Abbot John Whethamstede’s Chronicle of the Abbey of St Albans
Abbot John Whethamstede's Register aka Chronicle of his second term at the Abbey of St Albans, 1451-1461, is a remarkable text that describes his first-hand experience of the beginning of the Wars of the Roses including the First and Second Battles of St Albans, 1455 and 1461, respectively, their cause, and their consequences, not least on the Abbey itself. His text also includes Loveday, Blore Heath, Northampton, the Act of Accord, Wakefield, and Towton, and ends with the Coronation of King Edward IV. In addition to the events of the Wars of the Roses, Abbot John, or his scribes who wrote the Chronicle, include details in the life of the Abbey such as charters, letters, land exchanges, visits by legates, and disputes, which provide a rich insight into the day-to-day life of the Abbey, and the challenges faced by its Abbot.
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Paternal Family Tree: Byng
Maternal Family Tree: Frances Twysden 1753 1821
On 7th March 1829 [his father] George Byng 2nd Earl Strafford [aged 22] and [his mother] Agnes Paget [aged 25] were married. She the daughter of [his grandfather] Henry William Paget 1st Marquess Anglesey [aged 60] and [his grandmother] Caroline Elizabeth Villiers Duchess Argyll [aged 54]. He the son of John Byng 1st Earl Strafford [aged 57] and Mary Stevens Mackenzie.
On 22nd February 1830 George Byng 3rd Earl Strafford was born to George Byng 2nd Earl Strafford [aged 23] and Agnes Paget [aged 26].
On 9th October 1845 [his mother] Agnes Paget [aged 41] died.
On 16th March 1848 [his father] George Byng 2nd Earl Strafford [aged 41] and [his step-mother] Harriet Cavendish Countess Strafford [aged 27] were married. He the son of [his grandfather] John Byng 1st Earl Strafford [aged 76] and [his grandmother] Mary Stevens Mackenzie.
In 1852 George Byng 3rd Earl Strafford [aged 21] was elected MP Tavistock.
On 25th July 1854 George Byng 3rd Earl Strafford [aged 24] and Alice Leveson-Gower aka Egerton Countess Strafford [aged 23] were married. She the daughter of Francis Leveson Gower aka Egerton 1st Earl Ellesmere [aged 54] and Harriet Greville Countess Ellesmere [aged 51]. He the son of George Byng 2nd Earl Strafford [aged 48] and Agnes Paget. They were half third cousin once removed.
In 1857 George Byng 3rd Earl Strafford [aged 26] was elected MP Middlesex.
On 18th February 1857 [his father-in-law] Francis Leveson Gower aka Egerton 1st Earl Ellesmere [aged 57] died. His son [his brother-in-law] George [aged 33] succeeded 2nd Earl Ellesmere, 2nd Viscount Brackley. Mary Louisa Campbell Countess Ellesmere [aged 32] by marriage Countess Ellesmere.
On 8th June 1859 [his brother] Francis Edmund Cecil Byng 5th Earl Strafford [aged 24] and [his sister-in-law] Florence Louisa Miles [aged 19] were married. He the son of [his father] George Byng 2nd Earl Strafford [aged 53] and [his mother] Agnes Paget.
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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On 3rd June 1860 [his grandfather] John Byng 1st Earl Strafford [aged 88] died. His son [his father] George [aged 53] succeeded 2nd Earl Strafford, 2nd Viscount Enfield of Enfield in Middlesex, 2nd Baron Strafford of Harmondsworth in Middlesex. [his step-mother] Harriet Cavendish Countess Strafford [aged 39] by marriage Countess Strafford.
On 19th September 1862 [his brother-in-law] George Leveson-Gower aka Egerton 2nd Earl Ellesmere [aged 39] died. His son Francis [aged 15] succeeded 3rd Earl Ellesmere, 3rd Viscount Brackley.
On 15th October 1863 [his brother] Henry Byng 4th Earl Strafford [aged 32] and [his sister-in-law] Henrietta Louisa Elizabeth Danneskiold Samsøe [aged 27] were married. He the son of [his father] George Byng 2nd Earl Strafford [aged 57] and [his mother] Agnes Paget. They were fourth cousins.
In 1865 John William Montagu 7th Earl Sandwich [aged 53] and [his sister-in-law] Blanche Leveson-Gower aka Egerton Countess Sandwich [aged 32] were married. She by marriage Countess Sandwich. The difference in their ages was 20 years. She the daughter of [his father-in-law] Francis Leveson Gower aka Egerton 1st Earl Ellesmere and [his mother-in-law] Harriet Greville Countess Ellesmere [aged 62]. He the son of George Montagu 6th Earl Sandwich and Louisa Lowry-Corry Countess of Sandwich. They were fifth cousins.
In 1865 George Byng 3rd Earl Strafford [aged 34] was appointed Parliamentary Secretary to the Poor Law Board.
In 1866 George Byng 3rd Earl Strafford [aged 35] was appointed President of Middlesex County Cricket Club.
On 4th August 1866 [his brother] Francis Edmund Cecil Byng 5th Earl Strafford [aged 31] and [his sister-in-law] Emily Georgina Kerr Countess Strafford [aged 19] were married. He the son of [his father] George Byng 2nd Earl Strafford [aged 60] and [his mother] Agnes Paget. They were fifth cousins.
In 1871 George Byng 3rd Earl Strafford [aged 40] was appointed Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.
