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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Gawthorpe Hall is in Harewood.
Around 1350 William Gascoigne was born to William Gascoigne VII (age 50) and Agnes Frank (age 25) at Gawthorpe Hall [Map]. He married (1) before 1396 Elizabeth Mowbray and had issue (2) after 1396 Joan Pickering and had issue.
Around 1366 William Gascoigne was born to William Gascoigne (age 16) and Elizabeth Mowbray (age 16) at Gawthorpe Hall [Map].
Around 1370 Joan Pickering was born to William Pickering at Gawthorpe Hall [Map]. She married after 1396 William Gascoigne and had issue.
Around 1409 William Gascoigne XII was born to William Gascoigne (age 43) at Gawthorpe Hall [Map]. He married 7th February 1426 Margaret Clarell Lady of the Garter and had issue.
On 17th December 1419 William Gascoigne (age 69) died at Gawthorpe Hall [Map]. He was buried at All Saints Church Harewood [Map] with his wife Elizabeth Mowbray. He in judges robes with a gypciere. She wearing an elaborate Crespine Headress.
Elizabeth Mowbray: In 1350 she was born to Alexander Mowbray. She a great x 4 granddaughter of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England. Before 1396 William Gascoigne and she were married. In 1396 Elizabeth Mowbray died.
On 28th March 1422 William Gascoigne (age 56) died at Gawthorpe Hall [Map].
Around 1452 William Gascoigne was born to William Gascoigne XIII (age 22) and Joan Neville (age 18) at Gawthorpe Hall [Map]. He a great x 4 grandson of King Edward III of England. He married before 1467 his half second cousin once removed Margaret Percy, daughter of Henry Percy 3rd Earl of Northumberland and Eleanor Poynings Countess Northumberland, and had issue.
In 1463 William Gascoigne XIII (age 33) died at Gawthorpe Hall [Map].
Around 1465 William Gascoigne XII (age 56) died at Gawthorpe Hall [Map]. All Saints Church Harewood [Map].
In 1480 William Gascoigne (age 28) received a license to crenellate at Gawthorpe Hall [Map].
In 1486 Joan Neville (age 52) died at Gawthorpe Hall [Map].
The Deeds of the Dukes of Normandy
The Gesta Normannorum Ducum [The Deeds of the Dukes of Normandy] is a landmark medieval chronicle tracing the rise and fall of the Norman dynasty from its early roots through the pivotal events surrounding the Norman Conquest of England. Originally penned in Latin by the monk William of Jumièges shortly before 1060 and later expanded at the behest of William the Conqueror, the work chronicles the deeds, politics, battles, and leadership of the Norman dukes, especially William’s own claim to the English throne. The narrative combines earlier historical sources with firsthand information and oral testimony to present an authoritative account of Normandy’s transformation from a Viking settlement into one of medieval Europe’s most powerful realms. William’s history emphasizes the legitimacy, military prowess, and governance of the Norman line, framing their expansion, including the conquest of England, as both divinely sanctioned and noble in purpose. Later chroniclers such as Orderic Vitalis and Robert of Torigni continued the history, extending the coverage into the 12th century, providing broader context on ducal rule and its impact. Today this classic work remains a foundational source for understanding Norman identity, medieval statesmanship, and the historical forces that reshaped England and Western Europe between 800AD and 1100AD.
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On 12th March 1487 William Gascoigne (age 35) died at Gawthorpe Hall [Map]. All Saints Church Harewood [Map]. Monument to William Gascoigne and Margaret Percy (age 40). Fluted Period. Alabaster chest tomb with a fine array of weepers, possibly their children although too many, women one side, nine men the other, one of which appears with angels wings, possible children and spouses. He wearing a Lancastrian Esses Collar with unusual O links. Clean shaved, no bascinet, his head resting on a helm with bulls head crest. His armour plate over which there appears to be, unusually for the period, a tabard. The left hand side of his face appears disfigured. Possibly a war wound. She wearing the widow's barbe. Note. Gardner describes this monument as being to Sir John Nevill of Womersley, died 1482. Chest with Weepers. Chest with Angels with Rounded Wings holding Shields. Angels Supporting Pillow.
William Gascoigne: Around 1452 he was born to William Gascoigne XIII and Joan Neville at Gawthorpe Hall [Map]. He a great x 4 grandson of King Edward III of England. Before 1467 William Gascoigne and Margaret Percy were married. She the daughter of Henry Percy 3rd Earl of Northumberland and Eleanor Poynings Countess Northumberland. They were half second cousin once removed. He a great x 4 grandson of King Edward III of England. She a great x 3 granddaughter of King Edward III of England. In 1478 he was appointed Knight of the Bath. In 1480 William Gascoigne received a license to crenellate at Gawthorpe Hall [Map].
Margaret Percy: Around 1447 she was born to Henry Percy 3rd Earl of Northumberland and Eleanor Poynings Countess Northumberland. She a great x 3 granddaughter of King Edward III of England.
Around 1510 William Gascoigne was born to William Gascoigne (age 15) and Margaret Fitzwilliam (age 15) at Gawthorpe Hall [Map]. He married before 1538 Beatrice Tempest and had issue.
Around 1549 Margaret Gascoigne was born to William Gascoigne (age 39) and Beatrice Tempest (age 27) at Gawthorpe Hall [Map]. She married in or before 1568 her third cousin Thomas Wentworth and had issue.
In 1552 Thomas Gascoigne (age 28) died at Gawthorpe Hall [Map].
In 1571 William Gascoigne (age 61) died at Gawthorpe Hall [Map].
Around 1735 Henry Lascelles (age 45) returned to England from Barbados and purchased the manors of Gawthorpe [Map] and Harewood [Map] in Yorkshire and obtained lucrative government contracts to victual British troops and wounded seamen in Jamaica, Barbados and the Leeward Isles. Using the contacts he made, he financed slave ships through Lascelles and Maxwell and offered loans and mortgages to Barbados plantation owners.
On 22nd December 1749 Richard Shuttleworth (age 66) died. His son James Shuttleworth (age 35) inherited Gawthorpe Hall [Map]
On 13th September 1785 Robert Shuttleworth was born at Gawthorpe Hall [Map].
On 9th November 1817 Janet Shuttleworth was born to Robert Shuttleworth (age 32) and Janet Marjoribanks (age 21) at Gawthorpe Hall [Map]. She married 24th February 1842 James Phillips Kay-Shuttleworth 1st Baronet and had issue.
On 6th March 1818 Robert Shuttleworth (age 32) died at Gawthorpe Hall [Map].