Roger Machado (officer of arms)
Encyclopedia
Roger Machado was an English diplomat
and officer of arms
of Portuguese
extraction. He lived among the Portuguese merchants at Bruges
in 1455.
in 1478 and 1480. As Leicester he also participated in Edward IV's
funeral in April of 1483. Although an inventory of his household goods in 1484 shows that he was living a comfortable married life, his failure to pay debts forced him to flee the country. Thus in 1484—the year of the incorporation of the College of Arms
—Machado was importing wine from Spain.
From January 1485 Machado took part in various missions abroad in the service of the Marquess of Dorset
. These were most likely missions to help the exiled Henry Tudor
. Just before the Battle of Bosworth Field
, Henry made him his own personal officer of arms as Richmond Herald
. Machado came over to England with Henry and on 21 September, as Richmond Herald, was appointed searcher of customs at Southampton. By the end of October he had been appointed Richmond King of Arms. On Christmas Day he was promoted to Norroy King of Arms even though the present incumbent officer, John Moore, continued in that office until his death in 1491. On 24 January 1494 Machado was appointed Clarenceux King of Arms
.
, Garter King of Arms, were granted a joint licence to make visitations
. There is no evidence that they or their deputies undertook these journeys. Machado wished to concentrate on his trading activities and diplomatic missions rather than on his heraldic duties. In 1505, the king offered Machado the office of Garter King of Arms, but he declined on the grounds that he was too old and weak. Machado also handed over to Thomas Writhe, the new Garter, many of the duties of Clarenceux. In January 1509 the two formalized an agreement where Machado handing over substantial powers as Clarenceux in return for a payment of £4 a year from Garter Writhe.
. He was involved in numerous missions and many were of a highly sensitive nature. He described three of these missions in his journal. The first was to Spain
and Portugal
in 1488 and 1489 and the other two were both to Brittany
in 1490 when he took a much larger part in the negotiations. In August of 1494 he was dispatched to the court of Charles VIII of France
to discuss Charles's offer of aid to Henry should the emperor Maximilian support Perkin Warbeck's
claim to the English throne. In 1495, 1496, and 1497 he again visited Charles. On the last occasion he may have had with him Warbeck's confession since he had been involved in the impostor's recent surrender.
Machado is known to have spoken English
, French
, Spanish
, and Portuguese
, and probably he also spoke Italian
and Latin. The Milan
ese ambassador considered him wise, endowed with wit and discretion, a man who saw everything. He was clearly an old friend and faithful servant of Henry VII. In June of 1483 Machado was described as late of Southampton and formerly of London. He died on 6 May 1510.
Diplomat
A diplomat is a person appointed by a state to conduct diplomacy with another state or international organization. The main functions of diplomats revolve around the representation and protection of the interests and nationals of the sending state, as well as the promotion of information and...
and officer of arms
Officer of arms
An officer of arms is a person appointed by a sovereign or state with authority to perform one or more of the following functions:*to control and initiate armorial matters*to arrange and participate in ceremonies of state...
of Portuguese
Portuguese people
The Portuguese are a nation and ethnic group native to the country of Portugal, in the west of the Iberian peninsula of south-west Europe. Their language is Portuguese, and Roman Catholicism is the predominant religion....
extraction. He lived among the Portuguese merchants at Bruges
Bruges
Bruges is the capital and largest city of the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is located in the northwest of the country....
in 1455.
Early heraldic career
The first reference to Machado's heraldic activities is as Leicester Herald on missions to the Low CountriesLow Countries
The Low Countries are the historical lands around the low-lying delta of the Rhine, Scheldt, and Meuse rivers, including the modern countries of Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and parts of northern France and western Germany....
in 1478 and 1480. As Leicester he also participated in Edward IV's
Edward IV of England
Edward IV was King of England from 4 March 1461 until 3 October 1470, and again from 11 April 1471 until his death. He was the first Yorkist King of England...
funeral in April of 1483. Although an inventory of his household goods in 1484 shows that he was living a comfortable married life, his failure to pay debts forced him to flee the country. Thus in 1484—the year of the incorporation of the College of Arms
College of Arms
The College of Arms, or Heralds’ College, is an office regulating heraldry and granting new armorial bearings for England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
—Machado was importing wine from Spain.
From January 1485 Machado took part in various missions abroad in the service of the Marquess of Dorset
Thomas Grey, 1st Marquess of Dorset
Thomas Grey, 7th Baron Ferrers of Groby, 1st Earl of Huntingdon and 1st Marquess of Dorset, KG , was an English nobleman, courtier and a man of mediocre abilities pushed into prominence by his mother Elizabeth Woodville's second marriage to the king, Edward IV.-Family:Thomas was born about 1455,...
. These were most likely missions to help the exiled Henry Tudor
Henry VII of England
Henry VII was King of England and Lord of Ireland from his seizing the crown on 22 August 1485 until his death on 21 April 1509, as the first monarch of the House of Tudor....
