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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Before 1139 [his father] Henry Dunkeld 3rd Earl Huntingdon 1st Earl of Northumbria and [his mother] Ada Warenne Countess Huntingdon and Northumbria were married. She the daughter of [his grandfather] William Warenne 2nd Earl of Surrey and [his grandmother] Elizabeth Capet Countess Leicester, Meulan and Surrey. He the son of King David I of Scotland and Maud Queen Consort Scotland.
Around 1143 King William I of Scotland was born to [his father] Henry Dunkeld 3rd Earl Huntingdon 1st Earl of Northumbria and [his mother] Ada Warenne Countess Huntingdon and Northumbria.
On 12th June 1152 [his father] Henry Dunkeld 3rd Earl Huntingdon 1st Earl of Northumbria died. [his uncle] Simon Senlis 4th Earl Huntingdon 4th Earl of Northampton succeeded 4th Earl Huntingdon, 4th Earl of Northampton. [his brother] King Malcolm IV of Scotland succeeded 2nd Earl of Northumbria.
On 24th May 1153 [his grandfather] King David I of Scotland died at Carlisle, Cumberland. [his brother] King Malcolm IV of Scotland succeeded King Scotland.
In 1157 brothers King Malcolm IV of Scotland and King William I of Scotland paid homage to King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England at Peverell Castle, Derbyshire.
King Malcolm IV of Scotland was deprived of his lands in Cumbria and titles by King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England. Earl of Northumbria forfeit.
King Malcolm IV of Scotland was granted 5th Earl Huntingdon, 5th Earl of Northampton.
King William I of Scotland was deprived of the Earldom of Northumbria.
On 28th September 1162 [his brother-in-law] Floris Gerulfing III Count Holland and [his sister] Ada Dunkeld Countess Holland were married. She by marriage Countess Holland. She the daughter of [his father] Henry Dunkeld 3rd Earl Huntingdon 1st Earl of Northumbria and [his mother] Ada Warenne Countess Huntingdon and Northumbria. He the son of Dirk Gerulfing VI Count Holland and Sophie Salm Countess Holland.
On 9th December 1165 [his brother] King Malcolm IV of Scotland died. King William I of Scotland succeeded I King Scotland, 6th Earl Huntingdon.
On 24th December 1165 King William I of Scotland was crowned I King Scotland.
Between February 1171 and April 1175 [his brother-in-law] Humphrey Bohun and [his sister] Margaret Dunkeld Duchess Brittany were married. She the daughter of [his father] Henry Dunkeld 3rd Earl Huntingdon 1st Earl of Northumbria and [his mother] Ada Warenne Countess Huntingdon and Northumbria.
In 1174 King William I of Scotland was captured at Ratten Row whilst beseiging Alnwick Castle, Northumberland.
On 13th July 1174 a small army commanded by Ranulf Glanville with Hugh de Kevelioc Gernon 5th Earl Chester surprised King William army in a dawn raid known as the Battle of Alnwick near Alnwick, Northumberland. King William was captured and imprisoned initially in Newcastle upon Tyne Castle. He was subsequently moved to the more remote, and secure, Falaise Castle.
Images of Histories by Ralph Diceto. [13th July 1174] Who could doubt that he has now made the martyr favorable to himself, and that we may safely proclaim his sin transferred? For on the very Saturday on which he was begging the martyr to grant him pardon, frequently kissing the martyr's tomb, God delivered William, king of the Scots, into his hands, imprisoned under guard at Richmond, so that the prophetic word might be fulfilled: 'A bridle will be given into his jaws, which will be fashioned in the Armorican gulf2,' calling the castle of Richmond the 'Armorican gulf'—a castle held by Armorican lords both now and in ancient times by hereditary right. Also, on that very Saturday, the king's son, having had the ships he had gathered for crossing to England scattered, began to return to France.
Quin martyrem sibi placabilem jam reddiderit, quin peccatum ejus translatum possimus prædicare securi, non est qui dubitet. Nam ipsa die sabbati, qua indulgentiam sibi dari postulabat a martyre, sepulchrum martyris frequenter deosculans, tradidit Deus Willelmum regem Scottorum in manus suas, custodis mancipatum apud Richemunt, ut adimpleretur illud propheticum "Dabitur maxillis ejus freenum quod in Armorico sinu fabricabitur," sinum vocans Armoricum castellum de Richemunt, ab Armoricis principibus et nunc et ab antiquis temporibus hæreditario jure possessum. Ipsa etiam die sabbati rex filius, navibus quas congregaverat ad transfretandum in Angliam dissipatis, cœpit redire in Galliam.
Note 1. Part of Merlin's prophecyl Geoffrey of Monmouth.
In December 1174 King William I of Scotland, imprisoned at Falaise Castle, signed the Treaty of Falaise by which he agreed King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England was overlord of Scotland. He also agreed to marry a bride of Henry's choosing. He married [his future wife] Ermengarde Beaumont Sarthe Queen Consort Scotland twelve years later.
