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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Around 1610 Johnathan Atkins was born.
On 17th November 1642 Johnathan Atkins (age 32) and Mary Howard (age 11) were married. The difference in their ages was 21 years.
Before 27th November 1646 [his brother-in-law] Charles Howard 1st Earl Carlisle (age 17) and Anne Howard Countess Carlisle were married. She by marriage Countess Carlisle. They were second cousin once removed.
On 30th December 1656 Alexander Leslie 2nd Earl Leven (age 19) and [his sister-in-law] Margaret Howard Countess Leven (age 21) were married. He the son of Alexander Leslie and Margaret Leslie Countess Buccleuch and Wemyss (age 36).
On 9th April 1660 [his wife] Mary Howard (age 29) died.
On 8th October 1661 Johnathan Atkins (age 51) and Elizabeth Baker were married.
John Evelyn's Diary. 2nd June 1672. Trinity Sunday, I passed at Rochester, Kent [Map]; and, on the 5th, there was buried in the Cathedral [Map] Monsieur Rabiniére, Rear Admiral of the French squadron, a gallant person, who died of the wounds he received in the fight. This ceremony lay on me, which I performed with all the decency I could, inviting the Mayor and Aldermen to come in their formalities. Sir Jonas Atkins (age 62) was there with his guards; and the Dean and Prebendaries: one of his countrymen pronouncing a funeral oration at the brink of his grave, which I caused to be dug in the choir. This is more at large described in the "Gazette" of that day; Colonel Reymes (age 58), my colleague in commission, assisting, who was so kind as to accompany me from London, though it was not his district; for indeed the stress of both these wars lay more on me by far than on any of my brethren, who had little to do in theirs. I went to see Upnor Castle, Kent [Map], which I found pretty well defended, but of no great moment.
The London Gazette 684. Rochester, 6th June 1672.
Yesterday was performed the solemn Enterment Monseur Rabiniere tres le boys, Rear-Admiral of the French Squadron who some days since dyed here of the Wounds he received in the late Engagement. The Corps was accomapanied by several persons of quality (his Pall being born up by Sir Johnathan Atkins (age 62), His Majesties Governor here, Colonel Rheyms (age 58), Mr Evelin (age 51), and a person of quality related to the Deceased) together with the Mayor and Alderman of this place in the Formalities, and all other solemnity we are here capable of, to the place of Enterment, which was in the Quire of our Cathedral Church [Map], where was pronounced an excellent Funeral Oration with an Elogy on the Deceased by Dr. God, one of the Prebends; the whole having been concluded by three Volleys of the several Companies of Guard, now here, who likewise assisted at this Solemnity in excellent order.
John Evelyn's Diary. 27th October 1673. To Council, about sending succors to recover New York: and then we read the commission and instructions to Sir Jonathan Atkins (age 63), the new Governor of Barbadoes.
On 6th February 1674 Johnathan Atkins (age 64) was appointed Governor of Barbados.
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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In 1703 Johnathan Atkins (age 93) died.