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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Paternal Family Tree: Maude
On 8th July 1811 [her father] Cornwallis Maude 3rd Viscount Hawarden (age 31) and [her mother] Jane Crawfurd Bruce were married. She by marriage Viscountess Hawarden.
In December 1814 Maria Adelaide Maude Countess Yarborough was born to [her father] Cornwallis Maude 3rd Viscount Hawarden (age 34) and [her mother] Jane Crawfurd Bruce.
On 19th December 1831 Charles Anderson-Pelham 2nd Earl Yarborough (age 22) and Maria Adelaide Maude Countess Yarborough (age 17) were married. He the son of Charles Anderson-Pelham 1st Earl Yarborough (age 50).
On 14th January 1835 [her son] Charles Anderson-Pelham 3rd Earl Yarborough was born to [her husband] Charles Anderson-Pelham 2nd Earl Yarborough (age 25) and Maria Adelaide Maude Countess Yarborough (age 20). He married 3rd August 1858 Victoria Alexandrina Hare, daughter of William Hare 2nd Earl Listowel and Maria Augusta Windham Countess Listowel, and had issue.
On 26th July 1840 [her daughter] Sophia Anderson-Pelham Countess Eglinton was born to [her husband] Charles Anderson-Pelham 2nd Earl Yarborough (age 31) and Maria Adelaide Maude Countess Yarborough (age 25). She married 6th December 1862 Archibald Montgomerie 14th Earl of Eglinton, son of Archibald William Montgomerie 13th Earl Eglinton and Theresa Howe Newcomen.
On 24th March 1845 [her brother] Cornwallis Maude 1st Earl Montalt (age 27) and [her sister-in-law] Clementina Elphinstone-Fleming Viscountess Hawarden (age 22) were married.
On 5th September 1846 [her father-in-law] Charles Anderson-Pelham 1st Earl Yarborough (age 65) died aboard his yacht at Vigo. His son [her husband] Charles (age 37) succeeded 2nd Earl Yarborough, 3rd Baron Yarborough. Maria Adelaide Maude Countess Yarborough (age 31) by marriage Countess Yarborough.
On 9th October 1849 [her brother-in-law] Charles Cornwallis Neville 5th Baron Braybrooke (age 26) and [her sister] Florence Maude Baroness Braybrooke were married.
On 24th March 1852 [her mother] Jane Crawfurd Bruce died.
On 12th October 1856 [her father] Cornwallis Maude 3rd Viscount Hawarden (age 76) died. His son [her brother] Cornwallis (age 39) succeeded 4th Viscount Hawarden, 4th Baron Montalt of Hawarden in Tipperary, 6th Baronet of Dundrum in Tipperary.
On 3rd August 1858 [her son] Charles Anderson-Pelham 3rd Earl Yarborough (age 23) and [her daughter-in-law] Victoria Alexandrina Hare were married. She the daughter of William Hare 2nd Earl Listowel and Maria Augusta Windham Countess Listowel (age 53). He the son of [her husband] Charles Anderson-Pelham 2nd Earl Yarborough (age 49) and Maria Adelaide Maude Countess Yarborough (age 43).
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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On 4th February 1861 Richard Cornwallis Neville 4th Baron Braybrooke (age 40) died at Audley End House, Saffron Walden [Map]. His brother [her brother-in-law] Charles (age 37) succeeded 5th Baron Braybrooke of Braybrooke in Northamptonshire. [her sister] Florence Maude Baroness Braybrooke by marriage Baroness Braybrooke of Braybrooke in Northamptonshire.
On 7th January 1862 [her husband] Charles Anderson-Pelham 2nd Earl Yarborough (age 52) died. His son [her son] Charles (age 26) succeeded 3rd Earl Yarborough, 4th Baron Yarborough.
On 6th December 1862 [her son-in-law] Archibald Montgomerie 14th Earl of Eglinton (age 21) and [her daughter] Sophia Anderson-Pelham Countess Eglinton (age 22) were married. She by marriage Countess Eglinton. They had four daughters. She the daughter of [her former husband] Charles Anderson-Pelham 2nd Earl Yarborough and Maria Adelaide Maude Countess Yarborough (age 48). He the son of Archibald William Montgomerie 13th Earl Eglinton and Theresa Howe Newcomen.
On 17th December 1862 William John Monson 6th Baron Monson (age 66) died. His son [her future husband] William (age 33) succeeded 7th Baron Monson of Burton in Lincolnshire, 11th Baronet Monson of Carleton in Lincolnshire.
On 7th August 1869 William Monson 1st Viscount Oxenbridge (age 40) and Maria Adelaide Maude Countess Yarborough (age 54) were married. She by marriage Baroness Monson of Burton in Lincolnshire.
On 6th February 1875 [her son] Charles Anderson-Pelham 3rd Earl Yarborough (age 40) died. His son [her grandson] Charles (age 15) succeeded 4th Earl Yarborough, 5th Baron Yarborough.
On 13th August 1886 [her husband] William Monson 1st Viscount Oxenbridge (age 57) was created 1st Viscount Oxenbridge of Burton in Lincolnshire. Maria Adelaide Maude Countess Yarborough (age 71) by marriage Viscountess Oxenbridge of Burton in Lincolnshire.
On 9th September 1886 [her brother] Cornwallis Maude 1st Earl Montalt (age 69) was created 1st Earl de Montalt of Dundrum in Tipperary.
On 21st September 1886 [her daughter] Sophia Anderson-Pelham Countess Eglinton (age 46) died.
On 24th December 1897 Maria Adelaide Maude Countess Yarborough (age 83) died.
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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On 16th April 1898 [her former husband] William Monson 1st Viscount Oxenbridge (age 69) died. Viscount Oxenbridge of Burton in Lincolnshire extinct. His brother [her former brother-in-law] Debonnaire (age 68) succeeded 8th Baron Monson of Burton in Lincolnshire, 12th Baronet Monson of Carleton in Lincolnshire. Augusta Louisa Caroline Ellis Baroness Monson (age 56) by marriage Baroness Monson of Burton in Lincolnshire.
Great x 1 Grandfather: Robert Maude 1st Baronet
GrandFather: Cornwallis Maude 1st Viscount Hawarden
Father: Cornwallis Maude 3rd Viscount Hawarden
Great x 4 Grandfather: Charles Monck 
Great x 3 Grandfather: Henry Blennerhassett Monck
Great x 2 Grandfather: Charles Monck of St Stephen's Green, Dublin
Great x 1 Grandfather: Thomas Monck of Kildare Street Dublin
GrandMother: Anne Isabella Monck Viscountess Hawarden
Maria Adelaide Maude Countess Yarborough
GrandFather: Patrick Craufurd Bruce of Taplow Lodge in Buckinghamshire
Mother: Jane Crawfurd Bruce