Sir John Forster (c.1520–1602) was an English military commander and Warden of the Middle Marches.

Life

Born about 1520, he was son of Sir Thomas Forster (d. 1527) of Etherston,

Northumberland Northumberland ( ) is a ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North East England, on the Anglo-Scottish border, border with Scotland. It is bordered by the North Sea to the east, Tyne and Wear and County Durham to the south, Cumb ...

, marshal of Berwick, and his wife Dorothy, daughter of Ralph Ogle, 3rd

Baron Ogle Baron Ogle is an abeyant title in the Peerage of England. It was created in 1461 for Robert Ogle. It fell into abeyance in 1691. The Ogles were a prominent Northumbrian family from before the time of the Norman Conquest. They settled at Ogle, Nort ...

and Margaret Gascoigne. Trained from early youth in border warfare, he was in August 1542 put in command of

Harbottle Castle Harbottle Castle is a ruined medieval castle situated at the west end of the village of Harbottle, Northumberland, England, west-north-west of Rothbury overlooking the River Coquet. It is a Scheduled Ancient Monument and a Grade I listed bui ...

with a garrison of a hundred men. He fought at the

Battle of Solway Moss The Battle of Solway Moss took place on Solway Moss near the River Esk on the English side of the Anglo-Scottish border in November 1542 between English and Scottish forces. The Scottish King James V had refused to break from the Catholic Chu ...

, 23 November 1542, under

Thomas Wharton, 1st Baron Wharton Sir Thomas Wharton, 1st Baron Wharton (1495 – 23 August 1568) was an English nobleman and a follower of King Henry VIII of England. He is best known for his victory at Solway Moss on 24 November 1542 for which he was given a barony. Early life ...

, and claimed to have captured

Robert Maxwell, 5th Baron Maxwell Robert Maxwell, 5th Lord Maxwell (1493 – 9 July 1546) was a member of the Council of Regency (1536) of the Kingdom of Scotland, Regent of the Isle of Arran and like his father before him patriarch of the House of Maxwell/Clan Maxwell. A distingu ...

;

Cuthbert Tunstall Cuthbert Tunstall (otherwise spelt Tunstal or Tonstall; 1474 – 18 November 1559) was an England, English humanist, bishop, diplomat, administrator and royal adviser. He served as Bishop of Durham during the reigns of Henry VIII, Edward VI of ...

and Suffolk, however, determined that Maxwell's real captor was Edward Aglionby. He fought also at the

Battle of Pinkie Cleugh The Battle of Pinkie, also known as the Battle of Pinkie Cleugh (), took place on 10 September 1547 on the banks of the River Esk, Lothian, River Esk near Musselburgh, Scotland. The last pitched battle between Scotland and England before the U ...

, 1547. Knighted by Protector Somerset in 1547, he was sheriff of Northumberland, 1549–50. On 4 August 1563 he was appointed a commissioner to treat concerning the

delimitation Electoral boundary delimitation (or simply boundary delimitation or delimitation) is the drawing of boundaries of electoral precincts and related divisions involved in elections, such as Federated state, states, counties or other municipalities ...

of the borders, and on 10 January 1565 to discuss the position of

James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray (c. 1531 – 23 January 1570) was a member of the House of Stewart as the illegitimate son of King James V of Scotland. At times a supporter of his half-sister Mary, Queen of Scots, he was the regent of Scotl ...

and other Scottish exiles in England. In 1569 he assisted in suppressing the Rebellion of the Northern Earls, and in 1570 took punitive measures against the Scottish borderers who had helped them. In August 1572 he was ordered to have the

Earl of Northumberland The title of Earl of Northumberland has been created several times in the Peerage of England and of Great Britain, succeeding the title Earl of Northumbria. Its most famous holders are the House of Percy (''alias'' Perci), who were the most po ...

executed. Forster came to

Holyrood Palace The Palace of Holyroodhouse ( or ), commonly known as Holyrood Palace, is the official residence of the British monarch in Scotland. Located at the bottom of the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, at the opposite end to Edinburgh Castle, Holyrood has s ...

in August 1573 as an ambassador to discuss border affairs. His role included regular meetings with the Scottish Wardens on days of truce. His meeting with

Sir John Carmichael Sir John Carmichael (died 16 June 1600) was a Scottish soldier, the Keeper of Liddesdale, a diplomat, and owner of Fenton Tower at Kingston, East Lothian. Career He was the son of John Carmichael and Elizabeth Somerville, a daughter of Hugh Somer ...

on 7 July 1575 turned into a battle, and he was defeated and captured. His lieutenant, Sir George Heron, among others, was killed. Forster and his companions, after a few days at

Dalkeith Palace Dalkeith Palace is a country house in Dalkeith, Midlothian, Scotland. It was the seat of the Duke of Buccleuch, Dukes of Buccleuch from 1642 until 1914, and is owned by the Buccleuch Living Heritage Trust. The present palace was built 1701–1711 ...

