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 1383 William Phelip was born to [his father] William Phelip (age 30) and [his mother] Juliana Erpingham (age 23).
Around 1404 [his father] William Phelip (age 51) died at Erpingham, Norfolk.
Before 1407 William Phelip (age 23) and Joan Bardolf (age 16) were married.
On 19th February 1408 Thomas Rokeby's (age 28) force of Yorkshire levies defeated the Percy army during the Battle of Bramham Moor bringing to an end the Percy rebellion.
Henry Percy 1st Earl of Northumberland (age 66) was killed. His body was afterwards hanged, drawn and quartered, his head being sent to London bridge and his quarters to diverse places. Possibly captured hanged, drawn and quartered after the battle. Earl of Northumberland, Baron Percy of Alnwick and Baron Percy of Topcliffe forfeit.
[his father-in-law] Thomas Bardolf 5th Baron Bardolf (age 38) was killed. Baron Bardolf of Wormegay in Norfolk had been forfeited in 1406 when Thomas Bardolf 5th Baron Bardolf was declared a traitor. It was restored on the 19th of July 1408 to his two daughters [his sister-in-law] Anne Bardolf Baroness Cobham Sternborough (age 18) and [his wife] Joan Bardolf (age 17) and their husbands William Clifford (age 33) and William Phelip (age 25) respectively.
The Abbot of Hailes Abbey [Map] was executed following the battle since he was wearing armour. Bishop Griffin Yonge (age 38), Bishop of Bangor, was captured, but wearing his vestments, he avoided execution.
Around 1415 [his mother] Juliana Erpingham (age 55) died.
Around 1418 William Phelip (age 35) was appointed 132nd Knight of the Garter by King Henry V of England (age 31).
In 1422 William Phelip (age 39) was appointed Treasurer of the Royal Household.
After 1422 William Phelip (age 39) was appointed Lord Chamberlain of the Household.
In 1436 [his son-in-law] John Beaumont 1st Viscount Beaumont (age 26) and [his daughter] Elizabeth Phelip Viscountess Beaumont were married. They were sixth cousins. He a great x 5 grandson of King Henry III of England. She a great x 5 granddaughter of King Edward I of England.
On 6th June 1441 William Phelip (age 58) died. He was buried at St Mary's Church, Dennington [Map]. Monument to William Phelip and [his wife] Joan Bardolf (age 50). Early Plate Bascinet and Gorget Period. Feathered Crest. Detail of the Wyvern on which her feet rest. Detail of Eagle, possibly hawk, on which his feet rest. Crespine Headress covering her hair. He wearing a bascinet with IHC NASARE Lettering. Both wearing a Lancastrian Esses Collar. Leg Garter below the left knee.
Joan Bardolf: On 11th November 1390 she was born to Thomas Bardolf 5th Baron Bardolf and Avice Cromwell Baroness Bardolf. She a great x 4 granddaughter of King Edward I of England. Before 1407 William Phelip and she were married. On 12th March 1447 Joan Bardolf died.
On 12th March 1447 [his former wife] Joan Bardolf (age 56) died.
[his father] William Phelip and [his mother] Juliana Erpingham were married.
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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[his daughter] Elizabeth Phelip Viscountess Beaumont was born to William Phelip and Joan Bardolf. She married 1436 her sixth cousin John Beaumont 1st Viscount Beaumont, son of Henry Beaumont 5th Baron Beaumont and Elizabeth Willoughby Baroness Beaumont.
GrandFather: Richard Phelip
Father: William Phelip
Great x 1 Grandfather: Robert Erpingham
GrandFather: Robert Erpingham
Mother: Juliana Erpingham