the pretender to the throne of England, Perkin Warbeck. Savage would not return to England alive, losing his life during the Siege of Boulogne.
Savage was a supporter successively of Edward IV of England who appointed him a Knight of the Bath on the occasion of his Queen's coronation on 26 May 1465, and Henry VII, who appointed him a Knight of the Order of the Garter in 1488. Savage also served as a member of Henry VII's Privy Council.
Ancestral background and family Ancestral background and early life
John Savage was born in or around 1444,Lee, Sidney, eds. Dictionary of National Biography (2004). Volume 50 p. 388 the son and heir of Sir John Savage (1422–1495) and Lady Catherine née Stanley, daughter of Thomas, Lord Stanley. Savage died three years before his father, thus he never succeeded to the family estates, which included Clifton Hall near Runcorn.Crossley, Fred. H. (1925) Titus Wilson and Son. Mediaeval monumental effigies remaining in Cheshire, p. 24 The Savage family had been established in Cheshire since his great-great-grandfather Sir John Savage (1343–1386) married Margaret d'Anyers, heiress of Clifton and other lands around what later became Rocksavage.Armstrong, George Francis. (1888) M. Ward & Company. The ancient and noble family of the Savages of the Ards. pp. 15–16
The eldest of ten sons and five daughters, his younger brother, Dr Thomas Savage, became Archbishop of York, while another four brothers (Sir Edward, Sir Richard, Sir Christopher and Sir Humphrey Savage) were all knighted in recognition of their service to the crown.Armstrong, George Francis. (1888) M. Ward & Company. The ancient and noble family of the Savages of the Ards. p. 24 His sisters married into gentry families, including the Traffords, Booths, Duttons and Leighs.Armstrong, George Francis. (1888) M. Ward & Company. The ancient and noble family of the Savages of the Ards. p. 17 Among his other close relatives were his uncles Thomas Stanley (who was created Earl of Derby after Bosworth in 1485) and Sir William Stanley and his cousin George Stanley, 9th Baron Strange.Crossley, Fred. H. (1925) Titus Wilson and Son. Mediaeval monumental effigies remaining in Cheshire, p. 24
Family and descendants Savage married Dorothy, daughter of Sir Ralph Vernon of Haddon. They had one legitimate son, Sir John Savage (1470–1527), ancestor of John Savage, 2nd Earl Rivers, and the subsequent Earls Rivers; and four legitimate daughters said to be Alice, Felicia, Ellen and Maud Savage.Richardson, Douglas. Royal Ancestry: A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families, 5 vols., ed. Kimball G. Everingham. Vol IV. (1618) Douglas Richardson pp. 557–558 Savage also had an illegitimate son, George Savage, who was rumoured to have been the father of Edmund Bonner, the Bishop of London, who was an instrumental figure in the schism of Henry VIII from Rome before reconciling himself to Catholicism.J. Strype, Ecclesiastical Memorials Relating Chiefly to Religion, and the Reformation of it, Vol. III part 1, pp. 172–73 (Internet Archive). Edmund became notorious as "Bloody Bonner" for his role in the persecution of heretics under the Catholic government of Mary I of England. He ended his life as a prisoner at Marshalsea prison during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I,Carleton, Kenneth. Edmund Bonner : Oxford Dictionary of National Biography and was 'buried at midnight to avoid a riot', such was the hatred for him.Foxe, John: Foxe's Book of Martyrs (1563). p. 249
Early career, support for Edward IV and intrigue against Richard III Edward IV's reign
John Savage was made a Knight of the Bath by Edward IV on the occasion of his Queen's coronation on 26 May 1465.Lee, Sidney, eds. Dictionary of National Biography (2004). Volume 50 p. 388 Savage fought for King Edward and the Yorkists at the Battle of Barnet in 1471 and the Battle of Tewkesbury later that same year, and joined the King's brother, the Duke of Gloucester, for the invasion of Scotland in 1482 (where he was made a knight banneretShaw, William Arthur. (1906) Sherratt and Hughes. The Knights of England: A complete record from the earliest time to the present day of the knights of all the orders of chivalry in England, Scotland, and Ireland, and of knights bachelors, incorporating a complete list of knights bachelors dubbed in Ireland, p. 17 - a knight who commanded soldiers under their own banner). Savage became close to Edward IV, whom he served as royal carver and knight of the body, as well as being appointed by Edward to the position of the Constable of Hanley Castle. Following Edward's sudden death in 1483, Savage served as a pallbearer at his funeral, ranking second in precedence in the cortege that conveyed the King's body to Windsor.Arnold, Morris: Green, Thomas A: Scully, Sally A: White, Stephen D: (editors). (1976) The University of North Carolina Press. On the Laws and Customs of England: Essays in Honor of Samuel E. Thorne. p. 304
