4th January 1483: Francis is granted his viscouncy

On 4th January 1483, during the last Christmas festivities at Edward IV`s court, Francis was created a viscount by the king. He was only one of two men so honoured in Edward IV`s reign - the other being William Lord Berkeley in 1481 - and it may have come as a surprise to many that the king chose Francis for such an elevation, a man who had previously hardly been involved in politics and mostly kept a low profile.

There is no certainty why Edward chose to do so, though traditionally it has been attributed to Richard of Gloucester`s influence on his brother. Unlike many traditional claims about Richard, this is most likely correct. Though there is no evidence at all that Francis was ever in any way out of favour with Edward, there is also none he was ever in special favour with him. Nor is there any indication that Francis`s involvement in the Scottish campaigns in the previous years warranted a special reward.

While it is likely that Richard knew to persuade his brother of honouring Francis in this way by explaining his merits to him, we do not know how he did it, or why Richard chose to do so. Given Francis`s above-mentioned lack of involvement in politics and Richard being known to give Francis small favours for apparently no other reason than personal affection, it may have been a personal decision. However, it is probably rather unlikely Edward agreed to honour Francis like this simply because his brother liked him, and it is a safe assumption Richard had some arguments to persuade him. What they were, we sadly no longer know.

We have, however, a good description of the ceremony making him a viscount, found in the Additional Manuscripts of the British Library and summed up as follows by J.M.Williams in her article: "The Political Career of Francis Viscount Lovell (1456-?)":

"The ceremony began with his entering the King`s great chamber, dressed in his parliament robes, led between his cousin, Lord Morley, and his brother-in-law, Richard, Lord FitzHugh [his sponsors]. His patent was read aloud by the King`s secretary, and he proceeded to his chamber accompanied by the sound of trumpets. There he distributed fees to the "officers of arms" and his titles were recited in the hall - "puissant et noble visconte Lovell, sieur de Holland, de Burnell, Deygnecort et de Grey de Rotherfilde"."

How Francis reacted to being given this honour, if he was happy to finally be recognised by the king, if he had hoped and longed for it or if it was unexpected for him, we also do not know, any more than what impression he made during the ceremony and his time at Edward`s court, and how other courtiers reacted to him. It is certain, though, that it was the first step on a steep if short career at the royal court for Francis, which took him to perhaps unexpected heights from later that year, when Edward IV died, to Richard`s death in 1485.