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.
Available at Amazon in eBook and Paperback format.
Paternal Family Tree: Bouverie
On 24th January 1777 [his father] Jacob Pleydell-Bouverie 2nd Earl Radnor [aged 26] and [his mother] Anne Duncombe Countess Radnor [aged 19] were married. She by marriage Countess Radnor. He the son of [his grandfather] William Pleydell-Bouverie 1st Earl Radnor and [his grandmother] Harriet Pleydell.
On 11th May 1779 William Pleydell-Bouverie 3rd Earl Radnor was born to Jacob Pleydell-Bouverie 2nd Earl Radnor [aged 29] and Anne Duncombe Countess Radnor [aged 21].
On 2nd October 1800 William Pleydell-Bouverie 3rd Earl Radnor [aged 21] and Catherine Pelham-Clinton [aged 24] were married. He the son of Jacob Pleydell-Bouverie 2nd Earl Radnor [aged 50] and Anne Duncombe Countess Radnor [aged 42].
In 1801 William Pleydell-Bouverie 3rd Earl Radnor [aged 21] was elected MP Downton.
On 8th July 1801 [his daughter] Catherine Pleydell-Bouverie was born to William Pleydell-Bouverie 3rd Earl Radnor [aged 22] and [his wife] Catherine Pelham-Clinton [aged 25]. She a great x 4 granddaughter of King Charles II of England Scotland and Ireland. She married before 13th May 1828 her sixth cousin General Edward Percy Buckley.
On 22nd November 1801 William Pleydell-Bouverie 3rd Earl Radnor [aged 22] was appointed Deputy Lieutenant Berkshire.
In 1802 William Pleydell-Bouverie 3rd Earl Radnor [aged 22] was elected MP Salisbury.
On 2nd May 1804 [his daughter] Stilborn Pleydell-Bouverie was born to William Pleydell-Bouverie 3rd Earl Radnor [aged 24] and [his wife] Catherine Pelham-Clinton [aged 28]. She a great x 4 granddaughter of King Charles II of England Scotland and Ireland.
On 18th May 1804 [his wife] Catherine Pelham-Clinton [aged 28] died.
On 24th May 1814 William Pleydell-Bouverie 3rd Earl Radnor [aged 35] and Judith St John-Mildmay Countess Radnor [aged 24] were married. He the son of Jacob Pleydell-Bouverie 2nd Earl Radnor [aged 64] and Anne Duncombe Countess Radnor [aged 56].
The True Chronicles of Jean le Bel Volume 1 Chapters 1-60 1307-1342
The True Chronicles of Jean le Bel offer one of the most vivid and immediate accounts of 14th-century Europe, written by a knight who lived through the events he describes, and experienced some of them first hand. Covering the early decades of the Hundred Years’ War, this remarkable chronicle follows the campaigns of Edward III of England, the politics of France and the Low Countries, and the shifting alliances that shaped medieval warfare. Unlike later historians, Jean le Bel writes with a strong sense of eyewitness authenticity, drawing on personal experience and the testimony of fellow soldiers. His narrative captures not only battles and sieges, but also the realities of military life, diplomacy, and the ideals of chivalry that governed noble society. A key source for Jean Froissart, Le Bel’s chronicle stands on its own as a compelling and insightful work, at once historical record and literary achievement. This translation builds on the 1905 edition published in French by Jules Viard, adding extensive translations from other sources Rymer's Fœdera, the Chronicles of Adam Murimuth, William Nangis, Walter of Guisborough, a Bourgeois of Valenciennes, Geoffrey le Baker of Swinbroke and Richard Lescot to enrich the original text and Viard's notes.
Available at Amazon in eBook and Paperback format.
In 1815 [his brother-in-law] Henry St John-Mildmay 4th Baronet [aged 27] and Harriett Bouverie Countess Camden [aged 24] were married. She the sister of his first wife Charlotte Bouverie; an example of Married to Two Siblings. Further, his brother Paulet St John-Mildmay [aged 23] had two years before, in 1813, marry Anna Maria Wyndham Bouverie, sister of Harriet and Charlotte; Marriage of Two Sets of Siblings. Further still, Harriet, Charlotte and Anna Maria's first cousin William Pleydell-Bouverie 3rd Earl Radnor [aged 35] married Henry and Paulet's sister Judith [aged 24].
On 18th September 1815 [his son] Jacob Pleydell-Bouverie 4th Earl Radnor was born to William Pleydell-Bouverie 3rd Earl Radnor [aged 36] and [his wife] Judith St John-Mildmay Countess Radnor [aged 25]. He married 30th October 1840 Mary Augusta Frederica Grimston, daughter of James Walter Grimston 1st Earl Verulam and Charlotte Jenkinson Countess Verulam, and had issue.
On 16th January 1817 [his daughter] Ann Maria Pleydell-Bouverie was born to William Pleydell-Bouverie 3rd Earl Radnor [aged 37] and [his wife] Judith St John-Mildmay Countess Radnor [aged 26]. She died aged eight in 1825.
On 26th April 1818 [his son] Edward Pleydell-Bouverie was born to William Pleydell-Bouverie 3rd Earl Radnor [aged 38] and [his wife] Judith St John-Mildmay Countess Radnor [aged 28]. He married 1st November 1842 Elizabeth Anne Balfour and had issue.
In April 1819 [his daughter] Jane Harriet Pleydell-Bouverie was born to William Pleydell-Bouverie 3rd Earl Radnor [aged 39] and [his wife] Judith St John-Mildmay Countess Radnor [aged 28].
On 18th July 1825 [his daughter] Ann Maria Pleydell-Bouverie [aged 8] died.
