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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On 20th January 1651 George Wheler was born to [his father] Charles Wheeler of Charing.
On 31st January 1667 George Wheler (age 16) matriculated Lincoln College, Oxford University.
In 1677 George Wheler (age 25) was elected Fellow of the Royal Society. He was subsequently expelled in 1685.
On 1st September 1682 George Wheler (age 31) was knighted.
John Evelyn's Diary. 26th December 1683. I dined at Lord Clarendon's, where I was to meet that ingenious and learned gent Sr Geo. Wheeler (age 32), who has published the excellent description of Africa and Greece, and who being a Knight of a very fair estate and young, had now newly entred into holy orders.
John Evelyn's Diary. 9th January 1684. I went crosse the Thames on the ice, now become so thick as to beare not onely streetes of boothes, in which they roasted meate, and had divers shops of wares, quite acrosse as in a towne, but coaches, carts, and horses, passed over. So I went from Westminster Stayres to Lambeth [Map], and din'd with the Archbishop (age 66): where I met my Lord Bruce, Sir Geo. Wheeler (age 32), Coll. Cooke, and severall divines. After dinner and discourse with his Grace till evening prayers, Sir Geo. Wheeler and I walked over the ice from Lambeth Stayres to the horse ferry.
In 1685 George Wheler (age 33) was appointed Vicar of Basingstoke, Hampshire.
John Evelyn's Diary. 24th October 1686. Dr. Warren preached before the Princess [NOTE. Not clear which Princess this is]; possibly at Whitehall, on 5th Matthew, of the blessedness of the pure in heart, most elegantly describing the bliss of the beatifical vision. In the afternoon, Sir George Wheeler (age 35), knight and baronet, preached on the 4th Matt. upon the necessity of repentance, at St. Margaret's [Map], an honest and devout discourse, and pretty tolerably performed. This gentleman coming from his travels out of Greece, fell in love with the [his future wife] daughter of Sir Thomas Higgins (age 62), his Majesty's resident at Venice, niece to the Earl of Bath, and married her. When they returned into England, being honored with knighthood, he would needs turn preacher, and took orders. He published a learned and ingenious book of his travels, and is a very worthy person, a little formal and particular, but exceedingly devout.
Before 1700 George Wheler (age 48) and Grace Higgons were married. They had eighteen children.
In 1700 [his daughter] Judith Wheler was born to George Wheler (age 48) and [his wife] Grace Higgons. She married 19th June 1722 Archdeacon Thomas Sharp, son of Archbishop John Sharp, and had issue.
On 19th June 1722 [his son-in-law] Archdeacon Thomas Sharp (age 28) and [his daughter] Judith Wheler (age 22) were married. They had fourteen children. He the son of Archbishop John Sharp.
This is a translation of the 'Memoires of Jacques du Clercq', published in 1823 in two volumes, edited by Frederic, Baron de Reissenberg. In his introduction Reissenberg writes: 'Jacques du Clercq tells us that he was born in 1424, and that he was a licentiate in law and a counsellor to Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, in the castellany of Douai, Lille, and Orchies. It appears that he established his residence at Arras. In 1446, he married the daughter of Baldwin de la Lacherie, a gentleman who lived in Lille. We read in the fifth book of his Memoirs that his father, also named Jacques du Clercq, had married a lady of the Le Camelin family, from Compiègne. His ancestors, always attached to the counts of Flanders, had constantly served them, whether in their councils or in their armies.' The Memoires cover a period of nineteen years beginning in in 1448, ending in in 1467. It appears that the author had intended to extend the Memoirs beyond that date; no doubt illness or death prevented him from carrying out this plan. As Reissenberg writes the 'merit of this work lies in the simplicity of its narrative, in its tone of good faith, and in a certain air of frankness which naturally wins the reader’s confidence.' Du Clercq ranges from events of national and international importance, including events of the Wars of the Roses in England, to simple, everyday local events such as marriages, robberies, murders, trials and deaths, including that of his own father in Book 5; one of his last entries.
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After 1724. Durham Cathedral [Map]. Memorial to George Wheler (age 72)
On 18th February 1724 George Wheler (age 73) died. He was buried in the Galilee of the Durham Cathedral [Map].