Annals of the six Kings of England by Nicholas Trivet
Translation of the Annals of the Six Kings of England by that traces the rise and rule of the Angevin aka Plantagenet dynasty from the mid-12th to early 14th century. Written by the Dominican scholar Nicholas Trivet, the work offers a vivid account of English history from the reign of King Stephen through to the death of King Edward I, blending political narrative with moral reflection. Covering the reigns of six monarchs—from Stephen to Edward I—the chronicle explores royal authority, rebellion, war, and the shifting balance between crown, church, and nobility. Trivet provides detailed insight into defining moments such as baronial conflicts, Anglo-French rivalry, and the consolidation of royal power under Edward I, whose reign he describes with particular immediacy. The Annals combines careful year-by-year reporting with thoughtful interpretation, presenting history not merely as a sequence of events but as a moral and political lesson. Ideal for readers interested in medieval history, kingship, and the origins of the English state, this chronicle remains a valuable and accessible window into the turbulent world of the Plantagenet kings.
Available at Amazon in eBook and Paperback format.
In 1105 Melisende Queen of Jerusalem was born to Baldwin II King Jerusalem [aged 30].
On 14th April 1109 Fulk "Réchin" Anjou 4th Count Anjou [aged 66] died. In 1109 His son [her future husband] Fulk [aged 20] succeeded V Count Anjou.
In 1110 [her future husband] Fulk "Young" King Jerusalem [aged 21] and Ermengarde of Maine Countess of Anjou were married. She by marriage Countess Anjou. She the daughter of Elias I Count Maine and Matilda Chateau Du Loir Countess Maine. He the son of Fulk "Réchin" Anjou 4th Count Anjou and Bertrade Montfort Queen Consort France [aged 40]. They were third cousin twice removed.
On 2nd April 1118 Baldwin I King Jerusalem [aged 60] died. [her father] Baldwin II King Jerusalem [aged 43] succeeded King Jerusalem.
In 1129 [her future husband] Fulk "Young" King Jerusalem [aged 40] travelled to Jerusalem [Map] on pilgrimage. His son [her future step-son] Geoffrey Plantagenet Duke Normandy [aged 15] was appointed Count Anjou.
Chronicle of William Nangis. [her husband] Fulk, count of Anjou, leaving the county of Anjou to his son Geoffrey and setting out for Syria, took as wife1 Melisende, the eldest daughter of Baldwin, king of Jerusalem.
Fulco comes Audegavis, relinquens comitatum Andegavensem Gaufrido filio suo et in Syriam proficiscens, accepit in uxorem Milisandem primogenitam filiam Balduini regis Jerusalem.
Note 1. Fulk, count of Anjou and Melisende were married on 2nd June 1129. When her father Baldwin II died in 1131 Fulk and Melisende became King and Queen of Jerusalem.
On 2nd June 1129 Fulk "Young" King Jerusalem [aged 40] and Melisende Queen of Jerusalem [aged 24] were married at Jerusalem [Map]. She by marriage Countess Anjou. Her father [aged 54] had written to Fulk "Young" King Jerusalem requesting the marriage since he had no male heirs. She the daughter of Baldwin II King Jerusalem. He the son of Fulk "Réchin" Anjou 4th Count Anjou and Bertrade Montfort Queen Consort France.
In 1130 [her son] Baldwin III King Jerusalem was born to [her husband] Fulk "Young" King Jerusalem [aged 41] and Melisende Queen of Jerusalem [aged 25].
On 21st August 1131 [her father] Baldwin II King Jerusalem [aged 56] died. [her husband] Fulk "Young" King Jerusalem [aged 42] succeeded King Jerusalem. Melisende Queen of Jerusalem [aged 26] by marriage Queen Consort Jerusalem.
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.
After 1132 Thierry Count Flanders [aged 33] and [her step-daughter] Sibylla Anjou Countess Essex [aged 20] were married. She by marriage Countess Flanders. She the daughter of [her husband] Fulk "Young" King Jerusalem [aged 43] and Ermengarde of Maine Countess of Anjou. He the son of Theodoric "Valiant" Metz II Duke Lorraine and Gertrude Flanders Duchess Lorraine. They were fifth cousins.
In 1136 [her son] Almaric I King Jerusalem was born to [her husband] Fulk "Young" King Jerusalem [aged 47] and Melisende Queen of Jerusalem [aged 31]. He married (1) 1157 his third cousin Agnes Courtenay Queen Jerusalem, daughter of Joscelin Courtenay II Count Edessa, and had issue (2) 1167 Maria Komnenos Queen Jerusalem and had issue.
