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 1568 Elizabeth Boughton Countess Devonshire was born to [her father] Edward Boughton (age 23).
Around 21st March 1580 [her future husband] William Cavendish 1st Earl Devonshire (age 27) and Anne Keighley (age 17) were married. He the son of William Cavendish and [her future mother-in-law] Bess of Hardwick Countess Shrewsbury and Waterford (age 53).
On 12th September 1589 [her father] Edward Boughton (age 44) died.
Around 1590 [her daughter] Elizabeth Wortley was born to [her future husband] Richard Wortley (age 25) and Elizabeth Boughton Countess Devonshire (age 22). She married in or before 1611 Henry Crofts and had issue.
Around 1593 [her son] Edward Wortley was born to [her future husband] Richard Wortley (age 28) and Elizabeth Boughton Countess Devonshire (age 25). He married before 1661 Elizabeth Eldred Lady Tryon.
Before 1603 Richard Wortley (age 37) and Elizabeth Boughton Countess Devonshire (age 34) were married.
In 1603 [her future husband] William Cavendish 1st Earl Devonshire (age 50) was appointed Justice of the Peace Derbyshire.
In 1603 [her husband] Richard Wortley (age 38) died.
After 1603 William Cavendish 1st Earl Devonshire (age 50) and Elizabeth Boughton Countess Devonshire (age 35) were married. He the son of William Cavendish and Bess of Hardwick Countess Shrewsbury and Waterford (age 76).
In 1605 [her husband] William Cavendish 1st Earl Devonshire (age 52) was created 1st Baron Cavendish Hardwick. Elizabeth Boughton Countess Devonshire (age 37) by marriage Baroness Cavendish Hardwick.
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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In 1608 William Maynard 1st Baron Maynard (age 21) and [her step-daughter] Frances Cavendish (age 15) were married. Their 3 children predeceased him. She the daughter of [her husband] William Cavendish 1st Earl Devonshire (age 55) and Anne Keighley (age 45).
On 13th February 1608 Bess of Hardwick (age 81) died. She was buried in All Saints Church, Derby [Map]. Her monument, which she had constructed before her death, was designed by Robert Smythson (age 38). She left nothing in her will for her 'bad son' Henry Cavendish (age 57). He did, however, inherit Chatsworth House, Derbyshire [Map] which he subsequently sold in 1609 to his brother William Cavendish 1st Earl Devonshire (age 55) for £10,000.
The date of her funeral somewhat complicated. Rawsons 1910 book "Bess of Hardwick and her Circle" quotes Simpson's National Records of Derby for 1608: "The old Countess of Shrewsbury died about Candlemas this year, whose funeral was about Holy Thursday. A great frost this year. The witches of Bakewell hanged." Holy Thursday, the Feast of the Ascension, is thirty-nine days after Easter. Easter in 1608 was on the 6th of April, putting Holy Thursday on the 15th of May.
Ethel Carleton Williams "Bess of Hardwick", 1959, has a note: "9. The date of Bess of Hardwick's funeral is uncertain. The date on the coffin plate is said to be February 1608 (Cox and Hope, Chronicles of the Collegiate Church of All Saints, Derby), but on 31 March 1608 Gilbert Talbot wrote to Robert Cecil, excusing himself for not attending St George's Feast on the ground that his mother-in-law's funeral was to be on St George's Day (23 April). Later, on 3rd of April, the Earl of Arundel wrote to Gilbert (his father-in-law), 'the funeral at Derby is appointed to be either on the fourth or fifth of May, which Garter yet knoweth not, but rather thinketh on the fourth because the other is a holy day'".
Neither of which provide a definite answer. The former being around the 15th of May, the latter 'rather thinketh' the 4th of May. Are there any other contemporary sources available?
On 10th April 1608 [her step-son] William Cavendish 2nd Earl Devonshire (age 18) and Christian Bruce Countess Devonshire were married. He the son of [her husband] William Cavendish 1st Earl Devonshire (age 55) and Anne Keighley (age 45).
In or before 1611 [her son-in-law] Henry Crofts (age 20) and Elizabeth Wortley (age 20) were married. She the daughter of Richard Wortley and Elizabeth Boughton Countess Devonshire (age 42).
In 1613 [her step-daughter] Frances Cavendish (age 20) died.
On 18th January 1618 [her son] John Cavendish died.
