Edward Brampton
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Sir Edward Brampton, ( Portuguese: ''Duarte Brandão'') KG (c.1440–1508) was the Governor of
Guernsey Guernsey ( ; Guernésiais: ''Guernési''; ) is the second-largest island in the Channel Islands, located west of the Cotentin Peninsula, Normandy. It is the largest island in the Bailiwick of Guernsey, which includes five other inhabited isl ...
, a knight, adventurer, ship commander and the godson and protégé of King
Edward IV of England Edward IV (28 April 1442 – 9 April 1483) was King of England from 4 March 1461 to 3 October 1470, then again from 11 April 1471 until his death in 1483. He was a central figure in the Wars of the Roses, a series of civil wars in England ...
.


Origins

Duarte Brandão came from the Jewish community of Portugal.''The first of the Tudors: a study of Henry VII and his reign'', (Taylor & Francis, 1981) By Michael Van Cleave Alexander, page 97 He was brought up in the Jewish faith, but his parentage is uncertain. It has been suggested that his mother was Christian and his father, Rui Barba, was Jewish. Another version is that “Rui Barba was a Christian who begat Edward Brampton out of wedlock with the wife of a Jew.” Later Portuguese genealogy records indicate that his father could have been Fernão Rodrigues Alardo, the main
alcaide Alcaide is a Portuguese and Spanish name, meaning 'castle commander'. It is borrowed from the Arabic term , which literally means 'commander'. Etymology From the Arabic 'commander' it becomes the Spanish form alcayde or alcaide, origin of the ...
of
Leiria Leiria () is a city and municipality in the Central Region, Portugal, Central Region of Portugal. It is the 2nd largest city in that same region, after Coimbra, with a municipality population of 128,640 (as of 2021) in an area of . It is the seat o ...
and Óbidos.


Life in England

Born in about 1440 in the
Jewish community Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, religion, and community are highly inte ...
in
Lisbon Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...
,
Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...
, his mother's name was Mariana and his father was a blacksmith, Duarte emigrated to England during the late 1450s. In order to be accepted at court, he converted to Catholic Christianity, with
King Edward IV Edward IV (28 April 1442 – 9 April 1483) was King of England from 4 March 1461 to 3 October 1470, then again from 11 April 1471 until his death in 1483. He was a central figure in the Wars of the Roses, a series of civil wars in England ...
standing as his sponsor. Upon his conversion, he adopted the English name of Edward Brampton in honour of his Sponsors. Brampton was an adventurer, soldier, and ship's commander, who fought in several engagements during the
War of the Roses The Wars of the Roses, known at the time and in following centuries as the Civil Wars, were a series of armed confrontations, machinations, battles and campaigns fought over control of the English throne from 1455 to 1487. The conflict was fo ...
, including the
Battle of Tewkesbury The Battle of Tewkesbury, which took place on Saturday 4 May 1471, was one of the most decisive battles of the Wars of the Roses in England. King Edward IV and his forces loyal to the House of York completely defeated those of the rival Hou ...
, and was eventually awarded the position of Governor of
Guernsey Guernsey ( ; Guernésiais: ''Guernési''; ) is the second-largest island in the Channel Islands, located west of the Cotentin Peninsula, Normandy. It is the largest island in the Bailiwick of Guernsey, which includes five other inhabited isl ...
. With the help of his wife Lady Margaret Brampton, he won favours in both the Portuguese and English royal courts and was knighted in August 1484 by
Richard III Richard III (2 October 1452 – 22 August 1485) was King of England from 26 June 1483 until his death in 1485. He was the last king of the Plantagenet dynasty and its cadet branch the House of York. His defeat and death at the Battle of Boswor ...
. Following the defeat of Richard III, Brampton left England for the court of Margaret of Burgundy, where it is presumed he met
Perkin Warbeck Perkin Warbeck ( – 23 November 1499) was a pretender to the English throne claiming to be Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York, who was the second son of Edward IV and one of the so-called "Princes in the Tower". Richard, were he alive, would ...
, a pretender to the throne of England, who he later employed. From his marriage to Lady Margaret Brampton, he had six children: João, Jorge, Henrique, Isabel, Maria and Joana.


Popular culture

In the novel '' The Family'', by
Mario Puzo Mario Francis Puzo (; ; October 15, 1920 – July 2, 1999) was an American author and screenwriter. He wrote crime novels about the Italian-American Mafia and Sicilian Mafia, most notably ''The Godfather (novel), The Godfather'' (1969), which h ...
, Duarte Brandão is depicted as an escapee from England who becomes the personal advisor of
Pope Alexander VI Pope Alexander VI (, , ; born Roderic Llançol i de Borja; epithet: ''Valentinus'' ("The Valencian"); – 18 August 1503) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 11 August 1492 until his death in 1503. Born into t ...
(Borgia), a mortal opponent of
Savonarola Savonarola is an Italian surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Girolamo Savonarola (1452–1498), Italian Dominican friar and reformer * Michele Savonarola (1385–), Italian physician, humanist and historian {{Surname, 2=Italian-la ...
. In the novel A Song of Sixpence, by Judith Arnopp, Brampton features as the rescuer of
Richard of Shrewsbury Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York (17 August 1473) was the second son of King Edward IV of England and Elizabeth Woodville. Richard and his older brother, who briefly reigned as King Edward V of England, mysteriously disappeared shortly ...
from the
Tower of London The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic citadel and castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamle ...
.


References


External links



{{DEFAULTSORT:Brampton, Edward History of Guernsey English people of Portuguese-Jewish descent Converts to Roman Catholicism from Judaism 1440s births 1508 deaths English Roman Catholics Jewish British politicians 15th-century English businesspeople 16th-century English businesspeople English people of Portuguese descent Medieval governors of Guernsey