Paternal Family Tree: Knollys
Francis Knollys was appointed Treasurer of the Royal Household to King Henry VIII of England and Ireland.
Around 1510 [his father] Robert Knollys [aged 29] and [his mother] Lettice Peniston [aged 25] were married.
Around 1512 Francis Knollys was born to Robert Knollys [aged 31] and Lettice Peniston [aged 27] at Rotherfield Greys, Oxfordshire.
Around 1521 [his father] Robert Knollys [aged 40] died. He was buried at St Helen's Church, Bishopsgate.
After 1521 [his step-father] Robert Lee [aged 38] and [his mother] Lettice Peniston [aged 36] were married.
On 19th May 1536 Queen Anne Boleyn of England [aged 35] was beheaded at Tower Green, Tower of London [Map]. Unusually a sword was used. Her execution was witnessed by Charles Brandon 1st Duke of Suffolk [aged 52], [his future wife] Catherine Carey [aged 12] and Henry Fitzroy 1st Duke Richmond and Somerset [aged 16]. Marquess Pembroke extinct.
She was buried at St Peter ad Vincula Church, Tower of London [Map]. There is myth that her corpse was subsequently removed for burial at the Boleyn family church Church of St Peter and St Paul, Salle [Map] as described in Agnes Strickland's 1852 Lives of the Queens of England Volume 4. Page 212.
On 26th April 1540 Francis Knollys [aged 28] and Catherine Carey [aged 16] were married.
Around 1541 [his daughter] Mary Knollys was born to Francis Knollys [aged 29] and [his wife] Catherine Carey [aged 17].
Around 1542 [his son] Henry Knollys was born to Francis Knollys [aged 30] and [his wife] Catherine Carey [aged 18]. He married 16th July 1566 Margaret Cave and had issue.
On 19th July 1543 [his mother-in-law] Mary Boleyn [aged 44] died. Her considerable wealth and properties were inherited by her two children from her first marriage [his wife] Catherine Carey [aged 19] and [his brother-in-law] Henry Carey 1st Baron Hunsdon [aged 17], and her second husband William Stafford [aged 35].
On 8th November 1543 [his daughter] Lettice Knollys Countess Essex and Leicester was born to Francis Knollys [aged 31] and [his wife] Catherine Carey [aged 19]. She married 1. 1561 her fourth cousin Walter Devereux 1st Earl Essex and had issue 2. 21st September 1578 her fifth cousin Robert Dudley 1st Earl of Leicester, son of John Dudley 1st Duke Northumberland and Jane Guildford Duchess Northumberland, and had issue 3. April 1589 Christopher Blount, son of James Blount 6th Baron Mountjoy and Catherine Leigh Baroness Mountjoy.
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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Around 1544 [his son] William Knollys 1st Earl Banbury was born to Francis Knollys [aged 32] and [his wife] Catherine Carey [aged 20]. He married 1. before 1595 Dorothy Braye Baroness Chandos and Knollys, daughter of Edmund Braye 1st Baron Braye and Jane Halwell Baroness Bray 2. 23rd December 1605 his third cousin once removed Elizabeth Howard Countess Banbury, daughter of Thomas Howard 1st Earl Suffolk and Catherine Knyvet Countess Suffolk, and had issue.
In 1546 [his son] Edward Knollys was born to Francis Knollys [aged 34] and [his wife] Catherine Carey [aged 22].
In 1547 Francis Knollys [aged 35] was knighted.
In 1548 [his son] Richard Knollys was born to Francis Knollys [aged 36] and [his wife] Catherine Carey [aged 24]. He married in or before 1588 Joan Heigham and had issue.
In 1548 [his son] Robert Knollys was born to Francis Knollys [aged 36] and [his wife] Catherine Carey [aged 24]. He married after 1548 Catherine Vaughan and had issue.
After 1548 [his son] Robert Knollys and [his daughter-in-law] Catherine Vaughan were married.
On 15th June 1549 [his daughter] Elizabeth Knollys was born to Francis Knollys [aged 37] and [his wife] Catherine Carey [aged 25]. She married her fifth cousin once removed Thomas Leighton.
