Henry Stafford (c. 1425 – 1471) was soon released following a petition from his wife. After the Readeption of Henry VI in October, Henry and Margaret, together with Henry Tudor and his uncle, Jasper Tudor, attended an audience with the restored King and dined with the King's chamberlain, Sir Richard Tunstall. In March 1471 Edward IV landed with a small army. The leading Lancastrian commander, the Duke of Somerset, visited Henry and Margaret, his first cousin, at Woking in an attempt to persuade Henry to join the Lancastrian army which was being mustered. Henry was reluctant to commit himself, and adopted delaying tactics. However, on April
Henry Stafford (c. 1425 – 1471) 12 he made a firm decision to support Edward and to join him, accompanied by his Steward, John Gilpyn, and other retainers. Although ill-prepared, Henry and his men travelled to Barnet, where the Yorkists won a decisive victory on 14 April 1471. The previous day Henry had made a hastily drafted will, in which he referred to Margaret as “my most entire belovyd wyff”. Henry is believed to have suffered from the skin disease erysipelas, also known as “St Anthony’s Fire” and thought at the time to be a form of leprosy. In the last few years of his life,