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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28 Aug is in August.
On 28th August 876 Louis "Younger" King Saxony King Bavaria (age 41) succeeded King Saxony. Charles "Fat" King East Francia Holy Roman Emperor III King West Francia King Aquitaine (age 37) succeeded King East Francia.
On 28th August 932 Richard "Fearless" Normandy I Duke Normandy was born illegitimately to William "Longsword" I Duke Normandy (age 39) and Sprota Unknown. He married (1) 960 Emma of Paris Duchess of Normandy, daughter of Hugh "Great" Capet Count Paris and Hedwig Saxon Ottonian (2) before 23rd August 963 Gunnora Countess Ponthieu and had issue.
On 28th August 995 Henry "Quarrelsome" Saxon Ottonian II Duke Bavaria (age 44) died.
On 28th August 1026 Richard "Good" Normandy II Duke Normandy (age 63) died. His son Richard (age 24) succeeded III Duke Normandy.
History of the Dukes of Normandy by William of Jumieges. Although Duke Richard shone far and wide, illustrious for the distinction of his most excellent deeds, nevertheless he was a constant worshiper of Christ, so much that he was rightly be called the most devoted father of monks and clerics, and the tireless supporter of the poor. With these these and other titles of virtue, he began to be greatly burdened with bodily illness. Therefore, he summoned Archbishop Robert and all the leaders of Normandy to Fécamp, and informed them that he was now entirely failing. Immediately, throughout all the halls of the house, unbearable grief arose among everyone. The monks and clerics mourned with sorrowful lamentation, for the loss of so dear a father. The faces of the warriors were wet with tears for the passing of their beloved father. Crowds of the poor also mourned throughout the streets of the town, for the loss of their comforter and protector. Finally, having called his son Richard, he appointed him, with the counsel of the wise, as his successor in the duchy; and his brother Robert to the county of Hiémois, so that from it he might render to him the service that was owed. Then, having diligently arranged all things that pertained to the worship of God, in the one thousand and twenty-sixth1 year from the Incarnation of the Lord, he departed this life, going the way of all flesh, reigning Our Lord Jesus Christ, in the divine majesty of the Father and in the unity of the Holy Spirit, forever and ever. Amen.
Richardus dux, quamvis præcellentissimorum actuum prærogativis longe lateque claruerat perspicuus, tamen Christi cultor extitit assiduus, adeo ut monachorum atque clericorum jure vocetur pater piissimus et pauperum sustentator indefessus. His et hujusmodi probitatum vigens titulis, cœpit vehementer aggravari ægritudine corporis. Robertum ergo archiepiscopum et cunctos Northmannorum principes apud Fiscannum convocat, eisque se jam omnino resolvi indicat. Illico per cuncta triclinia domus fit omnibus intolerabilis luctus. Lugubre quippe lamentabantur monachi et clerici, pro tanta orbitate patris charissimi. Heroum ora undabant lacrymis pro amissione invictissimi ducis. Lugebant quoque catervæ egenorum per compita oppidi, pro destitutione sui consolatoris et patroni. Novissime autem ascitum Richardum filium suum consultu sapientum præfecit suo ducatui, et Robertum fratrem ejus comitatui Oximensi, ut inde illi persolveret debitum obsequii. Denique omnibus quæ ad Dei cultum pertinere videbantur, strenue dispositis, millesimo vicesimo sexto anno ab incarnatione Domini hominem exivit, viam ingrediens universæ carnis, regnante eodem Jesu Christo in Deitate paternæ Majestatis et in unitate Spiritus sancti, per omnia sæcula sæculorum, Amen.
Note 1. Duke Richard II of Normandy (age 63) died on 28th August 1026.
Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. 1061. This year went Bishop Aldred to Rome after his pall; which he received at the hands of Pope Nicholas. Earl Tosty (age 35) and his wife (age 28) also went to Rome; and the bishop and the earl met with great difficulty as they returned home. In the same year died Bishop Godwin at St. Martin's85, on the seventh before the ides of March; and in the self-same year died Wulfric, Abbot of St. Augustine's, in the Easterweek, on the fourteenth before the calends of May. Pope Nicholas also died; and Alexander was chosen pope, who was Bishop of Lucca. When word came to the king that the Abbot Wulfric was dead, then chose he Ethelsy, a monk of the old minster, to succeed; who followed Archbishop Stigand, and was consecrated abbot at Windsor on St. Augustine's mass-day.
Note 85. Lye interprets it erroneously the "festival" of St. Martin.-"ad S. Martini festum:" whereas the expression relates to the place, not to the time of his death, which is mentioned immediately afterwards.
Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. August 1070. This year Lanfranc (age 65), who was Abbot of Caen, came to England; and after a few days he became Archbishop of Canterbury. He was invested on the fourth before the calends of September in his own see by eight bishops, his suffragans. The others, who were not there, by messengers and by letter declared why they could not be there.
On 28th August 1231 Eleanor of Portugal Queen Consort Denmark (age 20) died in childbirth.
Chronicle of Walter of Guisborough. 28th August 1296. After these events, and after the Great Seal of Scotland had been broken following the signing of the aforementioned letter, our king continued on to survey the mountainous regions of Scotland, and the Bishop of Durham, with his retinue, always preceded the king by a day or two. As the king travelled through the region of Moray all the way to Elgin and found everything peaceful, he chose not to go further. Instead, he returned to Berwick, where he had planned to hold his next Parliament. And on his return through Scone, he ordered the Stone, upon which, as previously mentioned, the Kings of Scotland were accustomed to sit during their coronation, to be taken and carried to London1. This was to serve as a sign of the kingdom having been conquered and resigned. The king then held his Parliament at Berwick-upon-Tweed, over several days, where the magnates of the kingdoms of Scotland and Galloway came before him. He received their homage and fealty, and a formal document was drawn up to record it, expressed in these words...
Hiis ita gestis, et fracto communi sigillo 'Scotia' post consignationem prædictæ literæ, processit rex noster ut montes regni Scotia transeundo videret, et semper præcessit faciem regis per unam dietam vel duas Dunolmensis episcopus cum turma sua. Cumque iter suum faceret rex per medium Murref usque Elayn, noluit ulterius procedere eo quod pacata vidisset omnia, sed reversus est usque Berewyk, ubi parliamentum suum in proximo teneri statuerat. Et in redeundo per Scone, præcepit tolli et Londoniis cariari lapidem illum, in quo, ut supradictum est, reges Scotorum solebant poni loco coronationis suæ, et hoc in signum regni conquesti et resignati. Tenuitque parliamentum suum diebus The Scots do multis apud Berewyk super Twedam, ubi venerunt ad eum magnates regni Scotia et Galawaliae, et recepit homagia et fidelitates eorum, et super hoc conficiebatur scriptum in hæc verba conceptum.
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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Chronicle of Walter of Guisborough. Their written instrument.
To all those who shall see or hear these letters, Robert, Bishop of Glasgow, Henry, Bishop of Aberdeen, and Thomas, Bishop of Whithorn, send greetings.
Because we have come into the faith and will of the most noble prince, our dear lord Sir Edward, by the grace of God, King of England, Lord of Ireland, and Duke of Aquitaine, we promise for ourselves and for our successors, under penalty of body and goods and all that we may be liable for, that we shall serve him well and loyally against all people who may live or die, whenever we shall be required or summoned by our lord the King of England aforesaid or by his heirs; and that if we know of any harm to him or them, we shall hinder it to the utmost of our power and make it known to them. And to hold and keep these things, we bind ourselves and our successors and all our goods; and further, we have sworn upon the holy Gospels. Moreover, we all, and each one of us individually, have done fealty to our lord the king aforesaid in these words: "I shall be faithful and loyal, and I shall bear faith and loyalty to King Edward, King of England, and to his heirs, of life and limb and earthly honour, against all people who may live or die. And never for anyone shall I bear arms nor be in counsel nor in aid, nor shall I be against him or his heirs in any case that may arise. And I shall faithfully acknowledge and faithfully perform the services that belong to the tenements which I claim to hold of him. So help me God and the saints." In witness of which things we have caused these open letters to be made, sealed with our seals. Given at Berwick-upon-Tweed on the twenty-eighth day of August [1296], in the twenty-fourth year of the reign of our lord the aforesaid King of England.
