The History of William Marshal was commissioned by his son shortly after William’s death in 1219 to celebrate the Marshal’s remarkable life; it is an authentic, contemporary voice. The manuscript was discovered in 1861 by French historian Paul Meyer. Meyer published the manuscript in its original Anglo-French in 1891 in two books. This book is a line by line translation of the first of Meyer’s books; lines 1-10152. Book 1 of the History begins in 1139 and ends in 1194. It describes the events of the Anarchy, the role of William’s father John, John’s marriages, William’s childhood, his role as a hostage at the siege of Newbury, his injury and imprisonment in Poitou where he met Eleanor of Aquitaine and his life as a knight errant. It continues with the accusation against him of an improper relationship with Margaret, wife of Henry the Young King, his exile, and return, the death of Henry the Young King, the rebellion of Richard, the future King Richard I, war with France, the death of King Henry II, and the capture of King Richard, and the rebellion of John, the future King John. It ends with the release of King Richard and the death of John Marshal.
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Paternal Family Tree: Blount
On 17th May 1558 [his father] James Blount 6th Baron Mountjoy [aged 25] and [his mother] Catherine Leigh Baroness Mountjoy [aged 26] were married. She by marriage Baroness Mountjoy.
In 1563 Charles Blount 1st Earl Devonshire was born to [his father] James Blount 6th Baron Mountjoy [aged 30] and [his mother] Catherine Leigh Baroness Mountjoy [aged 31].
Before 25th June 1576 [his mother] Catherine Leigh Baroness Mountjoy [aged 44] died.
On 10th January 1581 Robert Rich 1st Earl Warwick [aged 21] and [his future wife] Penelope Devereux Countess Devonshire [aged 18] were married. She by marriage Baroness Rich of Leez. She the daughter of Walter Devereux 1st Earl Essex and [his future mother-in-law] Lettice Knollys Countess Essex and Leicester [aged 37].
On 10th October 1582 [his father] James Blount 6th Baron Mountjoy [aged 49] died in Hook Okehampton, Devon. His son [his brother] William [aged 21] succeeded 7th Baron Mountjoy.
In 1594 William Blount 7th Baron Mountjoy [aged 33] died at Hooke, Dorset. His brother Charles [aged 31] succeeded 8th Baron Mountjoy.
In 1597 Charles Blount 1st Earl Devonshire [aged 34] was appointed 386th Knight of the Garter by Queen Elizabeth I of England and Ireland [aged 63].
Around 1597 [his illegitimate son] Mountjoy Blount 1st Earl Newport was born illegitimately to Charles Blount 1st Earl Devonshire [aged 34] and [his future wife] Penelope Devereux Countess Devonshire [aged 33]. Illegitimate at birth his parents subsequently married.
In 1601, under Lord Mountjoy [aged 38], he took part in the recapture of Kinsale from the Spanish invaders. Mountjoy left Caulfeild in charge of a bridge built by him over the River Blackwater, in command of 150 men, where the fort erected for its protection was called Charlemont.
In 1603 Charles Blount 1st Earl Devonshire [aged 40] was created 1st Earl Devonshire.
Around 1604 John Critz [aged 53] is believed to have contributed to the Somerset House Conference painting of the negotiation of the Treaty of London in which Thomas Sackville 1st Earl Dorset [aged 68], Charles Howard 1st Earl Nottingham [aged 68], Charles Blount 1st Earl Devonshire [aged 41], Henry Howard 1st Earl of Northampton [aged 63] and Robert Cecil 1st Earl Salisbury [aged 40] are represented on the right side.
Adam Murimuth's Continuation and Robert of Avesbury’s 'The Wonderful Deeds of King Edward III'
This volume brings together two of the most important contemporary chronicles for the reign of Edward III and the opening phases of the Hundred Years’ War. Written in Latin by English clerical observers, these texts provide a vivid and authoritative window into the political, diplomatic, and military history of fourteenth-century England and its continental ambitions. Adam Murimuth Continuatio's Chronicarum continues an earlier chronicle into the mid-fourteenth century, offering concise but valuable notices on royal policy, foreign relations, and ecclesiastical affairs. Its annalistic structure makes it especially useful for establishing chronology and tracing the development of events year by year. Complementing it, Robert of Avesbury’s De gestis mirabilibus regis Edwardi tertii is a rich documentary chronicle preserving letters, treaties, and official records alongside narrative passages. It is an indispensable source for understanding Edward III’s claim to the French crown, the conduct of war, and the mechanisms of medieval diplomacy. Together, these works offer scholars, students, and enthusiasts a reliable and unembellished account of a transformative period in English and European history. Essential for anyone interested in medieval chronicles, the Hundred Years’ War, or the reign of Edward III.
