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.
Available at Amazon in eBook and Paperback format.
Chief is in Charges.
Chief. The Chief is the uppermost part of the arms occupying around one third of the arms.
Acheson Arms. Argent, a double-headed eagle displayed sable, beaked and membered or, on a chief vert, two mullets or. Source.
Kitson Arms. Sable three fishes hauriant in fess argent a chief or. Source.
Clement Arms. Argent, two bendlets wavy sable on a chief gules three leopard's faces or a bordure compony or and azure. Source.
Dormer Arms. Azure, ten billets or 4,3,2,1 issuant from a chief of the second a demi lion rampant sable langued gules.
Babington Arms. Argent, ten torteau in chief a label three points azure. Source.
Chichester Arms. Chequy or and gules, a chief vair. Source.
Mortimer Arms. Barry or and azure, on a chief of the first two pallets between two base esquires of the second over all an inescutcheon argent. Source.
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.
Available at Amazon in eBook and Paperback format.
Narborough Arms. Gules, a chief ermine. Source.
Berkeley Arms. Gules a chevron between ten crosses pattee six in chief and four in base argent.
Bacon Arms. Gules, on a chief argent two mullets pierced sable. Source.
Turner Baronets Arms. Sable, a chevron ermine between three fers de moline or on a chief argent a lion passant gules. Source.
Chaplin Arms. Ermine a chief azure three griffin's heads erased or.
Clinton Arms. Argent, six cross crosslets fitchée sable three two and one on a chief azure two mullets or pierced gules. Source.
NO IMAGE. Argent, on a chief azure three mullets of the first.
Saluzzo Arms. Argent, a chief azure. Source.
Weston Arms. Ermine, on a chief azure five bezants.
Around 1577 George Gower [aged 37]. Portrait of Richard Drake [aged 42]. The heraldic escutcheon shows seven quarters as follows:
1: 
Drake of Ash Arms. Drake of Ash in the parish of Musbury, Devon.
2: Argent, on a chief gules three cinquefoils of the first; Billet of Ash.
3: Gules, on a fess argent two mullets sable; Hamton of Rockbere and Ash.
4: Ermine, on a chief indented sable three crosslets fitchee or; Orwey of Orwey and Ash.
5: Barry of seven argent and sable.
6: Azure, six lions rampant argent crowned Gules, 3, 2, 1; Forde of Forde.
7: Argent, two chevrons sable (Esse/Ash of Ash); Esse or Ash of Ash.
Chaucer Modern Arms. Argent, a chief gules overall a lion rampant double queued or.
Manners Arms. Or, two fess azure a chief gules.
St John Arms. Argent, a chief gules two estoiles or. Source.
Adam Murimuth's Continuation and Robert of Avesbury’s 'The Wonderful Deeds of King Edward III'
This volume brings together two of the most important contemporary chronicles for the reign of Edward III and the opening phases of the Hundred Years’ War. Written in Latin by English clerical observers, these texts provide a vivid and authoritative window into the political, diplomatic, and military history of fourteenth-century England and its continental ambitions. Adam Murimuth Continuatio's Chronicarum continues an earlier chronicle into the mid-fourteenth century, offering concise but valuable notices on royal policy, foreign relations, and ecclesiastical affairs. Its annalistic structure makes it especially useful for establishing chronology and tracing the development of events year by year. Complementing it, Robert of Avesbury’s De gestis mirabilibus regis Edwardi tertii is a rich documentary chronicle preserving letters, treaties, and official records alongside narrative passages. It is an indispensable source for understanding Edward III’s claim to the French crown, the conduct of war, and the mechanisms of medieval diplomacy. Together, these works offer scholars, students, and enthusiasts a reliable and unembellished account of a transformative period in English and European history. Essential for anyone interested in medieval chronicles, the Hundred Years’ War, or the reign of Edward III.
Available at Amazon in eBook and Paperback format.
Worsley Arms. Argent, a chief gules. Source.
Around 1577 George Gower [aged 37]. Portrait of Richard Drake [aged 42]. The heraldic escutcheon shows seven quarters as follows:
1: Drake of Ash Arms. Drake of Ash in the parish of Musbury, Devon.
2: Argent, on a chief gules three cinquefoils of the first; Billet of Ash.
3: Gules, on a fess argent two mullets sable; Hamton of Rockbere and Ash.
4: Ermine, on a chief indented sable three crosslets fitchee or; Orwey of Orwey and Ash.
5: Barry of seven argent and sable.
6: Azure, six lions rampant argent crowned Gules, 3, 2, 1; Forde of Forde.
7: Argent, two chevrons sable (Esse/Ash of Ash); Esse or Ash of Ash.
Butler Arms. Or, a chief indented azure. Source.
Harsick Arms. Or, a chief indented sable.
Lathom Arms. Or, on a chief indented azure three plates. Source.
Perceval Arms. Argent, a chief indented gules three crosses pattee of the field. Source.
St Leger Arms. Azure fretty argent, a chief or. Source.
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.
Available at Amazon in eBook and Paperback format.
Preston Arms. Or, a chief sable three crescents or.
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_arms#/media/File:Butler_arms.svg){kind=link}
#/media/File:Butler_arms_(Earl_of_Carrick).svg){kind=link}
