This is a translation of the 'Memoires of Jacques du Clercq', published in 1823 in two volumes, edited by Frederic, Baron de Reissenberg. In his introduction Reissenberg writes: 'Jacques du Clercq tells us that he was born in 1424, and that he was a licentiate in law and a counsellor to Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, in the castellany of Douai, Lille, and Orchies. It appears that he established his residence at Arras. In 1446, he married the daughter of Baldwin de la Lacherie, a gentleman who lived in Lille. We read in the fifth book of his Memoirs that his father, also named Jacques du Clercq, had married a lady of the Le Camelin family, from Compiègne. His ancestors, always attached to the counts of Flanders, had constantly served them, whether in their councils or in their armies.' The Memoires cover a period of nineteen years beginning in in 1448, ending in in 1467. It appears that the author had intended to extend the Memoirs beyond that date; no doubt illness or death prevented him from carrying out this plan. As Reissenberg writes the 'merit of this work lies in the simplicity of its narrative, in its tone of good faith, and in a certain air of frankness which naturally wins the reader’s confidence.' Du Clercq ranges from events of national and international importance, including events of the Wars of the Roses in England, to simple, everyday local events such as marriages, robberies, murders, trials and deaths, including that of his own father in Book 5; one of his last entries.
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Maternal Family Tree: Etienette Countess Provence and Arles
Before 1208 [her father] Simon Dammartin [age 27] and [her mother] Marie Montgomery Countess Ponthieu [age 8] were married. She the daughter of [her grandfather] William Montgomery IV Count Ponthieu [age 28] and [her grandmother] Alys Capet Countess Ponthieu [age 47].
On 30th November 1219 [her future husband] Ferdinand III King Castile III King Leon [age 20] and Elisabeth Hohenstaufen Queen Consort Castile Queen Consort Leon [age 14] were married in Burgos [Map]. She by marriage Queen Consort Castile, Queen Consort Leon. She the daughter of Philip King Germany. He the son of Alfonso IX King Leon [age 48] and [her future mother-in-law] Berengaria Ivrea I Queen Castile [age 40]. They were fourth cousins. He a great grandson of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England.
Around 1220 Joan Dammartin Queen Consort Castile and Leon was born to [her father] Simon Dammartin [age 40] and [her mother] Marie Montgomery Countess Ponthieu [age 20].
On 4th October 1221 [her grandfather] William Montgomery IV Count Ponthieu [age 42] died. His daughter [her mother] Marie [age 22] succeeded Countess Ponthieu.
On 24th September 1230 Alfonso IX King Leon [age 59] died. His son [her future husband] Ferdinand [age 31] succeeded III King Leon.
In October 1237 Ferdinand III King Castile III King Leon [age 38] and Joan Dammartin Queen Consort Castile and Leon [age 17] were married in Burgos [Map]. She by marriage Queen Consort Castile, Queen Consort Leon. The difference in their ages was 21 years. She the daughter of Simon Dammartin [age 57] and Marie Montgomery Countess Ponthieu [age 38]. He the son of Alfonso IX King Leon and Berengaria Ivrea I Queen Castile [age 58]. They were second cousin once removed. He a great grandson of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England.
In 1239 [her son] Ferdinand of Ponthieu was born to [her husband] Ferdinand III King Castile III King Leon [age 40] and Joan Dammartin Queen Consort Castile and Leon [age 19]. He a great x 2 grandson of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England.
On 21st September 1239 [her father] Simon Dammartin [age 59] died.
In 1241 [her daughter] Eleanor of Castile Queen Consort England was born to [her husband] Ferdinand III King Castile III King Leon [age 42] and Joan Dammartin Queen Consort Castile and Leon [age 21] at Burgos [Map]. She a great x 2 granddaughter of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England. She married 1st November 1254 her second cousin once removed King Edward I of England, son of King Henry III of England and Eleanor of Provence Queen Consort England, and had issue.
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.
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In 1242 [her future brother-in-law] Raoul Coucy II Lord Coucy succeeded II Lord Coucy. [her sister] Philippe Dammartin Countess Eu by marriage Lord Coucy.
