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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John Singleton Copley is in Painters.
On 3rd July 1738 John Singleton Copley was born. Probably in Boston, Massachusetts.
1760 John Singleton Copley (age 21). Portrait of Epes Sargent (age 69).
Epes Sargent: On 12th June 1690 he was born. On 6th December 1762 he died.
Around 1768 John Singleton Copley (age 29). Portrait of Margaret Kemble (age 34).
Margaret Kemble: In 1734 she was born to Peter Kemble at New Brunswick New Jersey. On 8th December 1758 General Thomas Gage and she were married at her father's plantation Mount Kemble Plantation, New Jersey. They had eleven children. In 1824 she died.
Around 1768 John Singleton Copley (age 29). Portrait of General Thomas Gage (age 48).
General Thomas Gage: On 10th March 1719 he was born to Thomas Gage 1st Viscount Gage and Benedicta Maria Theresa Hall Viscountess Gage in New Brunswick New Jersey. On 2nd April 1787 General Thomas Gage died.
On 21st May 1772 [his son] John Singleton Copley 1st Baron Lyndhurst was born to John Singleton Copley (age 33).
On 23rd September 1773 [his daughter] Mary Copley was born to John Singleton Copley (age 35).
In 1774 John Singleton Copley (age 35) moved to London.
1780 John Singleton Copley (age 41). Portrait of Hugh Montgomerie 12th Earl Eglinton (age 40).
Hugh Montgomerie 12th Earl Eglinton: On 5th November 1739 he was born to Alexander Montgomerie. On 30th October 1796 Archibald Montgomerie 11th Earl Eglinton died at Eglinton Castle, Kilwinning. His third cousin Hugh succeeded 12th Earl Eglinton. On 14th December 1819 Hugh Montgomerie 12th Earl Eglinton died. His grandson Archibald succeeded 13th Earl Eglinton.
1794 John Singleton Copley (age 55). Portrait of Richard Howe 1st Earl Howe (age 67). He wears an admiral's undress uniform of 1783 to 1787, of a blue jacket with gold braid.
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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1795 John Singleton Copley (age 56). Portrait of Charles Cornwallis 1st Marquess Cornwallis (age 56).
Around 1797 John Singleton Copley (age 58). Portrait of Henry Addington 1st Viscount Sidmouth (age 39).
1798 John Singleton Copley (age 59). Portrait of Adam Duncan 1st Viscount Duncan (age 66).
Around 1800 John Singleton Copley (age 61). Portrait of George John Spencer 2nd Earl Spencer (age 41).
Before 1804 John Singleton Copley (age 65). Portrait of Adam Duncan 1st Viscount Duncan (age 72).
Before 1815 John Singleton Copley (age 76). Portrait of Henry Addington 1st Viscount Sidmouth (age 57).
On 9th September 1815 John Singleton Copley (age 77) died. He was buried in Croydon Minster.