Abbot John Whethamstede’s Chronicle of the Abbey of St Albans
Abbot John Whethamstede's Register aka Chronicle of his second term at the Abbey of St Albans, 1451-1461, is a remarkable text that describes his first-hand experience of the beginning of the Wars of the Roses including the First and Second Battles of St Albans, 1455 and 1461, respectively, their cause, and their consequences, not least on the Abbey itself. His text also includes Loveday, Blore Heath, Northampton, the Act of Accord, Wakefield, and Towton, and ends with the Coronation of King Edward IV. In addition to the events of the Wars of the Roses, Abbot John, or his scribes who wrote the Chronicle, include details in the life of the Abbey such as charters, letters, land exchanges, visits by legates, and disputes, which provide a rich insight into the day-to-day life of the Abbey, and the challenges faced by its Abbot.
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Paternal Family Tree: Grey
Maternal Family Tree: Margaret Wotton Marchioness Dorset 1487-1535
Thomas Grey was born to [his father] Thomas Grey 2nd Marquess Dorset and [his mother] Margaret Wotton Marchioness Dorset.
After 1483 [his father] Thomas Grey 2nd Marquess Dorset (age 5) and Eleanor St John Marchioness Dorset were married. He the son of [his grandfather] Thomas Grey 1st Marquess Dorset (age 28) and [his grandmother] Cecily Bonville Marchioness Dorset (age 22). They were half third cousins. He a great x 4 grandson of King Edward III of England.
In 1494 [his father] Thomas Grey 2nd Marquess Dorset (age 16) was appointed Knight of the Bath.
On 20th September 1501 [his grandfather] Thomas Grey 1st Marquess Dorset (age 46) died. His son [his father] Thomas (age 24) succeeded 2nd Marquess Dorset, 2nd Earl Huntingdon, 8th Baron Ferrers of Groby. Eleanor St John Marchioness Dorset by marriage Marchioness Dorset.
Around 1502 [his father] Thomas Grey 2nd Marquess Dorset (age 24) was appointed 256th Knight of the Garter by King Henry VII of England and Ireland (age 44).
In 1509 [his father] Thomas Grey 2nd Marquess Dorset (age 31) and [his mother] Margaret Wotton Marchioness Dorset (age 22) were married. She by marriage Marchioness Dorset. He the son of [his grandfather] Thomas Grey 1st Marquess Dorset and [his grandmother] Cecily Bonville Marchioness Dorset (age 48).
On 9th October 1514 Louis XII King France (age 52) and Mary Tudor Queen Consort France (age 18) were married at Abbeville [Map], Somme. She by marriage Queen Consort France. [his father] Thomas Grey 2nd Marquess Dorset (age 37), Thomas West 8th Baron De La Warr 5th Baron West (age 57), Thomas Brooke 8th Baron Cobham (age 44) and his son George Brooke 9th Baron Cobham (age 17), Bishop Thomas Ruthall (age 42) and [his mother] Margaret Wotton Marchioness Dorset (age 27) attended. The difference in their ages was 33 years. She the daughter of King Henry VII of England and Ireland and Elizabeth York Queen Consort England. He the son of Charles Valois Duke Orléans and Mary de la Marck Duchess Orléans. They were second cousin twice removed.
After 1523 [his father] Thomas Grey 2nd Marquess Dorset (age 45) was appointed Privy Council.
On 10th October 1530 [his father] Thomas Grey 2nd Marquess Dorset (age 53) died. His son [his brother] Henry (age 13) succeeded 3rd Marquess Dorset, 3rd Earl Huntingdon, 9th Baron Ferrers of Groby, 9th Baron Harington, 4th Baron Bonville.
In 1533 [his brother] Henry Grey 1st Duke of Suffolk (age 16) and [his sister-in-law] Frances Brandon Duchess of Suffolk (age 15) were married. She by marriage Marchioness Dorset. She the daughter of Charles Brandon 1st Duke of Suffolk (age 49) and Mary Tudor Queen Consort France (age 36). He the son of [his father] Thomas Grey 2nd Marquess Dorset and [his mother] Margaret Wotton Marchioness Dorset (age 46). They were half second cousins. He a great x 5 grandson of King Edward III of England. She a granddaughter of King Henry VII of England and Ireland.
