Sir William Plumpton was a 15th century English aristocrat, landowner and administrator.

He was the grandson of Sir William Plumpton executed in 1405 for treason by Henry IV

Henry IV of England

Henry IV was King of England and Lord of Ireland . He was the ninth King of England of the House of Plantagenet and also asserted his grandfather's claim to the title King of France. He was born at Bolingbroke Castle in Lincolnshire, hence his other name, Henry Bolingbroke...

 and the son of Sir Robert Plumpton of Plumpton Hall, Yorkshire. On the death of his father in 1421 he became the ward of Henry Percy, 2nd Earl of Northumberland

Henry Percy, 2nd Earl of Northumberland

Henry Percy, 2nd Earl of Northumberland was an English nobleman and military commander in the lead up to the Wars of the Roses. He was the son of Henry "Hotspur" Percy, and the grandson of Henry Percy, 1st Earl of Northumberland...

.

He served in the French war 1427-30 and was knighted. On his return to England he was appointed by Northumberland as Seneschal

Seneschal

A seneschal was an officer in the houses of important nobles in the Middle Ages. In the French administrative system of the Middle Ages, the sénéchal was also a royal officer in charge of justice and control of the administration in southern provinces, equivalent to the northern French bailli...

 of Knaresborough Castle

Knaresborough Castle

Knaresborough Castle is a ruined fortress overlooking the River Nidd in the town of Knaresborough, North Yorkshire, England.-History:The castle was first built by a Norman baron in c.1100 on a cliff above the River Nidd. There is documentary evidence dating from 1130 referring to works carried out...

 and Steward of Northumberland's Spofforth estates.

Plumpton's own estates included Plumpton Hall, Yorkshire, Mansfield Woodhouse, Nottinghamshire and Hassop Hall

Hassop Hall

Hassop Hall is a 17th-century country house near Bakewell, Derbyshire which is now operated as an hotel. It is a Grade II* listed building.The Manor was owned by the Foljambe family until the 14th century when it passed by the marriage of Alice Foljambe to Sir Robert Plumpton. His son Sir William...

, Derbyshire. He represented Nottinghamshire

Nottinghamshire (UK Parliament constituency)

Nottinghamshire was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of England then of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800 and of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1832...

 in the Parliament of 1436. He served as High Sheriff of Yorkshire

High Sheriff of Yorkshire

The High Sheriff of Yorkshire was an ancient High Sheriff title originating in the time of the Angles, not long after the invasion of the Kingdom of England, which was in existence for around a thousand years. A list of the sheriffs from the Norman conquest onwards can be found below...

 in 1447 and High Sheriff of Derbyshire

High Sheriff of Derbyshire

This is a list of High Sheriffs of Derbyshire from 1568.The High Sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. Formerly the High Sheriff was the principal law enforcement officer in the county but over the centuries most of the responsibilities associated with the post have been...

 in 1453.

During the War of the Roses he fought on the Lancastrian side at the Battle of Towton

Battle of Towton

In 1461, England was in the sixth year of the Wars of the Roses, a series of civil wars between the Houses of York and Lancaster over the English throne. The Lancastrians backed the reigning King of England, Henry VI, an indecisive man who suffered bouts of madness...

 in 1461, where his son William and his benefactor Henry Percy, 3rd Earl of Northumberland

Henry Percy, 3rd Earl of Northumberland

Henry Percy, 3rd Earl of Northumberland was the son of Henry Percy, 2nd Earl of Northumberland and Lady Eleanor Neville, daughter of Ralph Neville, 1st Earl of Westmorland and his second wife Joan Beaufort.-Family:...

 were slain. Plumpton was captured but later was pardoned by Edward IV and regained his offices in 1471.

He married firstly in 1430, Elizabeth Stapleton of Carlton, Yorkshire and secondly in 1451 Joan Winteringham.