On 19th June 1555 [his daughter] Anne Knollys Baroness De La Warr was born to Francis Knollys [aged 43] and [his wife] Catherine Carey [aged 31]. She married 19th November 1571 Thomas West 2nd Baron De La Warr, son of William West 1st Baron De La Warr and Elizabeth Strange Baroness De La Warr, and had issue.
Before 10th July 1557 [his mother] Lettice Peniston [aged 72] died.
Before 10th July 1557 [his step-father] Thomas Tresham [aged 57] and [his mother] Lettice Peniston [aged 72] were married.
On 15th November 1558 John Digby died. He was buried at the Church of St Peter and St Paul, Coleshill [Map]. His son George Digby [aged 8] became a ward of Francis Knollys [aged 46].
On 21st October 1559 [his daughter] Catherine Knollys Baroness Offaly was born to Francis Knollys [aged 47] and [his wife] Catherine Carey [aged 35]. She married 1. October 1578 her sixth cousin Gerald Fitzgerald Baron Offaly, son of Gerald "Wizard Earl" Fitzgerald 11th Earl of Kildare and Mabel Browne Countess Kildare, and had issue 2. after June 1580 Philip Boteler and had issue.
Around 1561 [his son-in-law] Walter Devereux 1st Earl Essex [aged 19] and [his daughter] Lettice Knollys Countess Essex and Leicester [aged 17] were married. She by marriage Viscountess Hereford. They were fourth cousins.
On 9th May 1562 [his son] Dudley Knollys was born to Francis Knollys [aged 50] and [his wife] Catherine Carey [aged 38]. He died aged less than one years old.
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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In June 1562 [his son] Dudley Knollys died.
On 16th July 1566 [his son] Henry Knollys [aged 24] and [his daughter-in-law] Margaret Cave [aged 7] were married.
On 15th January 1569 [his wife] Catherine Carey [aged 45] died at Hampton Court Palace, Richmond [Map].
On 19th November 1571 [his son-in-law] Thomas West 2nd Baron De La Warr [aged 15] and [his daughter] Anne Knollys Baroness De La Warr [aged 16] were married.
On 21st September 1578 [his son-in-law] Robert Dudley 1st Earl of Leicester [aged 46] and [his daughter] Lettice Knollys Countess Essex and Leicester [aged 34] were married secretly much to the anguish of Queen Elizabeth I of England and Ireland [aged 45] who developed a deep hatred of Lettice Knollys Countess Essex and Leicester. She by marriage Countess of Leicester. Roger North 2nd Baron North [aged 48] was present. He the son of John Dudley 1st Duke Northumberland and Jane Guildford Duchess Northumberland. They were fifth cousins.
In October 1578 [his son-in-law] Gerald Fitzgerald Baron Offaly [aged 18] and [his daughter] Catherine Knollys Baroness Offaly [aged 18] were married. She by marriage Baroness Offaly. He the son of Gerald "Wizard Earl" Fitzgerald 11th Earl of Kildare [aged 53] and Mabel Browne Countess Kildare [aged 42]. They were sixth cousins.
In 1580 [his son] Edward Knollys [aged 34] died.
After June 1580 [his son-in-law] Philip Boteler [aged 20] and [his daughter] Catherine Knollys Baroness Offaly [aged 20] were married.
On 21st December 1582 Henry Knollys [aged 40] died. Monument at St Nicholas' Church, Stanford-on-Avon [Map].
The inscription: "Sacred to the Memory Here rest in Christ, awaiting the resurrection, Henry Knollys, son and heir of Francis Knollys [aged 70], Knight Bachelor, Privy Counsellor to Queen Elizabeth, Treasurer of her Household, and of Margaret [aged 23], his wife, daughter and heir of Ambrose Cave, Knight Bachelor, also a Privy Counsellor to Queen Elizabeth and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster. Margaret bore to Henry: Elizabeth [aged 3], wife of Henry Willoughby of Risley [aged 3], Baronet, and Laetitia, wife of William, Baron Paget of Beaudesert [aged 10]. Henry died .... Margaret .... To the best and most dearly loved parents, Elizabeth Willoughby, their daughter, set up this monument in loving devotion."