In 1533 [his brother] Henry Grey 1st Duke of Suffolk (age 16) was appointed Knight of the Bath.
On 6th October 1535 [his mother] Margaret Wotton Marchioness Dorset (age 48) died.
On 23rd December 1543 Henry VIII (age 52) enobled his new wife's (age 31) brother (age 31) and uncle (age 60) at ceremony in the Presence Chamber, Hampton Court Palace [Map]. [his brother] Henry Grey 1st Duke of Suffolk (age 26) and Edward Stanley 3rd Earl of Derby (age 34) were present. Christopher Barker read the Patents.
William Parr 1st Baron Parr of Horton was created 1st Baron Parr of Horton. William was sixty with five daughters. He died four years later at which time the Barony became extinct.
William Parr 1st Marquess Northampton was created 1st Earl Essex. His estranged wife Anne Bourchier 7th Baroness Bourchier (age 26) was daughter of the last Earl of Essex of the Fifth Creation. A somewhat curious choice given his wife had eloped the year previous year with John Lyngfield, the prior of Tandbridge, Surrey [Map], by whom she had an illegitimate child.
On 23rd February 1554 [his brother] Henry Grey 1st Duke of Suffolk (age 37) was beheaded at Tower Hill [Map]. Duke Suffolk, Marquess Dorset, Earl Huntingdon, Baron Ferrers of Groby, Baron Harington, Baron Bonville forfeit.
Dean Hugh Weston (age 49) acted as Confessor.
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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Calendar of State Papers of Spain. 19th February 1554. Simon Renard to Prince Philip.
My Lord: Since I last wrote to your Highness French plots have been discovered to show that Courtenay and the Lady Elizabeth, by means of intermediaries called Peter Carew, Wyatt (age 33), Crofts (age 36) and my Lord Thomas (Grey), conspired to throw the Queen of England into the Tower and put her to death, in order to seize the crown for themselves. The King of France had promised help in troops and money, and had already distributed some 10,000 to 12,000 crowns to private individuals. In the meantime 200 or 300 gentlemen, all of them heretics, were meeting together: the [his brother] Duke of Suffolk (age 37) and his two brothers [Note. Thomas Grey and [his brother] John Grey (age 30)], Cobham (age 57) and his three sons [Note. William Brooke 10th Baron Cobham (age 26), George Brooke (age 21), Thomas Brooke (age 21)], Pelham, Pickering, Carew and many more, and agreed to put their plans into execution in the spring. However, as God means to protect this good lady, the conspirators were forced to take up arms sooner than they had intended because Courtenay did not keep the secret and letters from the French ambassador, seized and enclosed herewith, were deciphered and revealed part of the plot. Moreover, Courtenay had a servant of his in France, and six weeks ago he and one Valbic (Welby?) were intriguing for the conspirators. To start with, Peter Carew made a violent effort to rouse the people on account of your Highness's marriage with the Queen, but as the people refused to rise, he had to fly to France, where trustworthy accounts tell he had a nocturnal conversation with the King-a sign of their malignity. His adherents were taken prisoners at Coventry (Compierre) where a similar attempt was made; and on the first day of Lent the rebels were defeated as your Highness will see by the copies of letters I wrote from time to time to the Emperor.
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Calendar of State Papers of Spain. 19th February 1554. Gaspard Schetz to the Queen Dowager.
Madam: Although I believe your Majesty to be informed of occurrences in England, I am unwilling not to send you the news that have reached us this morning in a letter of the 15th instant. It relates that the Queen has caused the rebels to be punished: the [his niece] Lady Jane (deceased) and her husband (deceased), the [his brother] Duke of Suffolk's (age 37) son, have been decapitated; the White Rose (age 27) has been sent back to the Tower [Map], where are also the Duke of Suffolk with two of his brothers [Note. Thomas Grey and [his brother] John Grey (age 30)] and guilty lords to the number of 27. They write that, of the soldiers who abandoned the Duke of Norfolk (age 81) on the field and joined the rebels, 40 have been hanged and 200 more condemned to the same penalty. They say that the said Duke has died in his own country. The Earl of Pembroke (age 53) has been sent down to Kent with 300 light horse to discover who took part in the rebellion and execute justice. This, Madam, is the substance of what I have heard, together with a report that it is being said in England that my Lord our Prince is to come with 8,000 Spanish soldiers, about which the English are not best pleased.
