William of Worcester's Chronicle of England
William of Worcester, born around 1415, and died around 1482 was secretary to John Fastolf, the renowned soldier of the Hundred Years War, during which time he collected documents, letters, and wrote a record of events. Following their return to England in 1440 William was witness to major events. Twice in his chronicle he uses the first person: 1. when writing about the murder of Thomas, 7th Baron Scales, in 1460, he writes '… and I saw him lying naked in the cemetery near the porch of the church of St. Mary Overie in Southwark …' and 2. describing King Edward IV's entry into London in 1461 he writes '… proclaimed that all the people themselves were to recognize and acknowledge Edward as king. I was present and heard this, and immediately went down with them into the city'. William’s Chronicle is rich in detail. It is the source of much information about the Wars of the Roses, including the term 'Diabolical Marriage' to describe the marriage of Queen Elizabeth Woodville’s brother John’s marriage to Katherine, Dowager Duchess of Norfolk, he aged twenty, she sixty-five or more, and the story about a paper crown being placed in mockery on the severed head of Richard, 3rd Duke of York.
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Earl Eglinton is in Earl.
Before 1490 Hugh Montgomerie 1st Earl Eglinton [aged 29] and Helen Campbell Countess Eglinton [aged 29] were married. She by marriage Countess Eglinton. She the daughter of Colin Campbell 1st Earl Argyll [aged 56] and Isabella Stewart Countess Argyll. They were fourth cousins.
Around 10th January 1506 Hugh Montgomerie 1st Earl Eglinton [aged 46] was created 1st Earl Eglinton.
In June 1545 Hugh Montgomerie 1st Earl Eglinton [aged 85] died. His grandson Hugh succeeded 2nd Earl Eglinton.
In or before 1546 Hugh Montgomerie 2nd Earl Eglinton and Marion Seton Countess Eglinton [aged 50] were married. She by marriage Countess Eglinton. They were second cousins. She a great x 5 granddaughter of King Edward III of England.
In 1546 Hugh Montgomerie 2nd Earl Eglinton died. His son Hugh [aged 15] succeeded 3rd Earl Eglinton.
In 1554 Hugh Montgomerie 3rd Earl Eglinton [aged 23] and Jean Hamilton Countess Eglinton were married. She by marriage Countess Eglinton. She the daughter of James Hamilton 2nd Earl Arran [aged 38] and Margaret Douglas Duchess Châtellerault. He the son of Hugh Montgomerie 2nd Earl Eglinton and Marion Seton Countess Eglinton [aged 59]. They were third cousins.
On 10th August 1562 Hugh Montgomerie 3rd Earl Eglinton [aged 31] and Agnes Drummond Countess Eglinton [aged 39] were married. She by marriage Countess Eglinton. See Memorials of the Montgomeries Pages 185-187 He the son of Hugh Montgomerie 2nd Earl Eglinton and Marion Seton Countess Eglinton. They were fourth cousins.
In 1585 Hugh Montgomerie 4th Earl Eglinton [aged 22] succeeded 4th Earl Eglinton.
In 1586 Hugh Montgomerie 5th Earl Eglinton succeeded 5th Earl Eglinton.
Chronicle of Walter of Guisborough
A canon regular of the Augustinian Guisborough Priory, Yorkshire, formerly known as The Chronicle of Walter of Hemingburgh, describes the period from 1066 to 1346. Before 1274 the Chronicle is based on other works. Thereafter, the Chronicle is original, and a remarkable source for the events of the time. This book provides a translation of the Chronicle from that date. The Latin source for our translation is the 1849 work edited by Hans Claude Hamilton. Hamilton, in his preface, says: 'In the present work we behold perhaps one of the finest samples of our early chronicles, both as regards the value of the events recorded, and the correctness with which they are detailed; Nor will the pleasing style of composition be lightly passed over by those capable of seeing reflected from it the tokens of a vigorous and cultivated mind, and a favourable specimen of the learning and taste of the age in which it was framed.'
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In 1612 Hugh Montgomerie 5th Earl Eglinton died. His first cousin Alexander [aged 24] succeeded 6th Earl Eglinton. Anne Livingstone Countess Eglinton by marriage Countess Eglinton.
In 1631 Hugh Montgomerie 7th Earl Eglinton [aged 18] and Mary Leslie Countess of Eglinton [aged 12] were married. She by marriage Countess Eglinton. She the daughter of John Leslie 6th Earl Rothes [aged 31] and Anne Erskine Countess of Rothes [aged 33]. He the son of Alexander Seton aka Montgomerie 6th Earl Eglinton [aged 43] and Anne Livingstone Countess Eglinton. They were fourth cousins.
On 14th January 1661 Alexander Seton aka Montgomerie 6th Earl Eglinton [aged 73] died. His son Hugh [aged 48] succeeded 7th Earl Eglinton.
In 1669 Hugh Montgomerie 7th Earl Eglinton [aged 56] died. His son Alexander [aged 31] succeeded 8th Earl Eglinton.
