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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Alice aka Agnes Cotell 1485-1523

In 1485 Alice aka Agnes Cotell was born. Cotell being the name of her first husband rather than her maiden name.

Before 26th July 1518 John Cotell and Alice aka Agnes Cotell [aged 33] were married.

On 26th July 1518 [her husband] John Cotell was strangled by his wife Alice aka Agnes Cotell [aged 33] at Farleigh Hungreford Castle [Map] with the aid of William Mathewe and William Inges, yeomen of Heytesbury, Wiltshire [Map]. He, John, was steward to Edward Hungerford who she subsequently married.

Before 1521 [her future husband] Edward Hungerford and Jane Zouche [aged 40] were married. They were fifth cousin once removed.

Before 24th January 1522 Edward Hungerford and Alice aka Agnes Cotell [aged 37] were married.

On 24th January 1522 [her husband] Edward Hungerford died.

On 20th February 1523 Alice aka Agnes Cotell [aged 38] and William Mathewe were hanged at Tyburn [Map] for the murder of her first husband John Cotell.

Annales of England by John Stow. 20th February 1523. The 20 of February, the ladie Alice Hungerford [aged 38] a knights wife, for murdering her husband, was led from the tower of London to Holborn, and there put in a cart with one of her servants and so carried to Tyburn [Map], and both hanged. He was buried in the Greyfriers church at London.