Simon Senlis 7th Earl Huntingdon 6th Earl of Northampton succeeded 7th Earl Huntingdon, 6th Earl of Northampton.
On 5th September 1186 King William I of Scotland and Ermengarde Beaumont Sarthe Queen Consort Scotland were married at Woodstock Palace, Oxfordshire by Archbishop Baldwin of Forde. She by marriage Queen Consort Scotland at Woodstock Palace, Oxfordshire. His bride had been chosen by King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England as part of the Treaty of Falaise. William received Edinburgh Castle as a wedding gift from King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England. The difference in their ages was 27 years. He the son of Henry Dunkeld 3rd Earl Huntingdon 1st Earl of Northumbria and Ada Warenne Countess Huntingdon and Northumbria.
In 1178 [his mother] Ada Warenne Countess Huntingdon and Northumbria died.
In 1184 Simon Senlis 7th Earl Huntingdon 6th Earl of Northampton died. [his brother] David Dunkeld 8th Earl Huntingdon succeeded 8th Earl Huntingdon, 7th Earl of Northampton.
In or before 1191 [his son-in-law] Robert Bruce and [his illegitimate daughter] Isabella Mac William Dunkeld were married. She the illegitmate daughter of King William I of Scotland and Isabel d'Avenel Abenel.
In 1191 [his son-in-law] Robert Ros and [his illegitimate daughter] Isabella Mac William Dunkeld were married at Haddington, Haddingtonshire. She the illegitmate daughter of King William I of Scotland and Isabel d'Avenel Abenel.
In 1193 [his daughter] Margaret Dunkeld Countess Kent was born to King William I of Scotland and [his wife] Ermengarde Beaumont Sarthe Queen Consort Scotland. She married 1236 Hubert de Burgh Count Mortain 1st Earl Kent and had issue.
Before 1194 [his brother] David Dunkeld 8th Earl Huntingdon and [his sister-in-law] Matilda Gernon Countess Huntingdon were married. She by marriage Countess Huntingdon. She the daughter of Hugh de Kevelioc Gernon 5th Earl Chester and Bertrade Montfort Countess Chester. He the son of [his father] Henry Dunkeld 3rd Earl Huntingdon 1st Earl of Northumbria and [his mother] Ada Warenne Countess Huntingdon and Northumbria.
Chronicle of Roger de Hoveden. 17th April 1194. On the seventeenth day of April, a Sunday within the Octave of Easter, a great assembly gathered in the Church of St. Swithun. Present were: Hubert, Archbishop of Canterbury, John, Archbishop of Dublin, Hugh, Bishop of Durham, Hugh of Lincoln, Richard of London, Gilbert of Rochester, William of Ely, Seffrid of Chichester, Henry of Exeter, William of Hereford, the Bishop of Worcester, the Bishop of St. David's, and the Bishop of Bangor, together with many abbots, clergy, and laypeople. Richard, King of England, clothed in royal garments and wearing a golden crown on his head, came forth from his chamber already crowned. He held in his right hand the royal sceptre, topped with the sign of the cross, and in his left hand a golden rod, topped with the figure of a dove. On his right walked William, Bishop of Ely, his chancellor, and on his left, Richard, Bishop of London. Preceding them in ordered procession were the archbishops, bishops, abbots, monks, and clerics. Following the king were earls, barons, knights, and a great multitude of common people.
And a silken canopy, supported by four lances, was carried above the king [King Richard "Lionheart" I of England] by four earls: Roger Bigod, Earl of Norfolk, William, Earl of the Isle of Wight, the Earl of Salisbury, the Earl of Ferrers.Three swords taken from the royal treasury were carried before the king: one sword was carried by William, King of Scotland. another was borne by Hamelin, Earl of Warenne. The third was carried by Ranulf, Earl of Chester. Among them, the King of Scotland walked in the middle, with the Earl of Warenne at his right and the Earl of Chester at his left.
Septima decima die mensis Aprilis, die Dominica in octavis Paschæ, convenientibus in unum in ecclesia Sancti Swithuni Huberto Cantuariensi, et Johanne Dublinensi archiepiscopis; et Hugone Dunelmensi, et Hugone Lincolniensi, et Ricardo Londoniensi, et Gilberto Roffensi, et Willelmo Eliensi, et Sefrido Cicestrensi, et Henrico Exoniensi, et1.... Willelmo Herefordensi, et Wigornensi, et de S. David, et1.... Pangorensi episcopis; et abbatibus multis, et clero et populo; Ricardus rex Angliæ vestimentis regalibus indutus, coronam auream habens in capite,2 processit de thalamo suo coronatus, gestans in manu sua dextra sceptrum regale, cujus sum mitate habetur signum crucis, et in manu sinistra virgam auream, in cujus summitate habetur species columbz et a dextris ejus ibat Willelmus Eliensis episcopus, cancellarius suus, et a sinistris Ricardus Londoniensis episcopus. Præcedebat quoque eos ordinata processio archiepiscoporum et episcoporum, et abbatum, et monachorum et clericorum. Comites vero, et barones, et milites, et magna plebis multitudo, sequebantur regem.
