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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Paternal Family Tree: Zouche
Around 1203 Alan Zouche was born to [his father] Roger Zouche [aged 28] and [his mother] Margaret Bisset at Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Leicestershire.
In or before 1242 Alan Zouche [aged 38] and Helen or Ela Quincy were married. She the daughter of Roger de Quincy 2nd Earl Winchester [aged 46] and Helen Galloway Countess Winchester.
Around 1242 [his daughter] Helen Zouche was born to Alan Zouche [aged 39] and [his wife] Helen or Ela Quincy at Winchester, Hampshire [Map].
On 29th September 1242 [his son] Roger Zouche was born to Alan Zouche [aged 39] and [his wife] Helen or Ela Quincy at Lubbesthorpe Manor Lubbesthorpe Blaby, Leicestershire. He married before 1267 his fourth cousin Ela Longespée and had issue.
Around 1250 [his son] Oliver Zouche was born to Alan Zouche [aged 47] and [his wife] Helen or Ela Quincy.
Around 1251 [his daughter] Margaret Zouche Baroness Warkworth was born to Alan Zouche [aged 48] and [his wife] Helen or Ela Quincy. She married after 1307 Robert Fitzroger 5th Baron Warkworth, son of Roger Fitzjohn 4th Baron Warkworth, and had issue.
On 31st October 1266 the Dictum of Kenilworth was issued. The Dictum was a peace agreement between King Henry III of England [aged 59] and the rebels who were besieged in the impregnable Kenilworth Castle [Map]. The committee included: Bishop Walter Branscombe [aged 46], Archbishop Walter Giffard [aged 41], Bishop Nicholas Ely, Gilbert de Clare 8th Earl Gloucester 7th Earl Hertford, Humphrey Bohun 2nd Earl Hereford 1st Earl Essex [aged 62], Philip Basset [aged 82], John Balliol [aged 58], Robert Walerand, Alan Zouche [aged 63], Roger Somery 2nd Baron Dudley [aged 76], and Warin Bassingbourne.
Robert Ferrers 6th Earl of Derby [aged 27] and Henry Hastings [aged 31] were fined seven times their annual income. The Dictum, however, required the rebels to pay their fines before being restored to their lands; something of a Catch-22 since if they weren't restored to their lands, they would have no income to pay the fine.
On 23rd June 1267 Alan Zouche [aged 64] was appointed Warden of London and Constable of the Tower of London which offices he held until September.
On 19th June 1270 Alan Zouche [aged 67] and his son Roger Zouche [aged 27] were attacked at during a trial between him and John Warenne 6th Earl of Surrey [aged 39]. Alan was seriously injured and left on the spot, his son escaped. On 4th August 1270 John Warenne 6th Earl of Surrey agreed to pay substantial compensation to the injured. Alan died eight days later.
On 12th August 1270 Alan Zouche [aged 67] died as a consequence of the wounds he had received a month before during a skirmish with supporters of John Warenne 6th Earl of Surrey [aged 39].
[his father] Roger Zouche and [his mother] Margaret Bisset were married.
[his son] Henry Zouche was born to Alan Zouche and Helen or Ela Quincy.
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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[his daughter] Lucy Zouche was born to Alan Zouche and Helen or Ela Quincy.
[his son] Eudo Zouche was born to Alan Zouche and Helen or Ela Quincy.
[his daughter] Margaret Zouche was born to Alan Zouche and Helen or Ela Quincy.
[his daughter] Alice Zouche was born to Alan Zouche and Helen or Ela Quincy.
Joan Beaufort Queen Consort Scotland [1]
King Richard III of England [2]
Anne Neville Queen Consort England [2]
King Henry VII of England and Ireland [1]
Catherine Parr Queen Consort England [2]
Jane Grey I Queen England and Ireland [3]
George Wharton [19]
Brigadier-General Charles Fitz-Clarence [69]
Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom [274]
Queen Consort Camilla Shand [87]
Mother: Margaret Bisset
