Watercolour of Margaret Beauchamp, 19th Century

This small framed watercolour of Margaret Beauchamp, date unknown, was kept by generations of the St.John family and was part of a quantity of family memorabilia belonging to the estate of the 6th Viscount Bolingbroke (d1974).

The portrait of the family's revered ancestor is amateurish in style and is possibly a 19th century copy. Heraldic designs surround Margaret who is shown wearing robes and a coronet.

It was through Margaret Beauchamp's 1st marriage to Oliver St.John in 1420 that Lydiard ultimately became home to the St.John family. Importantly for the St.Johns, her daughter Margaret Beaufort (from her second marriage to John Beaufort, Duke of Somerset) became the mother of King Henry VII, thereby linking the family with the royal Tudor dynasty.

See Items of Interest: The St.John Family Polyptych.