Chronicle of Abbot Ralph of Coggeshall
The Chronicle of Abbot Ralph of Coggeshall (Chronicon Anglicanum) is an indispensable medieval history that brings to life centuries of English and European affairs through the eyes of a learned Cistercian monk. Ralph of Coggeshall, abbot of the Abbey of Coggeshall in Essex in the early 13th century, continued and expanded his community’s chronicle, documenting events from the Norman Conquest of 1066 into the tumultuous reign of King Henry III. Blending eyewitness testimony, careful compilation, and the monastic commitment to record-keeping, this chronicle offers a rare narrative of political intrigue, royal power struggles, and social upheaval in England and beyond. Ralph’s work captures the reigns of pivotal figures such as Richard I and King John, providing invaluable insights into their characters, decisions, and the forces that shaped medieval rule. More than a simple annal, Chronicon Anglicanum conveys the texture of medieval life and governance, making it a rich source for scholars and readers fascinated by English history, monastic authorship, and the shaping of the medieval world.
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Maternal Family Tree: Isabel de Lingen 1370-1447
In 1370 Isabel de Lingen was born to [her father] Ralph de Lingen of Wigmore (age 30) at Hodnet, Shropshire.
After 1382 [her father] Ralph de Lingen of Wigmore (deceased) died.
In or before 1390 John Ludlow (age 24) and Isabel de Lingen (age 19) were married at Hodnet, Shropshire.
Around 1390 [her daughter] Margery Ludlow was born to [her husband] John Ludlow (age 24) and Isabel de Lingen (age 20) at Hodnet, Shropshire. She married before March 1402 William Trussell and had issue.
Around 1391 [her daughter] Benedicta Ludlow was born to [her husband] John Ludlow (age 25) and Isabel de Lingen (age 21) at Hodnet, Shropshire. She married before 1427 Richard Vernon aka Pembridge and had issue.
Around 1397 [her son] William Ludlow was born to [her husband] John Ludlow (age 31) and Isabel de Lingen (age 27). He married in or before 1420 Isabel Vernon aka Pembridge and had issue.
On 20th June 1398 [her husband] John Ludlow (age 33) died at Hodnet, Shropshire.
Before 1399 [her future husband] Fulk de Pembridge of Tong Castle and Margaret Trussell (age 50) were married.
Before March 1402 [her son-in-law] William Trussell (age 15) and [her daughter] Margery Ludlow (age 12) were married.
Before 1409 Fulk de Pembridge of Tong Castle and Isabel de Lingen (age 38) were married.
On 24th May 1409 [her husband] Fulk de Pembridge of Tong Castle died. The estates at Tong, Shropshire were inherited by his great-nephew [her future son-in-law] Richard Vernon aka Pembridge (age 20) grandson of his sister [her sister-in-law] Juliana Pembridge.
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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On 25th November 1410 Isabel de Lingen (age 40) was granted a Royal License to found a Collegiate Church at St Bartholemew's Church, Tong [Map] by King Henry IV of England (age 43) at a cost of £40.
In or before 1420 [her son] William Ludlow (age 22) and [her daughter-in-law] Isabel Vernon aka Pembridge were married.
Before 1427 [her son-in-law] Richard Vernon aka Pembridge (age 37) and [her daughter] Benedicta Ludlow (age 35) were married.
In 1427 [her daughter] Benedicta Ludlow (age 36) died at Tong, Shropshire.
In 1430 [her son] William Ludlow (age 33) died.
After 1446. St Bartholemew's Church, Tong [Map]. Monument to [her former husband] Fulk de Pembridge of Tong Castle and Isabel de Lingen (age 76). She the foundress of the church. Camail and Jupon Period. His head rests on a Great Helm with his crest of a Turkish Woman with plaited hair. At his feet a lion, at her feet a fawn albeit no longer with its head. She in widow's clothes with a barbe. Note the curious chain attached to the bottom of her dress.
Before September 1448 [her daughter] Margery Ludlow (age 58) died.
In 1467 Isabel de Lingen (age 97) died.
Thomas Peytevin and Isabel de Lingen were married.