Before 1243 [her sister-in-law] Sancha Ivrea Queen Consort Castile [age 51] died.
In 1243 [her son] Louis Ivrea was born to [her husband] Ferdinand III King Castile III King Leon [age 44] and Joan Dammartin Queen Consort Castile and Leon [age 23]. He a great x 2 grandson of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England.
In 1243 [her step-son] Ferdinand Ivrea [age 18] died.
In 1244 [her son] Simon Ivrea was born to [her husband] Ferdinand III King Castile III King Leon [age 45] and Joan Dammartin Queen Consort Castile and Leon [age 24]. He a great x 2 grandson of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England.
In 1245 [her son] John Ivrea was born to [her husband] Ferdinand III King Castile III King Leon [age 46] and Joan Dammartin Queen Consort Castile and Leon [age 25]. He a great x 2 grandson of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England.
In 1249 [her step-son] Alfonso X King Castile X King Leon [age 27] and Violante Barcelona Queen Consort Castile Queen Consort Leon were married. She the daughter of James I King Aragon [age 40] and Violant Árpád Queen Consort Aragon [age 34]. He the son of [her husband] Ferdinand III King Castile III King Leon [age 50] and Elisabeth Hohenstaufen Queen Consort Castile Queen Consort Leon. They were half third cousins. He a great x 2 grandson of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England.
Before 1250 [her brother-in-law] Raoul Coucy II Lord Coucy and [her sister] Philippe Dammartin Countess Eu were married. She the daughter of [her father] Simon Dammartin and [her mother] Marie Montgomery Countess Ponthieu [age 50]. They were third cousins.
On 21st September 1250 Joan Dammartin Queen Consort Castile and Leon [age 30] succeeded Countess Ponthieu.
On 21st September 1250 [her mother] Marie Montgomery Countess Ponthieu [age 51] died.
On 30th May 1252 [her husband] Ferdinand III King Castile III King Leon [age 53] died. His son [her step-son] Alfonso [age 30] succeeded X King Castile, X King Leon. Violante Barcelona Queen Consort Castile Queen Consort Leon by marriage Queen Consort Castile, Queen Consort Leon.
Jean de Waurin's Chronicle of England Volume 6 Books 3-6: The Wars of the Roses
Jean de Waurin was a French Chronicler, from the Artois region, who was born around 1400, and died around 1474. Waurin’s Chronicle of England, Volume 6, covering the period 1450 to 1471, from which we have selected and translated Chapters relating to the Wars of the Roses, provides a vivid, original, contemporary description of key events some of which he witnessed first-hand, some of which he was told by the key people involved with whom Waurin had a personal relationship.
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In 1253 [her brother-in-law] Otto II Count Guelders [age 38] and [her sister] Philippe Dammartin Countess Eu were married. She by marriage Countess Guelders. She the daughter of [her father] Simon Dammartin and [her mother] Marie Montgomery Countess Ponthieu. He the son of Gerard III Count Guelders and Margaret Reginar Countess Guelders. They were half fifth cousins. He a great x 2 grandson of King Stephen I England.
On 1st November 1254 [her son-in-law] King Edward I of England [age 15] and Eleanor of Castile Queen Consort England [age 13] were married at Abbey of Santa Maria la Real de Huelgas [Map]. She the daughter of Ferdinand III King Castile III King Leon and Joan Dammartin Queen Consort Castile and Leon [age 34]. He the son of King Henry III of England [age 47] and Eleanor of Provence Queen Consort England [age 31]. They were second cousin once removed. She a great x 2 granddaughter of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England.
In 1260 [her son] Ferdinand of Ponthieu [age 21] died.
In 1269 [her son] Louis Ivrea [age 26] died.
On 16th March 1279 Joan Dammartin Queen Consort Castile and Leon [age 59] died.