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In 1605 Robert Rich 1st Earl Warwick [aged 45] and [his future wife] Penelope Devereux Countess Devonshire [aged 41] were divorced.
On 26th December 1605 Charles Blount 1st Earl Devonshire [aged 42] and Penelope Devereux Countess Devonshire [aged 42] were married at Wansted House, Essex during a service conducted by Archbishop William Laud [aged 32] (future). The marriage was regarded as uncanonical and resulted in the disgrace of both parties, who were banished from King James I's court circles. She by marriage Countess Devonshire. She the daughter of Walter Devereux 1st Earl Essex and Lettice Knollys Countess Essex and Leicester [aged 62]. They were third cousins.
State Trials and Proceedings for High Treason. The Trials of ROBERT WINTER, THOMAS WINTER, GUY FAWKES, JOHN GRANT, AMBROSE ROOKWOOD, ROB. KEY ES, THOMAS BATES, and Sir EVERARD DIGBY, at Westminster, for High Treason, being Conspirators in the Gunpowder-Plot: 3 Jac. I. 27th Jan. A. D. 1606.
On 27th January 1606 the trial of the conspirators took place at Westminster Hall [Map].
The Commissioners were: Earl of Nottingham [aged 70], Suffolk [aged 44], Worcester [aged 56], Devonshire [aged 43], Northampton [aged 65], Salisbury [aged 42], John Popham [aged 75], the Lord Chief Baron of the Exchequer, Thomas Fleming [aged 61], Peter Warburton [aged 66], knight, one of the Justices of the Common Pleas.
The Effect of the Indictment.
THAT whereas our Sovereign Lord the King [aged 39] had, by the Advice and Assent of his Council, for divers weighty and urgent Occasions concerning, his Majesty, the State, and Defence of the Church and Kingdom of England, appointed a Parliament to be holden at his City of Westminster; That Henry Garnet [aged 50], Superior of the Jesuits within the Realm of England, (called also by the several names of Wally, Darcy, Roberts, Farmer, and Henry Philips), Oswald Tesmond Jesuit [aged 43], otherwise called Oswald Greenwell, John Gerrard Jesuit [aged 41], (called also by the several names of Lee and Brooke), Robert Winter [aged 38], Thomas Winter [aged 35], Gentlemen, Guy Fawkes [aged 35] Gent. otherwise called Guy Johnson, Robert Keyes [aged 41] Gent. and Thomas Bates Yeoman, late Servant to Robert Catesby Esquire; together with the said Robert Catesby and Thomas Percy Esquires, John Wright and Christopher Wright Gentlemen, in open Rebellion and Insurrection against his Majesty, lately slain, and Francis Tresham Esq; lately dead; as false Traitors against our said Sovereign Lord the King, did traitorously meet and assemble themselves together; and being so met, the said Henry Garnet, Oswald Tesmond, John Gerrard, and other Jesuits, did maliciously, falsly, and traitorously move and persuade as well the said Thomas Winter, Guy Fawkes, Robert Keyes, and Thomas Bates, as the said Robert Catesby, Thomas Percy, John Wright, Christopher Wright, and Francis Tresham, That our said Sovereign Lord the King, the Nobility, Clergy, and whole Commonalty of the Realm of England, (Papists excepted) were Hereticks; and that all Hereticks were accursed and excommunicate; and that none Heretick could be a King; but that it was lawful and meritorious to kill our said Sovereign Lord the King, and all other Hereticks within this Realm of England, for the Advancing and Enlargement of the pretended and usurped Authority and Jurisdiction of the Bishop of Rome, and for the restoring of the superstitious Romish Religion within this Realm of England.
On 3rd April 1606 Charles Blount 1st Earl Devonshire [aged 43] died at Savoy Palace [Map]. Earl Devonshire, Baron Mountjoy extinct.
