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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.
Available at Amazon in eBook and Paperback format.
Maternal Family Tree: Elizabeth Massingberd Couness Berkeley 1708
Elizabeth Massingberd Couness Berkeley was born to [her father] John Massingberd.
On 11th August 1646 George Berkeley 1st Earl Berkeley (age 18) and Elizabeth Massingberd Couness Berkeley were married.
On 8th April 1649 [her son] Charles Berkeley 2nd Earl Berkeley was born to [her husband] George Berkeley 1st Earl Berkeley (age 21) and Elizabeth Massingberd Couness Berkeley. He married 16th August 1677 Elizabeth Noel Countess Berkeley, daughter of Baptist Noel 3rd Viscount Campden and Hester Wotton Viscountess Campden, and had issue.
Around 1650 [her daughter] Elizabeth Berkeley was born to [her husband] George Berkeley 1st Earl Berkeley (age 22) and Elizabeth Massingberd Couness Berkeley.
On 23rd November 1653 [her father] John Massingberd died. He was buried at St Leonard's Church, Streatham.
On 10th August 1658 [her father-in-law] George Berkeley 8th Baron Berkeley (age 56) died. His son [her husband] George (age 30) succeeded 9th Baron Berkeley. Elizabeth Massingberd Couness Berkeley by marriage Baroness Berkeley.
Around 1664 [her daughter] Arethusa Berkeley Baroness Clifford was born to [her husband] George Berkeley 1st Earl Berkeley (age 36) and Elizabeth Massingberd Couness Berkeley. She married 1679 her fifth cousin once removed Charles Boyle 3rd Baron Clifford, son of Richard Boyle 2nd Earl Cork 1st Earl Burlington and Elizabeth Clifford Countess Burlington, and had issue.
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.
Available at Amazon in eBook and Paperback format.
Around 1665 [her daughter] Henrietta Berkeley was born to [her husband] George Berkeley 1st Earl Berkeley (age 37) and Elizabeth Massingberd Couness Berkeley.
Samuel Pepys' Diary. 14th July 1667. By and by he parted, and we took coach and to take the ayre, there being a fine breeze abroad; and I went and carried them to the well, and there filled some bottles of water to carry home with me; and there talked with the two women that farm the well, at £12 per annum, of the lord of the manor, Mr. Evelyn (age 50) (who with his lady, and also my [her husband] Lord George Barkeley's (age 39) lady, and their fine [her daughter] daughter (age 17), that the King of France (age 28) liked so well, and did dance so rich in jewells before the King (age 37) at the Ball I was at, at our Court, last winter, and also their [her son] son (age 18), a Knight of the Bath, were at church this morning).
On 14th May 1668 [her son-in-law] Kingsmill Lucy 2nd Baronet (age 19) and [her daughter] Theophila Berkeley were married at St James' Church, Clerkenwell. She the daughter of [her husband] George Berkeley 1st Earl Berkeley (age 40) and Elizabeth Massingberd Couness Berkeley.
John Evelyn's Diary. 13th August 1673. I rode to Durdans, where I dined at my [her husband] Lord Berkeley's (age 45) of Berkeley Castle, my old and noble friend, it being his wedding anniversary [Note. 11 Aug 1646 he married Elizabeth Massingberd Couness Berkeley], where I found the Duchess of Albemarle (age 19), and other company, and returned home on that evening late.
John Evelyn's Diary. 10th November 1675. Being the day appointed for my [her husband] Lord Ambassador (age 47) to set out, I met them with my coach at New Cross. There were with him my Lady his wife, and my dear friend, Mrs. Godolphin (age 23), who, out of an extraordinary friendship, would needs accompany my lady to Paris [Map], and stay with her some time, which was the chief inducement for permitting my son (age 20) to travel, but I knew him safe under her inspection, and in regard my Lord himself had promised to take him into his special favor, he having intrusted all he had to my care.
John Evelyn's Diary. 12th November 1675. There was in my Lady Ambassadress's company my Lady Hamilton (age 70), a sprightly young lady, much in the good graces of the family, wife of that valiant and worthy gentleman, George Hamilton (age 68), not long after slain in the wars. She had been a maid of honor to the Duchess, and now turned Papist.
On 16th August 1677 [her son] Charles Berkeley 2nd Earl Berkeley (age 28) and [her daughter-in-law] Elizabeth Noel Countess Berkeley (age 23) were married. He the son of [her husband] George Berkeley 1st Earl Berkeley (age 49) and Elizabeth Massingberd Couness Berkeley.
Before 1678 [her son-in-law] Ford Grey 1st Earl Tankerville (age 22) and [her daughter] Mary Berkeley Countess Tankerville were married. She by marriage Baroness Grey Werke in Northumberland. She the daughter of [her husband] George Berkeley 1st Earl Berkeley (age 49) and Elizabeth Massingberd Couness Berkeley. They were fourth cousin twice removed.
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.
Available at Amazon in eBook and Paperback format.
In 1679 [her son-in-law] Charles Boyle 3rd Baron Clifford (age 39) and [her daughter] Arethusa Berkeley Baroness Clifford (age 15) were married. The difference in their ages was 24 years. She the daughter of [her husband] George Berkeley 1st Earl Berkeley (age 51) and Elizabeth Massingberd Couness Berkeley. He the son of Richard Boyle 2nd Earl Cork 1st Earl Burlington (age 66) and Elizabeth Clifford Countess Burlington (age 65). They were fifth cousin once removed.
On 11th September 1679 [her husband] George Berkeley 1st Earl Berkeley (age 51) was created 1st Earl Berkeley, 1st Viscount Dursley. Elizabeth Massingberd Couness Berkeley by marriage Countess Berkeley.
In 1681 [her daughter] Elizabeth Berkeley (age 31) died.
In 1694 [her son] George Berkeley died.
On 10th October 1698 [her husband] George Berkeley 1st Earl Berkeley (age 70) died. He was buried at St Dunstan Church, Cranford. His son [her son] Charles (age 49) succeeded 2nd Earl Berkeley, 2nd Viscount Dursley, 10th Baron Berkeley. [her daughter-in-law] Elizabeth Noel Countess Berkeley (age 44) by marriage Countess Berkeley.
In 1703 [her daughter] Theophila Berkeley died.
Before 10th December 1708 Elizabeth Massingberd Couness Berkeley died. She was buried in St Dunstan Church, Cranford.
[her daughter] Theophila Berkeley was born to George Berkeley 1st Earl Berkeley and Elizabeth Massingberd Couness Berkeley. She married 14th May 1668 Kingsmill Lucy 2nd Baronet, son of Richard Lucy 1st Baronet and Jane Chapman Lady Lucy, and had issue.
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.
Available at Amazon in eBook and Paperback format.
[her son] George Berkeley was born to George Berkeley 1st Earl Berkeley and Elizabeth Massingberd Couness Berkeley.
[her daughter] Arabella Berkeley was born to George Berkeley 1st Earl Berkeley and Elizabeth Massingberd Couness Berkeley.
[her daughter] Mary Berkeley Countess Tankerville was born to George Berkeley 1st Earl Berkeley and Elizabeth Massingberd Couness Berkeley. She married before 1678 her fourth cousin twice removed Ford Grey 1st Earl Tankerville, son of Ralph Grey 2nd Baron Grey Werke and Catherine Anna Ford, and had issue.