Chronicle of Geoffrey le Baker of Swinbroke
Baker was a secular clerk from Swinbroke, now Swinbrook, an Oxfordshire village two miles east of Burford. His Chronicle describes the events of the period 1303-1356: Gaveston, Bannockburn, Boroughbridge, the murder of King Edward II, the Scottish Wars, Sluys, Crécy, the Black Death, Winchelsea and Poitiers. To quote Herbert Bruce 'it possesses a vigorous and characteristic style, and its value for particular events between 1303 and 1356 has been recognised by its editor and by subsequent writers'. The book provides remarkable detail about the events it describes. Baker's text has been augmented with hundreds of notes, including extracts from other contemporary chronicles, such as the Annales Londonienses, Annales Paulini, Murimuth, Lanercost, Avesbury, Guisborough and Froissart to enrich the reader's understanding. The translation takes as its source the 'Chronicon Galfridi le Baker de Swynebroke' published in 1889, edited by Edward Maunde Thompson.
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Paternal Family Tree: Vaux
On 22nd December 1456 [her father] William Vaux of Harrowden [aged 20] and [her step-mother] Katherine Panizzone [aged 16] were married.
Around 1463 Joan Vaux "Mother Guildford" was born to [her father] William Vaux of Harrowden [aged 27].
On 4th May 1471 King Edward IV of England [aged 29] was victorious at the 4th May 1471 Battle of Tewkesbury. His brother Richard [aged 18], Richard Beauchamp 2nd Baron Beauchamp Powick [aged 36], John Howard 1st Duke of Norfolk [aged 46], George Neville 4th and 2nd Baron Abergavenny [aged 31], John Savage [aged 49], John Savage [aged 27], Thomas St Leger [aged 31], John Tuchet 6th Baron Audley, 3rd Baron Tuchet [aged 45], Thomas Burgh 1st Baron Burgh of Gainsborough [aged 40] fought. William Brandon [aged 46], George Browne [aged 31], Ralph Hastings, Richard Hastings Baron Willoughby [aged 38], James Tyrrell [aged 16], Roger Kynaston of Myddle and Hordley [aged 38] were knighted. William Hastings 1st Baron Hastings [aged 40] commanded.
Margaret of Anjou [aged 41] was captured. Her son Edward of Westminster Prince of Wales [aged 17] was killed. He was the last of the Lancastrian line excluding the illegitmate Charles Somerset 1st Earl of Worcester [aged 11] whose line continues to the present.
John Courtenay 7th or 15th Earl Devon [aged 36] was killed and attainted. Earl Devon forfeit. Some sources refer to these titles as being abeyant?
John Wenlock 1st Baron Wenlock [aged 71] was killed. Baron Wenlock extinct.
John Delves [aged 49], John Beaufort [aged 30], [her father] William Vaux of Harrowden [aged 35] and Robert Whittingham [aged 42] were killed.
Edmund Beaufort [aged 32], Humphrey Tuchet [aged 37] and Hugh Courtenay [aged 44] were captured.
Henry Roos fought and escaped to Tewkesbury Abbey [Map] where he sought sanctuary. He was subsequently pardoned.
William Carey [aged 34] was killed.
In or before 1474 [her future husband] Richard Guildford [aged 23] and Ann Pympe [aged 19] were married. His [her future father-in-law] father [aged 43] had married, or would marry, her mother [aged 42] each as their second spouse.
In 1489 [her son] Henry Guildford was born to [her future husband] Richard Guildford [aged 39] and Joan Vaux "Mother Guildford" [aged 26]. He married (1) May 1512 Margaret Bryan, daughter of Thomas Bryan and Margaret Bourchier 1st Baroness Bryan (2) 1527 Mary Wotton.
Before 1490 [her brother] Nicholas Vaux 1st Baron Vaux Harrowden [aged 29] and [her sister-in-law] Elizabeth Fitzhugh Baroness Vaux Harrowden were married. She by marriage Baroness Vaux Harrowden.
After 1490 Richard Guildford [aged 40] and Joan Vaux "Mother Guildford" [aged 27] were married.
Before 1496 [her step-son] Edward Guildford [aged 21] and Eleanor West [aged 14] were married.
In or before 1500 Thomas Isley [aged 13] and [her step-daughter] Elizabeth Guildford [aged 11] were married.
In or before 1501 Matthew Browne [aged 24] and [her step-daughter] Frideswide Guildford [aged 18] were married.
In or before 1501 [her step-son] George Guildford [aged 30] and Elizabeth Mortimer [aged 22] were married.
