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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Died in a car accident is in Accident.
On 1st September 1909 Jack Russell 25th Baron de Clifford [aged 25] died in a car accident at Small Dole, Bramber [Map]. He was buried at St Peter's Church, Cowfold [Map]. His son Edward [aged 2] succeeded 26th Baron de Clifford.
On 20th May 1912 George William Hanover [aged 31] died in a car accident. Somewhat ironically he was driving to the funeral of his maternal uncle Frederick VIII King of Denmark [deceased] when he skidded on a newly laid road surface. He and his valet Karl Grebe were killed in the accident. There is a monument at the site.
From the web:
Probably overtired, the car raced into loose gravel rock at 90 kilometers per hour, came off the road to the right, knocked down three trees and drilled into the earth with a destroyed front axle. Prince Georg Wilhelm and his valet Grebe – Karl Grebe – died instantly. The chauffeur sitting in the back survived slightly injured. The dead were laid out in the church of Nackel and brought a little later with military honors to Friesack station.
At the station, the coffins were loaded into the carriage to the songs of the Friesacker men's choir, which brought the crown prince to the funeral in Gmunden, Austria. The Friesacker stationmaster, Joachim Gahl, it is said, received a letter from Austria including two cufflinks decorated with diamonds and the initials "GW" thanks to his duty. Hanover's royal family thanked the villagers because they had shown themselves so compassionate. Monetary donations were made to the church, the warrior federation and the virgin association. In the church, a plaque commemorates the laying out and that the congregation sang before the transfer of the dead.
Salisbury Cathedral [Map]. On 15th December 1922 Lieutenant-General Sir George Montague Harper [aged 57] died in a car accident when his car skidded and overturned fracturing his skull. His wife Ella Constance Jackson was injured but recovered. Memorial in Salisbury Cathedral [Map] sculpted by Allan Gairdner Wyon [aged 40].
Lieutenant-General Sir George Montague Harper: On 11th January 1865 he was born.
On 27th August 1923 Capel Charles Wolsleley 9th Baronet [aged 53] died in a car accident being struck by a car whilst cycling. His first cousin Reginald [aged 51] succeeded 10th Baronet Wolseley of Mount Wolseley in County Carlow. He, Reginald, was at the time working as an elevator operator at a hotel in Waterloo, Iowa; he kept his title secret.
In 1927 David Duncombe [aged 17] died in a car accident.
In 1930 Meliora Lavinia Adlercron [aged 18] died in a car accident. She was buried at St Michael's Church, Heydour [Map].
Funeral At Heydour. Sincere sympathy was aroused in the Grantham and Sleaford district last week for Brigadier-General B. L. and Mrs. Adlercron, of Culverthorpe Hall, when it became known that two of their daughters, Lilias and Meliora, had met with a serious accident whilst motoring on the Great North Road, near Colsterworth, on Monday week. It appears their saloon car, swerving to avoid child who crossed the road, skidded and overturned. Miss M. Adlercron was severely hurt, and died at her home on Saturday night. Fortunately, her sister escaped with slight injuries. Deceased, who was only, 19 years of age, entered into the social life of the neighbourhood. and was beloved by all with whom she came in contact. Educated partly at Culverthorpe, she afterwards went to Paris, where she studied art, to which she was devoted. Deceased was well known in hunting circles, especially in Lincolnshire, and was a popular member of the Belvoir Hunt.
The Inquest was held at Culverthorpe,on Monday, the District Coroner, Dr. Cragg, who sat with a jury, Dr. O. Giles, of Sleaford, said there were multiple injuries to the scalp and right knee, and innumerable cuts and abrasions of the body and back. No bones were broken. Death was due to septic absorption from the wounds, and from shock caused by the wounds.—P.C. England said he found two skid marks forty-four feet long, caused, he believed by the application of the brakes. After that there were marks all over the road for sixty-nine feet. It appeared as if the car had overturned and continued on its side, the skid marks being about four feet from the proper side of the road. Brigadier-General Adlercron. who identified the body, said his daughter had been driving for two and-a-half years.—The verdict was that deceased died as a result of injuries received when the car she was driving was suddenly overturned.