Scriptum eorum.
A touz ceus qi cestes lettres verront ou Letters of orront, Robert evesqe de Glascu, Henri evesqe de Aberden, Thomas evesqe de Candidi Case, saluz.
Pur ceo qe nous sumes venuz a la foi e a la volunte du tresnoble prince, nostre chier seigneur sire Edward, par la grace de Dieu roi d'Engleterre, seigneur d'Irlande, et duk d'Aquitaine; nous promettoms pur nous e pur nos successours, sur peine de corps, e d'avoir, et sur quanqe nous pussons encoure, qe nous li servirons bien e leaument contre totes gentz qi porunt vivre e morir, totes les foiz qe nous serrons requis ou garniz de par nostre seigneur le roy d'Engleterre avantdit ou par ses heirs: e qe nous leur damage ne saverons qe nous nel desturberons a tut nostre poer, et le leur faceoms a savoir. E a cestes choses tenir e garder nous obligons nous et nos successours e tuz nos Submission. biens; e outre ceo, avons jurez sur seintes ewangeiles. Estre ceo nous touz, et chescun de nous par sey, avons fet feaute a nostre seigneur le roi avantdit en cestes paroles. Jeo serai feal et loial, et foi e leaute porteray au roy Edward roi d'Engleterre, e a ses heirs, de vie, e de membre, et de terrien honour, contre totes gentz qui poront vivre ou morir. E james pur nulli armes ne porteray ne en conseil ne en ayde, ne seray contre luy ne contre ses heirs en nul cas qe poet avenir. E leaument reconustray e leaument frai les services qi apartenent as tenemens qe jeo cleym tenir de luy. Si Dieu me eide e les seintz. En tesmoignance des queus choses nous avons fet fere cestes lettres overtes sealees de nos seaus. Donnees a Berewyk sur Twede le vint utime jour de Aust, l'an du regne nostre seigneur le roy d'Engleterre avantdit vintime quart.
Note 1. Tradition relates that this was the stone which served Jacob for a pillow when on his journey to Mesopotamia; that it was afterwards transported to Spain, where Gathelus, a contemporary of Moses, made use of it as a seat of justice; it was thence brought to Ireland by Simon Breccus; and at a later period found its way to the palace of Dunstaffnage, in Argyleshire, and was there used as the coronation chair until 843, when Kenneth II, having united the whole of North Britain under his sceptre, transferred it to Scone, where it served as the Scottish throne of inauguration. The following leonine verses engraven on it,
Unless fate fails, wherever the Scots shall find
this stone placed, they are destined to reign there.
"Ni fallat fatum, Scoti quocunque locatum
Invenient lapidem, regnare tenentur ibidem,"
are said to have been the cause which prompted King Edward to order its removal to Westminster Abbey, to take away at least one pledge of the independence of the Scottish nation.
On 28th August 1443 John Beaufort 1st Duke of Somerset (age 40) was created 1st Duke Somerset, 1st Earl Kendal by King Henry VI of England and II of France (age 21). Margaret Beauchamp Duchess Somerset (age 33) by marriage Duchess Somerset.
On 28th August 1481 Alfonso "The African" V King Portugal (age 49) died. His son John (age 26) succeeded II King Portugal. Eleanor Viseu Queen Consort Portugal (age 23) by marriage Queen Consort Portugal.
On 28th August 1540 Federico Gonzaga II Duke Mantua (age 40) died. His son Francesco (age 7) succeeded III Duke Mantua.
Henry Machyn's Diary. 28th August 1557. The xxviij day of August begane to sett up the herse at sant Clementes with-owt Tempull-bare for my yonge duches of Northfoke (deceased), the wyffe to the yonge duke of Northfoke.
On 28th August 1592 George Villiers 1st Duke of Buckingham was born to George Villiers of Brokesby (age 48) and Mary Beaumont 1st Countess Buckingham (age 22) at Brooksby, Leicestershire. He married 16th May 1620 Katherine Manners Duchess Buckingham, daughter of Francis Manners 6th Earl of Rutland and Frances Knyvet Lady Bevill, and had issue.
Diary of Anne Clifford. 28th August 1616. Upon the 28th we made an end of dressing the house in the forenoon and in the afternoon I wrought stitch work and my Lord (age 27) sat and read by me.
Diary of Anne Clifford. 28th August 1617. The 28th Marsh came hither, he told me a rumour of my Brother Sackville's fighting and many other businesses of my Lord Essex (age 26) and my Lord Paget.
On 28th August 1618 Albert Frederick Hohenzollern Duke Prussia (age 65) died.
On 28th August 1640 the Battle of Newburn was fought at the Newburn, Northumberland [Map] ford over the River Tyne between the Scottish army of 20,000 men commanded by Alexander Leslie 1st Earl Leven (age 60) and the English army of 5000 commanded by Edward Conway 2nd Viscount Conway (age 46). The Scottish army was successful.
On 28th August 1648 Colchester, Essex [Map] surrendered to Parliament forces after a three month siege.
Charles Lucas (age 35) and George Lisle surrendered, subjected to a trial and were shot and killed in Colchester Castle, Essex.
Samuel Pepys' Diary. 28th August 1664. So he and I to walk to the 'Change [Map] a while, talking from one pleasant discourse to another, and so home, and thither came my uncle Wight (age 62) and aunt, and supped with us mighty merry. And Creed lay with us all night, and so to bed, very merry to think how Mr. Holliard (age 55) (who came in this evening to see me) makes nothing, but proving as a most clear thing that Rome is Antichrist.
John Evelyn's Diary. 28th August 1665. The contagion still increasing, and growing now all about us, I sent my wife (age 30) and whole family (two or three necessary servants excepted) to my brother's at Wotton, Surrey [Map], being resolved to stay at my house myself, and to look after my charge, trusting in the providence and goodness of God.
Samuel Pepys' Diary. 28th August 1665. In the afternoon I sent down my boy to Woolwich, Kent [Map] with some things before me, in order to my lying there for good and all, and so I followed him. Just now comes newes that the fleete is gone, or going this day, out again, for which God be praised! and my Lord Sandwich (age 40) hath done himself great right in it, in getting so soon out again. I pray God, he may meet the enemy. Towards the evening, just as I was fitting myself, comes W. Hewer (age 23) and shows me a letter which Mercer had wrote to her mother about a great difference between my wife and her yesterday, and that my wife will have her go away presently. This, together with my natural jealousy that some bad thing or other may be in the way, did trouble me exceedingly, so as I was in a doubt whether to go thither or no, but having fitted myself and my things I did go, and by night got thither, where I met my wife walking to the waterside with her paynter, Mr. Browne, and her mayds. There I met Commissioner Pett (age 55), and my Lord Bruncker (age 45), and the lady at his house had been thereto-day, to see her. Commissioner Pett staid a very little while, and so I to supper with my wife and Mr. Shelden, and so to bed with great pleasure.
