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John Golafre (died 1442) was an English courtier and Member of Parliament.

He was born the only son of Thomas Golafre of Radley Manor in Berkshire (now Oxfordshire). An uncle was Sir John Brocas, Master of the King's Horse.^[1] A cousin, Sir John Golafre, was a close friend of the king.^[1] By 1395 he had secured a position at the court of Richard II.

In 1396 he inherited the extensive estates of his uncle, another Sir John Golafre. The older Sir John was the Constable of Wallingford Castle and had married Philippa, daughter of Lord Mohun, but died without issue. He is buried in Westminster Abbey.^[2]

In 1397 he was appointed Sheriff of Oxfordshire and Berkshire. He was also that year elected as a Knight of the Shire (MP) for Oxfordshire. In 1399 he was briefly imprisoned by Henry IV for his support of King Richard but in 1404 was reappointed sheriff. He was afterwards appointed sheriff for 1414 and 1424. During much of this period he also served as a Justice of the Peace (JP) for Oxfordshire.

He was elected MP for Berkshire in 1401 and re-elected on another 11 occasions between then and 1429. He also served on a number of commissions and was tax controller (1404), escheator (1409–1410), controller and surveyor of Woodstock Palace (1413–1438) in Oxfordshire and verderer of Woodstock Park (1398 to his death in 1442). In 1406 he gained possession of Fyfield Manor in Berkshire (now Oxfordshire), which he made his home.

He was amongst Henry V's army on his second French expedition in 1417 and was appointed Receiver-General of the Duchy of Normandy and all occupied France in 1418.

On his death in 1442 he was buried under a remarkable two-tier "memento mori" tomb in the Golafre chantry which he founded in St Nicholas' church, Fyfield. On the lower tier he is portrayed by a stone carving of a cadaver in an advanced state of decay with sunken eyes, taut neck and exposed ribs. On the upper tier he is presented in full plate armour.^[3]

He married three times: firstly Elizabeth, the daughter of Sir Edmund de la Pole of Boarstall Castle in Buckinghamshire, co-heiress of her mother, Elizabeth Handlo, and widow of Sir Ingram Bruyn of South Ockendon in Essex; secondly Nicola, the daughter and heiress of Thomas Devenish of Greatham in Hampshire and widow of John Englefield of Englefield House in Berkshire; and thirdly Margaret, the daughter of Sir John Heveningham, and widow of Sir Walter de la Pole of Dernford in Sawston, Cambridgeshire.

References

^ ^a ^b "John Golafre (d. 1442)". David Nash Ford's Royal Berkshire History. Retrieved 31 October 2012.
^ "Inventory of Monuments of Westminster Abbey: The Church Pages 17-76 An Inventory of the Historical Monuments in London, Volume 1, Westminster Abbey". British History Online. HMSO 1924. Retrieved 11 April 2023.
^ "Victoria County History of Berkshire Volume 4". British History Online. Retrieved 31 October 2012.

"GOLAFRE, John (d.1442), of Fyfield, Berks". History of Parliament Online. Retrieved 31 October 2012.

Parliament of England
Preceded by John Abberbury Thomas Barantyn	Member of Parliament for Oxfordshire 1397–1398 With: William Wilcotes	Succeeded by John Wilcotes Thomas Barantyn
Preceded by Robert James Edmund Sparsholt	Member of Parliament for Berkshire 1401 With: Thomas Gloucester	Succeeded by John Arches Robert James
Preceded by Sir William Langford Edmund Sparsholt	Member of Parliament for Berkshire 1404 With: John Arches	Succeeded by Thomas Childrey Laurence Drew
Preceded by Thomas Childrey Laurence Drew	Member of Parliament for Berkshire 1407–1410 With: Edmund Sparsholt 1407 Robert James 1410	Succeeded by Unknown
Preceded by Unknown	Member of Parliament for Berkshire 1413–1414 With: Robert de la Mare 1413 Edmund Sparsholt 1414	Succeeded by Laurence Drew John Shotesbrook
Preceded by Unknown	Member of Parliament for Berkshire 1416 With: Sir Peter Bessels	Succeeded by Unknown
Preceded by William Danvers Thomas Rothwell	Member of Parliament for Berkshire 1421 With: William Fynderne	Succeeded by William Danvers William Perkins
Preceded by William Danvers William Perkins	Member of Parliament for Berkshire 1422 With: Unknown	Succeeded by Sir Peter Bessels Unknown
Preceded by Unknown	Member of Parliament for Berkshire 1426–1430 With: Unknown	Succeeded by Unknown
Political offices
Preceded by William Wood	High Sheriff of Berkshire and Oxfordshire 1397–1399	Succeeded by Nicholas Golafre
Preceded by Thomas Chaucer	High Sheriff of Berkshire and Oxfordshire 1404–1405	Succeeded by Sir William Langford
Preceded by Thomas Wykeham	High Sheriff of Berkshire and Oxfordshire 1414–1415	Succeeded by John Wilcotes
Preceded by Sir Thomas Stonor	High Sheriff of Berkshire and Oxfordshire 1424–1426	Succeeded by Sir Richard Walkstead