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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MP Cheshire is in Member Parliament.
In 1584 Thomas Egerton 1st Viscount Brackley (age 44) was elected MP Cheshire.
In 1625 Robert Cholmondeley 1st Earl Leinster (age 40) was elected MP Cheshire.
On 17th January 1670 Thomas Cholmondeley (age 42) was elected MP Cheshire.
In 1678 Henry Booth 1st Earl Warrington (age 25) was elected MP Cheshire which seat he held until 1681.
In 1679 Robert Cotton 1st Baronet (age 43) was elected MP Cheshire which seat he held until 1681.
In 1685 Thomas Cholmondeley (age 57) was elected MP Cheshire.
In 1689 Robert Cotton 1st Baronet (age 53) was elected MP Cheshire which seat he held until 1702.
In 1705 Langham Booth (age 20) was elected MP Cheshire which seat he held until 1710.
In 1710 Langham Booth (age 25) was elected MP Cheshire which seat he held until 1715.
In 1754 Samuel Egerton (age 42) was elected MP Cheshire.
The History of William Marshal was commissioned by his son shortly after William’s death in 1219 to celebrate the Marshal’s remarkable life; it is an authentic, contemporary voice. The manuscript was discovered in 1861 by French historian Paul Meyer. Meyer published the manuscript in its original Anglo-French in 1891 in two books. This book is a line by line translation of the first of Meyer’s books; lines 1-10152. Book 1 of the History begins in 1139 and ends in 1194. It describes the events of the Anarchy, the role of William’s father John, John’s marriages, William’s childhood, his role as a hostage at the siege of Newbury, his injury and imprisonment in Poitou where he met Eleanor of Aquitaine and his life as a knight errant. It continues with the accusation against him of an improper relationship with Margaret, wife of Henry the Young King, his exile, and return, the death of Henry the Young King, the rebellion of Richard, the future King Richard I, war with France, the death of King Henry II, and the capture of King Richard, and the rebellion of John, the future King John. It ends with the release of King Richard and the death of John Marshal.
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In 1796 Thomas Cholmondeley 1st Baron Delamere (age 28) was elected MP Cheshire.
In 1806 Davies Davenport of Capesthorne Hall (age 48) was elected MP Cheshire which seat he held unopposed until 1830.