In 1877 George Byng 3rd Earl Strafford [aged 46] was appointed President of Middlesex County Cricket Club.
In 1880 George Byng 3rd Earl Strafford [aged 49] was appointed Under Secretary of State for India.
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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In 1880 George Byng 3rd Earl Strafford [aged 49] was appointed First Civil Service Commissioner.
In 1884 George Byng 3rd Earl Strafford [aged 53] was appointed Lord Lieutenant of Middlesex.
On 29th October 1886 [his father] George Byng 2nd Earl Strafford [aged 80] died. His son George [aged 56] succeeded 3rd Earl Strafford, 3rd Viscount Enfield of Enfield in Middlesex, 3rd Baron Strafford of Harmondsworth in Middlesex. [his wife] Alice Leveson-Gower aka Egerton Countess Strafford [aged 56] by marriage Countess Strafford.
On 20th March 1894 [his sister-in-law] Blanche Leveson-Gower aka Egerton Countess Sandwich [aged 62] died.
Before 28th March 1898 George Byng 3rd Earl Strafford [aged 68] was appointed President of Middlesex County Cricket Club.
On 28th March 1898 George Byng 3rd Earl Strafford [aged 68] died at St James' Square. His brother Henry [aged 66] succeeded 4th Earl Strafford, 4th Viscount Enfield of Enfield in Middlesex, 4th Baron Strafford of Harmondsworth in Middlesex.
In December 1928 [his former wife] Alice Leveson-Gower aka Egerton Countess Strafford [aged 98] died.
Kings Wessex: Great x 24 Grand Son of King Edmund "Ironside" I of England
Kings Gwynedd: Great x 20 Grand Son of Owain "Great" King Gwynedd
Kings Seisyllwg: Great x 26 Grand Son of Hywel "Dda aka Good" King Seisyllwg King Deheubarth
Kings Powys: Great x 21 Grand Son of Maredudd ap Bleddyn King Powys
Kings Godwinson: Great x 25 Grand Son of King Harold II of England
Kings England: Great x 11 Grand Son of King Henry VII of England and Ireland
Kings Scotland: Great x 20 Grand Son of King William I of Scotland
Kings France: Great x 14 Grand Son of Charles "Beloved Mad" VI King France
Kings Duke Aquitaine: Great x 28 Grand Son of Ranulf I Duke Aquitaine
Kings Spain: Great x 21 Grand Son of Alfonso VII King Castile VII King Leon
Great x 3 Grandfather: George Byng 1st Viscount Torrington 
Great x 2 Grandfather: Robert Byng
Great x 1 Grandfather: George Byng
GrandFather: John Byng 1st Earl Strafford 13 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 2 Grandfather: William James Conolly
Great x 1 Grandmother: Anne Conolly 12 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: William Wentworth of Northgatehead 
9 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Thomas Wentworth 1st Earl Strafford 10 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Isabella Apsley 10 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 2 Grandmother: Anne Wentworth 11 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Henry Johnson Baron Wentworth
Great x 3 Grandmother: Anne Johnson Countess Strafford
Great x 4 Grandmother: Anne Smithson
Father: George Byng 2nd Earl Strafford 14 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
GrandMother: Mary Stevens Mackenzie
George Byng 3rd Earl Strafford 11 x Great Grand Son of King Henry VII of England and Ireland
Great x 4 Grandfather: Nicholas Bayly 
Great x 3 Grandfather: Edward Bayly 1st Baronet
Great x 2 Grandfather: Nicholas Bayly 2nd Baronet Bayly of Plas Newydd in Anglesey
Great x 1 Grandfather: Henry Bayly-Paget 1st Earl Uxbridge 12 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Henry Paget 9 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Thomas Paget 10 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 2 Grandmother: Caroline Paget Lady Plas Newydd Anglesey 11 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
GrandFather: Henry William Paget 1st Marquess Anglesey 13 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 2 Grandfather: Very Reverend Arthur Champagné
Great x 1 Grandmother: Jane Champagné Countess Uxbridge
Mother: Agnes Paget 10 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry VII of England and Ireland
Great x 4 Grandfather: Edward Villiers 1st Earl Jersey 
10 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: William Villiers 2nd Earl Jersey 11 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Barbara Chiffinch Countess Jersey
Great x 2 Grandfather: William Villiers 3rd Earl Jersey 12 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 1 Grandfather: George Bussy Villiers 4th Earl Jersey 8 x Great Grand Son of King Henry VII of England and Ireland
Great x 4 Grandfather: John Egerton 3rd Earl Bridgewater 
5 x Great Grand Son of King Henry VII of England and Ireland
Great x 3 Grandfather: Scroop Egerton 1st Duke Bridgewater 6 x Great Grand Son of King Henry VII of England and Ireland
Great x 4 Grandmother: Jane Paulet Countess Bridgewater 9 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 2 Grandmother: Anne Egerton Duchess Bedford 7 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry VII of England and Ireland
Great x 4 Grandfather: John Churchill 1st Duke of Marlborough 
14 x Great Grand Son of King Edward I of England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Elizabeth Churchill Countess Bridgewater 15 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward I of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Sarah Jennings Duchess of Marlborough
GrandMother: Caroline Elizabeth Villiers Duchess Argyll 9 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry VII of England and Ireland
Great x 2 Grandfather: Bishop Philip Twysden 
Great x 1 Grandmother: Frances Twysden