Chronicle of William Nangis. In festo beati Martini æstivalis (2), dum Fulco rex Jerosolymitanus venatum iret et leporem sequeretur, equo cespitante ruens mortuus est per miraculum rupto collo. Ipse enim, [ut tradunt aliqui], antequam esset rex Jerusalem, quamdiu comitatum Andegavensem tenuit, ecclesiam beati Martini [Turonensis] in quantum potuit infestavit. Quo ita mortuo, Balduinus tercius (3), íìlius ejus, cum matre [Milisande regina] regnavit. MCXLIV.
On the feast of Saint Martin [4th July 1143] in summer, while [her husband] Fulk, king of Jerusalem, was going hunting and pursuing a hare, his horse stumbled and he fell and died, his neck being broken by a miraculous accident. For he, as some relate, before he became king of Jerusalem, while he held the county of Anjou, had troubled the church of Saint Martin of Tours as much as he could. After he had thus died, Baldwin III, his son, reigned with his mother, Queen Melisende.
A History of Deeds Done Beyond the Sea by William of Tyre Book 15 Chapter 27. [13th November 1143]. It happened, however, in those days that, when the lord king [[her husband] Fulk "Young" King Jerusalem [aged 54]], along with the lady queen [Melisende Queen of Jerusalem [aged 38]], after autumn had passed, was staying in the city of Acre, the queen wished, to relieve her boredom, to go out of the city to certain suburban places, irrigated by springs, for the sake of recreation; whereupon the lord king, so that the queen might not lack company, decided also himself, with his usual retinue, to set forth. And while they were going along, it happened by chance that the boys who were going before the ranks and retinue stirred up a hare lying in the furrows, which, as it fled, was pursued by the clamor of all. The king, however, seizing a lance, in order to pursue this same hare, driven by a stroke of bad luck, began to urge his horse toward those parts, and to press on the chase vigorously. Finally, as the horse rushed forward heedlessly, it was driven headlong; and falling to the ground, threw the king headlong, and to the one lying there, stunned by the pain of the fall, the saddle crushed his head, so that the brain was emitted both through his ears and even through his nostrils. At this accident, the entire retinue, both those going before and those following, terrified by the harshness of the event, turned around, and wanting to bring help to the one lying there, found him lifeless, for he had neither voice nor sense.
Accidit autem illis diebus, quod cum dominus rex, una cum domina regina transcurso autumno, in civitate Acconense moram faceret, voluit regina, sublevandi gratia fastidii, extra urbem ad loca quaedam suburbana, fontibus irrigua, causa recreationis exire: quo dominus rex, ut solatium reginae non deesset, adjecit etiam ipse, cum solito comitatu proficisci. Dumque inter eundum esset, accidit casu ut qui agmina et comitatum praeibant pueri, leporem in sulcis jacentem excitarent, quem fugientem clamor prosecutus est universorum. Rex autem, arrepta lancea, ut eumdem leporem insectaretur, sinistro actus casu, equum ad illas coepit urgere partes, et cursui vehementer instare. Tandem inconsulte festinans equus in praeceps agitur; corruensque in terram, regem dedit praecipitem, jacentique prae casus dolore attonito, sella caput obtrivit, ita ut cerebrum tam per aures, quam per nares etiam emitteretur. Ad hunc casum, universus qui praeibat et qui sequebatur, facti acerbitate perterritus, conversus est comitatus, et jacenti opem ferre volentes, exanimem reperiunt, cui neque vox erat, neque sensus.
On 13th November 1143 [her husband] Fulk "Young" King Jerusalem [aged 54] died in a hunting accident. His wife Melisende Queen of Jerusalem [aged 38] continued to reign in her own right with their son Baldwin III King Jerusalem [aged 13].
In 1157 Almaric I King Jerusalem [aged 21] and Agnes Courtenay Queen Jerusalem [aged 21] were married. She by marriage Queen Jerusalem. She the daughter of Joscelin Courtenay II Count Edessa. He the son of Fulk "Young" King Jerusalem and Melisende Queen of Jerusalem [aged 52]. They were third cousins.
On 11th September 1161 Melisende Queen of Jerusalem [aged 56] died. Her son Baldwin [aged 31] succeeded King Jerusalem.
GrandFather: Hugh I Count of Rethel
Father: Baldwin II King Jerusalem
Great x 1 Grandfather: Guy I of Montlhéry
GrandMother: Melisende of Crécy
Great x 1 Grandmother: Hodierna of Gometz