The 1st Baron of Hastings, William Hastings was an English diplomat and soldier, as well as the Master of Mint and Lord Chamberlain of the royal household of King Edward IV. Hastings raised troops for Edward during the Earl of Warwick's Rebellion, supporting the House of York during the Wars of the Roses. Following Edward's death, Hastings took Edward's royal mistress, Jane Shore, as his concubine. Shore encouraged Hastings to oppose the ascension of the Yorkist Duke of Gloucester, later Richard III, to the throne. Upon seizing the throne, Richard had Hastings executed for treason.