Meliora's sister Lilias, who survived, later went to live in Canada. She lived to a great age and before expiring expressed a wish to be buried next to her sister in Heydour graveyard. Their headstones are adjacent.
Meliora's Cottage Nursing Home. This Charity was founded in 1931 in memory of Meliora Lavinia Adlercron, 1912-1930 of Culverthorpe Hall, byher family and friends. The Charity was reconstituted in 1978, when the funds derived from the sale of the Cottage were invested for the benefit of the people of the parishes of Heydour, Kelbyand Welby.
Meliora Lavinia Adlercron: In 1912 she was born to Rodolph Ladeveze Adlercron.
On 21st February 1944 John Pelham 8th Earl of Chichester [aged 31] died in a car accident. John Pelham 9th Earl Chichester was not born until the 14th of April 1944 at which time he succeeded to his father's titles.
On 5th May 1957 Robert Grosvenor 5th Baron Ebury [aged 43] died in a car accident at Prescott, Gloucestershire whilst driving a Jaguar C-type. His son Francis [aged 23] succeeded 6th Baron Ebury.
On 4th October 1957 Clarence Bruce 3rd Baron Aberdare [aged 72] died in a car accident. He and his wife Griselda Hervey Baroness Aberdare were returning from Yugoslavia where he had attended the 53rd Session of the International Olympic Committe in Sofia, as part of their honeymoon. Their car left the road near Risan and fell into the sea. He was drowned, his wife injured.
Morys George Lyndhurst Bruce 4th Baron Aberdare [aged 38] succeeded 4th Baron Aberdare of Duffryn in Glamorganshire.
Anne Boleyn. Her Life as told by Lancelot de Carle's 1536 Letter.
In 1536, two weeks after the execution of Anne Boleyn, her brother George and four others, Lancelot du Carle, wrote an extraordinary letter that described Anne's life, and her trial and execution, to which he was a witness. This book presents a new translation of that letter, with additional material from other contemporary sources such as Letters, Hall's and Wriothesley's Chronicles, the pamphlets of Wynkyn the Worde, the Memorial of George Constantyne, the Portuguese Letter and the Baga de Secrets, all of which are provided in Appendices.
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In 1964 Rupert Ingrams Baron Darcy [aged 24] died in a car accident when the car in which he was returning from a dance with his wife Davina Darcy 18th Baroness Darcy of Knayth [aged 25] crashed into a tree. She was paralysed from the neck down; she later regained some movement.
On 15th January 1968 Randal Smith 2nd Baron Bicester [aged 70] died in a car accident. His nephew Angus [aged 36] succeeded 3rd Baron Bicester of Tusmore in Oxfordshire.
On 8th March 1981 Joanna Montagu-Stuart-Wortley [aged 21] died in a car accident.
On 3rd May 1987 Viola Maud Lyttelton Duchess Westminster [aged 74] died in a car accident at Dungannon, County Tyrone. She was returning to Ely Lodge, on the shore of Lough Erne. Her funeral was held at St Macartin's Cathedral, Enniskillen. She was buried at Monea, Fermanagh.
On 29th October 1989 Commander Clare George Vyner [aged 95] died in a car accident at Ullapool. The Scottish Herald: "A 95-year-old friend of the Queen Mother died when the all-terrain vehicle he was driving ran off a road on his Scottish estate, turned over and plunged into a river. Commander Clare Vyner was returning to his home at Keanchulish, Ardmair, near Ullapool, on Sunday when the accident happened."
On 30th August 1990 Simon Craven 8th Earl Craven [aged 29] died in a car accident. His son Benjamin [aged 1] succeeded 9th Earl Craven in Yorkshire, 9th Viscount Uffington, 15th Baron Craven of Hamstead Marshall in Berkshire.
On 26th September 2009 John Dyke Acland 16th Baronet [aged 70] died the day after he had been involved in a car accident. His son Dominic [aged 47] succeeded 17th Baronet Acland of Columb John in Devon.