Chronicle of Abbot Ralph of Coggeshall
The Chronicle of Abbot Ralph of Coggeshall (Chronicon Anglicanum) is an indispensable medieval history that brings to life centuries of English and European affairs through the eyes of a learned Cistercian monk. Ralph of Coggeshall, abbot of the Abbey of Coggeshall in Essex in the early 13th century, continued and expanded his community’s chronicle, documenting events from the Norman Conquest of 1066 into the tumultuous reign of King Henry III. Blending eyewitness testimony, careful compilation, and the monastic commitment to record-keeping, this chronicle offers a rare narrative of political intrigue, royal power struggles, and social upheaval in England and beyond. Ralph’s work captures the reigns of pivotal figures such as Richard I and King John, providing invaluable insights into their characters, decisions, and the forces that shaped medieval rule. More than a simple annal, Chronicon Anglicanum conveys the texture of medieval life and governance, making it a rich source for scholars and readers fascinated by English history, monastic authorship, and the shaping of the medieval world.
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Earl Rochester is in Earldoms of England Alphabetically.
Earl Rochester is also in Earldoms of England Chronologically, Extinct Earldoms of England.
Summary
1652. Henry Wilmot 1st Earl Rochester [aged 39] created.
19th February 1658. Son John Wilmot 2nd Earl Rochester [aged 10] succeeded.
26th July 1680. Son Charles Wilmot 3rd Earl Rochester [aged 9] succeeded.
1681. Charles Wilmot 3rd Earl Rochester extinct.
In 1652 Henry Wilmot 1st Earl Rochester [aged 39] was created 1st Earl Rochester. Anne St John Countess Rochester [aged 37] by marriage Countess Rochester.
On 19th February 1658 Henry Wilmot 1st Earl Rochester [aged 45] died at Sluys [Map]. He was buried in Bruges [Map]. After the Restoration his remains were reburied in All Saints Church, Spelsbury [Map]. His son John [aged 10] succeeded 2nd Earl Rochester, 2nd Viscount Wilmot.
On 29th January 1667 John Wilmot 2nd Earl Rochester [aged 19] and Elizabeth Malet Countess Rochester [aged 16] were married at Knightsbridge Chapel. She by marriage Countess Rochester. They having eloped and married against her families wishes. Two years previously he had abducted her for which he spent three weeks in prison. Her father being dead it isn't clear whose ward she was. He the son of Henry Wilmot 1st Earl Rochester and Anne St John Countess Rochester [aged 52].
On 26th July 1680 John Wilmot 2nd Earl Rochester [aged 33] died. His son Charles [aged 9] succeeded 3rd Earl Rochester, 3rd Viscount Wilmot.
In 1681 Charles Wilmot 3rd Earl Rochester [aged 10] died. Earl Rochester, Viscount Wilmot extinct.
Earl Rochester is also in Earldoms of England Chronologically, Extinct Earldoms of England.
Summary
29th November 1682. Lawrence Hyde 1st Earl Rochester [aged 40] created.
2nd May 1711. Son Henry Hyde 2nd Earl Rochester 4th Earl Clarendon [aged 38] succeeded.
10th December 1753. Henry Hyde 2nd Earl Rochester 4th Earl Clarendon extinct.
Samuel Pepys' Diary. 19th November 1667. Thence with W. Hewer [aged 25] and our messenger, Marlow, home by coach, and so late at letters, and then home to supper, and my wife to read and then to bed. This night I wrote to my father, in answer to a new match which is proposed (the executor of Ensum, my sister's former servant) for my sister [aged 26], that I will continue my mind of giving her £500, if he likes of the match. My father did also this week, by Shepley, return me up a 'Guinny, which, it seems, upon searching the ground, they have found since I was there. I was told this day that Lory Hide [aged 25]1, second son of my Chancellor [aged 58], did some time since in the House say, that if he thought his father was guilty but of one of the things then said against him, he would be the first that should call for judgement against him: which Mr. Waller [aged 61], the poet, did say was spoke like the old Roman, like Brutus, for its greatness and worthiness.
Note 1. Laurence Hyde, second son of Chancellor Clarendon (1614-1711). He held many important offices, and was First Lord of the Treasury, 1679-84; created Earl of Rochester in 1681, and K.G. 1685.
On 29th November 1682 Lawrence Hyde 1st Earl Rochester [aged 40] was created 1st Earl Rochester. Henrietta Boyle Countess Rochester [aged 36] by marriage Countess Rochester.
Chronicle of Geoffrey le Baker of Swinbroke
Baker was a secular clerk from Swinbroke, now Swinbrook, an Oxfordshire village two miles east of Burford. His Chronicle describes the events of the period 1303-1356: Gaveston, Bannockburn, Boroughbridge, the murder of King Edward II, the Scottish Wars, Sluys, Crécy, the Black Death, Winchelsea and Poitiers. To quote Herbert Bruce 'it possesses a vigorous and characteristic style, and its value for particular events between 1303 and 1356 has been recognised by its editor and by subsequent writers'. The book provides remarkable detail about the events it describes. Baker's text has been augmented with hundreds of notes, including extracts from other contemporary chronicles, such as the Annales Londonienses, Annales Paulini, Murimuth, Lanercost, Avesbury, Guisborough and Froissart to enrich the reader's understanding. The translation takes as its source the 'Chronicon Galfridi le Baker de Swynebroke' published in 1889, edited by Edward Maunde Thompson.
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John Evelyn's Diary. 7th December 1682. Went to congratulate Lord Hyde [aged 40] (the great favorite) newly made Earl of Rochester, and lately marrying his eldest daughter to the Earl of Ossory [aged 17].
On 2nd May 1711 Lawrence Hyde 1st Earl Rochester [aged 69] died. His son Henry [aged 38] succeeded 2nd Earl Rochester. Jane Leveson-Gower Countess Rochester and Clarendon by marriage Countess Rochester.
On 10th December 1753 Henry Hyde 2nd Earl Rochester 4th Earl Clarendon [aged 81] died without male issue. Earl Rochester and Earl Clarendon extinct.