Chronicle of a Bourgeois of Valenciennes
Récits d’un bourgeois de Valenciennes aka The Chronicle of a Bourgeois of Valenciennes is a vivid 14th-century vernacular chronicle written by an anonymous urban chronicler from Valenciennes in the County of Hainaut. It survives in a manuscript that describes local and regional history from about 1253 to 1366, blending chronology, narrative episodes, and eyewitness-style accounts of political, military, and social events in medieval France, Flanders, and the Low Countries. The work begins with a chronological framework of events affecting Valenciennes and its region under rulers such as King Philip VI of France and the shifting allegiances of local nobility. It includes accounts of conflicts, sieges, diplomatic manoeuvres, and the impact of broader struggles like the Hundred Years’ War on urban life in Hainaut. Written from the perspective of a burgher (bourgeois) rather than a monastery or royal court, the chronicle offers a rare lay viewpoint on high politics and warfare, reflecting how merchants, townspeople, and civic institutions experienced the turbulence of the 13th and 14th centuries. Its narrative style combines straightforward reporting of events with moral and civic observations, making it a valuable source for readers interested in medieval urban society, regional politics, and the lived experience of war and governance in pre-modern Europe.
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Paternal Family Tree: Boscawen
In 1628 Edward Boscawen was born to Hugh Boscawen [aged 50] and Margaret Rolle [aged 28] in the King Henry VII Chapel, Westminster Abbey [Map].
On 19th December 1635 [his mother] Margaret Rolle [aged 35] died.
On 9th January 1641 [his father] Hugh Boscawen [aged 63] died.
Samuel Pepys' Diary. 3rd October 1666. Waked betimes, mightily troubled in mind, and in the most true trouble that I ever was in my life, saving in the business last year of the East India prizes. So up, and with Mr. Hater and W. Hewer [aged 24] and Griffin to consider of our business, and books and papers necessary for this examination; and by and by, by eight o'clock, comes Birch [aged 51], the first, with the lists and books of accounts delivered in. He calls me to work, and there he and I begun, when, by and by, comes Garraway [aged 49]1, the first time I ever saw him, and Sir W. Thompson [aged 37] and Mr. Boscawen [aged 38]. They to it, and I did make shift to answer them better than I expected. Sir W. Batten [aged 65], Lord Bruncker [aged 46], Sir W. Pen [aged 45], come in, but presently went out; and Sir J. Minnes [aged 67] come in, and said two or three words from the purpose, but to do hurt; and so away he went also, and left me all the morning with them alone to stand or fall.
Note 1. William Garway, elected M.P. for Chichester, March 26th, 1661, and in 1674 he was appointed by the House to confer with Lord Shaftesbury respecting the charge against Pepys being popishly affected. See note to the Life, vol. i., p, xxxii, and for his character, October 6th, 1666.
In or before 1675 Edward Boscawen [aged 46] and Jael Godolphin [aged 31] were married.
In 1675 [his daughter] Anne Boscawen Lady Evelyn was born to Edward Boscawen [aged 47] and [his wife] Jael Godolphin [aged 32]. She married 18th September 1705 John Evelyn 1st Baronet and had issue.
Around 1680 [his son] Hugh Boscawen 1st Viscount Falmouth was born to Edward Boscawen [aged 52] and [his wife] Jael Godolphin [aged 37]. He married 23rd April 1700 Charlotte Godfrey Viscountess Falmouth and had issue.
John Evelyn's Diary. 15th August 1685. Came to visite us Mr. Boscawen [aged 57] with my [his brother-in-law] Lord Godolphin's [aged 40] little son [aged 6], with whose education hither his father had intrusted me.
On 28th October 1685 Edward Boscawen [aged 57] died.
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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John Evelyn's Diary. 6th September 1696. I went to congratulate the marriage of a daughter of Mr. Boscawen to the [his son-in-law] son [aged 24] of Sir Philip Meadows; she is niece to my [his brother-in-law] Lord Godolphin [aged 51], married at Lambeth [Map] by the Archbishop [aged 59], 30th of August. After above six months' stay in London about Greenwich Hospital, I returned to Wotton, Surrey [Map].
[his daughter] Dorothy Boscawen was born to Edward Boscawen and Jael Godolphin. She married 30th August 1696 Philip Meadowes.
[his father] Hugh Boscawen and [his mother] Margaret Rolle were married. The difference in their ages was 22 years.