Et pannus sericus quatuor lanceis superpositus ferebatur supra regem a quatuor comitibus: videlicet, Rogero Bigot comite de Norfolchia, et Willelmo comite de Insula Vectæ et—comite Salesbiriensi, et—comite de Ferreres. Et tres gladii de thesauro regis sumpti gestabantur ante regem; quorum unum gestabat Willelmus rex Scottorum, et alterum portabat Hamelinus comes de Warenna, et tertium gestabat Ranulfus comes Cestriæ: medius autem illorum ibat rex Scottorum, et comes Warennæ a dextris ejus, et comes Cestriæ a sinistris ejus.
Note 1. blanks for names of the bishops of Worcester and Bangor.
Note 2. coronam auream habens in capite. It is worthwhile remarking that notwithstanding the political significance given to this second coronation of Richard, it was a ceremony different in kind from the first, and far more in itself analogous to the great crown-wearing days of the earlier Norman kings. The king receives the crown from the archbishop privately (Gerv. l.?S7), and presents himself to the people already crowned and in his royal robes. It is not so much a renewal of his "inauguration" after an eclipse of dignity or even a loss of it, as an assertion that that dignity has undergone no diminution. The day and place recall the Easter crown-wearing of William the Conqueror at Winchester. Gervase was reminded by them of the Canterbury crowning of king Stephen, c. 1588.
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In 1195 [his daughter] Isabella Dunkeld Countess Norfolk was born to King William I of Scotland and [his wife] Ermengarde Beaumont Sarthe Queen Consort Scotland. She married May 1225 Roger Bigod 4th Earl Norfolk, son of Hugh Bigod 3rd Earl Norfolk and Maud Marshal Countess Norfolk and Surrey.
On 24th August 1198 [his son] King Alexander II of Scotland was born to King William I of Scotland and [his wife] Ermengarde Beaumont Sarthe Queen Consort Scotland at Haddington, Haddingtonshire. He married (1) 21st June 1221 Joan Plantagenet Queen of Scotland, daughter of King John of England and Isabella of Angoulême Queen Consort England (2) 1239 Marie Coucy and had issue.
In 1200 [his daughter] Marjorie Dunkeld Countess Pembroke was born to King William I of Scotland and [his wife] Ermengarde Beaumont Sarthe Queen Consort Scotland. She married 1st August 1235 Gilbert Marshal 4th Earl Pembroke, son of William Marshal 1st Earl Pembroke and Isabel Clare Countess Pembroke.
In 1201 [his sister] Margaret Dunkeld Duchess Brittany died.
In 1206 [his sister] Ada Dunkeld Countess Holland died.
1209. Chronicles mention of Chapel of St John the Evangelist, Bolton [Boyeltun] as the meeting place of King John of England and King William I of Scotland. King William I of Scotland sent his two daughters Margaret Dunkeld Countess Kent and Isabella Dunkeld Countess Norfolk as hostages to keep the peace. They, Margaret and Isabella, were imprisoned with Eleanor Fair Maid of Brittany at Corfe Castle, Dorset.
On 4th December 1214 King William I of Scotland died at Stirling. He was buried at Arbroath Abbey. [his son] King Alexander II of Scotland succeeded II King Scotland.
On 12th February 1233 [his former wife] Ermengarde Beaumont Sarthe Queen Consort Scotland died. She was buried at Balmerino Abbey. [his former brother-in-law] Raoul Beaumont Sarthe I Viscount succeeded I Viscount of Beaumont le Vicomte.
[his illegitimate son] Robert de London Dunkeld was born illegitimately to King William I of Scotland and Isabel d'Avenel Abenel.
[his illegitimate daughter] Margaret Dunkeld was born illegitimately to King William I of Scotland and Daughter Adam Hythus.
[his illegitimate son] Henry de Galightly Dunkeld was born illegitimately to King William I of Scotland and Isabel d'Avenel Abenel.
[his illegitimate daughter] Ada Fitzwilliam Dunkeld was born illegitimately to King William I of Scotland and Isabel d'Avenel Abenel.
[his illegitimate daughter] Aufrica Dunkeld was born illegitimately to King William I of Scotland and Isabel d'Avenel Abenel.
[his illegitimate daughter] Isabella Mac William Dunkeld was born illegitimately to King William I of Scotland and Isabel d'Avenel Abenel.
Images of Histories by Ralph Diceto. On the Octave of Easter, he received the royal crown from the hands of Hubert, Archbishop of Canterbury, at Winchester; William, King of Scotland, was present.
In octavis Paschæ regni diadema suscepit de manibus Huberti Cantuariensis archiepiscopi Wintoniæ; Willelmus rex Scotiæ præsens fuit.