Ralph Greystoke, 5th Baron Greystoke

By his marriage to Elizabeth, daughter of William, Lord FitzHugh he formalized the long-standing alliance that had existed between the two families for some time.

A resident of Greystoke Castle in Cumberland, he was frequently called upon to the king's service in matters concerning the English-Scotland border.

[2] In 1444, Greystoke escorted the king's new bride, Margaret d'Anjou back to England, as part of the duke of Suffolk's embassy.

Later that year he was instructed by the Yorkist government to raise troops in Yorkshire to assist in crushing disorder that had broken out in neighbouring Lancashire.

However, it has been suggested that as he was probably absent from the decisive Battle of Towton two months later, which led to the accession of York's eldest son as King Edward IV of England, this possibly demonstrates that his loyalties to the Nevilles had never diminished, and that in spite of Wakefield and St Albans, "he had been playing a double game" since Ludford.