On 14th April 1502 John Gage [aged 22] and [her step-daughter] Philippa Guildford [aged 22] were married.
In 1506 [her husband] Richard Guildford [aged 56] died at Jerusalem [Map].
Chronicle of Abbot Ralph of Coggeshall
The Chronicle of Abbot Ralph of Coggeshall (Chronicon Anglicanum) is an indispensable medieval history that brings to life centuries of English and European affairs through the eyes of a learned Cistercian monk. Ralph of Coggeshall, abbot of the Abbey of Coggeshall in Essex in the early 13th century, continued and expanded his community’s chronicle, documenting events from the Norman Conquest of 1066 into the tumultuous reign of King Henry III. Blending eyewitness testimony, careful compilation, and the monastic commitment to record-keeping, this chronicle offers a rare narrative of political intrigue, royal power struggles, and social upheaval in England and beyond. Ralph’s work captures the reigns of pivotal figures such as Richard I and King John, providing invaluable insights into their characters, decisions, and the forces that shaped medieval rule. More than a simple annal, Chronicon Anglicanum conveys the texture of medieval life and governance, making it a rich source for scholars and readers fascinated by English history, monastic authorship, and the shaping of the medieval world.
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After 29th January 1508 [her brother] Nicholas Vaux 1st Baron Vaux Harrowden [aged 48] and [her sister-in-law] Anne Green Baroness Vaux of Harrowden [aged 19] were married. The difference in their ages was 29 years.
On 11th May 1509 King Henry VII of England and Ireland [deceased] was buried in the King Henry VII Chapel, Westminster Abbey [Map]. Henry Willoughby [aged 58] and Anthony Wingfield [aged 22] attended. The ladies given mantelets and kerchiefs were as follows:
Household of Mary Tudor:
Mary Tudor Queen Consort France [aged 13].
Catherine York Countess Devon [aged 29].
Elizabeth Stafford Countess Sussex [aged 30]. Possibly Margaret Whetehill.
Anne Percy [aged 65] or Anne Percy Countess Arundel [aged 23].
Elizabeth Hussey Countess Kent.
Eleanor Pole [aged 47].
Elizabeth Empson.
Mary Scrope [aged 33].
Jane Popincourt.
[her niece] Alice Vaux.
Household of the Princess of Wales Catherine of Aragon:
Catherine of Aragon [aged 23].
Agnes or Inez Vanegas.
Maria de Salinas Baroness Willoughby [aged 19].
Household of Margaret Beaufort the King's Mother:
Margaret Beaufort Countess Richmond [aged 65].
Joan Vaux "Mother Guildford" [aged 46].
Mary Hussey Baroness Willoughby of Eresby [aged 25].
In May 1512 [her son] Henry Guildford [aged 23] and [her daughter-in-law] Margaret Bryan were married.
1st January 1513. The following pieces of plate received from William Holland of London, goldsmith, 1 Jan. 4 Henry VIII.
[Given in three columns (1) name of a person (to whom the article has been presented); (2), description of the article; and (3), its weight.]
Bishop of Canterbury [aged 63], a cup with a gilt cover, 34 oz.
Lady Hastings [aged 30], the same, 30¾ oz.
Sir H. Marney [aged 66], the same, 23 oz.
Mr. Lupton [aged 57], the same, 23 oz.
Sir E. Ponyngs [aged 54], the same, 22¼ oz.
The Abbot of Abingdon, the same, 23¾ oz.
Sir Edward Haward, the same, 24 oz.
The old Lady Guylford [aged 50], a little pot gilt, 17 7/8 oz.
Lady Lucy, the same, 16 7/8 oz. [Possibly Catherine Hastings [aged 35] who married John Melton of Aston Yorkshire 10th Baron Lucy [aged 37] before 1506]
Lady Mountjoy, the same, 16 7/8 oz.
Lady Bulleyn [aged 33], the same, 16½ oz.
Lord Audeley [aged 30], a salt with a gilt cover, 15¾ oz.
The Queen's grace [aged 27], a pair of great pots gilt, 575 oz.
Mrs. Catesby, a proper bottle for rose water, 4 oz.
Mrs. Briget, the same, 3 7/8 oz.
Mrs. Lacy, the same, 4 oz. Which, at 5s. the oz., is £212 11s 10½d.
James Worsley, a proper pot, parcel gilt, 10 oz. Copynger, 8 spoons, part gilt, 9¾ oz., Amadas. Which is, at 4s. the oz., 76s. 6d.
In part payment, old plate to the value of £194 16s. 8d. has been delivered to him. The remainder paid by J. Heron [aged 43].