On 2nd August 1618 [her husband] William Cavendish 1st Earl Devonshire (age 65) was created 1st Earl Devonshire, at the Bishop's Palace, Salisbury Cathedral. Elizabeth Boughton Countess Devonshire (age 50) by marriage Countess Devonshire.
Letters of John Chamberlain Volume 2.310. [19th December 1618] Yt is growne altogether in fashion to burie now by night, as on Sonday last the Lady Haddington1 had a solemne convoy of almost an hundred coaches (and torches in aboundance), that accompanied her from Westminster to White-chappell on her way to New-hall in Essex where she is to be buried: in this troupe besides the countesses of Bedford (age 38), Excester (age 38), and Devonshire (age 50) was the Lady Verulam (age 26) with a world of other Ladies. The countesse of Salisburie (age 28) the Friday before made a great feast and a play, though her husband (age 27) were absent at court, and the rest of her house and frends in sorow about a lewde libell, that (excepting the highest) runs over all the court and countrie almost that followes not theyre faction, and though the author cannot be found out, yet notice is taken that the Lady of Wallingford (age 35) was one of the first that sunge yt, and the King thinckes of her yt may be required. I heare of another crosse libell that shold pay her and all hers in the same coine, but for my part I protest I have neither seene nor seeke after any of them, but only heare the generall buzze abrode.
Note 1. Cf. Letters 309.
In 1619 [her step-son] William Cavendish 2nd Earl Devonshire (age 29) was appointed Lord Lieutenant of Derbyshire.
On 3rd March 1626 [her husband] William Cavendish 1st Earl Devonshire (age 73) died. His son [her step-son] William (age 36) succeeded 2nd Earl Devonshire, 2nd Baron Cavendish Hardwick. Christian Bruce Countess Devonshire by marriage Countess Devonshire. On 12th October 1616 [her brother-in-law] Henry Cavendish died. Both were buried at St Peter's Church, Edensor [Map].
The monument was behind the altar in the original church but moved to a separate chapel in the new church.
Monument formed two bodies under a low four-poster with black Ionic columns and black covering slab. The monument has been attributed to Maximilian Colt (age 51).
In 1634 [her son-in-law] Edward Radclyffe 6th Earl of Sussex (age 75) and Eleanor Wortley Countess Sussex Warwick Manchester were married. She by marriage Countess of Sussex. She the daughter of Richard Wortley and Elizabeth Boughton Countess Devonshire (age 66). They were fourth cousin once removed.
In 1642 Elizabeth Boughton Countess Devonshire (age 74) died.
The Deeds of the Dukes of Normandy
The Gesta Normannorum Ducum [The Deeds of the Dukes of Normandy] is a landmark medieval chronicle tracing the rise and fall of the Norman dynasty from its early roots through the pivotal events surrounding the Norman Conquest of England. Originally penned in Latin by the monk William of Jumièges shortly before 1060 and later expanded at the behest of William the Conqueror, the work chronicles the deeds, politics, battles, and leadership of the Norman dukes, especially William’s own claim to the English throne. The narrative combines earlier historical sources with firsthand information and oral testimony to present an authoritative account of Normandy’s transformation from a Viking settlement into one of medieval Europe’s most powerful realms. William’s history emphasizes the legitimacy, military prowess, and governance of the Norman line, framing their expansion, including the conquest of England, as both divinely sanctioned and noble in purpose. Later chroniclers such as Orderic Vitalis and Robert of Torigni continued the history, extending the coverage into the 12th century, providing broader context on ducal rule and its impact. Today this classic work remains a foundational source for understanding Norman identity, medieval statesmanship, and the historical forces that reshaped England and Western Europe between 800AD and 1100AD.
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[her daughter] Eleanor Wortley Countess Sussex Warwick Manchester was born to Richard Wortley and Elizabeth Boughton Countess Devonshire. She married (1) 1634 her fourth cousin once removed Edward Radclyffe 6th Earl of Sussex (2) after 1646 her fifth cousin once removed Robert Rich 2nd Earl Warwick, son of Robert Rich 1st Earl Warwick and Penelope Devereux Countess Devonshire (3) July 1659 Edward Montagu 2nd Earl Manchester, son of Henry Montagu 1st Earl Manchester and Catherine Spencer.
[her son] John Cavendish was born to William Cavendish 1st Earl Devonshire and Elizabeth Boughton Countess Devonshire.
GrandFather: Thomas Boughton
Father: Edward Boughton