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.
Available at Amazon in eBook and Paperback format.
Paternal Family Tree: Somerville
On 11th August 1801 or 1st October 1801 [his father] Marcus Somerville 4th Baronet and [his mother] Mary Anne Gorges-Meredyth were married.
In 1802 William Meredyth Somerville 1st Baron Meredyth and Athlumney was born to Marcus Somerville 4th Baronet and Mary Anne Gorges-Meredyth.
Around 7th April 1825 [his father] Marcus Somerville 4th Baronet and [his step-mother] Elizabeth Geale Countess Fortescue were married.
On 11th July 1831 [his father] Marcus Somerville 4th Baronet died. His son William [aged 29] succeeded 5th Baronet Somerville of Somerville in County Meath.
On 22nd December 1832 William Meredyth Somerville 1st Baron Meredyth and Athlumney [aged 30] and Maria Harriet Conyngham were married. She the daughter of Henry Conyngham 1st Marquess Conyngham [aged 65] and Elizabeth Denison Marchioness Conyngham [aged 63].
On 28th December 1832 [his father-in-law] Henry Conyngham 1st Marquess Conyngham [aged 66] died. His son [his brother-in-law] Francis [aged 35] succeeded 2nd Marquess Conyngham in Donegal, 4th Baron Conyngham, 2nd Baron Minster of Minster Abbey in Kent. Jane Paget Marchioness Conyngham [aged 34] by marriage Marchioness Conyngham in Donegal.
On 21st June 1834 [his daughter] Elizabeth Jane Somerville Countess Charlemont was born to William Meredyth Somerville 1st Baron Meredyth and Athlumney [aged 32] and [his wife] Maria Harriet Conyngham. She married 18th December 1856 James Molyneux Caulfeild 3rd Earl Charlemont.
On 3rd December 1843 [his wife] Maria Harriet Conyngham died.
On 18th December 1856 [his son-in-law] James Molyneux Caulfeild 3rd Earl Charlemont [aged 36] and [his daughter] Elizabeth Jane Somerville Countess Charlemont [aged 22] were married.
On 16th October 1860 William Meredyth Somerville 1st Baron Meredyth and Athlumney [aged 58] and Maria Georgiana Elizabeth Jones [aged 29] were married. The difference in their ages was 29 years.
On 14th December 1863 William Meredyth Somerville 1st Baron Meredyth and Athlumney [aged 61] was created 1st Baron Athlumney of Somerville and Dollarstown in County Meath.
On 23rd March 1865 [his son] James Somerville 2nd Baron Meredyth and Athlumney was born to William Meredyth Somerville 1st Baron Meredyth and Athlumney [aged 63] and [his wife] Maria Georgiana Elizabeth Jones [aged 33].
Anne Boleyn. Her Life as told by Lancelot de Carle's 1536 Letter.
In 1536, two weeks after the execution of Anne Boleyn, her brother George and four others, Lancelot du Carle, wrote an extraordinary letter that described Anne's life, and her trial and execution, to which he was a witness. This book presents a new translation of that letter, with additional material from other contemporary sources such as Letters, Hall's and Wriothesley's Chronicles, the pamphlets of Wynkyn the Worde, the Memorial of George Constantyne, the Portuguese Letter and the Baga de Secrets, all of which are provided in Appendices.
Available at Amazon in eBook and Paperback format.
On 3rd May 1866 William Meredyth Somerville 1st Baron Meredyth and Athlumney [aged 64] was created 1st Baron Meredyth of Dollardstown in County Meath.
On 8th December 1873 William Meredyth Somerville 1st Baron Meredyth and Athlumney [aged 71] died. His son James [aged 8] succeeded 2nd Baron Athlumney of Somerville and Dollarstown in County Meath, 2nd Baron Meredyth of Dollardstown in County Meath, 6th Baronet Somerville of Somerville in County Meath.
On 6th January 1899 [his former wife] Maria Georgiana Elizabeth Jones [aged 67] died.
Great x 2 Grandfather: James Somerville 1st Baronet
Great x 1 Grandfather: Quaile Somerville 2nd Baronet
GrandFather: James Quaile Somerville 3rd Baronet
Father: Marcus Somerville 4th Baronet
Great x 1 Grandfather: Marcus Lowther-Crofton 1st Baronet
GrandMother: Catherine Crofton
Great x 2 Grandfather: Edward Crofton 3rd Baronet
Great x 1 Grandmother: Catherine Crofton
William Meredyth Somerville 1st Baron Meredyth and Athlumney
GrandFather: Richard Gorges-Meredyth 1st Baronet
Mother: Mary Anne Gorges-Meredyth