The History of William Marshal was commissioned by his son shortly after William’s death in 1219 to celebrate the Marshal’s remarkable life; it is an authentic, contemporary voice. The manuscript was discovered in 1861 by French historian Paul Meyer. Meyer published the manuscript in its original Anglo-French in 1891 in two books. This book is a line by line translation of the first of Meyer’s books; lines 1-10152. Book 1 of the History begins in 1139 and ends in 1194. It describes the events of the Anarchy, the role of William’s father John, John’s marriages, William’s childhood, his role as a hostage at the siege of Newbury, his injury and imprisonment in Poitou where he met Eleanor of Aquitaine and his life as a knight errant. It continues with the accusation against him of an improper relationship with Margaret, wife of Henry the Young King, his exile, and return, the death of Henry the Young King, the rebellion of Richard, the future King Richard I, war with France, the death of King Henry II, and the capture of King Richard, and the rebellion of John, the future King John. It ends with the release of King Richard and the death of John Marshal.
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Paternal Family Tree: Stafford
Maternal Family Tree: María González Henestrosa Lady Villagera 1356
In 1534 [his father] William Stafford [aged 26] and Mary Boleyn [aged 35] were married in secret. The marriage was discovered when she, Mary, attended Court, when pregnant, angering both the King [aged 42] and her sister the Queen [aged 33]. They was banished from Court. She the daughter of Thomas Boleyn 1st Earl Wiltshire and Ormonde [aged 57] and Elizabeth Howard Countess of Wiltshire and Ormonde [aged 54].
In March 1544 [his father] William Stafford [aged 36] with his [his mother] wife [aged 17], children (Elizabeth Stafford, Edward Stafford, Ursula Stafford, William Stafford, John Stafford and Dorothy Stafford ), sister, cousin and servants settled in Geneva to avoid religious persecution.
In 1545 [his father] William Stafford [aged 37] and [his mother] Dorothy Stafford [aged 18] were married. They were third cousin once removed. She a great x 5 granddaughter of King Edward III of England.
In 1552 Edward Stafford was born to [his father] William Stafford [aged 44] and [his mother] Dorothy Stafford [aged 25].
On 5th May 1556 [his father] William Stafford [aged 48] died at Geneva. Calvin claimed the custody of his son John and forbade his widow [aged 29] to leave with him. She appealed to Stafford's younger brother and the threat to invoke French aid persuaded Calvin to yield. She then moved to Basle, remaining there until January 1559.
Around 1562 John Sheffield 2nd Baron Sheffield [aged 24] and [his future wife] Douglas Howard Baroness Sheffield [aged 20] were married. She by marriage Baroness Sheffield of Butterwick in Lincolnshire. They were half fourth cousin once removed.
Around 1564 Edward Stafford [aged 12] educated at St John's College, Cambridge University [Map].
Around 1564 Edward Stafford [aged 12] educated at Peterhouse College, Cambridge University [Map].
Around 1573 Edward Stafford [aged 21] and Roberta Chapman were married.
In 1578 Edward Stafford [aged 26] was appointed English Ambassador to France, possibly through the influence of his mother Dorothy Stafford [aged 51].
On 29th November 1597 Edward Stafford [aged 45] and Douglas Howard Baroness Sheffield [aged 55] were married. They were fourth cousins.
On 14th May 1598 [his sister-in-law] Frances Howard Countess Hertford [aged 44] died.
On 18th November 1601 [his sister-in-law] Agnes Howard Marchioness Winchester [aged 66] died.
Annals of the six Kings of England by Nicholas Trivet
Translation of the Annals of the Six Kings of England by that traces the rise and rule of the Angevin aka Plantagenet dynasty from the mid-12th to early 14th century. Written by the Dominican scholar Nicholas Trivet, the work offers a vivid account of English history from the reign of King Stephen through to the death of King Edward I, blending political narrative with moral reflection. Covering the reigns of six monarchs—from Stephen to Edward I—the chronicle explores royal authority, rebellion, war, and the shifting balance between crown, church, and nobility. Trivet provides detailed insight into defining moments such as baronial conflicts, Anglo-French rivalry, and the consolidation of royal power under Edward I, whose reign he describes with particular immediacy. The Annals combines careful year-by-year reporting with thoughtful interpretation, presenting history not merely as a sequence of events but as a moral and political lesson. Ideal for readers interested in medieval history, kingship, and the origins of the English state, this chronicle remains a valuable and accessible window into the turbulent world of the Plantagenet kings.
