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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Paternal Family Tree: Capet
Maternal Family Tree: Isabella Metz Duchess Anjou I Duchess Lorraine 1400-1453
Antoine King Navarre by marriage King Navarre.
On 8th May 1513 [his father] Charles Bourbon Duke Vendôme (age 23) and [his mother] Françoise Valois Countess Vendôme (age 23) were married. She by marriage Countess Vendôme. She the daughter of [his grandfather] Rene Valois Duke Alençon and [his grandmother] Margaret Lorraine Duchess Alençon (age 50). He the son of Francis Bourbon Count Vendôme and Soissons and Marie Luxemburg Countess Vendôme and Soissons. They were half third cousin once removed. He a great x 5 grandson of King Edward III of England.
On 22nd April 1518 Antoine King Navarre was born to [his father] Charles Bourbon Duke Vendôme (age 28) and [his mother] Françoise Valois Countess Vendôme (age 28).
On 25th March 1537 [his father] Charles Bourbon Duke Vendôme (age 47) died. His son Antoine (age 18) succeeded Duke Vendôme.
On 23rd February 1546 Francis Bourbon Count of Enghien (age 26) died when hit by a falling chest. His brother Jean (age 17) succeeded Count Enghien.
On 1st April 1547 [his grandmother] Marie Luxemburg Countess Vendôme and Soissons died. Her grandson [his brother] Jean (age 18) succeeded Count Soissons.
On 20th October 1548 Antoine King Navarre (age 30) and Jeanne Albret III Queen Navarre (age 19) were married. She by marriage Duchess Vendôme. She the daughter of King Henry II of Navarre (age 45) and Marguerite Valois Orléans Queen Consort Navarre (age 56). He the son of Charles Bourbon Duke Vendôme and Françoise Valois Countess Vendôme (age 58). They were third cousins.
On 14th September 1550 [his mother] Françoise Valois Countess Vendôme (age 60) died.
In 1551 [his brother] Louis Bourbon Prince Condé (age 20) and [his sister-in-law] Eléanor de Roucy de Roye Princess Condé (age 15) were married. She by marriage Princess Condé. He the son of [his father] Charles Bourbon Duke Vendôme and [his mother] Françoise Valois Countess Vendôme.
William of Worcester's Chronicle of England
William of Worcester, born around 1415, and died around 1482 was secretary to John Fastolf, the renowned soldier of the Hundred Years War, during which time he collected documents, letters, and wrote a record of events. Following their return to England in 1440 William was witness to major events. Twice in his chronicle he uses the first person: 1. when writing about the murder of Thomas, 7th Baron Scales, in 1460, he writes '… and I saw him lying naked in the cemetery near the porch of the church of St. Mary Overie in Southwark …' and 2. describing King Edward IV's entry into London in 1461 he writes '… proclaimed that all the people themselves were to recognize and acknowledge Edward as king. I was present and heard this, and immediately went down with them into the city'. William’s Chronicle is rich in detail. It is the source of much information about the Wars of the Roses, including the term 'Diabolical Marriage' to describe the marriage of Queen Elizabeth Woodville’s brother John’s marriage to Katherine, Dowager Duchess of Norfolk, he aged twenty, she sixty-five or more, and the story about a paper crown being placed in mockery on the severed head of Richard, 3rd Duke of York.
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In 1551 [his son] Henry Bourbon was born to Antoine King Navarre (age 32) and [his wife] Jeanne Albret III Queen Navarre (age 22). He died aged two in 1553.
In 1553 [his son] Henry Bourbon (age 2) died.
On 13th December 1553 [his son] Henry IV King France was born to Antoine King Navarre (age 35) and [his wife] Jeanne Albret III Queen Navarre (age 25). He married (1) 18th August 1572 his second cousin Margaret Valois Queen Consort France, daughter of King Henry II of France and Catherine Medici Queen Consort France (2) 17th December 1600 his fourth cousin Marie de Medici Queen Consort France, daughter of Francesco I de Medici Grand Duke of Tuscany and Joanna of Austria Grand Duchess Tuscany, and had issue.