. Just before the Battle of Bosworth Field
Battle of Bosworth Field
The Battle of Bosworth Field was the penultimate battle of the Wars of the Roses, the civil war between the House of Lancaster and the House of York that raged across England in the latter half of the 15th century. Fought on 22 August 1485, the battle was won by the Lancastrians...
, Henry made him his own personal officer of arms as Richmond Herald
Richmond Herald
Richmond Herald of Arms in Ordinary is an officer of arms of the College of Arms in England. From 1421 to 1485 Richmond was a herald to John, Duke of Bedford, George, Duke of Clarence, and Henry, Earl of Richmond, all of whom held the Honour of Richmond...
. Machado came over to England with Henry and on 21 September, as Richmond Herald, was appointed searcher of customs at Southampton. By the end of October he had been appointed Richmond King of Arms. On Christmas Day he was promoted to Norroy King of Arms even though the present incumbent officer, John Moore, continued in that office until his death in 1491. On 24 January 1494 Machado was appointed Clarenceux King of Arms
Clarenceux King of Arms
Clarenceux King of Arms is an officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. Clarenceux is the senior of the two provincial kings of arms and his jurisdiction is that part of England south of the River Trent. The office almost certainly existed in 1420, and there is a fair degree of...
.
Later heraldic career
In June of 1498 Machado and John WritheJohn Writhe
John Writhe was a long-serving English officer of arms. He was probably the son of William Writhe, who represented the borough of Cricklade in the Parliament of 1450–51, and is most remembered for being the first Garter King of Arms to preside over the College of Arms...
, Garter King of Arms, were granted a joint licence to make visitations
Heraldic visitation
Heraldic Visitations were tours of inspection undertaken by Kings of Arms in England, Wales and Ireland in order to regulate and register the coats of arms of nobility and gentry and boroughs, and to record pedigrees...
. There is no evidence that they or their deputies undertook these journeys. Machado wished to concentrate on his trading activities and diplomatic missions rather than on his heraldic duties. In 1505, the king offered Machado the office of Garter King of Arms, but he declined on the grounds that he was too old and weak. Machado also handed over to Thomas Writhe, the new Garter, many of the duties of Clarenceux. In January 1509 the two formalized an agreement where Machado handing over substantial powers as Clarenceux in return for a payment of £4 a year from Garter Writhe.
Diplomatic career
In spite of his long heraldic career, Machado is best remembered as an accomplished diplomatDiplomat
A diplomat is a person appointed by a state to conduct diplomacy with another state or international organization. The main functions of diplomats revolve around the representation and protection of the interests and nationals of the sending state, as well as the promotion of information and...
. He was involved in numerous missions and many were of a highly sensitive nature. He described three of these missions in his journal. The first was to Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
and Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
in 1488 and 1489 and the other two were both to Brittany
Brittany
Brittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Previously a kingdom and then a duchy, Brittany was united to the Kingdom of France in 1532 as a province. Brittany has also been referred to as Less, Lesser or Little Britain...
in 1490 when he took a much larger part in the negotiations. In August of 1494 he was dispatched to the court of Charles VIII of France
Charles VIII of France
Charles VIII, called the Affable, , was King of France from 1483 to his death in 1498. Charles was a member of the House of Valois...
to discuss Charles's offer of aid to Henry should the emperor Maximilian support Perkin Warbeck's
Perkin Warbeck
Perkin Warbeck was a pretender to the English throne during the reign of King Henry VII of England. By claiming to be Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York, the younger son of King Edward IV, one of the Princes in the Tower, Warbeck was a significant threat to the newly established Tudor Dynasty,...
claim to the English throne. In 1495, 1496, and 1497 he again visited Charles. On the last occasion he may have had with him Warbeck's confession since he had been involved in the impostor's recent surrender.
Machado is known to have spoken English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
, and Portuguese
Portuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
, and probably he also spoke Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
and Latin. The Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
ese ambassador considered him wise, endowed with wit and discretion, a man who saw everything. He was clearly an old friend and faithful servant of Henry VII. In June of 1483 Machado was described as late of Southampton and formerly of London. He died on 6 May 1510.
External links
Sources
- Walter H Godfrey and Sir Anthony WagnerAnthony WagnerSir Anthony Richard Wagner, KCB, KCVO, FSA was a long-serving officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. He served as Garter Principal King of Arms before retiring to the post of Clarenceux King of Arms...
, The College of Arms, Queen Victoria Street: being the sixteenth and final monograph of the London Survey Committee. (London, 1963). - M. Jones, Les Ambassades de Roger Machado, 147–60.
- Sir Anthony Wagner. Heralds of England: a History of the Office and College of Arms. (London, 1967).
- B. André, Historia Regis Henrici Septimi, (1858).
- F. Madden, Documents Relating to Perkin Warbeck with Remarks on His History, Archaeologia, 27 (1838), 153–210.
- I. Arthurson, The Perkin Warbeck Conspiracy, 1491–1499. (1994).