Paternal Family Tree: Walter Mildmay
Around 1521 Walter Mildmay was born to Thomas Mildmay [aged 36] and Agnes Read at Moulsham, Essex. He was educated at Christ's College, Cambridge University [Map].
In or before 1540 [his father] Thomas Mildmay [aged 54] and [his mother] Agnes Read were married.
In 1541 Walter Mildmay [aged 20] was elected MP Lostwithiel.
Around 1545 Walter Mildmay [aged 24] was appointed Surveyor General of the Court of Augmentations.
In 1546 Walter Mildmay [aged 25] became a student at Gray's Inn.
On 22nd February 1546 Walter Mildmay [aged 25] was knighted.
In 1547 Walter Mildmay [aged 26] was elected MP Lewes.
On 22nd May 1547 Walter Mildmay [aged 26] was knighted.
On 8th September 1549 [his son] Anthony Mildmay was born to Walter Mildmay [aged 28] and [his future wife] Mary Walsingham [aged 21]. It appears from his widow's provision for a memorial sermon to him, on the Nativity of Our Lady, 8th Sept, but in the year is unclear. To judge from the date of his entry to Peterhouse, it may have been 1549. He married 1567 Grace Sharington and had issue.
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 12th November 1549 Walter Mildmay [aged 28] was ordered by the Privy Council to examine the Westminster Palace [Map] which had been in the custody of Edward Seymour 1st Duke of Somerset [aged 49].
In 1550 Walter Mildmay [aged 29], John Dudley 1st Duke Northumberland [aged 46] and William Herbert 1st Earl Pembroke [aged 49] were directed to examine the accounts of the Royal Mint.
In 1552 Walter Mildmay [aged 31] was granted Apethorpe Hall, Northamptonshire.
On 1st March 1553 Walter Mildmay [aged 32] was elected MP Maldon.
On 5th October 1553 Walter Mildmay [aged 32] was elected MP Peterborough.
Around 1555 [his son] Humphrey Mildmay was born to Walter Mildmay [aged 34] and [his future wife] Mary Walsingham [aged 27]. He married Mary Capell.
Before 5th October 1557 [his mother] Agnes Read died.
Around 1558 [his daughter] Christian Mildmay was born to Walter Mildmay [aged 37] and [his future wife] Mary Walsingham [aged 30]. She married 9th June 1586 John Leveson and had issue.
On 20th December 1558 Walter Mildmay [aged 37] was employed in preparing a census of the farms of the royal revenues.
On 28th March 1559 Walter Mildmay [aged 38] was employed in compounding with those who refused knighthood.
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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On 29th October 1560 Walter Mildmay [aged 39] was employed in directing the issue of a new coinage.
In May 1563 Walter Mildmay [aged 42] was employed in selling crown lands.
On 29th January 1566 [his father] Thomas Mildmay [aged 81] died.
After 21st April 1566 Walter Mildmay [aged 45] was appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer and Auditor of the Duchy of Lancaster.
In 1567 [his son] Anthony Mildmay [aged 17] and [his daughter-in-law] Grace Sharington [aged 15] were married. They lived at Apethorpe Hall, Northamptonshire.
Before 1571 Walter Mildmay [aged 49] and Mary Walsingham [aged 42] were married.
In January 1572 Thomas Howard 4th Duke of Norfolk [aged 35] was tried for high treason for his involvement in the Ridolphi Plot. Thomas Sackville 1st Earl Dorset [aged 36] acted as judge.
George Talbot 6th Earl of Shrewsbury [aged 44] was appointed Lord High Steward for the trial.
Walter Mildmay [aged 51] helped prepare evidence against Thomas Howard 4th Duke of Norfolk.
On 16th March 1576 [his wife] Mary Walsingham [aged 48] died.
In October 1577 Walter Mildmay [aged 56] and William Cecil 1st Baron Burghley [aged 57] visited Mary Queen of Scots [aged 34] at Chatsworth House, Derbyshire [Map] after she had announced that she had important secrets to reveal to Elizabeth.
On 23rd November 1583 Walter Mildmay [aged 62] purchased the site of Emmanuel College, Cambridge University for £550 and on 11th January 1584 obtained the Queen's licence to set up Emmanuel College there.
On 9th June 1586 [his son-in-law] John Leveson [aged 31] and [his daughter] Christian Mildmay [aged 28] were married.
Before 14th October 1586 Walter Mildmay [aged 65] went to Fotheringhay Castle, Northamptonshire [Map] to inform Mary Queen of Scots [aged 43] of her forthcoming trial in which he subsequently took part as one of the special commissioners.
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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On 31st May 1589 Walter Mildmay [aged 68] died at Hackney. He is buried at St Bartholomew the Less with his wife Mary Walsingham.