On the dorse [reverse]:-Holland beseeches the King to reward him for the workmanship of the Queen's great pots, "for he cannot live to make such curious work at the price within written"; and £6 13s. 4d. is added in another hand, making a total due of £28 5s. Signed by the King.
Ellis' Letters. 12th October 1514. Mary Queen of France [aged 18] to King Henry the Eighth [aged 23].
[MS. COTTON. CALIG. D. vi. fol. 253. Orig.]
MY good Brother as hertly as I can I recomaund me unto your Grace, mervelynge moch that I never herd from you syns... re depertynge, so often as I have sent and wrytten to you. And now am I left post a lone in effect; for on the morn next after... e maryage my chambirlayn with all other men servants wer dischargd and in lyke wyse my mother Guldeford [aged 51] with other my women and maydyns, except such as never had experiens nor knowlech how to advertyse or gyfe me counsell yn any tyme of nede, which is to be fered more schortly then your Grace thought at the tyme of my depertynge, as my mother Guldeford can more playnly schew your Grace then I cann wryt; to whom I beseche you to gyve credens. And yf hit may be by eny meane possible, I humbly requyr you to cause my seyd mother Guldeford to repayr hither once agayn. For ells if any chauns happe other then weale I schall not knowe wher nor of whom to aske any good counsell to your pleasur, nor yet to myn own proffit. I merveill moche that my Lord of Northfolke [aged 41] wold at all tymes so lyghtly graunt every thynge at ther reqwests here. I am weale assured that when ze know the trouth of every thyng as my mother Guideford can schew you, ze wold full lyttyll have thowght I schold have ben thus intreated: that wold God my Lord of Zorke [aged 41] had com with me yn the rome of Northfolke: for then am I sure I schuld have bene left moch more at my herti.... then I am now.
And thus I byd your Grace fare weale with.... as ever had Prince; and more herds ease then I have now... a Abvile [Map] the xijth. day of October.
.... gef gredens to my mowder Geldeford.
your lowyng syster MARY QUENE OF FRANCE.
Note a. From Henry the Eighth and his Court accompanied the young Queen to Dover, whence on the second of October she sailed to Boulogne. She reached Abbeville on the 8th and was married on the 9th of that month. The original List of the persons who went in her retinue, signed by Louis himself, is still preserved among the Cottonian Manuscriptsb; though strange as it may seem, almost the whole were dismissed the morning after her marriage. "The Tewesdaye, being the x. daye of October," says Hall, "all th'Englishmen except a fewe that were officers with the sayde Quene, were discharged; whiche was a great sorowe for theim, for some had served her long in hope of prefermente, and some, that had honest romes, lefte them to serve her; and now they were with out service; which caused them to take thought, in so much that some dyed by the way returning, and some fell mad; but ther was no remedy." The Queen's own account of this Transaction will be found in this, and the following Letter. Mother Guldeford who is so particularly mentioned in these Letters, was apparently the Governess, or, as she was sometimes called, the Mother to the Maids of Honor.
Note b. It was as follows:
"Premierement
Mons. le Conte de Nrushere.
Maistre docteur Denton aumosmer.
Messe. Richard Blounte escuyer de scuierie.
Enffans d'onneur: Le filz de Mons. Roos, Le filz de Mons. Cobham, Le filz de Messe. Seymor,
Evrard frere du Marquis.
Arthus Polle [aged 12], frere de Monsr. de Montagu.
Le Poulayn.
Francoye Buddis, huissier de Chambre.
Maistre Guille, Medicin.
Henry Calays varler des robes.
Robert Wast.
Madamoyselle Grey, seur du Marquis. [Note. Possibly Elizabeth Grey Countess Kildare [aged 17]]
Madamoyselle Marie finis fille de Monsr. Dacres. [Note. Possibly Mary Dacre [aged 12]]
Madamoyselle Elizabet seur de Monsr. Grey.
Madamoyselle BOLEYNE. [Note. A reference to Mary Boleyn [aged 15] rather than Queen Anne Boleyn of England [aged 13] since her father Thomas wrote to Margaret of Austria on the 14th of October 1514 requesting the return of Anne see Manuscripts of J Eliot Hodgkin].
Maistres Anne Jenyngham [aged 10]. femme de Chambre.
Johanue Daruossc, chamberiere."
Ellis' Letters. 12th October 1514. Mary Queen of France [aged 18] to Thomas Wolsey [aged 41], then Archbishop of York.
[MS. COTTON. CALIG. D. vi. fol. 143. Orig.]