On 7th July 1607 [his former wife] Penelope Devereux Countess Devonshire [aged 44] died.
Kings Wessex: Great x 16 Grand Son of King Edmund "Ironside" I of England
Kings Gwynedd: Great x 13 Grand Son of Owain "Great" King Gwynedd
Kings Seisyllwg: Great x 19 Grand Son of Hywel "Dda aka Good" King Seisyllwg King Deheubarth
Kings Powys: Great x 14 Grand Son of Maredudd ap Bleddyn King Powys
Kings Godwinson: Great x 17 Grand Son of King Harold II of England
Kings England: Great x 7 Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Kings Scotland: Great x 15 Grand Son of King Duncan I of Scotland
Kings Franks: Great x 23 Grand Son of Charles "Charlemagne aka Great" King of the Franks King Lombardy Holy Roman Emperor
Kings France: Great x 17 Grand Son of Hugh I King of the Franks
Kings Duke Aquitaine: Great x 21 Grand Son of Ranulf I Duke Aquitaine
Great x 4 Grandfather: Thomas Blount 
9 x Great Grand Son of King Henry I "Beauclerc" England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Walter Blount 1st Baron Mountjoy 10 x Great Grand Son of King Henry I "Beauclerc" England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Margaret Gresley 
Great x 2 Grandfather: John Blount 3rd Baron Mountjoy 11 x Great Grand Son of King Henry I "Beauclerc" England
Great x 4 Grandfather: John Byron 
Great x 3 Grandmother: Helena Byron Baroness Mountjoy
Great x 1 Grandfather: William Blount 4th Baron Mountjoy 8 x Great Grand Son of King John of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Maurice Berkeley 
5 x Great Grand Son of King John of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Edward Berkeley 6 x Great Grand Son of King John of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Lora Fitzhugh 
6 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 2 Grandmother: Lora Berkeley Countess Ormonde 7 x Great Grand Daughter of King John of England
GrandFather: Charles Blount 5th Baron Mountjoy 9 x Great Grand Son of King John of England
Great x 2 Grandfather: Henry Keble
Great x 1 Grandmother: Alice Keble Baroness Mountjoy
Father: James Blount 6th Baron Mountjoy 6 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: John Willoughby 7th Latimer of Corby 
6 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: John Willoughby 8th Baron Latimer of Corby 7 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Jane Welby
Great x 2 Grandfather: Robert Willoughby 1st Baron Willoughby 9th Baron Latimer 8 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Edmund Cheney
Great x 3 Grandmother: Anne Cheney 12 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry I "Beauclerc" England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Alice Stafford Baroness Kyme 
11 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry I "Beauclerc" England
Great x 1 Grandfather: Robert Willoughby 2nd Baron Willoughby 10th Baron Latimer 9 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: John Champernowne
Great x 2 Grandmother: Blanche Champernowne
GrandMother: Anne Willoughby Baroness Mountjoy 5 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Edward Grey Baron Ferrers of Groby 
6 x Great Grand Son of King John of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: John Grey 5 x Great Grand Son of King Edward I of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Elizabeth Ferrers 6th Baroness Ferrers Groby 
4 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward I of England
Great x 2 Grandfather: Thomas Grey 1st Marquess Dorset 6 x Great Grand Son of King Edward I of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Richard Woodville 1st Earl Rivers 
Great x 3 Grandmother: Elizabeth Woodville Queen Consort England 6 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry III of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Jacquetta of Luxemburg Duchess Bedford 
5 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry III of England
Great x 1 Grandmother: Dorothy Grey Baroness Mountjoy, Willoughby and Latimer 4 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: William Bonville 
5 x Great Grand Son of King Edward I of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: William Bonville 6th Baron Harington 6 x Great Grand Son of King Edward I of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Elizabeth Harrington 
Great x 2 Grandmother: Cecily Bonville Marchioness Dorset 3 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Richard Neville Earl Salisbury Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Katherine Neville Baroness Bonville and Hastings 
2 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Alice Montagu 5th Countess of Salisbury 
3 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward I of England
Charles Blount 1st Earl Devonshire 7 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
GrandFather: Thomas Leigh of Durham St Oswalds
Mother: Catherine Leigh Baroness Mountjoy