Chronicle of Geoffrey le Baker of Swinbroke
Baker was a secular clerk from Swinbroke, now Swinbrook, an Oxfordshire village two miles east of Burford. His Chronicle describes the events of the period 1303-1356: Gaveston, Bannockburn, Boroughbridge, the murder of King Edward II, the Scottish Wars, Sluys, Crécy, the Black Death, Winchelsea and Poitiers. To quote Herbert Bruce 'it possesses a vigorous and characteristic style, and its value for particular events between 1303 and 1356 has been recognised by its editor and by subsequent writers'. The book provides remarkable detail about the events it describes. Baker's text has been augmented with hundreds of notes, including extracts from other contemporary chronicles, such as the Annales Londonienses, Annales Paulini, Murimuth, Lanercost, Avesbury, Guisborough and Froissart to enrich the reader's understanding. The translation takes as its source the 'Chronicon Galfridi le Baker de Swynebroke' published in 1889, edited by Edward Maunde Thompson.
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Samuel Pepys' Diary. 28th August 1666. After dinner the young women went to dance; among others Mr. Christopher Pett (age 46) his daughter, who is a very pretty, modest girle, I am mightily taken with her; and that being done about five o'clock, home, very well pleased with the afternoon's work. And so we broke up mightily civilly, the bride and bridegroom going to Greenwich, Kent [Map] (they keeping their dinner here only for my sake) to lie, and we home, where I to the office, and anon am on a sudden called to meet Sir W. Pen (age 45) and Sir W. Coventry (age 38) at the Victualling Office, which did put me out of order to be so surprised. But I went, and there Sir William Coventry did read me a letter from the Generalls to the King (age 36)1, a most scurvy letter, reflecting most upon Sir W. Coventry, and then upon me for my accounts (not that they are not true, but that we do not consider the expence of the fleete), and then of the whole office, in neglecting them and the King's service, and this in very plain and sharp and menacing terms. I did give a good account of matters according to our computation of the expence of the fleete. I find Sir W. Coventry willing enough to accept of any thing to confront the Generalls. But a great supply must be made, and shall be in grace of God! But, however, our accounts here will be found the true ones. Having done here, and much work set me, I with greater content home than I thought I should have done, and so to the office a while, and then home, and a while in my new closet, which delights me every day more and more, and so late to bed.
Note 1. The letter from Prince Rupert (age 46) and the Duke of Albemarle (age 57) to the King (dated August 27th, from the "Royal Charles", Sole Bay [Map]) is among the State Papers. The generals complain of the want of supplies, in spite of repeated importunities. The demands are answered by accounts from Mr. Pepys of what has been sent to the fleet, which will not satisfy the ships, unless the provisions could be found "... Have not a month's provision of beer, yet Sir Wm. Coventry assures the ministers that they are supplied till Oct. 3; unless this is quickened they will have to return home too soon.... Want provisions according to their own computation, not Sir Wm. Coventry's, to last to the end of October" ("Calendar", 1666-67, p. 71).
On 28th August 1667 Louise of Mecklenburg Güstrow Queen Consort Denmark and Norway was born to Duke Gustav Adolph of Mecklenburg-Güstrow (age 34) and Magdalena Sibylla of Holstein Gottorp (age 36). She married 5th December 1695 her third cousin once removed Frederick IV King of Denmark and Norway, son of Christian V King of Denmark and Norway and Charlotte Amalie Hesse-Kassel Queen Consort Denmark and Norway, and had issue.
John Evelyn's Diary. 28th August 1667. I dined with my late Lord Chancellor, where also dined Mr. Ashburnham (age 64), and Mr. W. Legge, of the bedchamber; his Lordship pretty well in heart, though now many of his friends and sycophants abandoned him.
Samuel Pepys' Diary. 31st January 1668. Thence to talk of other things, and the want of money and he told me of the general want of money in the country; that land sold for nothing, and the many pennyworths he knows of lands and houses upon them, with good titles in his country, at 16 years' purchase: "and", says he, "though I am in debt, yet I have a mind to one thing, and that is a Bishop's lease"; but said, "I will yet choose such a lease before any other, yes", says he, plainly, "because I know they cannot stand, and then it will fall into the King's hands, and I in possession shall have an advantage by it". "And", says he, "I know they must fall, and they are now near it, taking all the ways they can to undo themselves, and showing us the way"; and thereupon told the a story of the present quarrel between the Bishop (age 75) and Deane of Coventry and Lichfield (age 61); the former of which did excommunicate the latter, and caused his excommunication to be read in the Church while he was there; and, after it was read, the Deane made the service be gone through with, though himself, an excommunicate, was present, which is contrary to the Canon, and said he would justify the quire therein against the Bishop; and so they are at law in the Arches about it; which is a very pretty story. He tells me that the King (age 37) is for Toleration, though the Bishops be against it: and that he do not doubt but it will be carried in Parliament; but that he fears some will stand for the tolerating of Papists with the rest; and that he knows not what to say, but rather thinks that the sober party will be without it, rather than have it upon those terms; and I do believe so. Here we broke off, and I home to dinner, and after dinner set down my wife and Deb. at the 'Change [Map], and I to make a visit to Mr. Godolphin (age 32)1 at his lodgings, who is lately come from Spain from my Lord Sandwich (age 42), and did, the other day, meeting me in White Hall, compliment me mightily, and so I did offer him this visit, but missed him, and so back and took up my wife and set her at Mrs. Turner's (age 45), and I to my bookbinder's, and there, till late at night, binding up my second part of my Tangier accounts, and I all the while observing his working, and his manner of gilding of books with great pleasure, and so home, and there busy late, and then to bed. This day Griffin did, in discourse in the coach, put me in the head of the little house by our garden, where old goodman Taylor puts his brooms and dirt, to make me a stable of, which I shall improve, so as, I think, to be able to get me a stable without much charge, which do please me mightily. He did also in discourse tell me that it is observed, and is true, in the late fire of London, that the fire burned just as many Parish-Churches as there were hours from the beginning to the end of the fire; and, next, that there were just as many Churches left standing as there were taverns left standing in the rest of the City that was not burned, being, I think he told me, thirteen in all of each: which is pretty to observe.
Note 1. William Godolphin, descended from a younger branch of that family, which was afterwards ennobled in the person of Sidney, Earl Godolphin, Lord Treasurer (age 23). William Godolphin was of Christ Church, Oxford, and graduated M.A., January 14th, 1660-61. He was afterwards secretary to Sir H. Bennet (age 50) (Lord Arlington), and M.P. for Camelford. He was a great favourite at Court, and was knighted on August 28th, 1668. In the spring of 1669 he returned to Spain as Envoy Extraordinary, and in 1671 he became Ambassador. On July 11th, 1696, he died at Madrid, having been for some years a Roman Catholic.
Samuel Pepys' Diary. 28th August 1668. At noon I home with W. Coventry (age 40) to his house; and there dined with him, and talked freely with him; and did acquaint him with what I have done, which he is well pleased with, and glad of: and do tell me that there are endeavours on foot to bring the Navy into new, but, he fears, worse hands. After much talk with great content with him, I walked to the Temple [Map], and staid at Starky's, my bookseller's (looking over Dr. Heylin's new book of the Life of Bishop Laud, a strange book of the Church History of his time), till Mr. Wren (age 39) comes, and by appointment we to the Atturney General's chamber, and there read and heard the witnesses in the business of Ackeworth, most troublesome and perplexed by the counter swearing of the witnesses one against the other, and so with Mr. Wren away thence to St. [James's] for his papers, and so to White Hall, and after the Committee was done at the Council chamber about the business of Supernumeraries, wherein W. Pen (age 47) was to do all and did, but like an ignorant illiterate coxcomb, the Duke of York (age 34) fell to work with us, the Committee being gone, in the Council-chamber; and there, with his own hand, did give us his long letter, telling us that he had received several from us, and now did give us one from him, taking notice of our several duties and failures, and desired answer to it, as he therein desired; this pleased me well; and so fell to other business, and then parted. And the Duke of York, and Wren, and I, it being now candle-light, into the Duke of York's closet in White Hall; and there read over this paper of my Lord Keeper's, wherein are laid down the faults of the Navy, so silly, and the remedies so ridiculous, or else the same that are now already provided, that we thought it not to need any answer, the Duke of York being able himself to do it: that so it makes us admire the confidence of these men to offer things so silly, in a business of such moment. But it is a most perfect instance of the complexion of the times! and so the Duke of York said himself, who, I perceive, is mightily concerned in it, and do, again and again, recommend it to Mr. Wren and me together, to consider upon remedies fit to provide for him to propound to the King (age 38), before the rest of the world, and particularly the Commissioners of Accounts, who are men of understanding and order, to find our faults, and offer remedies of their own, which I am glad of, and will endeavour to do something in it. So parted, and with much difficulty, by candle-light, walked over the Matted Gallery, as it is now with the mats and boards all taken up, so that we walked over the rafters. But strange to see what hard matter the plaister of Paris is, that is there taken up, as hard as stone! And pity to see Holben's work in the ceiling blotted on, and only whited over! Thence; with much ado, by several coaches home, to supper and to bed. My wife having been this day with Hales (age 68), to sit for her hand to be mended, in her picture.
