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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Paternal Family Tree: Bentinck
Maternal Family Tree: Mary Garritt
On 26th September 1839 [her father] Charles William Frederick Cavendish-Bentinck [aged 21] and Sinetta Lambourne [aged 19] were married at St George's Church, Hanover Square.
On 13th December 1859 [her father] Charles William Frederick Cavendish-Bentinck [aged 42] and [her mother] Caroline Louisa Burnaby [aged 27] were married.
On 11th September 1862 Cecilia Nina Cavendish-Bentinck Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne was born to [her father] Charles William Frederick Cavendish-Bentinck [aged 44] and [her mother] Caroline Louisa Burnaby [aged 29] at Belgravia.
On 17th August 1865 [her father] Charles William Frederick Cavendish-Bentinck [aged 47] died.
On 16th July 1881 Claude Bowes-Lyon 14th Earl Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 26] and Cecilia Nina Cavendish-Bentinck Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 18] were married at the Church of St Peter Petersham, Surrey. He the son of Claude Bowes-Lyon 13th Earl Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 56] and Frances Dora Smith Countess Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 48].
On 17th April 1882 [her daughter] Violet Hyacinth Bowes-Lyon was born to [her husband] Claude Bowes-Lyon 14th Earl Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 27] and Cecilia Nina Cavendish-Bentinck Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 19]. She died aged eleven in 1893.
On 30th August 1883 [her daughter] Mary Frances Bowes-Lyon Lady Elphinstone was born to [her husband] Claude Bowes-Lyon 14th Earl Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 28] and Cecilia Nina Cavendish-Bentinck Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 20]. She married 24th July 1910 Sidney Herbet Buller Fullerton Elphinstone 16th Lord Elphinstone and had issue.
On 22nd September 1884 [her son] Patrick Bowes-Lyon 15th Earl Strathmore and Kinghorne was born to [her husband] Claude Bowes-Lyon 14th Earl Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 29] and Cecilia Nina Cavendish-Bentinck Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 22] at St Paul's Walden Bury, Hertfordshire. He married 21st November 1908 his fourth cousin once removed Dorothy Beatrix Godolphin Osborne, daughter of George Godolphin Osborne 10th Duke Leeds and Katherine Frances Lambton Duchess Leeds, and had issue.
On 1st April 1886 [her son] John "Jock" Bowes-Lyon was born to [her husband] Claude Bowes-Lyon 14th Earl Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 31] and Cecilia Nina Cavendish-Bentinck Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 23]. He married 29th September 1914 his fifth cousin Fenella Hepburn-Stuart-Forbes-Trefusis, daughter of Charles Hepburn-Stuart-Forbes-Trefusis 21st Baron Clinton and Jane Grey McDonnell Baroness Clinton, and had issue.
On 14th April 1887 [her son] Alexander Francis Bowes-Lyon was born to [her husband] Claude Bowes-Lyon 14th Earl Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 32] and Cecilia Nina Cavendish-Bentinck Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 24].
On 18th April 1889 [her son] Fergus Bowes-Lyon was born to [her husband] Claude Bowes-Lyon 14th Earl Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 34] and Cecilia Nina Cavendish-Bentinck Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 26]. He married 17th September 1914 Christian Dawson Damer, daughter of Lionel Dawson-Damer 5th Earl of Portarlington and Emma Kennedy Countess Portarlington.
On 6th May 1890 [her daughter] Rose Constance Bowes-Lyon Countess Granville was born to [her husband] Claude Bowes-Lyon 14th Earl Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 35] and Cecilia Nina Cavendish-Bentinck Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 27]. She married 24th May 1916 her third cousin once removed William Leveson-Gower 4th Earl Granville, son of Granville Leveson-Gower 2nd Earl Granville and Sophia Castila Rosamund Campbell Countess Granville, and had issue.
On 1st October 1893 [her son] Michael Claude Bowes-Lyon was born to [her husband] Claude Bowes-Lyon 14th Earl Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 38] and Cecilia Nina Cavendish-Bentinck Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 31].
On 17th October 1893 [her daughter] Violet Hyacinth Bowes-Lyon [aged 11] died of diptherea.
