William of Worcester's Chronicle of England

William of Worcester, born around 1415, and died around 1482 was secretary to John Fastolf, the renowned soldier of the Hundred Years War, during which time he collected documents, letters, and wrote a record of events. Following their return to England in 1440 William was witness to major events. Twice in his chronicle he uses the first person: 1. when writing about the murder of Thomas, 7th Baron Scales, in 1460, he writes '… and I saw him lying naked in the cemetery near the porch of the church of St. Mary Overie in Southwark …' and 2. describing King Edward IV's entry into London in 1461 he writes '… proclaimed that all the people themselves were to recognize and acknowledge Edward as king. I was present and heard this, and immediately went down with them into the city'. William’s Chronicle is rich in detail. It is the source of much information about the Wars of the Roses, including the term 'Diabolical Marriage' to describe the marriage of Queen Elizabeth Woodville’s brother John’s marriage to Katherine, Dowager Duchess of Norfolk, he aged twenty, she sixty-five or more, and the story about a paper crown being placed in mockery on the severed head of Richard, 3rd Duke of York.

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Aunis, France, Europe

Aunis is in France.

La Rochelle, Aunis, France, Europe

On 14th March 1424 Archibald Douglas 1st Duke Touraine (age 52) arrived at La Rochelle with an army following a request from Charles "Victorious" VII King France (age 21) for aid.

On 16th August 1608 Jean-Louis Raduit Count de Souches was born at La Rochelle.

Île de Ré, La Rochelle, Aunis, France, Europe

Saint-Martin-de-Ré, Île de Ré, La Rochelle, Aunis, France, Europe

On 12th July 1627 George Villiers 1st Duke of Buckingham (age 34) led an English force of 100 ships and 6,000 soldiers to capture the city of Saint-Martin-de-Ré on the Île de Ré.

In August 1627 more troops, including the newly promoted Lieutenant John Felton (age 32), arrived.

On 3rd September 1627 two thousand Irish troops arrived under Ralph Bingley (age 57)

On 27th October 1627 a final assault was attempted; it failed because the attackers' siege ladders were shorter than the walls of the fortress.

In November 1627 George Villiers 1st Duke of Buckingham retreated and returned to England having lost thousands of his men.