Kings Wessex: Great x 10 Grand Daughter of King Alfred "The Great" of Wessex
Kings Franks: Great x 11 Grand Daughter of Charles "Charlemagne aka Great" King of the Franks King Lombardy Holy Roman Emperor
Kings France: Great x 6 Grand Daughter of Hugh I King of the Franks
Kings Duke Aquitaine: Great x 10 Grand Daughter of Ranulf I Duke Aquitaine
GrandFather: Alberic Dammartin
Father: Simon Dammartin
Great x 2 Grandfather: Hugh Clermont Count of Clermont-en-Beauvaisis
Great x 1 Grandfather: Renaud II Count of Clermont-en-Beauvaisis
GrandMother: Mathilde Clermont
Great x 4 Grandfather: Herbert Vermandois III Count Vermandois
Great x 3 Grandfather: Otto Vermandois I Count Vermandois
Great x 4 Grandmother: Ermengard of Bar Countess Vermandois
Great x 2 Grandfather: Herbert Vermandois IV Count Vermandois
Great x 3 Grandmother: Pavia Countess Vermandois
Great x 1 Grandmother: Adelaide I Countess Vermandois
Great x 4 Grandfather: Ralph III Count of Valois 
Great x 3 Grandfather: Ralph IV Count of Valois
Great x 2 Grandmother: Adela Valois Countess Blois and Vermandois
Joan Dammartin Queen Consort Castile and Leon
Great x 4 Grandfather: Robert II Belleme 2nd Count Ponthieu 3rd Earl of Shrewsbury
Great x 3 Grandfather: William "Talvas" Montgomery III Count Ponthieu
Great x 4 Grandmother: Agnes Ponthieu Countess Ponthieu and Shrewsbury 
Great x 2 Grandfather: Guy Montgomery II Count Ponthieu
Great x 4 Grandfather: Odo "Red" I Duke Burgundy 
Great x 3 Grandmother: Helie Burgundy Countess Ponthieu
Great x 4 Grandmother: Sybilla Ivrea Duchess Burgundy 
Great x 1 Grandfather: John Montgomery I Count Ponthieu
Great x 2 Grandmother: Ida Countess Ponthieu
GrandFather: William Montgomery IV Count Ponthieu
Great x 1 Grandmother: Beatrice St Pol Countess Ponthieu
Mother: Marie Montgomery Countess Ponthieu
Great x 4 Grandfather: Henry I King of the Franks
Great x 3 Grandfather: Philip I King of the Franks
Great x 4 Grandmother: Anne of Kiev Queen Consort Francia
Great x 2 Grandfather: Louis VI King of the Franks
Great x 4 Grandfather: Floris Gerulfing I Count Holland 
Great x 3 Grandmother: Bertha Gerulfing Queen Consort France
Great x 4 Grandmother: Gertrude Billung Countess Holland
Great x 1 Grandfather: Louis VII King of the Franks
Great x 4 Grandfather: Amadeus Savoy II Count Savoy
Great x 3 Grandfather: Humbert "Fat" Savoy II Count Savoy
Great x 2 Grandmother: Adelaide Savoy Queen Consort France
Great x 4 Grandfather: William I Count Burgundy
Great x 3 Grandmother: Gisela Ivrea Countess Savoy
Great x 4 Grandmother: Ettiennette Countess Burgundy
GrandMother: Alys Capet Countess Ponthieu
Great x 4 Grandfather: William I Count Burgundy
Great x 3 Grandfather: Raymond Ivrea
Great x 4 Grandmother: Ettiennette Countess Burgundy
Great x 2 Grandfather: Alfonso VII King Castile VII King Leon
Great x 4 Grandfather: Alfonso "Brave" VI King Leon VI King Castile
Great x 3 Grandmother: Urracca "Reckless" Jiménez Queen Consort Aragon and Pamplona
Great x 4 Grandmother: Constance Burgundy Queen Consort Castile and Leon
Great x 1 Grandmother: Constance of Castile Queen of the Franks
Great x 4 Grandfather: Ramon Berenguer "Towhead" Barcelona II Count Barcelona
Great x 3 Grandfather: Raymond III Count Barcelona
Great x 2 Grandmother: Berenguela Barcelona Queen Consort Castile and Leon
Great x 4 Grandfather: Gilbert Gevaudan
Great x 3 Grandmother: Douce Gevaudan Countess Barcelona
Great x 4 Grandmother: Gerberga Arles