Text this colour is a link for Members only. Support us by becoming a Member for only £3 a month by joining our 'Buy Me A Coffee page'; Membership gives you access to all content and removes ads.

Text this colour links to Pages. Text this colour links to Family Trees. Place the mouse over images to see a larger image. Click on paintings to see the painter's Biography Page. Mouse over links for a preview. Move the mouse off the painting or link to close the popup.



Biography of George Harper 1503-1558

On 11th March 1503 George Harper was born to Richard Harper of Latton in Essex.

In November 1524 George Harper (age 21) and Lucy Peckham (age 20) were married.

In 1533 George Harper (age 29) was appointed Esquire to the Body.

In 1539 George Harper (age 35) was appointed Justice of the Peace Kent.

In 1548 George Harper (age 44) was appointed High Sheriff of Kent.

In 1552 [his wife] Lucy Peckham (age 48) died.

Before June 1556 George Harper (age 53) and Audrey Gainsford were married.

Before 12th December 1558 George Harper (age 55) died.

Henry Machyn's Diary. 12th December 1558. The xij of Desember was bered at sant Martens at Ludgat ser Gorge Harper (age 55) knyght, with ij haroldes of armes, with ij whyt branchys, xij torchys, and iiij gret tapurs; and a standard, a pennon, and cote armur, target, sword, mantyll, and crest a gylt bore [boar], and v dosen of skochyons of armes, and mony morners, and ther had xvj pore men had gownes.

Note. P. 181. Note. Funeral of sir George Harper. "Sir George Harper knight dysceased the 7. of December at his howsse within the late Blacke Fryers in London in the fyrst yere of quene Elizabeth 1558, and was buryed in the parishe churche of St. Marten's in Ludgate the xijth of December. He had maryed Awdre doughter of sir John Gaynsford of Surrey wyff before to George Tayler of Lyngfield in Surrey, and after to Caryngton of Sussex." (MS. Harl. 897, p. 26.) His widow was buried at the same church Jan. 27, 1559. Malcolm's Londinium Redivivum, iv. 358.

All About History Books

The 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.

After 12th December 1558 George Carleton (age 29) and [his former wife] Audrey Gainsford were married.

Before 27th January 1560 [his former wife] Audrey Gainsford died.

Henry Machyn's Diary. 27th January 1560. The xxvij day of January was cared from [Black] frers unto sant Martens at Ludgatt to be bered my [his former wife] lade Harper, by her furst hosband ser Gorge Harper knyght, and the wyff of master Carlton (age 31), with a pennon of armes, and ij dosen and a d' of skochyons of armes, and re .. mad in the chyrche and hangyd with blake and armes; and haroldes of armes, master Clarenshux (age 50) and master Somersett, [and] mony morners in blake; the cheyff morner was ...

George Taylor of Lingfield in Surrey and Audrey Gainsford were married.