Adam Murimuth's Continuation and Robert of Avesbury’s 'The Wonderful Deeds of King Edward III'
This volume brings together two of the most important contemporary chronicles for the reign of Edward III and the opening phases of the Hundred Years’ War. Written in Latin by English clerical observers, these texts provide a vivid and authoritative window into the political, diplomatic, and military history of fourteenth-century England and its continental ambitions. Adam Murimuth Continuatio's Chronicarum continues an earlier chronicle into the mid-fourteenth century, offering concise but valuable notices on royal policy, foreign relations, and ecclesiastical affairs. Its annalistic structure makes it especially useful for establishing chronology and tracing the development of events year by year. Complementing it, Robert of Avesbury’s De gestis mirabilibus regis Edwardi tertii is a rich documentary chronicle preserving letters, treaties, and official records alongside narrative passages. It is an indispensable source for understanding Edward III’s claim to the French crown, the conduct of war, and the mechanisms of medieval diplomacy. Together, these works offer scholars, students, and enthusiasts a reliable and unembellished account of a transformative period in English and European history. Essential for anyone interested in medieval chronicles, the Hundred Years’ War, or the reign of Edward III.
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On 4th August 1900 [her daughter] Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon Queen Consort England was born to [her husband] Claude Bowes-Lyon 14th Earl Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 45] and Cecilia Nina Cavendish-Bentinck Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 37]. She married 26th April 1923 King George VI of the United Kingdom, son of King George V of the United Kingdom and Victoria Mary Teck Queen Consort England, and had issue.
On 2nd May 1902 [her son] David Bowes-Lyon was born to [her husband] Claude Bowes-Lyon 14th Earl Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 47] and Cecilia Nina Cavendish-Bentinck Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 39].
On 16th February 1904 [her father-in-law] Claude Bowes-Lyon 13th Earl Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 79] died at Bordighera, Imperia. His son [her husband] Claude [aged 48] succeeded 14th Earl Strathmore and Kinghorne. Cecilia Nina Cavendish-Bentinck Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 41] by marriage Countess Strathmore and Kinghorne.
On 21st November 1908 Patrick Bowes-Lyon 15th Earl Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 24] and Dorothy Beatrix Godolphin Osborne [aged 19] were married. She the daughter of George Godolphin Osborne 10th Duke Leeds [aged 46] and Katherine Frances Lambton Duchess Leeds [aged 46]. He the son of Claude Bowes-Lyon 14th Earl Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 53] and Cecilia Nina Cavendish-Bentinck Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 46]. They were fourth cousin once removed.
On 24th July 1910 [her son-in-law] Sidney Herbet Buller Fullerton Elphinstone 16th Lord Elphinstone [aged 40] and Mary Frances Bowes-Lyon Lady Elphinstone [aged 26] were married. She the daughter of Claude Bowes-Lyon 14th Earl Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 55] and Cecilia Nina Cavendish-Bentinck Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 47].
On 19th October 1911 [her son] Alexander Francis Bowes-Lyon [aged 24] died.
Evening Standard. Mon, 16 Jun 1913 LATE EARL OF LEVEN AND MELVILLE.
The funeral of the Earl of Leven and Melville [John Leslie-Melville 12th Earl of Leven 11th Earl of Melville [deceased]], who died last week in London from injuries received in an accident in the hunting field, took place in Scotland to-day. A memorial service was held at St. Mary's Church, Bryanston-square, W., this afternoon. Among the congregation were the Duke and Duchess of Somerset, the Marchioness of Salisbury and Lady Beatrice Ormsby-Gore [aged 21], the Countess of Strathmore [aged 50] and [her daughter] Lady Rose Bowes-Lyon [aged 23], the Countess of Desart [aged 59], Countess Waldegrave [aged 63], the Countess of Dartrey [aged 51], the Earl [aged 61] and Countess [aged 59] of Verulam, Viscount Althorp [aged 21] and Lady Adelaide Spencer [aged 24], Viscount De Vesci [aged 31], Captain and Lady Nina Balfour, the Dowager Lady Leaconfield, Viscount Maidstone, and Lord Reay.
On 17th September 1914 Fergus Bowes-Lyon [aged 25] and Christian Dawson Damer [aged 24] were married. She the daughter of Lionel Dawson-Damer 5th Earl of Portarlington and Emma Kennedy Countess Portarlington [aged 52]. He the son of Claude Bowes-Lyon 14th Earl Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 59] and Cecilia Nina Cavendish-Bentinck Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 52].
On 29th September 1914 John "Jock" Bowes-Lyon [aged 28] and Fenella Hepburn-Stuart-Forbes-Trefusis [aged 25] were married. He the son of Claude Bowes-Lyon 14th Earl Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 59] and Cecilia Nina Cavendish-Bentinck Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 52]. They were fifth cousins.
