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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Guisborough Priory is in Guisborough, Yorkshire, Priories in England.
On 11th May 1141 Robert Bruce 1st Lord Annandale 1st Lord Skelton [aged 71] died at Guisborough Priory [Map]. His son Adam [aged 36] succeeded 2nd Lord Annandale, 2nd Lord Skelton.
On 16th July 1212 William Bruce 3rd Lord Annandale [aged 58] died. He was buried at Guisborough Priory [Map]. His son Robert [aged 17] succeeded 4th Lord Annandale.
On 7th September 1241 Unknown Brus was born at Marseilles, France. He was buried at Guisborough Priory [Map].
In 1245 Robert Bruce 4th Lord Annandale [aged 50] died. He was buried at Guisborough Priory [Map]. His son Robert [aged 30] succeeded 5th Lord Annandale.
Before 1257 Bishop Ralph de Ireton became a Canon at Guisborough Priory [Map].
In 1261 Bishop Ralph de Ireton was elected Prior of Guisborough Priory [Map].
On 10th July 1264 Isabel Clare Lady Annandale [aged 37] died. She was buried at Guisborough Priory [Map].
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 31st March 1295 Robert Bruce 5th Lord Annandale [aged 80] died. He was buried at Guisborough Priory [Map]. His son Robert [aged 51] succeeded 6th Lord Annandale.
Chronicle of Walter of Guisborough. In the same year, in his own land of Annandale, at Lochmaben, that noble man Lord Robert de Brus the Fourth died, on Maundy Thursday [31st March 1296]. As previously mentioned, he had disputed with John Balliol before the king of England over the succession to the Scottish throne. And, as he had ordered while alive, he was buried in our house at Guisborough [Map], beside his father, on the second Sunday after Easter, the fifteenth day before the Kalends of May [17th April 1295], with the highest honour and great reverence, as was fitting. Throughout his life, he was glorious, gracious, wealthy, and generous, and he abounded in all things both in life and in death.
Eodem anno in terra sua Vallis Anandiæ apud Loghmaban obiit nobilis ille vir dominus Robertus de Bruys quartus, in Cœna Domini, qui, ut superius tactum est, circa successionem regni Scotiæ cum Johanne de Balliolo coram rege Anglorum disceptavit; et, ut vivens ipse jusserat, sepultus est in domo nostra Gisseburne juxta patrem suum, Dominica secunda post Pascha, XV kalendas Maii, cum summo honore, ut decuit, et reverentia magna. Hic toto tempore vitæ suæ gloriosus extitit, facetus, dives, et largus, et abundavit in omnibus in vita et in morte.
On 30th May 1347 John Darcy 1st Baron Darcy of Knayth [aged 67] died. He was buried at Guisborough Priory [Map]. His son John [aged 30] succeeded 2nd Baron Darcy of Knayth. Elizabeth Meinhill Baroness Darcy Knayth and Haversham [aged 15] by marriage Baroness Darcy of Knayth.
On 29th September 1362 Walter Fauconberg 4th Baron Fauconberg [aged 43] died at Guisborough Priory [Map]. His son Thomas [aged 17] succeeded 5th Baron Fauconberg.
On 28th May 1381 William Latimer 4th Baron Latimer of Corby [aged 51] died. He was buried at Guisborough Priory [Map]. His daughter Elizabeth [aged 24] succeeded 5th Baroness Latimer of Corby.
On 9th January 1463 William Neville 1st Earl Kent [aged 58] died. He was buried at Guisborough Priory [Map]. No surviving legitimate issue. Earl Kent extinct.
Around 30th May 1537 the Abbots of Fountains Abbey, North Yorkshire [Map], Marmaduke Bradley, and Guisborough Priory [Map], Robert Pursglove, were hanged, drawn and quartered at Tyburn [Map] for their role in the Pilgrimage of Grace. Their heads were displayed on London Bridge [Map].
In 1545 John Lumley 4th Baron Lumley [aged 53] died. He was buried at Guisborough Priory [Map]. Baron Lumley forfeit since his son George aka William Lumley was been executed eight years previously and whose attainder (presuming there was one) prevented his grandson John Lumley [aged 12] from succeeding to the title. His grandson John Lumley 1st Baron Lumley was created Baron Lumley of the third creation in 1547.
1801. Thomas Girtin [aged 25]. Guisborough Priory [Map].