On 25th May 1555 [his father-in-law] King Henry II of Navarre (age 52) died. His daughter [his wife] Jeanne (age 26) succeeded III Queen Navarre.
In 1556 [his son] Madeleine Bourbon was born to Antoine King Navarre (age 37) and [his wife] Jeanne Albret III Queen Navarre (age 27).
On 14th June 1557 [his brother] Jean Bourbon Count Soissons and Enghien (age 28) and [his sister-in-law] Marie Bourbon (age 18) were married. She the daughter of [his uncle] Francis Bourbon Duke Estouteville and Adrienne Estouteville Duchess Estouteville (age 44). He the son of [his father] Charles Bourbon Duke Vendôme and [his mother] Françoise Valois Countess Vendôme. They were first cousins.
On 7th February 1559 [his daughter] Catherine Bourbon was born to Antoine King Navarre (age 40) and [his wife] Jeanne Albret III Queen Navarre (age 30). She married 31st January 1599 her second cousin once removed Henry Lorraine II Duke Lorraine, son of Charles "The Great" Lorraine III Duke Lorraine and Claude Valois Duchess Lorraine.
On 17th November 1562 Antoine King Navarre (age 44) died.
On 9th June 1572 [his former wife] Jeanne Albret III Queen Navarre (age 43) died.
[his son] Louis Bourbon was born to Antoine King Navarre and Jeanne Albret III Queen Navarre.
Kings Wessex: Great x 14 Grand Son of King Edmund "Ironside" I of England
Kings Godwinson: Great x 13 Grand Son of King Harold II of England
Kings England: Great x 6 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 20 Grand Son of Charles "Charlemagne aka Great" King of the Franks King Lombardy Holy Roman Emperor
Kings France: Great x 6 Grand Son of Louis X King France I Navarre
Kings Duke Aquitaine: Great x 18 Grand Son of Ranulf I Duke Aquitaine
Great x 4 Grandfather: Jacques Bourbon I Count La Marche and Ponthieu 
4 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Jean Bourbon I Count La Marche 5 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Jeanne Chatillon Countess La Marche 7 x Great Grand Daughter of King William "Conqueror" I of England
Great x 2 Grandfather: Louis Bourbon 1st Count Vendôme 1st Count Castres 6 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Catherine Vendome
Great x 1 Grandfather: John Bourbon VIII Count Vendôme 5 x Great Grand Son of King Henry III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: RAOUL MONTFORT
Great x 3 Grandfather: Guy Montfort Baron Laval
Great x 2 Grandmother: Jeanne Laval Countess Vendôme and Castres 4 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Guy 12th de Laval Baron 2 x Great Grand Son of King Henry III of England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Anne 13th de Laval Baroness Laval 3 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry III of England
GrandFather: Francis Bourbon Count Vendôme and Soissons 6 x Great Grand Son of King Henry III of England
Great x 1 Grandmother: Isabelle Beauvau Countess Vendôme
Father: Charles Bourbon Duke Vendôme 5 x Great Grand Son of King Edward 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 Grandfather: Louis Luxemburg I Count Saint Pol 5 x Great Grand Son 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
Great x 1 Grandfather: Peter Luxemburg II Count Saint Pol and Soissons 3 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Henry of Bar 3 x Great Grand Son of King Edward I of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Robert of Bar Count Soissons Count Marle Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Marie de Coucy Countess Soissons Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 2 Grandmother: Jeanne of Bar Countess Soissons 2 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Jeanne Countess Marle, Soissons and Meaux
GrandMother: Marie Luxemburg Countess Vendôme and Soissons 4 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Amadeus "Red Count" Savoy VII Count Savoy
Great x 3 Grandfather: Amadeus Savoy VIII Count Savoy 7 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Bonne Valois Countess Armagnac and Savoy 6 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 2 Grandfather: Louis Savoy I Count Savoy 4 x Great Grand Son of King Edward I of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Philip "Bold" Valois II Duke Burgundy 5 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Mary Valois Countess Savoy 3 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward I of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Margaret Dampierre Duchess Burgundy 
2 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward I of England
Great x 1 Grandmother: Margaret Savoy Countess Saint Pol 5 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward I of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Janus of Cyprus
Great x 2 Grandmother: Anne Cyprus Countess Savoy
Great x 4 Grandfather: Bernabò Visconti
Great x 3 Grandmother: Anglesia Visconti
Great x 4 Grandmother: Beatrice Regina della Scala