On 27th September 1915 [her son] Fergus Bowes-Lyon [aged 26] was killed in action during the Battle of the Hohenzollern Redoubt in the Battle of Loos. As he led an attack on the German lines, his leg was blown off by a barrage of German artillery and he fell back into his sergeant's arms. Bullets struck him in the chest and shoulder and he died on the field.
On 24th May 1916 [her son-in-law] William Leveson-Gower 4th Earl Granville [aged 35] and Rose Constance Bowes-Lyon Countess Granville [aged 26] were married. She the daughter of Claude Bowes-Lyon 14th Earl Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 61] and Cecilia Nina Cavendish-Bentinck Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 53]. He the son of Granville Leveson-Gower 2nd Earl Granville and Sophia Castila Rosamund Campbell Countess Granville [aged 68]. They were third cousin once removed.
Chronicle of Geoffrey le Baker of Swinbroke
Baker was a secular clerk from Swinbroke, now Swinbrook, an Oxfordshire village two miles east of Burford. His Chronicle describes the events of the period 1303-1356: Gaveston, Bannockburn, Boroughbridge, the murder of King Edward II, the Scottish Wars, Sluys, Crécy, the Black Death, Winchelsea and Poitiers. To quote Herbert Bruce 'it possesses a vigorous and characteristic style, and its value for particular events between 1303 and 1356 has been recognised by its editor and by subsequent writers'. The book provides remarkable detail about the events it describes. Baker's text has been augmented with hundreds of notes, including extracts from other contemporary chronicles, such as the Annales Londonienses, Annales Paulini, Murimuth, Lanercost, Avesbury, Guisborough and Froissart to enrich the reader's understanding. The translation takes as its source the 'Chronicon Galfridi le Baker de Swynebroke' published in 1889, edited by Edward Maunde Thompson.
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On 6th July 1918 [her mother] Caroline Louisa Burnaby [aged 85] died.
On 26th April 1923 [her son-in-law] King George VI of the United Kingdom [aged 27] and Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon Queen Consort England [aged 22] were married at Westminster Abbey [Map]. She the daughter of Claude Bowes-Lyon 14th Earl Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 68] and Cecilia Nina Cavendish-Bentinck Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 60]. He the son of King George V of the United Kingdom [aged 57] and Victoria Mary Teck Queen Consort England [aged 55].
Mary Elphinstone [aged 12] and Cecilia Bowes-Lyon [aged 11] were bridesmaids.
On 7th February 1930 [her son] John "Jock" Bowes-Lyon [aged 43] died.
1931. Philip de László [aged 61]. Portrait of Cecilia Nina Cavendish-Bentinck Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 68].
On 23rd June 1938 Cecilia Nina Cavendish-Bentinck Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 75] died.
On 7th November 1944 [her former husband] Claude Bowes-Lyon 14th Earl Strathmore and Kinghorne [aged 89] died. His son Patrick [aged 60] succeeded 15th Earl Strathmore and Kinghorne. Dorothy Beatrix Godolphin Osborne [aged 55] by marriage Countess Strathmore and Kinghorne.
Kings Wessex: Great x 24 Grand Daughter of King Edmund "Ironside" I of England
Kings Gwynedd: Great x 20 Grand Daughter of Owain "Great" King Gwynedd
Kings Seisyllwg: Great x 26 Grand Daughter of Hywel "Dda aka Good" King Seisyllwg King Deheubarth
Kings Powys: Great x 21 Grand Daughter of Maredudd ap Bleddyn King Powys
Kings Godwinson: Great x 25 Grand Daughter of King Harold II of England
Kings England: Great x 11 Grand Daughter of King Henry VII of England and Ireland
Kings Scotland: Great x 23 Grand Daughter of King Duncan I of Scotland
Kings Franks: Great x 30 Grand Daughter of Charles "Charlemagne aka Great" King of the Franks King Lombardy Holy Roman Emperor
Kings France: Great x 14 Grand Daughter of Charles "Beloved Mad" VI King France
Kings Duke Aquitaine: Great x 28 Grand Daughter of Ranulf I Duke Aquitaine
Great x 4 Grandfather: William Bentinck 1st Earl of Portland 
Great x 3 Grandfather: Henry Bentinck 1st Duke Portland 11 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Anne Villiers Countess Portland 
10 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 2 Grandfather: William Bentinck 2nd Duke Portland 11 x Great Grand Son of King Henry IV of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Wriothesley Baptist Noel 2nd Earl Gainsborough 
