The Deeds of the Dukes of Normandy
The Gesta Normannorum Ducum [The Deeds of the Dukes of Normandy] is a landmark medieval chronicle tracing the rise and fall of the Norman dynasty from its early roots through the pivotal events surrounding the Norman Conquest of England. Originally penned in Latin by the monk William of Jumièges shortly before 1060 and later expanded at the behest of William the Conqueror, the work chronicles the deeds, politics, battles, and leadership of the Norman dukes, especially William’s own claim to the English throne. The narrative combines earlier historical sources with firsthand information and oral testimony to present an authoritative account of Normandy’s transformation from a Viking settlement into one of medieval Europe’s most powerful realms. William’s history emphasizes the legitimacy, military prowess, and governance of the Norman line, framing their expansion, including the conquest of England, as both divinely sanctioned and noble in purpose. Later chroniclers such as Orderic Vitalis and Robert of Torigni continued the history, extending the coverage into the 12th century, providing broader context on ducal rule and its impact. Today this classic work remains a foundational source for understanding Norman identity, medieval statesmanship, and the historical forces that reshaped England and Western Europe between 800AD and 1100AD.
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On 9th June 1860 [his father] Edward Coley Burne-Jones 1st Baronet [aged 26] and [his mother] Georgiana Macdonald Lady Burne-Jones [aged 19] were married at Manchester Cathedral [Map].
Memorials of Edward Burne-Jones 1861. Before the birth of our first child [Philip Burne-Jones 2nd Baronet] we removed from Russell Place into a larger set of rooms just left by Mr. Henry Wallis, at No. 62, Great Russell Street. Here Edward's studio was again only the front room on the first floor, but as the house was opposite to the British Museum the large open space before it gave a better painting light than usual. Behind the studio and communicating with it by a door was our sitting-room, and beyond that a very small third one. The outlook of the sitting-room was upon a little back-yard entirely built over and covered with a skylight; beyond this was the high blank wall of the back of a house. This had once been coloured and was now blotched in a leprous way. Our own walls inside were beautified with some old tapestry left there by Mr. Wallis while he was travelling abroad.
On 21st October 1861 Philip Burne-Jones 2nd Baronet was born to Edward Coley Burne-Jones 1st Baronet [aged 28] and Georgiana Macdonald Lady Burne-Jones [aged 21]. He was baptised at Manchester Cathedral [Map] with his godfathers, by proxy, being John Ruskin [aged 42] and Dante Gabriel Rossetti [aged 33]. See Memorials of Edward Burne-Jones.
In 1864 Philip Burne-Jones 2nd Baronet [aged 2] contracted scarlet fever which his mother Georgiana Macdonald Lady Burne-Jones [aged 23] then contracted which bring about the premature birth of her second child who died soon afterwards.
From 1883. [his father] Edward Coley Burne-Jones 1st Baronet [aged 49]. Portrait of his wife [his mother] Georgiana Macdonald Lady Burne-Jones [aged 42] and their children Philip Burne-Jones 2nd Baronet [aged 21] and [his sister] Margaret Burne-Jones [aged 16].
Margaret Burne-Jones: Around July 1866 she was born to Edward Coley Burne-Jones 1st Baronet and Georgiana Macdonald Lady Burne-Jones at 41 Kensington Square. In 1953 she died.
1892. Philip Burne-Jones 2nd Baronet [aged 30]. Portrait of Edward Lucas Ridsdale of Rottingdean, Sussex [aged 59].
Edward Lucas Ridsdale of Rottingdean, Sussex: In 1833 he was born. On 14th March 1861 he and Esther Lucy Thacker were married. In 1901 he died.
1893. Philip Burne-Jones 2nd Baronet [aged 31]. Portrait of Susan Stirling Findlay [aged 22] aka Ridsdale.
Susan Stirling Findlay: On 12th August 1870 she was born. In 1900 Edward Aurelian Ridsdale and she were married. On 9th June 1935 she died
1893. Philip Burne-Jones 2nd Baronet [aged 31]. Portrait of Edward Aurelian Ridsdale [aged 28].
Edward Aurelian Ridsdale: On 23rd February 1864 he was born to Edward Lucas Ridsdale of Rottingdean, Sussex and Esther Lucy Thacker. On 6th September 1923 he died.
1898. Philip Burne-Jones 2nd Baronet [aged 36]. Portrait of his father Edward Coley Burne-Jones 1st Baronet [aged 64].
On 17th June 1898 [his father] Edward Coley Burne-Jones 1st Baronet [aged 64] died. His son Philip [aged 36] succeeded 2nd Baronet Burne-Jones of Rottingdean in Sussex and The Grange in Fulham in London.
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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1906. Philip Burne-Jones 2nd Baronet [aged 44]. Portrait of Esther Lucy Thacker [aged 63].
Esther Lucy Thacker: Around November 1842 she was born. On 28th August 1909 she died.
1909. Philip Burne-Jones 2nd Baronet [aged 47]. Portrait of Edward Poynter 1st Baronet [aged 72].
On 2nd February 1920 [his mother] Georgiana Macdonald Lady Burne-Jones [aged 79] died.
1921. Philip Burne-Jones 2nd Baronet [aged 59]. Portrait of John William Strutt 3rd Baron Rayleigh.
John William Strutt 3rd Baron Rayleigh: On 12th November 1842 he was born to John James Strutt 2nd Baron Rayleigh. He a great x 4 grandson of King Charles II of England Scotland and Ireland. In 1871 John William Strutt 3rd Baron Rayleigh and Evelyn Georgiana Mary Balfour Baroness Rayleigh were married. In 1873 John James Strutt 2nd Baron Rayleigh died. His son John succeeded 3rd Baron Rayleigh of Terling Place in Essex. Evelyn Georgiana Mary Balfour Baroness Rayleigh by marriage Baroness Rayleigh of Terling Place in Essex. On 30th June 1919 John William Strutt 3rd Baron Rayleigh died. His son Robert succeeded 4th Baron Rayleigh of Terling Place in Essex.
On 21st June 1926 Philip Burne-Jones 2nd Baronet [aged 64] died. Baronet Burne-Jones of Rottingdean in Sussex and The Grange in Fulham in London extinct.
GrandFather: Edward Richard Jones
Father: Edward Coley Burne-Jones 1st Baronet
GrandMother: Elizabeth Coley
Philip Burne-Jones 2nd Baronet
GrandFather: Reverend George Browne Macdonald
Mother: Georgiana Macdonald Lady Burne-Jones
GrandMother: Hannah Jones