John Evelyn's Diary. 28th August 1670. Windsor was now going to be repaired, being exceedingly ragged and ruinous. Prince Rupert (age 50), the Constable, had begun to trim up the keep or high round Tower, and handsomely adorned his hall with furniture of arms, which was very singular, by so disposing the pikes, muskets, pistols, bandoleers, holsters, drums, back, breast, and headpieces, as was very extraordinary. Thus, those huge steep stairs ascending to it had the walls invested with this martial furniture, all new and bright, so disposing the bandoleers, holsters, and drums, as to represent festoons, and that without any confusion, trophy-like. From the hall we went into his bedchamber, and ample rooms hung with tapestry, curious and effeminate pictures, so extremely different from the other, which presented nothing but war and horror.
John Evelyn's Diary. 28th August 1670. One of the Canons preached; then followed the offering of the Knights of the Order, according to custom; first the poor Knights, in procession, then, the Canons in their formalities, the Dean and Chancellor, then his Majesty (age 40) (the Sovereign), the Duke of York (age 36), Prince Rupert (age 50); and, lastly, the Earl of Oxford (age 43), being all the Knights that were then at Court.
On 28th August 1676 Isabel Stewart was born to James Duke of York (age 42) and Mary of Modena Duchess of York (age 17). She died aged four in 1681.
On 28th August 1677 Sophie Hedevig Oldenburg was born to Christian V King of Denmark and Norway (age 31) and Charlotte Amalie Hesse-Kassel Queen Consort Denmark and Norway (age 27).
John Evelyn's Diary. 28th August 1677. To visit my Lord Chamberlain (age 59), in Suffolk; he sent his coach and six to meet and bring me from St. Edmund's Bury [Map] to Euston.
On 28th August 1680 Charles Louis Palatinate Simmern (age 62) died. His son Charles (age 29) succeeded II Elector Palatine Rhine.
Jean de Waurin's Chronicle of England Volume 6 Books 3-6: The Wars of the Roses
Jean de Waurin was a French Chronicler, from the Artois region, who was born around 1400, and died around 1474. Waurin’s Chronicle of England, Volume 6, covering the period 1450 to 1471, from which we have selected and translated Chapters relating to the Wars of the Roses, provides a vivid, original, contemporary description of key events some of which he witnessed first-hand, some of which he was told by the key people involved with whom Waurin had a personal relationship.
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John Evelyn's Diary. 19th August 1683. I went to Bromley to visit our Bishop (age 58), and excellent neighbour, and to congratulate his now being made Archbishop of York. On the 28th, he came to take his leave of us, now preparing for his journey and residence in his province.
On 28th August 1693 Jane Bickerton Duchess Norfolk (age 50) died.
On 28th August 1705 George Wilhelm Hanover Duke Brunswick-Lüneburg (age 81) died.
On 28th August 1736 William Stukeley (age 48) visited the Cotterstock Roman Mosaic at Cotterstock with George Lynn who lived nearby at .
On 28th August 1767 Caroline Campbell 1st Baroness Greenwich (age 49) was created 1st Baroness Greenwich with a special remainder to the male issue by her second husband, Charles Townshend (age 42) who died one week after the creation. Her two sons by Charles predesceased her. Her father John Campbell 2nd Duke Argyll had been created Earl of Greenwich which titles became extinct on his death.
On 28th August 1779 Antoinette Ernestine Amalie Saxe Coburg Gotha Duchess Württemberg was born to Francis Saxe Coburg Gotha I Duke Saxe Coburg Gotha (age 29) and Augusta Reuss Duchess Saxe Coburg Gotha (age 22). She married 17th November 1798 Alexander Württemberg Duke Württemberg and had issue.
1911 Encyclopædia Britannica. After a while Percy (age 19) was reconciled to his father, revisited his family in Sussex, and then stayed with a cousin in Wales. Hence he was recalled to London by Miss Harriet Westbrook, who wrote complaining of her father's resolve to send her back to her school, in which she was now regarded with repulsion as having become too apt a pupil of the atheist Shelley. He replied counselling resistance. "She wrote to say" (these are the words of Shelley in a letter to Hogg, dating towards the end of July 1811) "that resistance was useless, but that she would fly with me, and threw herself upon my protection." Shelley, therefore, returned to London, where he found Harriet agitated and wavering; finally they agreed to elope, travelled in haste to Edinburgh, and there, on the 28th of August, were married with the rites of the Scottish Church. Shelley, it should be understood, had by this time openly broken, not only with the dogmas and conventions of Christian religion, but with many of the institutions of Christian polity, and in especial with such as enforce and regulate marriage; he held - with William Godwin (age 55) and some other theorists - that marriage ought to be simply a voluntary relation between a man and a woman, to be assumed at joint option and terminated at the after-option of either party. If, therefore, he had acted upon his personal conviction of the right, he would never have wedded Harriet, whether by, Scotch, English or any other law; but he waived his own theory in favour of thee consideration that in such an experiment the woman's stake, land the disadvantages accruing to her, are out of all comparison with the man's. His conduct, therefore, was so far entirely honourable; and, if it derogated from a principle of his own (a principle which, however contrary to the morality of other people, was and always remained matter of genuine conviction on his individual part), this was only in deference to a higher and more imperious standard of right.
On 28th August 1811 Percy Bysshe Shelley (age 19) and Harriet Westbrook were married at Edinburgh having eloped on the 25th August 1811.
On 28th August 1819 Charles Lennox 4th Duke Richmond (age 54) died. His son Charles (age 28) succeeded 5th Duke Richmond, 5th Earl March, 5th Baron Settrington. Caroline Paget Duchess Richmond (age 23) by marriage Duchess Richmond.
On 28th August 1821 Thomas Seddon was born to Tom Seddon.
Chronicle of Abbot Ralph of Coggeshall
The Chronicle of Abbot Ralph of Coggeshall (Chronicon Anglicanum) is an indispensable medieval history that brings to life centuries of English and European affairs through the eyes of a learned Cistercian monk. Ralph of Coggeshall, abbot of the Abbey of Coggeshall in Essex in the early 13th century, continued and expanded his community’s chronicle, documenting events from the Norman Conquest of 1066 into the tumultuous reign of King Henry III. Blending eyewitness testimony, careful compilation, and the monastic commitment to record-keeping, this chronicle offers a rare narrative of political intrigue, royal power struggles, and social upheaval in England and beyond. Ralph’s work captures the reigns of pivotal figures such as Richard I and King John, providing invaluable insights into their characters, decisions, and the forces that shaped medieval rule. More than a simple annal, Chronicon Anglicanum conveys the texture of medieval life and governance, making it a rich source for scholars and readers fascinated by English history, monastic authorship, and the shaping of the medieval world.
