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: Knatchbull
Maternal Family Tree: Mary Harvey Lady Dering 1629-1704
Around 1674 Edward Knatchbull 4th Baronet was born to [his father] Thomas Knatchbull 3rd Baronet (age 34) and [his mother] Mary Dering.
On 15th December 1696 [his uncle] John Knatchbull 2nd Baronet (age 60) died. His brother [his father] Thomas (age 56) succeeded 3rd Baronet Knatchbull of Mersham Hatch in Kent.
In 1698 Edward Knatchbull 4th Baronet (age 24) and Alice Wyndham Lady Knatchbull (age 21) were married. They had eight children, three daughters and five sons.
On 26th November 1699 [his son] Wyndham Knatchbull-Wyndham 5th Baronet was born to Edward Knatchbull 4th Baronet (age 25) and [his wife] Alice Wyndham Lady Knatchbull (age 23). He married 23rd June 1730 Catherine Harris Lady Knatchbull and had issue.
In 1702 Edward Knatchbull 4th Baronet (age 28) was elected MP Rochester which seat he held until 1705.
On 12th December 1704 [his son] Edward Knatchbull 7th Baronet was born to Edward Knatchbull 4th Baronet (age 30) and [his wife] Alice Wyndham Lady Knatchbull (age 28). He married before 1760 Grace Legge and had issue.
After 12th December 1711 [his father] Thomas Knatchbull 3rd Baronet (deceased) died. His son Edward (age 37) succeeded 4th Baronet Knatchbull of Mersham Hatch in Kent. [his wife] Alice Wyndham Lady Knatchbull (age 35) by marriage Lady Knatchbull of Mersham Hatch in Kent.
Before 1712 [his father] Thomas Knatchbull 3rd Baronet and [his mother] Mary Dering were married.
In 1713 Edward Knatchbull 4th Baronet (age 39) was elected MP Kent which seat he held until 1715.
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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In 1722 Edward Knatchbull 4th Baronet (age 48) was elected MP Kent which seat he held until 1727.
On 15th April 1723 [his wife] Alice Wyndham Lady Knatchbull (age 47) died.
On or before 24th June 1724, the date she was buried, [his mother] Mary Dering died.
In 1728 Edward Knatchbull 4th Baronet (age 54) was elected MP Lostwithiel which seat he held until his death in 1730.
On 3rd April 1730 Edward Knatchbull 4th Baronet (age 56) died. His son Wyndham (age 30) succeeded 5th Baronet Knatchbull of Mersham Hatch in Kent.
Kings Wessex: Great x 19 Grand Son of King Edmund "Ironside" I of England
Kings Gwynedd: Great x 16 Grand Son of Owain "Great" King Gwynedd
Kings Seisyllwg: Great x 22 Grand Son of Hywel "Dda aka Good" King Seisyllwg King Deheubarth
Kings Powys: Great x 17 Grand Son of Maredudd ap Bleddyn King Powys
Kings Godwinson: Great x 20 Grand Son of King Harold II of England
Kings England: Great x 10 Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Kings Scotland: Great x 18 Grand Son of King Duncan I of Scotland
Kings Franks: Great x 16 Grand Son of Louis VII King of the Franks
Kings France: Great x 19 Grand Son of Robert "Pious" II King of the Franks
Kings Duke Aquitaine: Great x 24 Grand Son of Ranulf I Duke Aquitaine
Great x 1 Grandfather: Thomas Knatchbull
GrandFather: Norton Knatchbull 1st Baronet 8 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Thomas Astley of Hilmorton and Melton Constable
Great x 2 Grandfather: John Astley
Great x 4 Grandfather: John Wood aka Wode
Great x 3 Grandmother: Anne Wood aka Wode
Great x 1 Grandmother: Eleanor Astley 7 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Thomas Grey 2nd Marquess Dorset 
4 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Thomas Grey 5 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Margaret Wotton Marchioness Dorset 
Great x 2 Grandmother: Margaret Grey 6 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Father: Thomas Knatchbull 3rd Baronet 9 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 1 Grandfather: Thomas Westrow
GrandMother: Dorothy Westrow
Edward Knatchbull 4th Baronet 10 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 2 Grandfather: Anthony Dering of Surrenden Dering in Pluckley in Kent
Great x 1 Grandfather: Edward Dering 1st Baronet
Great x 3 Grandfather: Robert Bell
Great x 2 Grandmother: Frances Bell
Great x 4 Grandfather: Edmonde Beaupré of Beaupré Hall Norfolk
Great x 3 Grandmother: Dorothie Beaupré
GrandFather: Edward Dering 2nd Baronet 11 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: John Ashburnham
Great x 2 Grandfather: John Ashburnham
Great x 1 Grandmother: Anne Ashburnham Lady Dering 10 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Nicholas Beaumont of Coleorton in Leicestershire 
7 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 3 Grandfather: Thomas Beaumont 8 x Great Grand Son of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Anne Saunders
Great x 2 Grandmother: Elizabeth Beaumont 9 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Thomas Farnham
Great x 3 Grandmother: Katherine Farnham
Mother: Mary Dering 12 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward III of England
Great x 1 Grandfather: Daniel Harvey
GrandMother: Mary Harvey Lady Dering