In 1701 Alexander Montgomerie 8th Earl Eglinton [aged 63] died. His son Alexander [aged 41] succeeded 9th Earl Eglinton. Susanna Kennedy Countess Winton [aged 11] by marriage Countess Winton.
On 18th February 1729 Alexander Montgomerie 9th Earl Eglinton [aged 69] died. His son Alexander [aged 6] succeeded 10th Earl Eglinton.
On 24th October 1769 Alexander Montgomerie 10th Earl Eglinton [aged 46] was shot and killed by an excise officer or Gaudger (Scots) named Mungo Campbell following a dispute about the latter's right to bear arms on the Earl's grounds. The Earl died from his abdominal wounds late that evening at one o'clock on the morning of the 25th October 1769 at Eglinton Castle. His brother Archibald [aged 43] succeeded 11th Earl Eglinton.
John Brown, tide-officer or tide-waiter (a customs officer who boarded and inspected incoming ships) at Saltcoats, gave evidence that on the day of the earl's death, Tuesday 24 October 1769, he was on duty and walking with Mungo Campbell "They passed through the grounds of Montfodd, and thereafter crossed a burn, which is the march between Montfodd and the earl of Eglintoun's property, and went through lord Eglintoun's ground towards the sea."
The trial of Mungo Campbell, before the High Court of Justiciary in Scotland, for the murder of Alexander Earl of Eglintoun. Extracted from the records of the court:
That the earl faid to him, That he might have a right to carry a gun, but not upon his lands, without his liberty. That the pannel upon this faid to the earl, I beg your lordfhip's pardon: or, I beg your pardon. That at this time lord Eglintoun was difmounted from his horfe, and advancing nearer the pannel, who again was retiring fometimes backwards, at other times tideways, having his mufket dill pointed at the earl. But the deponent did not obferve whether he had his hand upon the cock or not; neither drd the deponent hear any threatnings uled by the pannel againft the earl. Depones, whein the pannel was retreating, he fell clofe by where the deponent was fitting on his horfe, and by his fall frightened the deponent's horfe, fo that the horfe reeled a little; during which time the deponent did not obferve the pannel, but immediately thereafter, having got -his horfe fettled, he faw the pannel half fitting half lying, and faw him point his gun towards Lord Eglintoun, and immediately fire it. — That at this time lord Eglintoun was within two or three yards of the pannel. That upon this lord Eglintoun gave three or four loud cries, that he was gone. Depones, that the pannel fired his gun without putting it to his fhoulder, but raifed the butt above his haunch, and pointed it at the earl.
Campbell was convicted of murder but hanged himself with a silk scarf provided by his friends before the sentence could be carried out.
A map of the lands of Montfode and Ardrossan in 1769 showing the details of the incident.
Alexander Montgomerie 10th Earl Eglinton: On 10th February 1723 he was born to Alexander Montgomerie 9th Earl Eglinton and Susanna Kennedy Countess Winton. On 18th February 1729 Alexander Montgomerie 9th Earl Eglinton died. His son Alexander succeeded 10th Earl Eglinton.
On 30th March 1772 Archibald Montgomerie 11th Earl Eglinton [aged 45] and Jean aka Jane Lindsay Countess Eglinton were married. She by marriage Countess Eglinton. She the daughter of George Lindsay Crawford 21st Earl Crawford 5th Earl Lindsay [aged 49]. He the son of Alexander Montgomerie 9th Earl Eglinton and Susanna Kennedy Countess Winton [aged 82].
On 30th October 1796 Archibald Montgomerie 11th Earl Eglinton [aged 70] died at Eglinton Castle, Kilwinning. His third cousin Hugh [aged 56] succeeded 12th Earl Eglinton.
On 14th December 1819 Hugh Montgomerie 12th Earl Eglinton [aged 80] died. His grandson Archibald [aged 7] succeeded 13th Earl Eglinton.
On 4th October 1861 Archibald William Montgomerie 13th Earl Eglinton [aged 49] died. His son Archibald [aged 19] succeeded 14th Earl Eglinton.
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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On 6th December 1862 Archibald Montgomerie 14th Earl of Eglinton [aged 21] and Sophia Anderson-Pelham Countess Eglinton [aged 22] were married. She by marriage Countess Eglinton. They had four daughters. She the daughter of Charles Anderson-Pelham 2nd Earl Yarborough and Maria Adelaide Maude Countess Yarborough [aged 48]. He the son of Archibald William Montgomerie 13th Earl Eglinton and Theresa Howe Newcomen.
On 30th August 1892 Archibald Montgomerie 14th Earl of Eglinton [aged 50] died. His brother George [aged 44] succeeded 15th Earl Eglinton.
On 10th August 1919 George Montgomerie 15th Earl of Eglinton [aged 71] died. His son Archibald [aged 39] succeeded 16th Earl Eglinton. Beatrice Susan Dalrymple Countess Eglinton by marriage Countess Eglinton.