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.
Available at Amazon in eBook and Paperback format.
Paternal Family Tree: Aubrey
Mary Aubrey was born to [her father] John Aubrey 1st Baronet and [her mother] Mary South.
On 18th June 1646 [her future husband] William Montagu (age 28) and Elizabeth Freman were married.
In or before 1650 [her father] John Aubrey 1st Baronet (age 43) and [her mother] Mary South were married.
On 7th December 1651 William Montagu (age 33) and Mary Aubrey were married.
On 30th November 1654 [her sister-in-law] Elizabeth Montagu Countess Lindsey died.
Samuel Pepys' Diary. 2nd January 1662. An invitation sent us before we were up from my Lady Sandwich's (age 37), to come and dine with her: so at the office all the morning, and at noon thither to dinner, where there was a good and great dinner, and the company, [her husband] Mr. William Montagu (age 44) and his Lady (but she seemed so far from the beauty that I expected her from my Lady's talk to be, that it put me into an ill humour all the day, to find my expectation so lost), Mr. Rurttball and Townsend and their wives.
Samuel Pepys' Diary. 20th January 1664. At his lodgings this morning there came to him [her husband] Mr. W. Montague's (age 46) fine lady, which occasioned my Lord's calling me to her about some business for a friend of hers preferred to be a midshipman at sea. My Lord recommended the whole matter to me. She is a fine confident lady, I think, but not so pretty as I once thought her. My Lord did also seal a lease for the house he is now taking in Lincoln's Inn Fields, which stands him in 250 per annum rent.
Samuel Pepys' Diary. 30th December 1667. Thence to the Old Exchange [Map] together, he telling me that he believes there will be no such turning out of great men as is talked of, but that it is only to fright people, but I do fear there may be such a thing doing. He do mightily inveigh against the folly of the King (age 37) to bring his matters to wrack thus, and that we must all be undone without help. I met with Cooling at the Temple-gate, after I had been at both my booksellers and there laid out several pounds in books now against the new year. From the 'Change [Map] (where I met with Captain Cocke (age 50), who would have borrowed money of me, but I had the grace to deny him, he would have had 3 or £400) I with Cocke and Mr. Temple (whose wife was just now brought to bed of a boy, but he seems not to be at all taken with it, which is a strange consideration how others do rejoice to have a child born), to Sir G. Carteret's (age 57), in Lincoln's Inn Fields, and there did dine together, there being there, among other company, [her husband] Mr. Attorney Montagu (age 49), and his fine lady, a fine woman.
On 19th May 1671 [her sister-in-law] Frances Montagu Countess Rutland (age 57) died at Bottesford, Leicestershire.
Chronicle of a Bourgeois of Valenciennes
Récits d’un bourgeois de Valenciennes aka The Chronicle of a Bourgeois of Valenciennes is a vivid 14th-century vernacular chronicle written by an anonymous urban chronicler from Valenciennes in the County of Hainaut. It survives in a manuscript that describes local and regional history from about 1253 to 1366, blending chronology, narrative episodes, and eyewitness-style accounts of political, military, and social events in medieval France, Flanders, and the Low Countries. The work begins with a chronological framework of events affecting Valenciennes and its region under rulers such as King Philip VI of France and the shifting allegiances of local nobility. It includes accounts of conflicts, sieges, diplomatic manoeuvres, and the impact of broader struggles like the Hundred Years’ War on urban life in Hainaut. Written from the perspective of a burgher (bourgeois) rather than a monastery or royal court, the chronicle offers a rare lay viewpoint on high politics and warfare, reflecting how merchants, townspeople, and civic institutions experienced the turbulence of the 13th and 14th centuries. Its narrative style combines straightforward reporting of events with moral and civic observations, making it a valuable source for readers interested in medieval urban society, regional politics, and the lived experience of war and governance in pre-modern Europe.
Available at Amazon in eBook and Paperback format.
In 1679 [her father] John Aubrey 1st Baronet (age 73) died. His son [her brother] John (age 29) succeeded 2nd Baronet Aubrey of Llantrithyd in Glamorganshire. Margaret Lowther Lady Aubrey by marriage Lady Aubrey of Llantrithyd in Glamorganshire.
On 10th March 1700 Mary Aubrey died.
In 1706 [her former husband] William Montagu (age 88) died at Weekley, Leicestershire.
Great x 1 Grandfather: William Aubrey
GrandFather: Thomas Aubrey
Father: John Aubrey 1st Baronet
GrandMother: Mary Mansell 
GrandFather: Richard South
Mother: Mary South