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.
Available at Amazon in eBook and Paperback format.
Effigy of Edmund Crouchback, Earl of Lancaster is in Monumental Effigies of Great Britain.
Was the second son of King Henry III by his wife Eleanor of Provence, and was born at London 16 January 1245. When he was yet but eight years of age, the Pope sent him a gold ring, investing him with the sovereignty of Sicily and Apulia. Not, however, unmindful of this titular and empty honour, from reverence to the then paramount authority, spiritual and secular, from whence it was derived, he stamped coin bearing the legend "Aidmundus Rex Scicilie." On the overthrow of Simon de Montfort and the rebellious Barons at the battle of Evesham, in 1265, he was invested with the Earldom of Leicester, the lands of Nicholas de Segrave, and the possessions of Robert de Ferrers, Earl of Derby, who in the following year, had renewed hostilities against Henry III. and was defeated at Chesterfield. He was also constituted High Seneschal or Steward of England in the place of the rebel de Montfort, and afterwards Earl of Champagne; he had, moreover, grants of the castle and town of Monmouth [Map], and numerous other lordships and estates. In 1269 he was marked with the cross at Northampton by Ottobon, the Legate of the Pope, with his elder brother Edward, the Earl of Gloucester, and many other nobles of the land: one of those nominal crusades which procured for the See of Rome so many golden crosses in current coin. In 1291 he had license from his brother King Edward I to crenellate or embattle his house, the Savoy in the Strand; which with its gardens and dependencies, had been granted to him by his mother Eleanor, and which had before belonged to her brother [Note. Uncle] Peter of Savoy. In 1295 Philip the Fair haughtily summoned King Edward I as Duke of Aquitaine to appear before the Peers of France, to answer for certain alleged outrages committed by his subjects towards some French mariners. The Earl of Lancaster was at first sent ambassador to the Court of France in order to arrange those differences, but a pretext was drawn from them by Philip to seize on some of the possessions of Edward as Duke of Aquitaine. The Earl of Lancaster was then dispatched with a military force into Gascogne; but his army being too inconsiderable to cope with that of the French, he was constrained to shut himself up in Bayonne [Map], where, suffering under mental vexation from his ill success, he sickened and died in 1296. A truce being concluded with France, his body was brought to England, and buried in a sumptuous tomb in the Abbey Church at Westminster [Map]. He had conscientiously directed that he should not be interred until his debts were paid. His first wife was Aveline, an account of whom has been given to illustrate her effigy; his second, Blanch, widow of Henry King of Navarre, Earl of Champagne and Brie, by whom he had three sons and a daughter.
Details. Plate 1. 1. Ornamental pattern on the pillow which supports the head. 2. Ditto on the lace of the hood. 3. Surcoat diapered with rampant lions, eagles displayed, ornamental crosses, &c. the points of the label and fleur-de-lys with which it is surmounted enlarged. 4. The whole figure as originally painted. Plate II. 1. Mailles enlarged. 2. Bearings on the belt. 3. Figure of the Earl on his barded horse, in the attitude of prayer, which occupies the trefoil ornament at the top of the tomb.