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In September 1603 [his brother-in-law] Charles Howard 1st Earl Nottingham [aged 67] and Margaret Stewart 1st Countess Nottingham [aged 12] were married. She by marriage Countess Nottingham. The difference in their ages was 55 years. She the daughter of James "The Bonnie Earl" Stewart 2nd Earl of Moray and Elizabeth Stewart 2nd Countess Moray. They were half fourth cousin twice removed. She a great x 3 granddaughter of King Henry VII of England and Ireland.
On 22nd September 1604 Dorothy Stafford [aged 77] died. She was buried at St Margaret's Church, Westminster [Map]. Her effigy and monument are in the north aisle of the church. The inscription reads... Here Lyeth the Lady Dorothy Stafford, Wife and Widow to Sir William Stafford, Knight, Daughter to Henry, Lord Stafford, the only son of Edward, the last Duke of Buckingham: Her mother was Ursula, Daughter to the Countesse of Salisbury, the only Daughter to George, Duke of Clarence, Brother to King Edward the Fourth. Shee continued a true Widow from the Age of 27 till her Death. She served Queen Elizabeth 40 Yeeres, lying in the Bedchamber, esteemed of her, loved of all, doing good, all she could, to every Body, never hurt any; a continual Remembrancer of the Suits of the Poor. As she Lived a religious Life, in great Reputation of Honour and Vertue in the World, so she ended in continual fervent Meditation, and hearty Prayer to God. At which Instant, as all her Life, so after her Death, she gave liberally to the Poore, and died aged 78, the 22 of September 1604. In whose Remembrance, Sir Edward Stafford [aged 52], her sonne, hath caused this Memorial of her to be in the same Forme and Place as she herselfe long since required him.
On 5th February 1605 Edward Stafford [aged 53] died. He was buried at St Margaret's Church, Westminster [Map].
In 1608 [his former wife] Douglas Howard Baroness Sheffield [aged 66] died.
Kings Wessex: Great x 16 Grand Son of King Edmund "Ironside" I of England
Kings Gwynedd: Great x 13 Grand Son of Owain "Great" King Gwynedd
Kings Seisyllwg: Great x 19 Grand Son of Hywel "Dda aka Good" King Seisyllwg King Deheubarth
Kings Powys: Great x 14 Grand Son of Maredudd ap Bleddyn King Powys
Kings Godwinson: Great x 16 Grand Son of King Harold II of England
Kings England: Great x 6 Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Kings Scotland: Great x 15 Grand Son of King Duncan I of Scotland
Kings Franks: Great x 22 Grand Son of Charles "Charlemagne aka Great" King of the Franks King Lombardy Holy Roman Emperor
Kings France: Great x 17 Grand Son of Hugh I King of the Franks
Kings Duke Aquitaine: Great x 20 Grand Son of Ranulf I Duke Aquitaine
Great x 4 Grandfather: Ralph Stafford 
9 x Great Grand Son of King Henry I "Beauclerc" England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Humphrey Stafford 10 x Great Grand Son of King Henry I "Beauclerc" England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Maud Hastings 
Great x 2 Grandfather: Humphrey Stafford 11 x Great Grand Son of King Henry I "Beauclerc" England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Elizabeth Burdett
Great x 1 Grandfather: Humphrey Stafford 12 x Great Grand Son of King Henry I "Beauclerc" England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Thomas Aylesbury 
Great x 2 Grandmother: Eleanor Aylesbury
GrandFather: Humphrey Stafford 13 x Great Grand Son of King Henry I "Beauclerc" England
Great x 2 Grandfather: John Fray
Great x 1 Grandmother: Catherine Fray
Great x 4 Grandfather: Richard Danvers 
Great x 3 Grandfather: John Danvers
Great x 2 Grandmother: Agnes Danvers Baroness Wenlock
Father: William Stafford 14 x Great Grand Son of King Henry I "Beauclerc" England
Great x 1 Grandfather: John Fogge
GrandMother: Margaret Fogge
Great x 3 Grandfather: Nicholas Haute
Great x 2 Grandfather: William Haute
Great x 1 Grandmother: Alice Haute
Great x 4 Grandfather: John Woodville 
Great x 3 Grandfather: Richard Woodville
Great x 2 Grandmother: Joan Woodville
Great x 4 Grandfather: Thomas Bittelsgate
Great x 3 Grandmother: Joan Bittelsgate
Great x 4 Grandmother: Joan Beauchamp 
Edward Stafford 6 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Humphrey Stafford 1st Duke of Buckingham Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Humphrey Stafford 2 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Anne Neville Duchess Buckingham 
Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 2 Grandfather: Henry Stafford 2nd Duke of Buckingham 3 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Edmund Beaufort 1st or 2nd Duke of Somerset 
Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Margaret Beaufort 2 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Eleanor Beauchamp Duchess Somerset 