Shropshire Archaeological Society. And in addition, of our more abundant favour, we grant and give permission on our own behalf, and, as far as is in our power, on behalf of our heirs, to the aforesaid Isabel, Walter, and William Mosse, their heirs or assignees, that they themselves may give and grant the advowson and patronage of the aforesaid College, when it has thus been effectually founded, to Richard de Penbrugge, son of Richard Vernon, of Harlestonich, the near relative [Note. Richard Vernon aka Pembridge was great-nephew of Fulk de Pembridge of Tong Castle and heir of the the aforesaid Fulk, and to [her daughter] Benedicta, wife of the same Richard son of Richard, and to the heirs of the body of Richard son of Richard, and Benedicta, to be held, after after the death of the aforesaid Isabel, in such a way that if the same Richard son of Richard, and Benedicta die without heirs of their bodies, then the advowson and patronage of the aforesaid College remain with the heirs of the body of the same Richard son of Richard; and if the same Richard son of Richard die without an heir of his body, then the advovson and patronage of the aforesaid College remain with [her son] William Ludlow [Note. Son of William Ludlow and Isabel de Lingen] and Isabel his wife, sister of the aforesaid Richard, son of Richard, and the heirs of the body of the same William Ludlow and Isabel his wife; and if the same William Ludlow and Isabel his wife die without heirs of their bodies, then the advowson and patronage of the aforesaid College remain with the heirs of the body of the same Isabel, wife of William.
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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Shropshire Archaeological Society. And in addition, since the same Isabel, Walter, and William fired by the ardour of their devotion, and desiring and longing at the same time to increase and enlarge the praise and honour of God, after the said acquisition of the advovvson and patronage of the same has been thus carried out, with our permission acting as a medium, propose to erect, make and found the aforesaid Church of Tong into a certain permanent College; we, observing their dutiful and praiseworthy intention in this respect, of our special favour and from our certain knowledge, and in order that we may have a share in the rewards of so much merit, and of a work so perfect, agree and give permission on our own behalf, and as far as is in our power on that of our heirs, to the said Isabel, Walter, and William, and to any one of them; that she or he, their heirs, or assignees, when they themselves have been put into possession of the advowson and patronage of the same, may erect and change the same Church of Tong into a certain College, permanent and incorporated, and may have power to found, make and establish for ever the same College for five chaplains (or more or less) for the service of the Most High God (of whom one is to be appointed by Isabel, Walter, and William, their heirs or assignees as Warden of the same College, and put over the rest); and for the celebration of Divine Services every day for our prosperity while we are alive, and that of Thomas Beaufort, our brother, and the aforesaid Isabel while they are alive; and moreover for our souls when we have migrated from this light, and those of our ancestors, and that of the aforesaid Fulk; and moreover for the souls of Margaret once his wife, and of Thomas Peytevyne1, knight, and of John Ludlow, knight, and also the souls of the parents and all the ancestors of the aforesaid Isabel, and of all the faithful departed, according to the regulation of the aforesaid Isabel, Walter, and William, their heirs or assignees, to be made for this purpose.
Note 1. Isabel Pembrugge was married three times, i.e., to (i) Thomas Peytevyne, Knight. (2) John Ludlow, Knight. (3) Fulke Penbrugge, of Tong, who crenellated Tong Castle 1381, died May 24, 1409.
Fulke Penbrugge was married twice, to (1) Margaret, daughter and heiress of William Trussel, Knight, and widow of Nicholas de Whyston, of Weston-under-Lizard, who had died 1502 [Note. 1502 must be a mistake since Margaret died in 1399?]. Margaret Penbrugge died 1399, s. p. (2) Isabel, daughter of [her father] Ralph Lingen, Knight, and widow of John Ludlow, Knight. Isabel Penbrugge died 1446-7, s.p.
Shropshire Archaeological Society. The King to all those who shall see, or hear of these our letters, greeting. Know ye that of our special favour, and for the sum of £40- paid into the Treasury of our Chancellor, we have granted and given permission on our own behalf, and, as far as is in our power, on behalf of our heirs, to Isabel, relict of Fulke de Pembrugge, Knight, to Walter Swan [Shaw], clerk, and to William Mosse, clerk, that they may have authority to acquire from our beloved in Christ, the Abbot and Convent of Shrewsbury, which is in our patronage, the patrons of the Church of St. Bartholomew the Apostle [Map], of Tong, in the County of Salop, and diocese of Lichfield, the advowson and patronage of this same Church of Tong, which is held from us in cabile; to be possessed and held for ever of us and our heirs by its due and accustomed services by the same Isabel, Walter, and William, their heirs and assignees; an annual pension of six shillings and eightpence accruing from the fruits and emoluments of this same Church of Tong, which the same Abbot and Convent and their predecessors have been wont to receive from it, being reserved to the same Abbot and Convent and their successors.