, were released by

Regent Morton James Douglas, 4th Earl of Morton (c. 1516 – 2 June 1581) was a Scottish nobleman. He played a leading role in the murders of Queen Mary's confidant, David Rizzio, and king consort Henry Darnley. He was the last of the four regents of Scot ...

, on Elizabeth's remonstrances. On 27 July 1585, Forster and his son-in-law, Francis, Lord Russell were attacked by

Thomas Kerr of Ferniehirst Thomas Kerr of Ferniehirst (died 31 March 1586) was a Scottish landowner, Roman Catholic and supporter of Mary, Queen of Scots. He and Jean Scott ended the feud between the Scott family and the Kerrs. Thomas and Jean were both involved with suppor ...

, and Russell was killed. Forster at first described it as an accident, but this did not suit the English government, and, with a view to exacting compensation, Russell's death was represented as the result of a deliberate plot. Meanwhile, various accusations, promoted perhaps by local feuds, were brought against Forster; he was said to have connived at murder, set thieves at liberty, executed others on insufficient grounds, and had dealings with

wreckers. Articles based on these accusations were drawn up on 27 September 1586, and Forster was dismissed from his office, Lord Eure being appointed in his place. Lord Hunsdon, however, thought the charges frivolous, and about April 1588 Forster was restored as warden. In June 1594 he made a proclamation that no one in the wardenry should receive the Scottish rebel

Francis Stewart, 5th Earl of Bothwell Francis Stewart, 5th Earl of Bothwell (c. December 1562 – November 1612), was Commendator of Kelso Abbey and Coldingham Priory, a Privy Counsellor and Lord High Admiral of Scotland. He was a notorious conspirator who led several uprisings aga ...

. He asked the Mayor of Newcastle, Lionel Maddison to keep sure custody of Jacob Kroger and Guillaume Martin, who had stolen jewels from the Scottish queen

Anne of Denmark Anne of Denmark (; 12 December 1574 – 2 March 1619) was the wife of King James VI and I. She was List of Scottish royal consorts, Queen of Scotland from their marriage on 20 August 1589 and List of English royal consorts, Queen of Engl ...

. Forster held the wardenry until October 1595, when he was again superseded by Lord Eure; his removal was due partly to his old age, partly to a renewal of the charges against him. On 24 October 1597 he was nearly surprised at

Bamburgh Castle Bamburgh Castle, on the northeast coast of England, by the village of Bamburgh in Northumberland, is a Grade I listed building. The site was originally the location of a Celtic Britons, Celtic Brittonic fort known as ''Din Guarie'' and may have ...

by a party of Scots. He died at Bamburgh on 13 January 1602.

Family

He had only daughters (not confirmed) with his wife Jane, daughter of Cuthbert Radcliffe (Walsinghams' spy in the Percy House), and widow of Robert Ogle, 5th Baron Ogle. Their daughter Eleanor,Collins, A. (1720). The Baronettage of England: Being an Historical and Genealogical Account of Baronets, from Their First Institution in the Reign of King James I. : Containing Their Descents, the Remarkable Actions and Employments of Them and Their Ancestors: as Also Their Marriages, Issue, &c. with Their Coats of Arms and Crests Engrav'd and Blazon'd, (Vol. 2, pp.121). London: W. Taylor
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or Juliana, wife of Francis, Lord Russell, was the mother of

Edward Russell, 3rd Earl of Bedford Edward Russell, 3rd Earl of Bedford (20 December 1572 – 3 May 1627) was an English nobleman and politician. Early life He was the son of Sir Francis Russell, Lord Russell and his wife, Eleanor Forster.Collins, A. (1720). ''The Baronettag ...

; and another daughter, Grace, married Sir William Fenwick of Wallington, and was mother of Sir John Fenwick, 1st Baronet.Hodgson, J. & Hodgson-Hinde, J. (1827). "Pedigrees of Strother and Fenwick of Wallington." A History of Northumberland in Three Parts, (pp.256). E. Walker
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His son Nicholas, deputy-warden under John himself, was knighted in 1603. He was the father of Sir Claudius Forster, 1st Baronet, who died without issue; and John, who did not inherit the title but succeeded to his brother's estate. Nicholas' mother was Janet Buicks.Maureen M. Meikle, "Forster, Sir John (c. 1515–1602)", ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 2004. Retrieved 25 April 2024.

References

* ;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Forster, John 1520s births 1602 deaths 16th-century English soldiers Military personnel from Northumberland 16th-century English knights