On 22nd December 1825 [his daughter] Mary Pleydell-Bouverie was born to William Pleydell-Bouverie 3rd Earl Radnor [aged 46] and [his wife] Judith St John-Mildmay Countess Radnor [aged 35].
On 27th January 1828 [his father] Jacob Pleydell-Bouverie 2nd Earl Radnor [aged 77] died. His son William [aged 48] succeeded 3rd Earl Radnor, 4th Viscount Folkestone, 4th Baron Longford, 6th Baronet Bouverie of St Catherine Cree Church in London. [his wife] Judith St John-Mildmay Countess Radnor [aged 37] by marriage Countess Radnor.
Before 13th May 1828 [his son-in-law] General Edward Percy Buckley [aged 31] and Catherine Pleydell-Bouverie [aged 26] were married. She the daughter of William Pleydell-Bouverie 3rd Earl Radnor [aged 49] and Catherine Pelham-Clinton. They were sixth cousins. She a great x 4 granddaughter of King Charles II of England Scotland and Ireland.
In 1829 [his mother] Anne Duncombe Countess Radnor [aged 70] died.
Abbot John Whethamstede’s Chronicle of the Abbey of St Albans
Abbot John Whethamstede's Register aka Chronicle of his second term at the Abbey of St Albans, 1451-1461, is a remarkable text that describes his first-hand experience of the beginning of the Wars of the Roses including the First and Second Battles of St Albans, 1455 and 1461, respectively, their cause, and their consequences, not least on the Abbey itself. His text also includes Loveday, Blore Heath, Northampton, the Act of Accord, Wakefield, and Towton, and ends with the Coronation of King Edward IV. In addition to the events of the Wars of the Roses, Abbot John, or his scribes who wrote the Chronicle, include details in the life of the Abbey such as charters, letters, land exchanges, visits by legates, and disputes, which provide a rich insight into the day-to-day life of the Abbey, and the challenges faced by its Abbot.
Available at Amazon in eBook and Paperback format.
On 26th June 1832 [his son] Stillborn Pleydell-Bouverie was born to William Pleydell-Bouverie 3rd Earl Radnor [aged 53] and [his wife] Judith St John-Mildmay Countess Radnor [aged 42].
On 30th October 1840 Jacob Pleydell-Bouverie 4th Earl Radnor [aged 25] and Mary Augusta Frederica Grimston [aged 19] were married. She the daughter of James Walter Grimston 1st Earl Verulam [aged 65] and Charlotte Jenkinson Countess Verulam. He the son of William Pleydell-Bouverie 3rd Earl Radnor [aged 61] and Judith St John-Mildmay Countess Radnor [aged 50].
On 1st November 1842 Edward Pleydell-Bouverie [aged 24] and Elizabeth Anne Balfour [aged 22] were married. He the son of William Pleydell-Bouverie 3rd Earl Radnor [aged 63] and Judith St John-Mildmay Countess Radnor [aged 52].
On 27th April 1851 [his wife] Judith St John-Mildmay Countess Radnor [aged 61] died.
On 9th April 1869 William Pleydell-Bouverie 3rd Earl Radnor [aged 89] died. His son Jacob [aged 53] succeeded 4th Earl Radnor, 5th Viscount Folkestone, 5th Baron Longford, 7th Baronet Bouverie of St Catherine Cree Church in London. Mary Augusta Frederica Grimston [aged 47] by marriage Countess Radnor.
Kings Wessex: Great x 25 Grand Son of King Edmund "Ironside" I of England
Kings Gwynedd: Great x 25 Grand Son of Maredudd ab Owain King Deheubarth King Powys King Gwynedd
Kings Seisyllwg: Great x 27 Grand Son of Hywel "Dda aka Good" King Seisyllwg King Deheubarth
Kings Powys: Great x 25 Grand Son of Maredudd ab Owain King Deheubarth King Powys King Gwynedd
Kings England: Great x 20 Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Kings Scotland: Great x 20 Grand Son of King William I of Scotland
Kings France: Great x 26 Grand Son of Hugh I King of the Franks
Kings Duke Aquitaine: Great x 30 Grand Son of Ranulf I Duke Aquitaine
Great x 3 Grandfather: Edward des Bouverie
Great x 2 Grandfather: William des Bouverie 1st Baronet
Great x 4 Grandfather: Jacob de la Forterie
Great x 3 Grandmother: Anne de la Foterie
Great x 1 Grandfather: Jacob Bouverie 1st Viscount Folkestone
Great x 4 Grandfather: John Urry of Mill Place, Isle of Wight
Great x 3 Grandfather: David Urry
Great x 2 Grandmother: Anne Urry Lady Bouverie
GrandFather: William Pleydell-Bouverie 1st Earl Radnor
Great x 2 Grandfather: Bartholemew Clarke
Great x 1 Grandmother: Mary Clarke
Father: Jacob Pleydell-Bouverie 2nd Earl Radnor
Great x 1 Grandfather: Mark Stuart Pleydell
GrandMother: Harriet Pleydell
William Pleydell-Bouverie 3rd Earl Radnor 20 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: William Duncombe 
Great x 3 Grandfather: William Duncome
Great x 2 Grandfather: Alexander Duncombe of Drayton Bucks
Great x 1 Grandfather: Anthony Duncombe
GrandFather: Anthony Duncombe 1st Baron Feversham
Mother: Anne Duncombe Countess Radnor 19 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Robert Hales 1st Baronet 14 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Thomas Hales of Howletts 15 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 2 Grandfather: Thomas Hales 2nd Baronet 16 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 1 Grandfather: Thomas Hales 3rd Baronet 17 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
GrandMother: Anne Hales Baroness Feversham Downton 18 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England