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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St Andrew's Church, Ufford, Cambridgeshire, East England, British Isles [Map]

St Andrew's Church, Ufford is in Ufford, Churches in Cambridgeshire.

On 18th April 1621 Bridget Chaworth [aged 79] died. Monument in St Andrew's Church, Ufford [Map]. Marble with Corinthian Columns and reclining effigy. Stuart Hooded Monument.

The inscription reads "Dame Bridget, Lady Carr, widow, daughter of Sir John Chaworth of Wiverton, Nottingham, late wife to Sir William Carr of Old Sleaford in the county of Lincoln, who served the late Queen Elizabeth of most famous memory, being one of the gentlewomen of her Majesty's Privy Chamber for the space of five and twenty years, and afterwards served the most renowned Queen Anne, wife to our most gracious sovereign, King James, for the space of 14 years, being the residue of her life, and died the 18th day of April being of the age of 79 years, the which said Lady Carr, out of her love to her dear sister Katherine, the wife of George Quarles of this town of Ufford, esquire, hath caused her body to be here interred 1621".

Katherine Chaworth: Before 1621 George Quarles of Ufford and she were married.

George Quarles of Ufford: he was born to Francis Quarles of Ufford.

After 1624. Monument to John Bourne and his wife in St Andrew's Church, Ufford [Map].

After 17th June 1705. Monument to Richard Bourne in St Andrew's Church, Ufford [Map].

On 1st November 1790 James Manners [aged 70] died. Monument in St Andrew's Church, Ufford [Map].

James Manners: In 1720 he was born to John Manners 2nd Duke Rutland and Lucy Sherard Duchess Rutland.