Jean de Waurin's Chronicle of England Volume 6 Books 3-6: The Wars of the Roses
Jean de Waurin was a French Chronicler, from the Artois region, who was born around 1400, and died around 1474. Waurin’s Chronicle of England, Volume 6, covering the period 1450 to 1471, from which we have selected and translated Chapters relating to the Wars of the Roses, provides a vivid, original, contemporary description of key events some of which he witnessed first-hand, some of which he was told by the key people involved with whom Waurin had a personal relationship.
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Maternal Family Tree: Margaret Vaux 1465
On 12th October 1631 George Saunderson 5th Viscount Castleton was born to [his father] Nicholas Saundeson 2nd Viscount Castleton and [his mother] Frances Manners (age 31) in Fillingham Linconsolshire.
On 13th November 1640 [his father] Nicholas Saundeson 2nd Viscount Castleton died. His son [his brother] Nicholas (age 14) succeeded 3rd Viscount Castleton.
In 1641 [his brother] Nicholas Saundeson 3rd Viscount Castleton (age 15) died. His brother [his brother] Peregrine (age 13) succeeded 4th Viscount Castleton.
In 1650 [his brother] Peregrine Saundeson 4th Viscount Castleton (age 22) died. His brother George (age 18) succeeded 5th Viscount Castleton.
In 1652 [his mother] Frances Manners (age 52) died.
In 1660 George Saunderson 5th Viscount Castleton (age 28) was elected MP Linconshire in the Convention Parliament.
In 1661 George Saunderson 5th Viscount Castleton (age 29) was elected MP Linconshire in the Cavalier Parliament which seat he held until 1698.
Before 26th September 1662 John Wray 3rd Baronet (age 43) and [his future wife] Sarah Evelyn Viscountess Fanshawe and Castleton (age 20) were married. She by marriage Lady Wray of Glentworth in Lincolnshire. The difference in their ages was 22 years.
Around 1665 Thomas Fanshawe 2nd Viscount Fanshawe (age 33) and [his future wife] Sarah Evelyn Viscountess Fanshawe and Castleton (age 23) were married.
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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On 30th March 1665 Thomas Fanshawe 1st Viscount Fanshawe (age 69) died. His son Thomas (age 33) succeeded 2nd Viscount Fanshawe. [his future wife] Sarah Evelyn Viscountess Fanshawe and Castleton (age 23) by marriage Viscountess Fanshawe.
Before 1667 George Saunderson 5th Viscount Castleton (age 35) and Grace Belasyse were married. They were fourth cousin once removed.
In 1667 [his wife] Grace Belasyse died.
Around 1667 [his son] James Saunderson 1st was born to George Saunderson 5th Viscount Castleton (age 35) and [his wife] Grace Belasyse.
After 1674 George Saunderson 5th Viscount Castleton (age 42) and Sarah Evelyn Viscountess Fanshawe and Castleton (age 32) were married. His second wife, her third husband. She by marriage Viscountess Castleton.
On 26th June 1685 [his father-in-law] John Evelyn of Wiltshire (age 83) died. He left his daughter [his wife] Sarah Evelyn Viscountess Fanshawe and Castleton (age 43) only five shillings in his will since he disapproved of her marriage with George Saunderson 5th Viscount Castleton (age 53).
On 18th October 1687 [his step-son] Evelyn Fanshawe 3rd Viscount Fanshawe (age 18) died in . He was buried at Ware, Hertfordshire [Map]. His uncle Charles (age 44) succeeded 4th Viscount Fanshawe.
On 7th April 1714 [his step-daughter] Elizabeth Wray (age 51) died. She was buried at St Michael's Church, Glentworth [Map].
On 27th May 1714 George Saunderson 5th Viscount Castleton (age 82) died at Sandbeck Park Maltby. His son James (age 47) succeeded 6th Viscount Castleton.
In 1717 [his former wife] Sarah Evelyn Viscountess Fanshawe and Castleton (age 75) died.
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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Before 12 Oct 1631 [his father] Nicholas Saundeson 2nd Viscount Castleton and [his mother] Frances Manners were married.
