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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Paternal Family Tree: Amherst
Before 14th January 1773 [his father] William Amherst (age 40) and [his mother] Elizabeth Patterson were married.
On 14th January 1773 William Pitt Amherst 1st Earl Amherst was born to [his father] William Amherst (age 40) and [his mother] Elizabeth Patterson at Bath, Somerset [Map].
In 1778 Other Windsor 5th Earl Plymouth (age 26) and [his future wife] Sarah Archer Countess Plymouth and Amherst (age 16) were married. She by marriage Countess Plymouth. He the son of Other Lewis Windsor 4th Earl Plymouth and Catherine Archer Countess Plymouth (age 41). They were first cousins.
On 13th May 1781 [his father] William Amherst (age 49) died.
The London Gazette 13020. Whitehall, August 30 [1788]. THE King has been pleased to grant the Dignity of a Baron of the Kingdom of Great Britain to the Right Honourable John Griffin (age 69), Lord Howard of Walden, Knight of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath, and General of His Majesty's Forces, and to the Heirs Male of his Body lawfully begotten, by the Name, Stile and Title of Lord Braybrooke, Baron of Braybrooke, in the County of Northampton; with Remainder to Richard Aldworth Neville (age 70), of Billingbear, in the County of Berks, Esq; and the Heirs Male of his Body lawfully begotten.
The King has also been pleased to grant the like Dignity of a Baron of the Kingdom of Great Britain to the Right Honourable [his uncle] Jeffery Lord Amherst (age 71), Knight of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath, and General of His Majesty's Forces, and to the Heirs Male of His Body lawfully begotten, by the Name, Stile and Title of 1st Baron Amherst, of Montreal in the County of Kent; with Remainder to his Nephew William Pitt Amherst (age 15), Esq; and the Heirs Male of his Body lawfully begotten. [Note. This was the second time Jeffrey Amherst had been created Baron Amherst. The first creation had no special remainder and would become extinct on his death since he had no children. This second creation had a special remainder to his nephew William Pitt Amherst to ensure the Barony would continue; William Pitt Amherst would subsequently be created Earl Amherst. Mary Cary Baroness Amherst by marriage Baroness Amherst of Montreal in Kent.]
On 3rd August 1797 [his uncle] Jeffrey Amherst 1st Baron Amherst (age 80) died. Baron Amherst of Holmesdale in Kent extinct. His nephew William (age 24) succeeded 2nd Baron Amherst of Montreal in Kent.
In 1800 William Pitt Amherst 1st Earl Amherst (age 26) and Sarah Archer Countess Plymouth and Amherst (age 38) were married.
On 9th July 1801 [his daughter] Sarah Elizabeth Amherst was born to William Pitt Amherst 1st Earl Amherst (age 28) and [his wife] Sarah Archer Countess Plymouth and Amherst (age 39). She married 1842 John Hay-Williams 2nd Baronet, son of John Williams 1st Baronet and Margaret Williams Lady Williams.
In 1802 [his son] Jeffrey Amherst was born to William Pitt Amherst 1st Earl Amherst (age 28) and [his wife] Sarah Archer Countess Plymouth and Amherst (age 40).
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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In 1803 Arthur William Devis (age 40). Portrait of William Pitt Amherst 1st Earl Amherst (age 29).
On 30th September 1805 [his son] William Amherst 2nd Earl Amherst was born to William Pitt Amherst 1st Earl Amherst (age 32) and [his wife] Sarah Archer Countess Plymouth and Amherst (age 43). He married 1834 his third cousin once removed Gertrude Percy Countess Amherst, daughter of Bishop Hugh Percy and Mary Manners Sutton, and had issue.
In 1807 [his son] Frederick Amherst was born to William Pitt Amherst 1st Earl Amherst (age 33).
In 1811 Arthur Blundell Sandys Trumbull Hill 3rd Marquess Downshire (age 22) and [his step-daughter] Maria Windsor Marchioness Downshire (age 21) were married. She by marriage Marchioness Downshire. She the daughter of Other Windsor 5th Earl Plymouth and [his wife] Sarah Archer Countess Plymouth and Amherst (age 49). He the son of Arthur Hill 2nd Marquess Downshire and Mary Sandys Marchioness Downshire (age 46). They were half third cousins.