Antoine King Navarre 6 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Charles II Count Alençon 4 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Peter Valois II Count Alençon 5 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Maria de la Cerda Y Lara Countess Alençon 
4 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 2 Grandfather: John Valois I Duke Alençon 6 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Marie Chamaillart Countess Alençon
Great x 1 Grandfather: John Valois II Duke Alençon 4 x Great Grand Son of King Henry III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: John Montfort IV Duke Brittany Great Grand Son of King Henry III of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: John Montfort V Duke Brittany 2 x Great Grand Son of King Henry III of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Joanna of Flanders Duchess Brittany 7 x Great Grand Daughter of King William "Conqueror" I of England
Great x 2 Grandmother: Marie Montfort Duchess Alençon 3 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Charles "Bad" II King Navarre 3 x Great Grand Son of King Henry III of England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Joanna of Navarre Queen Consort England 4 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry III of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Joan Valois Queen Consort Navarre 5 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
GrandFather: Rene Valois Duke Alençon 5 x Great Grand Son of King Henry III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: John II Count Armagnac 5 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Bernard VII Count Armagnac 6 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Jeanne Countess Armagnac
Great x 2 Grandfather: John IV Count Armagnac 7 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: John Valois 1st Duke Berry 5 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Bonne Valois Countess Armagnac and Savoy 6 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Joanne Armagnac Duchess Berry 5 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 1 Grandmother: Marie Armagnac Duchess Alençon 6 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Charles "Bad" II King Navarre 3 x Great Grand Son of King Henry III of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Charles III King Navarre 4 x Great Grand Son of King Henry III of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Joan Valois Queen Consort Navarre 5 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 2 Grandmother: Isabella Évreux Countess Armagnac 5 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Henry "Fratricide" II King Castile 5 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Eleanor of Castile Queen Consort Navarre 5 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Juana Manuel Queen of Castile 4 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Mother: Françoise Valois Countess Vendôme 6 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: John Metz I Duke Lorraine 6 x Great Grand Son of King Stephen I England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Frederick Metz I Count Vaudémont 7 x Great Grand Son of King Stephen I England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Sophie Württemberg Duchess Lorraine
Great x 2 Grandfather: Antoine Count of Vaudémont 8 x Great Grand Son of King Stephen I England
Great x 1 Grandfather: Frederick Lorraine Count Vaudémont 9 x Great Grand Son of King Stephen I England
Great x 2 Grandmother: Marie Countess of Harcourt 
GrandMother: Margaret Lorraine Duchess Alençon 7 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Louis Valois Anjou I Duke Anjou 5 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: King Louis of Naples 4 x Great Grand Son of King Henry III of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Marie Chatillon Duchess Anjou 3 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry III of England
Great x 2 Grandfather: René Valois Anjou I Duke Anjou 5 x Great Grand Son of King Henry III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: King John I of Aragon 
6 x Great Grand Son of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Yolande Barcelona Queen Consort Naples 4 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward I of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Yolande of Bar Queen Consort Aragon 3 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward I of England
Great x 1 Grandmother: Yolande Valois Anjou 6 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: John Metz I Duke Lorraine 6 x Great Grand Son of King Stephen I England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Charles Metz II Duke Lorraine 7 x Great Grand Son of King Stephen I England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Sophie Württemberg Duchess Lorraine
Great x 2 Grandmother: Isabella Metz Duchess Anjou I Duchess Lorraine 8 x Great Grand Daughter of King Stephen I England