9 x Great Grand Son of King Henry IV of England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Elizabeth Noel Duchess Portland 10 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry IV of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Catherine Greville Duchess Buckingham and Normandby 
10 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 1 Grandfather: William Cavendish-Bentinck 3rd Duke Portland 9 x Great Grand Son of King Edward IV of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Robert Harley 1st Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer 10 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Edward Harley 2nd Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer 11 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Elizabeth Foley Countess of Oxford and Mortimer
Great x 2 Grandmother: Margaret Cavendish Harley 2nd Duchess Portland 8 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward IV of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: John Holles 1st Duke Newcastle upon Tyne 9 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Henrietta Cavendish Holles Countess of Oxford and Mortimer 7 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward IV of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Margaret Cavendish Duchess Newcastle upon Tyne 
6 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward IV of England
GrandFather: Charles Cavendish-Bentinck 9 x Great Grand Son of King Henry VII of England and Ireland
Great x 4 Grandfather: William Cavendish 2nd Duke Devonshire 10 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: William Cavendish 3rd Duke Devonshire 10 x Great Grand Son of King Henry IV of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Rachel Russell Duchess Devonshire 
9 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry IV of England
Great x 2 Grandfather: William Cavendish 4th Duke Devonshire 11 x Great Grand Son of King Henry IV of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: John Hoskins of Oxted
Great x 3 Grandmother: Catherine Hoskins Duchess Devonshire
Great x 4 Grandmother: Catherine Hale
Great x 1 Grandmother: Dorothy Cavendish 3rd Duchess Portland 8 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry VII of England and Ireland
Great x 4 Grandfather: Charles Boyle 2nd Earl Burlington 
5 x Great Grand Son of King Henry VII of England and Ireland
Great x 3 Grandfather: Richard Boyle 3rd Earl Burlington 6 x Great Grand Son of King Henry VII of England and Ireland
Great x 4 Grandmother: Juliana Noel Countess Burlington
Great x 2 Grandmother: Charlotte Elizabeth Boyle Marchioness Hartington 7 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry VII of England and Ireland
Great x 4 Grandfather: William Savile 2nd Marquess Halifax 
10 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Dorothy Savile Countess Burlington 11 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Mary Finch Duchess Roxburghe 
10 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Father: Charles William Frederick Cavendish-Bentinck 10 x Great Grand Son of King Henry VII of England and Ireland
Great x 4 Grandfather: Henry Colley
Great x 3 Grandfather: Richard Colley aka Wesley 1st Baron Mornington
Great x 4 Grandmother: Mary Ussher
Great x 2 Grandfather: Garrett Wellesley 1st Earl Mornington
Great x 3 Grandmother: Elizabeth Sale
Great x 1 Grandfather: Richard Wellesley 1st Marquess Wellesley
Great x 4 Grandfather: Michael Hill
Great x 3 Grandfather: Arthur Hill aka Hill-Trevor 1st Viscount Dungannon
Great x 4 Grandmother: Anne Trevor 
Great x 2 Grandmother: Anne Hill Countess Mornington
GrandMother: Anne Wellesley Lady Abdy
Great x 2 Grandfather: Pierre Roland
Great x 1 Grandmother: Hyacinthe Gabrielle Roland Marchioness Wellesley
Cecilia Nina Cavendish-Bentinck Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne 11 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry VII of England and Ireland
Great x 3 Grandfather: Reverend Andrew Burnaby
Great x 2 Grandfather: Archdeacon Andrew Burnaby
Great x 1 Grandfather: Edwyn Andrew Burnaby
Great x 3 Grandfather: John Edwyn
Great x 2 Grandmother: Anna Edwyn
GrandFather: Edwyn Burnaby
Great x 2 Grandfather: Reverend William Browne 
Great x 1 Grandmother: Mary Browne
Great x 2 Grandmother: Mary Adcock
Mother: Caroline Louisa Burnaby
Great x 2 Grandfather: Thomas Salisbury
Great x 1 Grandfather: Thomas Salisbury of Marshfield House
Great x 2 Grandmother: Mary Lister 
GrandMother: Anne Caroline Salisbury
Great x 3 Grandfather: John Webb of Church Stanway in Gloucestershire
Great x 2 Grandfather: Francis Webb
Great x 1 Grandmother: Frances Webb
Great x 2 Grandmother: Mary Garritt