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On 28th August 1823 Louise Auguste Oldenburg was born to Christian August Oldenburg II Duke Schleswig Holstein Sonderburg Augustenburg (age 25) and Louise Sophie Danneskiold Samsøe Duchess Schleswig Holstein Sonderburg Augustenburg. She a great x 3 granddaughter of King George II of Great Britain and Ireland.
On 28th August 1833 Edward Coley Burne-Jones 1st Baronet was born to Edward Richard Jones and Elizabeth Coley at 11 Bennets Hill. His mother died six days later. He married 9th June 1860 Georgiana Macdonald Lady Burne-Jones and had issue.
On 28th August 1835 William Osborne was born to George Godolphin Osborne 8th Duke Leeds (age 33) and Harriet Emma Arundel Stewart (age 35).
On 28th August 1836 Antoine 8th Duke Gramont (age 81) died. His son Antoine (age 47) succeeded 9th Duke Gramont.
Ten Years' Digging. In a field called Callow [Map], at Mappleton, near Ashbourne, are three tumuli placed in a line about eighty yards from each other; they are all formed of sandy earth and pebbles. We opened that nearest to Ashbourne on the 28th of August; it is fourteen yards diameter, and two feet six inches high. On the natural surface the earth was darker in colour and finer than elsewhere, and mixed with a little charcoal; near the centre was a piece of an urn, some burnt bones, and flakes of flint. On the same day, we cut into that at the opposite extremity with no better success, finding only flints and charcoal, but no bones. The height of this mound, which has been frequently ploughed over, is two feet only.
On 28th August 1854 Ralph Wormeley Curtis was born to Daniel Sargent Curtis (age 28). He was a fourth cousin of painter John Singer Sargent. He married 6th June 1897 Lisa D'Wolfe Colt.
On 28th August 1861 Thomas Bateman (age 39) died. He was buried in unconsecrated ground at his request at Middleton-by-Youlgreave [Map].
St Mary's Church, Uttoxeter [Map]. Memorial to Surgeon Henry John Hawthorn. Died 28th August 1903.
28th August 1907. The Deceased Wife's Sister's Marriage Act 1907 (7 Edw. 7. c. 47) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, allowing a man to marry his dead wife's sister, which had previously been forbidden.
On 28th August 1912 George Barrington Baker Wilbraham 5th Baronet (age 67) died. Memorial at All Saints Church, Old Rode. His son Philip (age 36) succeeded 6th Baronet Wilbraham of Loventor in Totnes in Devon. Joyce Christabel Kennaway Lady Wilbraham (age 35) by marriage Lady Wilbraham of Loventor in Totnes in Devon.
Philip Wilbraham Baker Wilbraham 6th Baronet: On 17th September 1875 he was born to George Barrington Baker Wilbraham 5th Baronet and Katharine Frances Wilbraham Lady Wilbraham. On 8th August 1901 Philip Wilbraham Baker Wilbraham 6th Baronet and Joyce Christabel Kennaway Lady Wilbraham were married.
Joyce Christabel Kennaway Lady Wilbraham: On 21st December 1876 she was born to John Henry Kennaway 3rd Baronet and Frances Arbuthnot Lady Kennaway. On 25th August 1958 she died.
On 28th August 1937 Ian Campbell 12th Duke of Argyll was born to Ian Campbell 11th Duke of Argyll (age 34) and Louise Clews Duchess of Argyll (age 32). He married 1964 Iona Colquhoun Duchess of Argyll, daughter of Ivar Iain Colquhoun 8th Baronet, and had issue.
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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On 28th August 1945 Gwendolen Constable-Maxwell Duchess Norfolk (age 68) died.
On 27th August 1979 Louis Mountbatten 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma (age 79) was killed by an IRA bomb aboard his fishing boat in Mullaghmore, County Sligo. His daughter Patricia (age 55) succeeded 2nd Countess Mountbatten of Burma. John Knatchbull 7th Baron Brabourne (age 54) by marriage Earl Mountbatten of Burma.
Nicholas Timothy Knatchbull (age 14) was killed.
Pauk Maxwell, a local boy, was killed.
On 28th August 1979 Doreen Browne Baroness Brabourne (age 83) died from wounds in hospital the day after the bombing.
On 28th August 932 Richard "Fearless" Normandy I Duke Normandy was born illegitimately to William "Longsword" I Duke Normandy (age 39) and Sprota Unknown. He married (1) 960 Emma of Paris Duchess of Normandy, daughter of Hugh "Great" Capet Count Paris and Hedwig Saxon Ottonian (2) before 23rd August 963 Gunnora Countess Ponthieu and had issue.
On 28th August 1568 Elizabeth Paget was born to Henry Paget 2nd Baron Paget Beaudasert (age 29) and Catherine Knyvet Baroness Geneville Beaudasert (age 25). She died aged one in 1570.
On 28th August 1592 George Villiers 1st Duke of Buckingham was born to George Villiers of Brokesby (age 48) and Mary Beaumont 1st Countess Buckingham (age 22) at Brooksby, Leicestershire. He married 16th May 1620 Katherine Manners Duchess Buckingham, daughter of Francis Manners 6th Earl of Rutland and Frances Knyvet Lady Bevill, and had issue.
On 28th August 1603 George Stonhouse 1st and 3rd Baronet was born to William Stonhouse 1st Baronet (age 47). He married on or after 22nd April 1633 Margaret Lovelace, daughter of Richard Lovelace 1st Baron Lovelace and Margaret Dodworth Baroness Lovelace, and had issue.
On 28th August 1630 Thomas Delves 3rd Baronet was born to Henry Delves 2nd Baronet (age 33) and Mary Wilbraham. He married before 4th October 1652 Elizabeth Ravenscroft and had issue.
On 28 AUg 1658 Charlotte Lane was born to George Lane 1st Viscount Lanesborough (age 38) and Dorcas Brabazon. She married 8th June 1676 Henry Beaufoy of Guycliff and Emscot.
On 28th August 1667 Louise of Mecklenburg Güstrow Queen Consort Denmark and Norway was born to Duke Gustav Adolph of Mecklenburg-Güstrow (age 34) and Magdalena Sibylla of Holstein Gottorp (age 36). She married 5th December 1695 her third cousin once removed Frederick IV King of Denmark and Norway, son of Christian V King of Denmark and Norway and Charlotte Amalie Hesse-Kassel Queen Consort Denmark and Norway, and had issue.
On 28th August 1676 Isabel Stewart was born to James Duke of York (age 42) and Mary of Modena Duchess of York (age 17). She died aged four in 1681.
On 28th August 1677 Sophie Hedevig Oldenburg was born to Christian V King of Denmark and Norway (age 31) and Charlotte Amalie Hesse-Kassel Queen Consort Denmark and Norway (age 27).
On 28th August 1697 Martha Stonhouse was born to John Stonhouse 3rd Baronet (age 25) and Mary Mellish. She married 23rd May 1723 Arthur van Sittart and had issue.
On 28th August 1725 Charles Townshend was born to Charles Townshend 3rd Viscount Townsend (age 25) and Audrey aka Etheldreda Harrison (age 17). He married August 1755 his fifth cousin once removed Caroline Campbell 1st Baroness Greenwich, daughter of John Campbell 2nd Duke Argyll and Jane Warburton Duchess of Argyll.
Chronicle of Geoffrey le Baker of Swinbroke
Baker was a secular clerk from Swinbroke, now Swinbrook, an Oxfordshire village two miles east of Burford. His Chronicle describes the events of the period 1303-1356: Gaveston, Bannockburn, Boroughbridge, the murder of King Edward II, the Scottish Wars, Sluys, Crécy, the Black Death, Winchelsea and Poitiers. To quote Herbert Bruce 'it possesses a vigorous and characteristic style, and its value for particular events between 1303 and 1356 has been recognised by its editor and by subsequent writers'. The book provides remarkable detail about the events it describes. Baker's text has been augmented with hundreds of notes, including extracts from other contemporary chronicles, such as the Annales Londonienses, Annales Paulini, Murimuth, Lanercost, Avesbury, Guisborough and Froissart to enrich the reader's understanding. The translation takes as its source the 'Chronicon Galfridi le Baker de Swynebroke' published in 1889, edited by Edward Maunde Thompson.