They say the Queen is sending hither an ambassador, the Viscount Fitzwalter (age 47) (Fewaters), who will be able to give your Majesty more trustworthy information.
Antwerp, 19 February, 1554.
Copy. French. Printed by Gachard, Voyages des Souverains des Pays-Bas, Appendix to Vol. IV.
Wriothesley's Chronicle [1508-1562]. 27th April 1554. Frydaye the 27 of Aprill Lord Thomas Grey, brother to the Duke of Suffolke, was beheaded at the Tower hill [Map].
Henry Machyn's Diary. 28 Apr 1554. The xxviij day of Aprell was heddyd on Towre hyll [Map], betwyn ix and x of the cloke a-for none, my lord Thomas Gray, the [his brother] duke of Suffoke-Dassett brodur, and bered at Allalow's Barkyng [Map], and the hed (unfinished)
Henry Machyn's Diary. 21st February 1554. The sam day cam rydyng to the Towre the lord Thomas Gray, the [his brother] duke of Suffoke('s) (age 37) brodur, and ser James a Croft (age 36) knyght, sum tyme depute of Yrland.
Henry Machyn's Diary. 9th March 1554. The ix day of Marche was reynyd at Westmynster my lord Thomas Gray, the [his brother] duke of Suffoke('s) (deceased) brodur, and cast .... [to lose h]ys hed.
On 27th April 1554 Thomas Grey was executed at Tower Hill [Map]. He was buried at All Hallows by the Tower Church [Map].
Chronicle of Greyfriars. 27th April 1554. Item the xxvij of Aprille was beheddyd at Towre hylle the duke of Suffolkes [his brother] brother1.
Note 1. Lord Thomas Grey: see Machyn, p. 61, and Queen Jane and Queen Mary, p. 75.
Chronicle of Queen Jane and Two Years of Queen Mary 1554. 27th April 1554. The xxvijth day the lorde Thomas Graye1 was behedded at Tower hill, who saied, &c.
Note 1. "A proper gentleman," remarks Holinshed, "and one that had served right valiantly both in France and Scotlande, in the dayes of the late kings Henrie and Edwarde." He was buried (says Machyn, p. 61) at Allhallows Barking.
[his daughter] Margaret Grey was born to Thomas Grey. She married after 1565 John Astley and had issue.
Kings Wessex: Great x 14 Grand Son of King Edmund "Ironside" I of England
Kings Gwynedd: Great x 11 Grand Son of Owain "Great" King Gwynedd
Kings Seisyllwg: Great x 17 Grand Son of Hywel "Dda aka Good" King Seisyllwg King Deheubarth
Kings Powys: Great x 12 Grand Son of Maredudd ap Bleddyn King Powys
Kings Godwinson: Great x 15 Grand Son of King Harold II of England
Kings England: Great x 5 Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Kings Scotland: Great x 13 Grand Son of King Duncan I of Scotland
Kings Franks: Great x 21 Grand Son of Charles "Charlemagne aka Great" King of the Franks King Lombardy Holy Roman Emperor
Kings France: Great x 15 Grand Son of Hugh I King of the Franks
Kings Duke Aquitaine: Great x 19 Grand Son of Ranulf I Duke Aquitaine
Great x 4 Grandfather: Reginald Grey 2nd Baron Grey Ruthyn 
7 x Great Grand Son of King Henry I "Beauclerc" England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Reginald Grey 3rd Baron Grey Ruthyn 5 x Great Grand Son of King John of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Alianore Strange Baroness Grey Ruthyn 
4 x Great Grand Daughter of King John of England
Great x 2 Grandfather: Edward Grey Baron Ferrers of Groby 6 x Great Grand Son of King John of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: William Astley 4th Baron Astley 7 x Great Grand Son of King Henry I "Beauclerc" England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Joan Astley Baroness Grey Ruthyn 8 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry I "Beauclerc" England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Joan Willoughby Baroness Astley 
8 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry I "Beauclerc" England
Great x 1 Grandfather: John Grey 5 x Great Grand Son of King Edward I of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: William Ferrers 5th Baron Ferrers of Groby 
4 x Great Grand Son of King Edward I of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Henry Ferrers 5 x Great Grand Son of King Edward I of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Philippa Clifford 
5 x Great Grand Daughter of King John of England
Great x 2 Grandmother: Elizabeth Ferrers 6th Baroness Ferrers Groby 4 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward I of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Thomas Mowbray 1st Duke of Norfolk 