... I recomaund me un to you as hertly as I can, and as schoth.... intreated as the kynge [aged 23] and you thought I schuld have ben, for.... the morn next after the maryage, all my servants, both men and women... a dyscharged. Insomoch that my mother Guldeford [aged 51] was also dischargyd, whom as ze knowe the kynge and zou willed me in eny wyse to be cowncelled. But for eny thynge I myght do, yn no wyse myght I have any graunt for her abode here, which I assure you my lord is moch to my discomffort; besyd meny other discomffortis that ze wold full lyttyll have thought. I have not zet seen yn Fraunce eny lady or jentill woman so necessary for me as sche ys nor zet so mete to do the kynge my brother service as sche ys. And for my part my lord, as ze love the kynge my broder and me, fynd the meanes that sche may yn all hast com hither agayn, for I had as lefe lose the wynnynge I schall have yn France as to lose her counsell when I schall lacke it, which is not like long to be required, as I am sure the nobill men and jentillmen can schew you more then becometh me to wryte yn this matter. I pray you my Lord gyf credens forther to my moder Guldeford yn every thyng concernynge thys matter. And albehit my Lord of Northfollke [aged 41] h.. b nethyr deled best with me nor zet with her at thys tyme: zet I pray you allwayes to be good lord unto her. And wold to God my had ben so good o have had zou with me hither when I ha.... rd c of Northfolke. And thus fare ze weale
My Lord. Wryt ile a the xij the. daye of Octobr.
My Lord I pray you gyve credens to my.... ord yn my sorows she have delyve... Yowr on whyl I lefe
MARY
To my lovynge frend Th'archebischop of Zorke.
On 27th April 1523 [her brother] Nicholas Vaux 1st Baron Vaux Harrowden [aged 63] was created 1st Baron Vaux Harrowden. [her sister-in-law] Anne Green Baroness Vaux of Harrowden [aged 34] by marriage Baroness Vaux Harrowden.
On 14th May 1523 [her brother] Nicholas Vaux 1st Baron Vaux Harrowden [aged 63] died. His son [her nephew] Thomas [aged 13] succeeded 2nd Baron Vaux Harrowden.
Around 1527 [her son] Henry Guildford [aged 38] and [her daughter-in-law] Mary Wotton [aged 28] were married.
In May 1532 [her son] Henry Guildford [aged 43] died.
In 1533 [her future husband] Anthony Poyntz [aged 53] died.
Before 6th September 1533 Anthony Poyntz and Joan Vaux "Mother Guildford" [aged 70] were married.
Abbot John Whethamstede’s Chronicle of the Abbey of St Albans
Abbot John Whethamstede's Register aka Chronicle of his second term at the Abbey of St Albans, 1451-1461, is a remarkable text that describes his first-hand experience of the beginning of the Wars of the Roses including the First and Second Battles of St Albans, 1455 and 1461, respectively, their cause, and their consequences, not least on the Abbey itself. His text also includes Loveday, Blore Heath, Northampton, the Act of Accord, Wakefield, and Towton, and ends with the Coronation of King Edward IV. In addition to the events of the Wars of the Roses, Abbot John, or his scribes who wrote the Chronicle, include details in the life of the Abbey such as charters, letters, land exchanges, visits by legates, and disputes, which provide a rich insight into the day-to-day life of the Abbey, and the challenges faced by its Abbot.
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Before 6th September 1533 [her former husband] Anthony Poyntz and Elizabeth Huddersfield were married.
On 4th September 1538 Joan Vaux "Mother Guildford" [aged 75] died.
The Receyt of the Ladie Kateryne Book 1 Chapter 4. After the which welcomes and communycacion endid, the King's Grace deposid his riding garmentes and chaunged hym, and by half season of oon owre the Prince was also knowen to be present, and ensewng the King's Highnes and the Lord Prynce made their second resort toguydre to the chambre of the Pryncesse; and there thrugh th' enterpretation of Busshoppism the speches of bothe contrethes, be the meane of Laten were understonded; and where as tofore they were by deputies contracted, they here now were in their either othre presens spousally ensured; the which semly ensurans, so (as it is promysed), honorably endid, the King sped hym to his souper. And after that he had souped full curteisly, with the Lord Prince visited the Ladie in her owne chambre; and then she and her ladies let call their mynstrelles, and with right goodly behaviour and maner they solaced theymself with the disportes of daunsyng; and afterward the Lorde Prince in like demeanure with the Lady Guldford daunced right plesant and honorably.
Great x 4 Grandfather: Elias Vaux 
Great x 3 Grandfather: William Vaux
Great x 2 Grandfather: William Vaux
Great x 1 Grandfather: William Vaux
GrandFather: William Vaux
Father: William Vaux of Harrowden