Chronicle of Walter of Guisborough
A canon regular of the Augustinian Guisborough Priory, Yorkshire, formerly known as The Chronicle of Walter of Hemingburgh, describes the period from 1066 to 1346. Before 1274 the Chronicle is based on other works. Thereafter, the Chronicle is original, and a remarkable source for the events of the time. This book provides a translation of the Chronicle from that date. The Latin source for our translation is the 1849 work edited by Hans Claude Hamilton. Hamilton, in his preface, says: 'In the present work we behold perhaps one of the finest samples of our early chronicles, both as regards the value of the events recorded, and the correctness with which they are detailed; Nor will the pleasing style of composition be lightly passed over by those capable of seeing reflected from it the tokens of a vigorous and cultivated mind, and a favourable specimen of the learning and taste of the age in which it was framed.'
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Around 1484 Nicholas Hare was born to [his father] John Hare of Homersfield in Suffolk. He was educated at Gonville College, Cambridge University and admitted to the Inner Temple in 1515.
Around 1528 Nicholas Hare (age 44) and Katherine Bassingbourne (age 25) were married. They had three sons and three daughters.
In 1529 Nicholas Hare (age 45) was elected MP Downton.
In 1539 Nicholas Hare (age 55) was elected Speaker of the House of Commons.
In May 1539 Nicholas Hare (age 55) was knighted.
Chronicle of Edward Hall [1496-1548]. 12th April 1540. The xii. daie of Aprill began a Parliament, and sir Nicholas Hare (age 56) restored to the office of speaker, in the whiche was frely graunted, without contradicions, foure fiftenes and a Subsedy, of twoo s. of landes, and xii. d. of goodes, toward the greate charges of Bulwarkes.
In 1545 Nicholas Hare (age 61) was elected MP Lancaster.
In 1547 Nicholas Hare (age 63) was elected MP Taunton.
In 1553 Nicholas Hare (age 69) was appointed Master of the Rolls.
In 1554 Nicholas Hare (age 70) presided at the trial of Nicholas Throckmorton (age 39) for his involvement in Wyatt's Rebellion.
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.
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On 31st October 1557 Nicholas Hare (age 73) died. He was buried on 8th November 1557 at Temple Church, London [Map].
Henry Machyn's Diary. 8th November 1557. The viij day of November was bered with-in the Tempull [Map] ser Necolas Hare (deceased), knyght, and master of the rolles, with ij whytt branchys and (blank) torches, and a herse garnyshed with wax and penselles and armes; and with a harold of armes; and with a standard, and a penon, and cote of armes, elmett, targatt, and sword; and a viij dosen of skochyons.
Note. P. 156. Ibid. Funeral of sir Nicholas Hare. Having been a master of requests to Henry VIII. and Edward VI. he was constituted master of the rolls by patent 18 Sept. 1553. His wife Catharine survived him not quite a month. See their epitaph printed in Dugdale's Origines Juridiciales, fol. 1671, p. 178.
Around 21st November 1557 [his former wife] Katherine Bassingbourne (age 54) died.
Henry Machyn's Diary. 30th November 1557. [The xxv day of November died the [his former wife] lady Hare (deceased), late wife] unto ser Necolaus Hare (deceased), knyght, and [master of the rolls, the] wyche she ded at (blank).