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On 28th August 1731 Frances Falconer Mackworth Viscountess Montague was born to Herbert Mackworth (age 43) and Juliana Digby. She married before 1767 her fifth cousin once removed Anthony Joseph Browne 7th Viscount Montagu, son of Anthony Browne 6th Viscount Montagu and Barbara Webb Viscountess Montague, and had issue.
On 28th August 1749 Clementia Elphinstone Countess Perth was born to Charles Elphinstone 10th Lord Elphinstone (age 38). She married 31st March 1785 James Drummond 11th Earl Perth and had issue.
On 28th August 1764 Sarah Anne Child Countess of Westmoreland was born to Robert Child (age 25). She married 20th May 1782 John Fane 10th Earl of Westmoreland, son of John Fane 9th Earl of Westmoreland and Augusta Bertie, and had issue.
On 28th August 1779 Antoinette Ernestine Amalie Saxe Coburg Gotha Duchess Württemberg was born to Francis Saxe Coburg Gotha I Duke Saxe Coburg Gotha (age 29) and Augusta Reuss Duchess Saxe Coburg Gotha (age 22). She married 17th November 1798 Alexander Württemberg Duke Württemberg and had issue.
On 28th August 1786 William Clayton 5th Baronet was born to William Clayton 4th Baronet (age 24) and Mary East Lady Clayton (age 20).
On 28th August 1793 Charles Compton Cavendish 1st Baron Chesham was born to George Augustus Henry Cavendish 1st Earl Burlington (age 39) and Elizabeth Compton Countess Burlington (age 33). He married 1814 his fifth cousin once removed Catherine Susan Gordon Baroness Chesham, daughter of George Gordon 9th Marquess Huntly and Catherine Anne Cope, and had issue.
On 28th August 1817 Henry Willoughby 8th Baron Middleton was born to Henry Willoughby (age 36) and Charlotte Eyre (age 26) at Aspley Hall, Nottingham. He married (1) 3rd August 1833 Julia Louisa Bosville Baroness Middleton and had issue (2) 5th August 1869 Eliza Maria Gordon Cumming Baroness Middleton.
On 28th August 1820 Adelaide Georgiana Fitz-Clarence was born to George Fitz-Clarence 1st Earl Munster (age 26) and Mary Wyndham Countess Munster (age 27). She a granddaughter of King William IV of the United Kingdom.
On 28th August 1821 Thomas Seddon was born to Tom Seddon.
On 28th August 1823 Gerard Noel was born to Charles Noel 1st Earl Gainsborough (age 41) and Arabella Hamlyn-Williams. He married 30th June 1863 Augusta Mary Lowther and had issue.
On 28th August 1823 Louise Auguste Oldenburg was born to Christian August Oldenburg II Duke Schleswig Holstein Sonderburg Augustenburg (age 25) and Louise Sophie Danneskiold Samsøe Duchess Schleswig Holstein Sonderburg Augustenburg. She a great x 3 granddaughter of King George II of Great Britain and Ireland.
On 28th August 1833 Edward Coley Burne-Jones 1st Baronet was born to Edward Richard Jones and Elizabeth Coley at 11 Bennets Hill. His mother died six days later. He married 9th June 1860 Georgiana Macdonald Lady Burne-Jones and had issue.
Chronicle of Walter of Guisborough
A canon regular of the Augustinian Guisborough Priory, Yorkshire, formerly known as The Chronicle of Walter of Hemingburgh, describes the period from 1066 to 1346. Before 1274 the Chronicle is based on other works. Thereafter, the Chronicle is original, and a remarkable source for the events of the time. This book provides a translation of the Chronicle from that date. The Latin source for our translation is the 1849 work edited by Hans Claude Hamilton. Hamilton, in his preface, says: 'In the present work we behold perhaps one of the finest samples of our early chronicles, both as regards the value of the events recorded, and the correctness with which they are detailed; Nor will the pleasing style of composition be lightly passed over by those capable of seeing reflected from it the tokens of a vigorous and cultivated mind, and a favourable specimen of the learning and taste of the age in which it was framed.'
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On 28th August 1835 William Osborne was born to George Godolphin Osborne 8th Duke Leeds (age 33) and Harriet Emma Arundel Stewart (age 35).
On 28th August 1854 Ralph Wormeley Curtis was born to Daniel Sargent Curtis (age 28). He was a fourth cousin of painter John Singer Sargent. He married 6th June 1897 Lisa D'Wolfe Colt.
On 28th August 1859 Francis Fitzherbert Stafford 12th Baron Stafford was born to Basil Thomas Fitzherbert (age 23) and Emily Charlotte Stafford-Jerningham (age 24).
On 28th August 1875 Robert Strutt 4th Baron Rayleigh was born to John William Strutt 3rd Baron Rayleigh (age 32) and Evelyn Georgiana Mary Balfour Baroness Rayleigh. He married (1) 5th July 1905 his fifth cousin once removed Mary Hilda Clements, daughter of Robert Bermingham Clements 4th Earl of Leitrim and Winifred Coke Countess of Leitrim, and had issue (2) 8th July 1920 Kathleen Alice Coppin-Straker Baroness Rayleigh.
On 28th August 1876 Wilmot Lawrence Lancelot Palk 9th Baronet was born to Wilmot Henry Palk.
On 28th August 1937 Ian Campbell 12th Duke of Argyll was born to Ian Campbell 11th Duke of Argyll (age 34) and Louise Clews Duchess of Argyll (age 32). He married 1964 Iona Colquhoun Duchess of Argyll, daughter of Ivar Iain Colquhoun 8th Baronet, and had issue.
On 28th August 1949 Bernard William Croft 3rd Baron Croft was born to Michael Henry Croft 2nd Baron Croft (age 33) and Antoinette Fredericka Conyngham Baroness Croft (age 26).
On 28th August 1628 William Armine 1st Baronet (age 34) and Mary Talbot (age 34) were married. They were sixth cousins.
On 28th August 1665 Charles Gordon 1st Earl Aboyne (age 27) and Elizabeth Lyon Countess Aboyne (age 18) were married. She by marriage Countess Aboyne. She the daughter of John Lyon 2nd Earl Kinghorne and Elizabeth Maule Countess Kinghorne and Linlithgow. He the son of George Gordon 2nd Marquess Huntly and Anna Campbell Marchioness Huntly. They were fourth cousins.
On 28th August 1672, a month after his father died, Thomas Cookes 2nd Baronet (age 24) and Mary Windsor Lady Cookes (age 14) were married. She by marriage Lady Cookes of Norgrove in Worcestershire. She the daughter of Thomas Hickman Windsor 1st Earl Plymouth (age 45) and Anne Savile (age 38).
Henrici Quinti, Angliæ Regis, Gesta, is a first-hand account of the Agincourt Campaign, and subsequent events to his death in 1422. The author of the first part was a Chaplain in King Henry's retinue who was present from King Henry's departure at Southampton in 1415, at the siege of Harfleur, the battle of Agincourt, and the celebrations on King Henry's return to London. The second part, by another writer, relates the events that took place including the negotiations at Troye, Henry's marriage and his death in 1422.
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On 28th August 1694 Nathaniel Napier 3rd Baronet (age 26) and Catherine Alington Lady Napier (age 9) were married.
On 28th August 1719 Henry Arundell Bedingfeld 3rd Baronet and Elizabeth Boyle (age 29) were married. She the daughter of Charles Boyle 2nd Earl Burlington and Juliana Noel Countess Burlington (age 47). They were fifth cousin once removed.
