This is a translation of the 'Memoires of Jacques du Clercq', published in 1823 in two volumes, edited by Frederic, Baron de Reissenberg. In his introduction Reissenberg writes: 'Jacques du Clercq tells us that he was born in 1424, and that he was a licentiate in law and a counsellor to Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, in the castellany of Douai, Lille, and Orchies. It appears that he established his residence at Arras. In 1446, he married the daughter of Baldwin de la Lacherie, a gentleman who lived in Lille. We read in the fifth book of his Memoirs that his father, also named Jacques du Clercq, had married a lady of the Le Camelin family, from Compiègne. His ancestors, always attached to the counts of Flanders, had constantly served them, whether in their councils or in their armies.' The Memoires cover a period of nineteen years beginning in in 1448, ending in in 1467. It appears that the author had intended to extend the Memoirs beyond that date; no doubt illness or death prevented him from carrying out this plan. As Reissenberg writes the 'merit of this work lies in the simplicity of its narrative, in its tone of good faith, and in a certain air of frankness which naturally wins the reader’s confidence.' Du Clercq ranges from events of national and international importance, including events of the Wars of the Roses in England, to simple, everyday local events such as marriages, robberies, murders, trials and deaths, including that of his own father in Book 5; one of his last entries.
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In 1529 Anthony Dillington of Knighton on the Isle of Wight was born to [his father] Walter Dillington of Dillington in Somerset and [his mother] Margaret Lovell.
On 23rd October 1552 Anthony Dillington of Knighton on the Isle of Wight (age 23) was appointed Comptroller of the Port of Poole which office he held until 1561 or later.
In October 1553 Anthony Dillington of Knighton on the Isle of Wight (age 24) was elected MP Poole.
In November 1554 Anthony Dillington of Knighton on the Isle of Wight (age 25) was elected MP Poole.
In or before 1558 Anthony Dillington of Knighton on the Isle of Wight (age 28) and Anne Reade were married. They had two sons and four daughetrs.
Around 1570 [his daughter] Amy Dillington was born to Anthony Dillington of Knighton on the Isle of Wight (age 41). She married in or before 1582 Richard Burgh of Stow Hall and had issue.
Before 1572 Richard Goddard of Poole and Southampton and [his future wife] Cecily Biddlecombe were married.
In or after 1572 Anthony Dillington of Knighton on the Isle of Wight (age 43) and Cecily Biddlecombe were married.
In or before 1582 [his son-in-law] Richard Burgh of Stow Hall (age 24) and [his daughter] Amy Dillington (age 11) were married. They had four sons and two daughters.
Before 12th May 1585 [his son-in-law] William Oglander of West Dean, Sussex and [his daughter] Anne Dillington were married.
On 20th September 1587 Anthony Dillington of Knighton on the Isle of Wight (age 58) died.
William of Worcester's Chronicle of England
William of Worcester, born around 1415, and died around 1482 was secretary to John Fastolf, the renowned soldier of the Hundred Years War, during which time he collected documents, letters, and wrote a record of events. Following their return to England in 1440 William was witness to major events. Twice in his chronicle he uses the first person: 1. when writing about the murder of Thomas, 7th Baron Scales, in 1460, he writes '… and I saw him lying naked in the cemetery near the porch of the church of St. Mary Overie in Southwark …' and 2. describing King Edward IV's entry into London in 1461 he writes '… proclaimed that all the people themselves were to recognize and acknowledge Edward as king. I was present and heard this, and immediately went down with them into the city'. William’s Chronicle is rich in detail. It is the source of much information about the Wars of the Roses, including the term 'Diabolical Marriage' to describe the marriage of Queen Elizabeth Woodville’s brother John’s marriage to Katherine, Dowager Duchess of Norfolk, he aged twenty, she sixty-five or more, and the story about a paper crown being placed in mockery on the severed head of Richard, 3rd Duke of York.
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[his daughter] Anne Dillington was born to Anthony Dillington of Knighton on the Isle of Wight. She married before 12th May 1585 William Oglander of West Dean, Sussex and had issue.
Father: Walter Dillington of Dillington in Somerset
Anthony Dillington of Knighton on the Isle of Wight
GrandFather: William Lovell
Mother: Margaret Lovell