2 x Great Grand Son of King Edward I of England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Isabel Mowbray Baroness Berkeley 3 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward I of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Elizabeth Fitzalan Duchess Norfolk 
2 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward I of England
GrandFather: Thomas Grey 1st Marquess Dorset 6 x Great Grand Son of King Edward I of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: John Woodville 
Great x 3 Grandfather: Richard Woodville
Great x 2 Grandfather: Richard Woodville 1st Earl Rivers
Great x 4 Grandfather: Thomas Bittelsgate
Great x 3 Grandmother: Joan Bittelsgate
Great x 4 Grandmother: Joan Beauchamp 
Great x 1 Grandmother: Elizabeth Woodville Queen Consort England 6 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: John Luxemburg Count St Pol 
3 x Great Grand Son of King Henry III of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Peter Luxemburg I Count Saint Pol 4 x Great Grand Son of King Henry III of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Margaret Brienne
Great x 2 Grandmother: Jacquetta of Luxemburg Duchess Bedford 5 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Francesco Baux 1st Duke Andria 
Great x 3 Grandmother: Margherita Baux 5 x Great Grand Daughter of King John of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Sueva Orsini 4 x Great Grand Daughter of King John of England
Father: Thomas Grey 2nd Marquess Dorset 4 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: John Bonville 
Great x 3 Grandfather: William Bonville 1st Baron Bonville 7 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Elizabeth Fitzroger 6 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 2 Grandfather: William Bonville 5 x Great Grand Son of King Edward I of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Reginald Grey 3rd Baron Grey Ruthyn 5 x Great Grand Son of King John of England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Margaret Grey 4 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward I of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Margaret Ros Baroness Grey Ruthyn 
3 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward I of England
Great x 1 Grandfather: William Bonville 6th Baron Harington 6 x Great Grand Son of King Edward I of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Robert Harrington 3rd Baron Harington 
Great x 3 Grandfather: William Harrington 5th Baron Harington
Great x 4 Grandmother: Isabel Loring Baroness Harington
Great x 2 Grandmother: Elizabeth Harrington
GrandMother: Cecily Bonville Marchioness Dorset 3 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: John Neville 3rd Baron Neville of Raby 
4 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Ralph Neville 1st Earl of Westmoreland 5 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Maud Percy Baroness Neville Raby 5 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 2 Grandfather: Richard Neville Earl Salisbury Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: John of Gaunt 1st Duke Lancaster Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Joan Beaufort Countess of Westmoreland 
Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Katherine Swynford aka Roet Duchess Lancaster 
Great x 1 Grandmother: Katherine Neville Baroness Bonville and Hastings 2 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: John Montagu 3rd Earl Salisbury 
2 x Great Grand Son of King Edward I of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Thomas Montagu 1st Count Perche 4th Earl Salisbury 3 x Great Grand Son of King Edward I of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Maud Francis Countess of Salisbury
Great x 2 Grandmother: Alice Montagu 5th Countess of Salisbury 3 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward I of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Thomas Holland 2nd Earl Kent Great Grand Son of King Edward I of England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Eleanor Holland 
2 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward I of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Alice Fitzalan Countess Kent 2 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry III of England
Thomas Grey 5 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 2 Grandfather: Nicholas Wotton 
Great x 1 Grandfather: Nicholas Wotton
Great x 4 Grandfather: Robert Corbie
Great x 3 Grandfather: Robert Corbie
Great x 2 Grandmother: Joan Corbie
GrandFather: Robert Wotton of Boughton Malherbe