On 28th August 1733 Henry Herbert 6th Earl Montgomery 9th Earl Pembroke (age 40) and Mary Fitzwilliam Countess Pembroke and Montgomery (age 25) were married. She by marriage Countess Pembroke, Countess Montgomery. He the son of Thomas Herbert 8th Earl Pembroke 5th Earl Montgomery and Margaret Sawyer Countess Pembroke and Montgomery. They were half sixth cousins.
On 28th August 1784 George Ashburnham 3rd Earl Ashburnham (age 23) and Sophia Thynne (age 20) were married. She the daughter of Thomas Thynne 1st Marquess of Bath (age 49) and Elizabeth Bentinck Marchioness Bath (age 49). He the son of John Ashburnham 2nd Earl Ashburnham (age 59) and Elizabeth Crowley Countess Ashburham. They were fourth cousin twice removed.
On 28th August 1811 Percy Bysshe Shelley (age 19) and Harriet Westbrook were married at Edinburgh having eloped on the 25th August 1811.
On 28th August 1862 William Pery 3rd Earl of Limerick (age 22) and Caroline Maria Gray Countess of Limerick were married. He the son of William Henry Tennison Pery 2nd Earl of Limerick (age 50). They were first cousin once removed.
On 28th August 1895 Arthur George Egerton 5th Earl Wilton (age 32) and Mariota Thellusson Countess Wilton (age 22) were married. He the son of Seymour Egerton 4th Earl Wilton (age 56) and Laura Caroline Russell Countess Wilton (age 53).
On 28th August 1900 Adrian Verney Verney-Cave 6th Baron Braye (age 25) and Ethel Mary Bouverie-Pusey Baroness Braye were married.
On 28th August 1916 John Jacob Astor 1st Baron Astor (age 30) and Violet Mary Elliot-Murray-Kynynmound Baroness Astor (age 27) were married. She the daughter of Gilbert Elliot-Murray-Kynynmound 4th Earl Minto and Mary Caroline Grey Countess Minto (age 58).
On 28th August 1937 Philip Coutts Antrobus 7th Baronet (age 29) and Dorothy May Davis Lady Antrobus were married.
On 28th August 1939 Anthony Henry Thorold 15th Baronet (age 35) and Jocelyn Elaine Laura Heathcote-Smith were married.
The History of William Marshal was commissioned by his son shortly after William’s death in 1219 to celebrate the Marshal’s remarkable life; it is an authentic, contemporary voice. The manuscript was discovered in 1861 by French historian Paul Meyer. Meyer published the manuscript in its original Anglo-French in 1891 in two books. This book is a line by line translation of the first of Meyer’s books; lines 1-10152. Book 1 of the History begins in 1139 and ends in 1194. It describes the events of the Anarchy, the role of William’s father John, John’s marriages, William’s childhood, his role as a hostage at the siege of Newbury, his injury and imprisonment in Poitou where he met Eleanor of Aquitaine and his life as a knight errant. It continues with the accusation against him of an improper relationship with Margaret, wife of Henry the Young King, his exile, and return, the death of Henry the Young King, the rebellion of Richard, the future King Richard I, war with France, the death of King Henry II, and the capture of King Richard, and the rebellion of John, the future King John. It ends with the release of King Richard and the death of John Marshal.
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On 28th August 1947 Julian Asquith 2nd Earl of Oxford and Asquith (age 31) and Anne Palairet Countess of Oxford and Asquith (age 30) were married at Brompton Oratory, Kensington. She by marriage Countess of Oxford and Asquith.
On 28th August 995 Henry "Quarrelsome" Saxon Ottonian II Duke Bavaria (age 44) died.
On 28th August 1026 Richard "Good" Normandy II Duke Normandy (age 63) died. His son Richard (age 24) succeeded III Duke Normandy.
On 28th August 1350 Robert Ferrers 3rd Baron Ferrers of Chartley (age 41) died. His son John (age 19) succeeded 4th Baron Ferrers of Chartley.
On 28th August 1404 Bishop Robert Braybrooke died.
On 28th August 1406 John Sutton 4th Baron Sutton (age 26) died. Baron Sutton of Dudley extinct. He and the previous three barons were never summoned to Parliament.
On 28th August 1462 Elizabeth Norbury Baroness Sudeley (age 69) died.
On 28th August 1477 John Willoughby 8th Baron Latimer of Corby (age 56) died. His son Robert (age 25) de jure 9th Baron Latimer of Corby.
On 28th August 1481 Alfonso "The African" V King Portugal (age 49) died. His son John (age 26) succeeded II King Portugal. Eleanor Viseu Queen Consort Portugal (age 23) by marriage Queen Consort Portugal.
On 28th August 1540 Federico Gonzaga II Duke Mantua (age 40) died. His son Francesco (age 7) succeeded III Duke Mantua.
On 28th August 1558 George Darcy 1st Baron Darcy Aston (age 61) died at Stepney [Map]. His son John (age 18) succeeded 2nd Baron Darcy of Aston.
On 28th August 1572 Agnes Fisher Baroness St John Bletso (age 46) died.
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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On 28th August 1617 William Willoughby 3rd Baron Willoughby of Parham (age 33) died. His son Henry succeeded 4th Baron Willoughby Parham.
On 28th August 1618 Albert Frederick Hohenzollern Duke Prussia (age 65) died.
On 28th August 1636 Catherine Hastings Countess Chesterfield died.
On 28th August 1654 Thomas Pelham 2nd Baronet (age 56) died. His son John (age 31) succeeded 3rd Baronet Pelham of Laughton. Lucy Sidney Baroness Pelham Laughton (age 27) by marriage Lady Pelham of Laughton.
On 28th August 1668 Abraham Cullen 1st Baronet (age 44) died. His son John (age 16) succeeded 2nd Baronet Cullen of East Sheen in Surrey.
On 28th August 1680 Charles Louis Palatinate Simmern (age 62) died. His son Charles (age 29) succeeded II Elector Palatine Rhine.
On 28th August 1683 Philip "Infamous Earl" Herbert 7th Earl Pembroke 4th Earl Montgomery (age 31) died. He was buried at Salisbury Cathedral [Map]. His brother Thomas (age 27) succeeded 8th Earl Pembroke, 5th Earl Montgomery.
On 28th August 1693 Jane Bickerton Duchess Norfolk (age 50) died.
On 28th August 1705 George Wilhelm Hanover Duke Brunswick-Lüneburg (age 81) died.
On 28th August 1728 John Fitzwilliam 2nd Earl Fitzwilliam (age 43) died. His son William (age 8) succeeded 3rd Earl Fitzwilliam5th Baron Fitzwilliam of Liffer in Donegal.
On 28th August 1731 Charles Boyle 4th Earl Cork 4th Earl Orrery (age 57) died at Westminster [Map]. He was buried at Westminster Abbey [Map]. His son John (age 24) succeeded 5th Earl Cork. Henrietta Hamilton Countess Cork by marriage Countess Cork.
Jean de Waurin's Chronicle of England Volume 6 Books 3-6: The Wars of the Roses
Jean de Waurin was a French Chronicler, from the Artois region, who was born around 1400, and died around 1474. Waurin’s Chronicle of England, Volume 6, covering the period 1450 to 1471, from which we have selected and translated Chapters relating to the Wars of the Roses, provides a vivid, original, contemporary description of key events some of which he witnessed first-hand, some of which he was told by the key people involved with whom Waurin had a personal relationship.
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On 28th August 1731 James Robinson 3rd Baronet (age 62) died. His son John (age 26) succeeded 4th Baronet Robinson of London.
On 28th August 1749 George Evans 1st Baron Carbery (age 69) died. His son George (age 46) succeeded 2nd Baron Carbery. Frances Fitzwilliam Baroness Carbery (age 39) by marriage Baroness Carbery.
