John Holland, 1st Duke of Exeter

The Duke of Exeter
Arms of arms of John Holland, 1st Duke of Exeter: Plantagenet within a bordure argent semy of fleurs-de-lys or
Born	c. 1352
Died	16 January 1400(1400-01-16) (aged 47–48)
Title	Earl of Huntingdon (1388) Duke of Exeter (1397)
Spouse(s)	Elizabeth of Lancaster
Children	Richard Holland Constance Holland Elizabeth Holland Alice Holland John Holland, 2nd Duke of Exeter Sir Edward Holland
Parent(s)	Thomas Holland, 1st Earl of Kent Joan of Kent, "The Fair Maid of Kent"

John Holland, 1st Duke of Exeter KG (c. 1352 – 16 January 1400) also 1st Earl of Huntingdon, was an English nobleman, a half-brother of King Richard II (1377–1399), to whom he remained strongly loyal. He is primarily remembered for being suspected of assisting in the downfall of King Richard's uncle (1355–1397) (youngest son of King Edward III) and then for conspiring against King Richard's first cousin and eventual deposer, Henry Bolingbroke, later King Henry IV (1399–1413).

He was the third son of Thomas Holland, 1st Earl of Kent by his wife Joan of Kent, "The Fair Maid of Kent", daughter of , a son of King Edward I (1272–1307). The Earl of Kent was a title that was created multiple times, including once for Edmund of Woodstock and once for John Holland. Joan later married her cousin Edward, the Black Prince, the eldest son and heir apparent of her first cousin King Edward III, by whom she had a son King Richard II, who was thus a half-brother of John Holland.

Early in King Richard's reign, Holland was made a Knight of the Garter (1381). He was also part of the escort that accompanied the queen-to-be, Anne of Bohemia, on her trip to England.

Holland had a violent temper, which got him in trouble several times. The most famous incident occurred during Richard II's 1385 expedition to the Kingdom of Scotland. An archer in the service of Ralph Stafford, eldest son of Hugh Stafford, 2nd Earl of Stafford, killed one of Holland's esquires. Stafford went to find Holland to apologize, but Holland killed him as soon as he identified himself. King Richard thereupon ordered the forfeiture of Holland's lands. Their mother, Joan of Kent, died shortly afterwards, it was said of grief at the quarrel between two of her sons.