Paternal Family Tree: Beaton
Before 14th January 1904 [his father] Ernest Beaton [aged 37] and [his mother] Esther "Etty" Sisson [aged 32] were married.
On 14th January 1904 Cecil Beaton was born to Ernest Beaton [aged 37] and Esther "Etty" Sisson [aged 32].
Around 1927. Cecil Beaton [aged 22]. Photograph of Loelia Mary Ponsonby Duchess Westminster [aged 24] wearing the Westminster Halo tiara.
Around 1930. Unknown Photographer. Photograph of Cecil Beaton [aged 25] and his sisters Barbara "Baba" Beaton [aged 17] and Nancy Beaton [aged 20] arriving at an Eton.
Nancy Beaton: On 30th September 1909 she was born to Ernest Beaton and Esther "Etty" Sisson. In January 1933 Hugh Houston Smiley 3rd Baronet and she were married. The eight bridesmaids included the bride's sister Barbara "Baba" Beaton, Margaret Whigham, Lady Bridget Poulett, and Lady Anne Wellesley On 6th June 1999 Nancy Beaton died.
1930. Cecil Beaton [aged 25]. The Silver Soap Suds. Left to Right: Baba Beaton, the Hon. Mrs Charles Baillie-Hamilton and Bridget Poulet [aged 17].
Bridget Poulet: On 29th January 1912 she was born to William John Lydston Poulett 7th Earl Poulett and Sylvia Storey Countess Poulett. In 1975 Bridget Poulet died.
January 1933. Cecil Beaton [aged 28]. Photograph of Margaret Whigham Duchess of Argyll [aged 20].
In 1936 [his father] Ernest Beaton [aged 69] died.
1940. John "Rex" Whistler [aged 34]. Portrait of Cecil Beaton [aged 35].
1946. Cecil Beaton [aged 41]. Photograph of siblings Osbert [aged 53], Sacheverell [aged 48] and Edith [aged 58] Sitwell.
1946. Cecil Beaton [aged 41]. Photograph of Frances Elizabeth Anne Hay [aged 20].
Frances Elizabeth Anne Hay: In 1926 she was born to William Hay 11th Marquess of Tweeddale. In 1956 Nigel Arthur Pearson and she were married. She the daughter of William Hay 11th Marquess of Tweeddale. In 2023 Frances Elizabeth Anne Hay died.
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.
Available at Amazon in eBook and Paperback format.
1953. Cecil Beaton [aged 48]. Photograph of Anne Bairstow Cumming Bell Duchess of Rutland.
In 1962 [his mother] Esther "Etty" Sisson [aged 90] died.
On 18th January 1980 Cecil Beaton [aged 76] died.