4 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward I of England
Great x 1 Grandfather: Edward Stafford 3rd Duke of Buckingham 4 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Richard Woodville
Great x 3 Grandfather: Richard Woodville 1st Earl Rivers
Great x 4 Grandmother: Joan Bittelsgate
Great x 2 Grandmother: Catherine Woodville Duchess Buckingham and Bedford 6 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Peter Luxemburg I Count Saint Pol 
4 x Great Grand Son of King Henry III of England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Jacquetta of Luxemburg Duchess Bedford 5 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry III of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Margherita Baux 
5 x Great Grand Daughter of King John of England
GrandFather: Henry Stafford 1st Baron Stafford 5 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Henry Percy 2nd Earl of Northumberland 2 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Henry Percy 3rd Earl of Northumberland 2 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Eleanor Neville Countess Northumberland Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 2 Grandfather: Henry Percy 4th Earl of Northumberland 3 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Richard Poynings 
5 x Great Grand Son of King Edward I of England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Eleanor Poynings Countess Northumberland 6 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward I of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Eleanor Berkeley Countess Arundel 
5 x Great Grand Daughter of King John of England
Great x 1 Grandmother: Eleanor Percy Duchess Buckingham 4 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: William ap Thomas "Blue Knight of Gwent" Herbert 
Great x 3 Grandfather: William Herbert 1st Earl Pembroke
Great x 4 Grandmother: Gwladys ferch Dafydd Gam "Star of Abergavenny" Brecon
Great x 2 Grandmother: Maud Herbert Countess Northumberland 9 x Great Grand Daughter of King John of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Walter Devereux 
7 x Great Grand Son of King John of England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Anne Devereux 8 x Great Grand Daughter of King John of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Elizabeth Merbury
Mother: Dorothy Stafford 5 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Richard Pole 
Great x 3 Grandfather: Richard Pole
Great x 2 Grandfather: Geoffrey Pole
Great x 1 Grandfather: Richard Pole 8 x Great Grand Son of King John of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: John St John 
Great x 3 Grandfather: Oliver St John
Great x 4 Grandmother: Elizabeth Paulet
Great x 2 Grandmother: Edith St John 7 x Great Grand Daughter of King John of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: John Beauchamp 3rd Baron Beauchamp Bletsoe 7 x Great Grand Son of King Henry I "Beauclerc" England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Margaret Beauchamp Duchess Somerset 6 x Great Grand Daughter of King John of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Edith Stourton Baroness Beauchamp Bletsoe 
5 x Great Grand Daughter of King John of England
GrandMother: Ursula Pole 4 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Richard of Conisbrough 1st Earl Cambridge 
Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Richard Plantagenet 3rd Duke of York Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Anne Mortimer 
2 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 2 Grandfather: George York 1st Duke of Clarence 2 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Ralph Neville 1st Earl of Westmoreland 5 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Cecily "Rose of Raby" Neville Duchess York Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Joan Beaufort Countess of Westmoreland 
Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 1 Grandmother: Margaret York aka Pole Countess of Salisbury 3 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Richard Neville Earl Salisbury Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Richard "Kingmaker" Neville Earl Warwick, 6th Earl Salisbury 2 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Alice Montagu 5th Countess of Salisbury 
3 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward I of England
Great x 2 Grandmother: Isabel Neville Duchess Clarence 3 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Richard Beauchamp 13th Earl Warwick 4 x Great Grand Son of King Edward I of England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Anne Beauchamp 16th Countess Warwick 2 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Isabel Despencer Countess Warwick and Worcester 
Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England