On 5th August 1811 [his step-son] Other Archer Windsor 6th Earl Plymouth (age 22) and [his future wife] Mary Sackville Countess Plymouth Amherst (age 19) were married. She by marriage Countess Plymouth. She the daughter of John Frederick Sackville 3rd Duke Dorset and Arabella Diana Cope 3rd Duchess Dorset (age 42). He the son of Other Windsor 5th Earl Plymouth and [his wife] Sarah Archer Countess Plymouth and Amherst (age 49).
In 1819 Robert Henry Herbert (age 29) and [his step-daughter] Harriet Windsor (age 21) were married. She the daughter of Other Windsor 5th Earl Plymouth and [his wife] Sarah Archer Countess Plymouth and Amherst (age 57). He the son of Edward Clive 1st Earl Powis (age 64) and Henrietta Antonia Herbert 3rd Countess Powis (age 60).
In 1826 William Pitt Amherst 1st Earl Amherst (age 52) was created 1st Earl Amherst. [his wife] Sarah Archer Countess Plymouth and Amherst (age 64) by marriage Countess Amherst.
In 1826 [his son] Jeffrey Amherst (age 24) died.
In 1829 [his son] Frederick Amherst (age 22) died.
On 20th July 1833 [his step-son] Other Archer Windsor 6th Earl Plymouth (age 44) died aboard his yacht at Deptford, Kent [Map]. His uncle Andrew (age 69) succeeded 7th Earl Plymouth. Baron Windsor of Stanwell in Buckinghamshire abeyant between his daughters [his step-daughter] Maria Windsor Marchioness Downshire (age 43) and [his step-daughter] Harriet Windsor (age 35).
In 1834 [his son] William Amherst 2nd Earl Amherst (age 28) and [his daughter-in-law] Gertrude Percy Countess Amherst (age 19) were married. She the daughter of Bishop Hugh Percy (age 49) and Mary Manners Sutton. He the son of William Pitt Amherst 1st Earl Amherst (age 60) and [his wife] Sarah Archer Countess Plymouth and Amherst (age 72). They were third cousin once removed.
Chronicle of Walter of Guisborough
A canon regular of the Augustinian Guisborough Priory, Yorkshire, formerly known as The Chronicle of Walter of Hemingburgh, describes the period from 1066 to 1346. Before 1274 the Chronicle is based on other works. Thereafter, the Chronicle is original, and a remarkable source for the events of the time. This book provides a translation of the Chronicle from that date. The Latin source for our translation is the 1849 work edited by Hans Claude Hamilton. Hamilton, in his preface, says: 'In the present work we behold perhaps one of the finest samples of our early chronicles, both as regards the value of the events recorded, and the correctness with which they are detailed; Nor will the pleasing style of composition be lightly passed over by those capable of seeing reflected from it the tokens of a vigorous and cultivated mind, and a favourable specimen of the learning and taste of the age in which it was framed.'
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In May 1838 [his wife] Sarah Archer Countess Plymouth and Amherst (age 76) died.
In 1839 William Pitt Amherst 1st Earl Amherst (age 65) and Mary Sackville Countess Plymouth Amherst (age 46) were married. She by marriage Countess Amherst. She the daughter of John Frederick Sackville 3rd Duke Dorset and Arabella Diana Cope 3rd Duchess Dorset.
In 1842 [his son-in-law] John Hay-Williams 2nd Baronet (age 47) and [his daughter] Sarah Elizabeth Amherst (age 40) were married. She the daughter of William Pitt Amherst 1st Earl Amherst (age 68) and [his former wife] Sarah Archer Countess Plymouth and Amherst.
On 13th March 1857 William Pitt Amherst 1st Earl Amherst (age 84) died at Knole House, Sevenoaks. His son William (age 51) succeeded 2nd Earl Amherst, 3rd Baron Amherst of Montreal in Kent. [his daughter-in-law] Gertrude Percy Countess Amherst (age 42) by marriage Countess Amherst.
On 20th July 1864 [his former wife] Mary Sackville Countess Plymouth Amherst (age 71) died.
GrandFather: Jeffrey Amherst
Father: William Amherst
William Pitt Amherst 1st Earl Amherst
Mother: Elizabeth Patterson