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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Earl Wessex is in Earldoms of England Alphabetically, Earldoms of England Chronologically, Extinct Earldoms of England.
Summary
1020. Godwin 1st Earl Kent and Wessex [aged 19] created.
15th April 1053. Son King Harold II of England [aged 31] succeeded.
14th October 1066. King Harold II of England extinct. See 14th October 1066 Battle of Hastings.
Before 1020 Godwin 1st Earl Kent and Wessex [aged 18] was created 1st Earl Wessex.
Before 1021 Godwin 1st Earl Kent and Wessex [aged 19] and Gytha Countess Kent and Wessex were married. She by marriage Countess Kent, Countess Wessex.
On 15th April 1053 Godwin 1st Earl Kent and Wessex [aged 52] died. His son Leofwine [aged 18] succeeded 2nd Earl Kent. His son Harold Godinson [aged 31] succeeded 2nd Earl Wessex.
On 14th October 1066 the Norman army led by King William "Conqueror" I of England [aged 38] defeated the English army of King Harold II of England [aged 44] at the 14th October 1066 Battle of Hastings fought at Senlac Hill Hastings. Aimery Thouars [aged 42], Ralph de Gael 2nd Earl East Anglia [aged 24], Eustace II Count Boulogne [aged 51], William Fitzosbern 1st Earl Hereford [aged 46], Geoffrey Chateaudun II Count Mortain III Count Perche, William Warenne 1st Earl of Surrey, Raoul Tosny, Robert Beaumont 1st Earl of Leicester Count Meulan [aged 26], Hugh Grandesmil [aged 34], Roger "The Great" Montgomery 1st Earl of Shrewsbury (possibly), Robert Mortain Count Mortain 1st Earl Cornwall [aged 35] and Bishop Odo of Bayeux fought for William.
King Harold II of England was killed. Earl Wessex, Earl Hereford extinct.
Leofwine Godwinson 2nd Earl Kent [aged 31] was killed. Earl Kent extinct.
His brothers Gyrth Godwinson Earl East Anglia [aged 34] and Engenulphe Aigle [aged 56] were killed.