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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MP Lichfield

MP Lichfield is in Member Parliament.

In 1529 William Paget 1st Baron Paget Beaudasert (age 23) was elected MP Lichfield.

In 1559 Henry Paget 2nd Baron Paget Beaudasert (age 20) was elected MP Lichfield.

In 1559 Henry Paget 2nd Baron Paget Beaudasert (age 20) was elected MP Lichfield.

In 1584 Richard Browne (age 45) was elected MP Lichfield.

In 1589 Richard Huddlestone (age 54) was elected MP Lichfield.

Addled Parliament

In 1614 during the Addled Parliament Charles Thynne (age 46) was elected MP Lymington. John "Black Sir John" Egerton (age 63) was elected MP Lichfield. Mervyn Tuchet 2nd Earl Castlehaven (age 21) was elected MP Dorset. Richard Edgecumbe (age 44) was elected MP Bodmin.

In 1678 Henry Lyttelton 2nd Baronet (age 54) was elected MP Lichfield.

In 1678 Michael Biddulph 2nd Baronet (age 24) stood for MP Lichfield but was defeated.

In 1679 Michael Biddulph 2nd Baronet (age 25) was elected MP Lichfield.

In 1689 Robert Burdett 3rd Baronet (age 48) was elected MP Lichfield which seat he held until he retired in 1698.

Memoires of Jacques du Clercq

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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In 1695 Michael Biddulph 2nd Baronet (age 41) was elected MP Lichfield.

In 1702 Michael Biddulph 2nd Baronet (age 48) was elected MP Lichfield despite his being in prison at the time for debts.

In 1705 Henry Gough (age 55) was elected MP Lichfield.

In 1715 Samuel Barbour aka Hill of Shenstone Park (age 24) was elected MP Lichfield.

In April 1718 William Sneyd (age 25) was elected MP Lichfield but was unseated on petition on 10th December and never sought election again.

In 1731 George Venables-Vernon 1st Baron Vernon (age 21) was elected MP Lichfield.

In November 1753 Thomas Gresley 5th Baronet (age 30) was elected MP Lichfield which seat he held for one month.

In 1795 Granville Leveson-Gower 1st Earl Granville (age 21) was elected MP Lichfield.

In 1799 John Wrottesley 1st Baron Wrottesley (age 27) was elected MP Lichfield which seat he held until 1806.

In 1806 George Harcourt (age 20) was elected MP Lichfield which seat he held until 1831.

Anne Boleyn. Her Life as told by Lancelot de Carle's 1536 Letter.

In 1536, two weeks after the execution of Anne Boleyn, her brother George and four others, Lancelot du Carle, wrote an extraordinary letter that described Anne's life, and her trial and execution, to which he was a witness. This book presents a new translation of that letter, with additional material from other contemporary sources such as Letters, Hall's and Wriothesley's Chronicles, the pamphlets of Wynkyn the Worde, the Memorial of George Constantyne, the Portuguese Letter and the Baga de Secrets, all of which are provided in Appendices.

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In 1846 Edward Lloyd aka Lloyd-Mostyn 2nd Baron Mostyn (age 50) was elected MP Lichfield which seat he held until 1847.

In 1854 Henry Cavendish 3rd Baron Waterpark (age 60) was elected MP Lichfield which seat he held until 1856.

In 1859 Captain Augustus Henry Archibald Anson (age 23) was elected MP Lichfield which seat he held until 1868.