On 28th August 1769 William Villiers 3rd Earl Jersey (age 62) died. His son George (age 34) succeeded 4th Earl Jersey, 7th Viscount Grandison, 4th Viscount Villiers, 4th Baron Villiers.
On 28th August 1797 Robert Trefusis 17th Baron Clinton (age 32) died. His son Robert (age 10) succeeded 18th Baron Clinton.
On 28th August 1799 Nicholas Lawless 1st Baron Cloncurry (age 63) died. His son Valentine (age 26) succeeded 2nd Baron Cloncurry of Cloncurry in Limerick, 2nd Baronet Lawless of Abington in Limerick.
On 28th August 1808 Richard Hill 2nd Baronet (age 76) died. His brother John (age 68) succeeded 3rd Baronet Hill of Hawkestone in Shropshire.
On 28th August 1819 Charles Lennox 4th Duke Richmond (age 54) died. His son Charles (age 28) succeeded 5th Duke Richmond, 5th Earl March, 5th Baron Settrington. Caroline Paget Duchess Richmond (age 23) by marriage Duchess Richmond.
On 28th August 1832 Simon Haughton Clarke 9th Baronet (age 67) died. His son Simon (age 14) succeeded 10th Baronet Clarke of Salford Shirland in Warwickshire.
On 28th August 1836 Antoine 8th Duke Gramont (age 81) died. His son Antoine (age 47) succeeded 9th Duke Gramont.
On 28th August 1838 Emily Gage Countess of Abingdon died.
On 28th August 1841 Henry Hope Edwardes 9th Baronet (age 54) died. His son Henry (age 13) succeeded 10th Baronet Edwardes of Shrewsbury in Shropshire.
On 28th August 1848 Hugh Evelyn 5th Baronet (age 79) died without issue. He was buried on 9th September 1848 at St John's Church, Wotton. Baronet Evelyn of Wotton in Surrey extinct.
On 28th August 1848 John Osborn 5th Baronet (age 75) died. His son George (age 34) succeeded 6th Baronet Osborn of Chicksands in Bedfordshire.
On 28th August 1861 Thomas Bateman (age 39) died. He was buried in unconsecrated ground at his request at Middleton-by-Youlgreave [Map].
Henrici Quinti, Angliæ Regis, Gesta, is a first-hand account of the Agincourt Campaign, and subsequent events to his death in 1422. The author of the first part was a Chaplain in King Henry's retinue who was present from King Henry's departure at Southampton in 1415, at the siege of Harfleur, the battle of Agincourt, and the celebrations on King Henry's return to London. The second part, by another writer, relates the events that took place including the negotiations at Troye, Henry's marriage and his death in 1422.
Available at Amazon in eBook and Paperback format.
On 28th August 1864 Edmund Parker 2nd Earl Morley (age 54) died. His son Albert (age 21) succeeded 3rd Earl Morley, 3rd Viscount Boringdon of North Malton in Devon, 4th Baron Boringdon.
On 28th August 1870 Johnathan Frederick Pollock 1st Baronet (age 86) died. His son William (age 55) succeeded 2nd Baronet Pollock of Hatton in Middlesex.
On 28th August 1875 Richard Williams-Bulkeley 10th Baronet (age 73) died. His son Richard (age 42) succeeded 11th Baronet Williams of Penrhyn in Caernarfonshire. Margaret Elizabeth Williams (age 36) by marriage Lady Williams.
On 28th August 1875 Fletcher Norton 3rd Baron Grantley (age 77) died without issue. His nephew Thomas (age 43) succeeded 4th Baron Grantley of Markenfield in Yorkshire.
On 28th August 1894 William Keppel 7th Earl Albermarle (age 62) died. His son Arnold (age 36) succeeded 8th Earl Albermarle, 8th Viscount Bury in Lancashire, 8th Baron Ashford of Ashford in Kent. Gertrude Egerton Countess Albemarle (age 33) by marriage Countess Albemarle.
On 28th August 1897 Henry Conyngham 4th Marquess Conyngham (age 39) died. His son Victor (age 14) succeeded 5th Marquess Conyngham in Donegal, 7th Baron Conyngham, 5th Baron Minster of Minster Abbey in Kent.
On 28th August 1904 William Grenville Williams 4th Baronet (age 60) died. His son William (age 16) succeeded 5th Baronet Williams of Bodelwyddan in Flintshire.
On 28th August 1906 Ralph King-Milbanke 2nd Earl of Lovelace (age 67) died. His brother Lionel (age 41) succeeded 3rd Earl Lovelace, 3rd Viscount Ockham of Ockham in Surrey, 10th Baron King of Ockham in Surrey. His son Ada (age 35) succeeded 14th Baron Wentworth, 18th Baron Despencer.
On 28th August 1912 George Barrington Baker Wilbraham 5th Baronet (age 67) died. Memorial at All Saints Church, Old Rode. His son Philip (age 36) succeeded 6th Baronet Wilbraham of Loventor in Totnes in Devon. Joyce Christabel Kennaway Lady Wilbraham (age 35) by marriage Lady Wilbraham of Loventor in Totnes in Devon.
Philip Wilbraham Baker Wilbraham 6th Baronet: On 17th September 1875 he was born to George Barrington Baker Wilbraham 5th Baronet and Katharine Frances Wilbraham Lady Wilbraham. On 8th August 1901 Philip Wilbraham Baker Wilbraham 6th Baronet and Joyce Christabel Kennaway Lady Wilbraham were married.
Joyce Christabel Kennaway Lady Wilbraham: On 21st December 1876 she was born to John Henry Kennaway 3rd Baronet and Frances Arbuthnot Lady Kennaway. On 25th August 1958 she died.
On 28th August 1915 Mabel Violet Graham Countess Feversham (age 82) died.
Henrici Quinti, Angliæ Regis, Gesta, is a first-hand account of the Agincourt Campaign, and subsequent events to his death in 1422. The author of the first part was a Chaplain in King Henry's retinue who was present from King Henry's departure at Southampton in 1415, at the siege of Harfleur, the battle of Agincourt, and the celebrations on King Henry's return to London. The second part, by another writer, relates the events that took place including the negotiations at Troye, Henry's marriage and his death in 1422.
Available at Amazon in eBook and Paperback format.
On 28th August 1935 Francis Vincent 13th Baronet (age 66) died. His son Anthony (age 41) succeeded 14th Baronet Vincent of Stoke d'Abernon.
On 28th August 1937 Wilfrid Lawson 3rd Baronet (age 74) died without issue. His nephew Hilton (age 42) succeeded 4th Baronet Lawson of Brayton House in Cumberland.
On 28th August 1945 Gwendolen Constable-Maxwell Duchess Norfolk (age 68) died.
On 28th August 1965 Richard Wyndham-Quin 6th Earl of Dunraven and Mount-Earl (age 78) died. His son Thady (age 25) succeeded 7th Earl Dunraven and Mount-Earl, 7th Viscount Mount Earl, 7th Baron Adare, 5th Baron Kenry of Kenry in County Limerick.
On 27th August 1979 Louis Mountbatten 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma (age 79) was killed by an IRA bomb aboard his fishing boat in Mullaghmore, County Sligo. His daughter Patricia (age 55) succeeded 2nd Countess Mountbatten of Burma. John Knatchbull 7th Baron Brabourne (age 54) by marriage Earl Mountbatten of Burma.
Nicholas Timothy Knatchbull (age 14) was killed.
Pauk Maxwell, a local boy, was killed.
On 28th August 1979 Doreen Browne Baroness Brabourne (age 83) died from wounds in hospital the day after the bombing.
On 28th August 1985 John Bunbury 12th Baronet (age 70) died. His son Michael (age 5) succeeded 13th Baronet Bunbury of Bunbury in Oxfordshire and Stanney Hall in Cheshire.