"Memoriæ Sacrum. Resurrectionem in Christo hic expectant Henricus Knollis filius et hæres Frangcisci Knollis Equitis avrati reginæ Elizabthæ a sanctioribus consiliis thesaurarii Hospitti eiusdem reginæ et margaretta vxor eius filia et hæres Ambrosh cave Equitis avrati Reginæ Elizabethæ a sanctioribus consiliis & ducatus Lancastriæ Cancellarii quæ eidem Henrico Peperit Elizabetham uxorem Henrici Willoughby de Risely Baroneetti & Lætitiam uxorem Guilielmi baronis Pagett de Beaudesert Henricus obit die .... Margarete .... Optimis & perquam Dilectis, Parentibus Elizabetha Willoughby, Filia Pietatis ergo hc monumentum, posuit"
Henry Knollys: he was appointed Esquire to the Body to Queen Elizabeth I of England and Ireland. Around 1542 he was born to Francis Knollys and Catherine Carey. On 16th July 1566 Henry Knollys and Margaret Cave were married.
Elizabeth Knollys: In 1579 she was born to Henry Knollys and Margaret Cave at Rotherfield Greys, Oxfordshire. After 6th February 1605 Henry Willoughby 1st Baronet and she were married.
Lettice Knollys Baroness Geneville Beaudasert: In 1583 she was born to Henry Knollys and Margaret Cave at Rotherfield Greys, Oxfordshire. Before 19th June 1602 William Paget 4th Baron Paget Beaudasert and she were married. She by marriage Baroness Paget Beaudasert. In 1655 Lettice Knollys Baroness Geneville Beaudasert died.
In or before 1588 [his son] Richard Knollys [aged 39] and [his daughter-in-law] Joan Heigham were married.
Jean de Waurin's Chronicle of England Volume 6 Books 3-6: The Wars of the Roses
Jean de Waurin was a French Chronicler, from the Artois region, who was born around 1400, and died around 1474. Waurin’s Chronicle of England, Volume 6, covering the period 1450 to 1471, from which we have selected and translated Chapters relating to the Wars of the Roses, provides a vivid, original, contemporary description of key events some of which he witnessed first-hand, some of which he was told by the key people involved with whom Waurin had a personal relationship.
Available at Amazon in eBook and Paperback format.
Around April 1589 [his son-in-law] Christopher Blount [aged 24] and [his daughter] Lettice Knollys Countess Essex and Leicester [aged 45] were married. The difference in their ages was 21 years; she, unusually, being older than him.
In 1593 [his daughter] Mary Knollys [aged 52] died.
On 23rd April 1593 Queen Elizabeth I of England and Ireland [aged 59] created three new Garter Knights..
380th Thomas Burgh 9th Baron Cobham 7th Baron Strabolgi 3rd Baron Burgh [aged 35].
381st Edmund Sheffield 1st Earl Mulgrave [aged 27].
382nd Francis Knollys [aged 81].
Before 1595 [his son] William Knollys 1st Earl Banbury [aged 50] and [his daughter-in-law] Dorothy Braye Baroness Chandos and Knollys [aged 70] were married. The difference in their ages was 20 years; she, unusually, being older than him.
In 1596 [his son] Thomas Knollys died.
In 1596 [his son] Francis Knollys died.
On 19th July 1596 Francis Knollys [aged 84] died.
[his son] Francis Knollys was born to Francis Knollys and Catherine Carey.
[his son] Thomas Knollys was born to Francis Knollys and Catherine Carey.
Great x 3 Grandfather: Thomas Knollys 
Great x 2 Grandfather: Thomas Knollys
Great x 1 Grandfather: Richard Knollys
Grandfather: Robert Knollys
Great x 2 Grandfather: William D'Oyley
Great x 1 Grandmother: Margaret Doyley
father: Robert Knollys
Great x 1 Grandfather: John Troutbeck
Grandmother: Elizabeth Troutbeck
mother: Lettice Peniston