Richard III's reign Following the death of Edward, the Duke of Gloucester became the de facto ruler of England, dominating the short rule of his nephew Edward V, and then later becoming the de jure ruler after taking the throne as Richard III. This shortly preceded the mysterious death of Edward V, something which Richard was suspected of having played a part in. During Richard's reign, the Savage family were viewed with suspicion as a result of their support for Edward IV, connection to the Stanley family and the sheer size and influence of the Savage family (Sir John had 9 brothers, most of whom had some degree of influence).Arnold, Morris: Green, Thomas A: Scully, Sally A: White, Stephen D: (editors). (1976) The University of North Carolina Press. On the Laws and Customs of England: Essays in Honor of Samuel E. Thorne. p. 306 Sir John was admitted as a Freeman of Chester in 1484, during the mayoralty of his father. Moreover, in early 1485, eight of his nine brothers were made freemen of the city in a single ceremony. Although the family managed to retain their liberties, amongst rising suspicions Savage began to plot against the King. According to Polydore Vergil, Savage was one of the prominent men who invited Henry Tudor (a claimant to the throne through his descent from the Lancastrian branch of the House of Plantagenet) to invade England. Savage may have also been acting as a front man for his uncle Lord Thomas Stanley. Sir John's ninth brother, Thomas (later archbishop), was studying abroad at the time and almost certainly acted as the Savages' direct link to Henry.Arnold, Morris: Green, Thomas A: Scully, Sally A: White, Stephen D: (editors). (1976) The University of North Carolina Press. On the Laws and Customs of England: Essays in Honor of Samuel E. Thorne. p. 306 Savage's intrigue was discovered in August 1485, supposedly after the arrest of his cousin (and son of Lord Stanley) George Stanley, Lord Strange,Lee, Sidney. Dictionary of National Biography (2004). Volume 50. p. 389 and he was declared a traitor by Richard.Arnold, Morris: Green, Thomas A: Scully, Sally A: White, Stephen D: (editors). (1976) The University of North Carolina Press. On the Laws and Customs of England: Essays in Honor of Samuel E. Thorne. p. 306 Strange was held hostage and would later be used as leverage against his father.Rowse, A. L. (1998) Wordsworth Editions Ltd. Bosworth Field and the Wars of the Roses. p. 219
Support for Henry Tudor (later Henry VII of England) Henry Tudor's landing in Britain and the Battle of Bosworth Field
Henry landed in Britain around the same time that Savage was declared a traitor, and having avoided capture, Savage at once declared for him, raising a considerable body of troops (under his command as a knight banneretShaw, William Arthur. (1906) Sherratt and Hughes. The Knights of England: A complete record from the earliest time to the present day of the knights of all the orders of chivalry in England, Scotland, and Ireland, and of knights bachelors, incorporating a complete list of knights bachelors dubbed in Ireland, p. 17) to aid Henry's cause. Savage joined Henry on his march through Wales and fought for him at Bosworth Field. Savage and his men were originally in the army of his uncles Lord Thomas Stanley and Sir William Stanley, who would hold back whilst deciding which side it would be most advantageous to support.Arnold, Morris: Green, Thomas A: Scully, Sally A: White, Stephen D: (editors). (1976) The University of North Carolina Press. On the Laws and Customs of England: Essays in Honor of Samuel E. Thorne. pp. 306–7 However, before the battle, Savage joined Henry's army along with three other knights; Sir Robert Tunstall, Sir Hugh Persall and Sir Humphrey Stanley, and Savage was placed in command of the left flank of the Tudor forces, Lysons, Daniel: Magna Britannia, being a concise topographical account of the several counties of Great Britain volume II. p. 755 where many of his own men fought, wearing the Savage family's distinctive livery of white hoods, as described in the ballad Bosworth Feilde:Hales, John W. & Furnivall, Frederick J. Bishop Percy's Folio Manuscript: Volume III. [Text taken from The Ballad of Bosworth Fielde] (2020) reprint Salzwasser-Verlag. pp. 233-59
Sir John Savage, that hardy Knight, deathes dentes he delt that day with many a white hood in fight, that sad men were at assay.