Robert de Vere, 19th Earl of Oxford (b. after 23 August 1575 – 7 August 1632) was the second cousin of Henry de Vere, 18th Earl of Oxford

Henry de Vere, 18th Earl of Oxford

Henry de Vere, 18th Earl of Oxford was an English aristocrat, courtier and soldier.-Life:He was born on 24 February 1593 at Newington, Middlesex, the only son of Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford, by his second wife, Elizabeth Trentham. He succeeded his father as on 24 June 1604.He is said to...

. When Henry died some time between 2 and 9 June 1625, Robert emerged as the heir apparent to the earldom. Robert's claim was by his descent from John de Vere, 15th Earl of Oxford

John de Vere, 15th Earl of Oxford

John de Vere, 15th Earl of Oxford was an English peer and courtier.-Biography:John de Vere was the son of John de Vere and Alice Kilrington , and the great-grandson of Richard de Vere, 11th Earl of Oxford, succeeding his second cousin, John de Vere, 14th Earl of Oxford.Oxford was Esquire of the...

, but his title was not immediately confirmed. He was considered to have an inadequate estate in England, and only after a long debate in the House of Lords

House of Lords

The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....

 in April 1626 did he eventually secure his title.
After this he returned to his home in the Low Countries

Low Countries

The Low Countries are the historical lands around the low-lying delta of the Rhine, Scheldt, and Meuse rivers, including the modern countries of Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and parts of northern France and western Germany....

, where he had made a career for himself as a soldier in the Dutch army. He married Beatrice, or Bauck, daughter of the Dutch nobleman Sierck van Hemmema. In 1632 Robert was killed while taking part in the siege of Maastricht

Capture of Maastricht

The siege of Maastricht was fought between June 9, 1632 to August 22, 1632 where the Dutch commander Frederick Henry, Prince of Orange eventually captured the city from Spanish forces.-Background:...

. His title passed to his five-year-old son Aubrey, who would in turn become the last in an almost 600-year line of de Vere earls of Oxford.