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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County Durham River Derwent

Blanchland, Northumberland Derwent Reservoir Consett, County Durham Ebchester, County Durham Hamsterley, County Durham Rowland's Gill, County Durham

County Durham River Derwent is in River Tyne.

The County Durham River Derwent rises near Blanchland, Northumberland [Map] being formed from a number of streams and burns that rise on Newbiggin Fell and Heatheryburn Moor. From Blanchland, Northumberland [Map] it flows through the Derwent Reservoir [Map], past Consett, County Durham [Map], Ebchester, County Durham [Map], Hamsterley, County Durham [Map] and Rowland's Gill, County Durham [Map] after which it joins the River Tyne.