Kings Wessex: Great x 18 Grand Son of King Edmund "Ironside" I of England
Kings Gwynedd: Great x 14 Grand Son of Owain "Great" King Gwynedd
Kings Seisyllwg: Great x 20 Grand Son of Hywel "Dda aka Good" King Seisyllwg King Deheubarth
Kings Powys: Great x 15 Grand Son of Maredudd ap Bleddyn King Powys
Kings Godwinson: Great x 18 Grand Son of King Harold II of England
Kings England: Great x 8 Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Kings Scotland: Great x 17 Grand Son of King Duncan I of Scotland
Kings Franks: Great x 14 Grand Son of Louis VII King of the Franks
Kings France: Great x 18 Grand Son of Robert "Pious" II King of the Franks
Kings Duke Aquitaine: Great x 22 Grand Son of Ranulf I Duke Aquitaine
Great x 1 Grandfather: Robert Saunderson of Saxby and Fillingham 
GrandFather: Nicholas Saundeson 1st Viscount Castleton
Great x 2 Grandfather: Vincent Grantham
Great x 1 Grandmother: Catherine Grantham
Father: Nicholas Saundeson 2nd Viscount Castleton
George Saunderson 5th Viscount Castleton 8 x Great Grand Son of
Great x 4 Grandfather: Robert Manners 
5 x Great Grand Son of
Great x 3 Grandfather: George Manners 11th Baron Ros Helmsley 6 x Great Grand Son of
Great x 4 Grandmother: Eleanor Ros 
5 x Great Grand Daughter of
Great x 2 Grandfather: Thomas Manners 1st Earl of Rutland 
4 x Great Grand Son of
Great x 4 Grandfather: Thomas St Leger 
6 x Great Grand Son of
Great x 3 Grandmother: Anne St Leger Baroness Ros of Helmsley 3 x Great Grand Daughter of
Great x 4 Grandmother: Anne York Duchess Exeter 
2 x Great Grand Daughter of
Great x 1 Grandfather: John Manners 5 x Great Grand Son of
Great x 4 Grandfather: John Paston 
Great x 3 Grandfather: William Paston
Great x 4 Grandmother: Margery Brewes
Great x 2 Grandmother: Eleanor Paston Countess Rutland 10 x Great Grand Daughter of
Great x 4 Grandfather: Henry Heydon
Great x 3 Grandmother: Bridget Heydon 9 x Great Grand Daughter of
Great x 4 Grandmother: Anne Boleyn 
8 x Great Grand Daughter of
GrandFather: George Manners 6 x Great Grand Son of
Great x 4 Grandfather: Henry Vernon 
12 x Great Grand Son of
Great x 3 Grandfather: Richard Vernon 6 x Great Grand Son of
Great x 4 Grandmother: Anne Talbot 
5 x Great Grand Daughter of
Great x 2 Grandfather: George Vernon "King of the Peak" 7 x Great Grand Son of
Great x 4 Grandfather: Robert Dymoke 
6 x Great Grand Son of
Great x 3 Grandmother: Margaret Dymoke aka Mistress Coffin 7 x Great Grand Daughter of
Great x 1 Grandmother: Dorothy Vernon 6 x Great Grand Daughter of
Great x 4 Grandfather: Robert Tailboys 8th Baron Kyme 
6 x Great Grand Son of
Great x 3 Grandfather: George Tailboys 9th Baron Kyme 7 x Great Grand Son of
Great x 4 Grandmother: Elizabeth Heron Baroness Kyme
Great x 2 Grandmother: Margaret Tailboys 5 x Great Grand Daughter of
Great x 4 Grandfather: William Gascoigne 4 x Great Grand Son of
Great x 3 Grandmother: Elizabeth Gascoigne Baroness Kyme 4 x Great Grand Daughter of
Great x 4 Grandmother: Margaret Percy 3 x Great Grand Daughter of
Mother: Frances Manners 7 x Great Grand Daughter of
Great x 4 Grandfather: Francis Pierrepont 
7 x Great Grand Son of
Great x 3 Grandfather: William Pierrepont 8 x Great Grand Son of
Great x 2 Grandfather: George Pierrepont 9 x Great Grand Son of
Great x 4 Grandfather: Richard Empson
Great x 3 Grandmother: Joan Empson
Great x 1 Grandfather: Henry Pierrepont 10 x Great Grand Son of
Great x 3 Grandfather: William Thwaites
Great x 2 Grandmother: Winifred Thwaites
GrandMother: Grace Pierrepont 9 x Great Grand Daughter of
Great x 4 Grandfather: Thomas Cavendish 
Great x 3 Grandfather: Thomas Cavendish 6 x Great Grand Son of
Great x 4 Grandmother: Catherine Scudamore 5 x Great Grand Daughter of
Great x 2 Grandfather: William Cavendish 7 x Great Grand Son of
Great x 4 Grandfather: John Carrington Smith
Great x 3 Grandmother: Alice Smith
Great x 1 Grandmother: Frances Cavendish 8 x Great Grand Daughter of
Great x 4 Grandfather: John Harwick
Great x 3 Grandfather: John Hardwick 7 x Great Grand Son of
Great x 4 Grandmother: Elizabeth Pinchbeck 6 x Great Grand Daughter of
Great x 2 Grandmother: Bess of Hardwick Countess Shrewsbury and Waterford 8 x Great Grand Daughter of
Great x 4 Grandfather: Thomas Leeke of Hasland 7 x Great Grand Son of
Great x 3 Grandmother: Elizabeth Leeke 8 x Great Grand Daughter of
Great x 4 Grandmother: Margaret Vaux 