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.
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.
September 1470 King Edward flees to Burgundy is in 1469-1471 Wars of the Roses: Warwick Rebels.
On 13th September 1470 Warwick the Kingmaker (age 41) and George, Duke of Clarence (age 20) landed at Dartmouth, Devon and/or Plymouth, Devon [Map].
On 29th September 1470 King Edward IV of England (age 28) fled from King's Lynn, Norfolk [Map] to the court of Charles the Bold (age 36) who had married his sister Margaret (age 24) two years earlier. His brother Richard (age 17).
Gilbert Debenham (age 38) travelled with King Edward IV of England.
Chronicle of Jean de Waurin [1400-1474]. For this reason, the King, in order to escape this danger, realizing that Warwick was so close to him with about fifty thousand men and considering how the said lords, brothers of Warwick, treacherously betrayed him by taking the opposite side, hastily withdrew to the town of Hepshuye1 where he luckily found a ship. He sailed to Holland [29th September 1470]2 accompanied by his brother of Gloucester, the Earl of Rivers, Lord Scales, his squire, Lord Hastings, Lord Duras, and others. He arrived at The Hague, where the Lord of Gruuthuse, Prince of Steinhouse and then governor of the province of Holland, sent by the Duke of Burgundy, received him honourably, as was fitting, and feasted him generously throughout the province of Holland. He conducted himself there so agreeably to the King's wishes that he greatly praised him afterward, as was evident, for he granted him, as a deserving recipient of greater honour and preeminence, the Earldom of Winchester in England.
Pour laquele cause le roy, adfin deschiever ce dangier, adverti que Warewic estoit si prez de lui atout bien chinquante mille hommes, considerant comment lesdis seigneurs, freres de Warewic le trahissoient villainement en prendant party contraire, se tyra hastivement en la ville de Hepshuye ou il trouva daventure navire; si passa en Hollandes, luy adcompaignie de son frere de Clocestre, du comte de Riviere, seigneur de Scalles, son serouge, le seigneur de Hastinghes, le seigneur de Duras et autres, si vint arriver a La Haye, ouquel lieu fut envoie par le duc de Bourguoigne le seigneur de Grathuse, prince de Steinhouse, pour lors gouverneur dudit pays de Hollande, qui honnourablement le recheut, comme bien faire le scavoit, et la le festoia bonne espace parmy ledit pays de Hollande, ei si au gre dudit roy se conduisi que grandement depuis sen loa, comme bien y parut, car il luy eslargy, ainsi que bien digne de plus grant honnour et preeminence, la comte de Wincestre en Angleterre.
Note 1. Hepshuye". Unclear as to the location of Hepshuye. Warkworth's Chronicle has 'Lynn' and the Croyland Continuation has 'Bishop's Lynn', both we now call King's Lynn.
Note 2. See next paragraph: 'He [King Henry] was acknowledged as king from the feast day of Saint Michael [29th of September 1470]' which suggest King Edward left on that date.
Become a Member via our 'Buy Me a Coffee' page to read complete text.
Chronicle of Robert Fabyan [-1512]. [29th September 1470] Then the foresayd lordes holdynge on theyr iournaye drewe towarde the kyng, beyng in ye North, as aboue is sayd. Wherof he beynge warnyd, and hauynge with hym as then but small strength, wherof some to hym were nat very trusty, he with a secrete company toke the next waye towarde the Wash in Lyncolneshyre, and there passed ouer with great daunger, nat without losse of dyuerse of his company, and so passyd the countres into Flaundres, and styntyd nat tyll he came to Charlys his broder, than duke of Burgoyne, with whom he restyd a season. Whanne the quene, whiche thenne was in the Tower, harde of the kynges auoydynge, anone she departyd frome thens, and yode vnto Westmynster, and there regystred herself for a seyntwary [sanctuary] woman, and in lyke wyse dyd many of kynge Edwardes frendes.
Collectanea by John Leland [1502-1552]. [29th September 1470] This tyme Marquis Montacute had gatherid a vi. M. Men yn King Edwardes Name, and cumming nere King Edward, told them how Edwarde had fervid hym, first making hym Erle of Northumbreland, and after gyving it to Percy, and after making hym Marquis Montacute, gyving hym a Pyes Nest to maintein it with al.Wherfor he signified, that he wold take the Erle of Warwik his Brothers Part. King Edwarde hering of this, went to Lynne with the Lorde Hastinges his Chamberlayne, the Lord Say, and other Knighttes, and went to the Duke of Burgoyne his Brother yn Law.
A Brief Latin Chronicle. [29th September 1470]. Edward, seeing their boldness, fled with a few followers to Flanders, where he was honorably received by the Duke of Burgundy.
Edwardus autem, videns eorum audciam, fugit cum paucis in Flandriam, ubi a duce Burgundie honorifice est susceptus.
Memoirs of Philip de Commines Book 3 Chapter V. 29th September 1470. And thus King Edward made his escape in the year 1470, by the assistance of a small vessel of his own and two Dutch merchantmen, attended only by 700 or 800 men, without any clothes but what they were to have fought in, no money in their pockets, and not one of them knew whither they were going. It was very surprising to see this poor king (for so he might justly be called) run away in this manner, and be pursued by his own servants. He had indulged himself in ease and pleasures for twelve or thirteen years together, and enjoyed a larger share of them than any prince in his time. His thoughts were wholly employed upon the ladies (and far more than was reasonable), hunting, and adorning his person. In his summer-hunting, his custom was to have several tents set up for the ladies, where he treated them after a magnificent manner; and indeed his person was as well turned for love-intrigues as any man I ever saw in my life: for he was young, and the most handsome man of his time; I mean when he was in this adversity, for afterwards he grew very corpulent. But see now how, on a sudden, he is fallen into the calamities of the world! He sailed directly for Holland. At that time the Easterlinjzs1 were at war both with the English and French; they had many ships at sea, and were dreaded by the English, and upon good grounds; for they were good soldiers, had done them much prejudice that year already, and had taken several of their ships. The Easterlings at a great distance descried the ships which were with the king, and about seven or eight of them began to give them chase; but being far before them, he gained the coast of Holland, or rather some thing lower, for he put into Friesland, not far from a little town called Alquemare2, where he came to an anchor, and, it being low water, the king could not get into the harbour, but ran himself as near the town as he could. The Easterlings came as near him as they could possibly make, and dropt their anchors, intending to board him the next tide.
Note 1. Easterlings, in French Ostrelins, was the name given to the merchants of the Hanseatic League,
Note 2. Alkmaar, the capital of North Holland, distant about twenty miles from Amsterdam.
Become a Member via our 'Buy Me a Coffee' page to read complete text.
Warkworth's Chronicle. [29th September 1470]. But anone one of the oste went oute frome the fellawschippe, and tolde Kynge Edwarde alle manere of thynge, and bade hym avoyde, for he was not strong enoghe to gyff batayle to Markes Montagu (age 39); and then anone Kynge Edwarde haysted hym in alle that he might to the towne of Lynne, and ther he toke schyppynge one Michaelmesse day, in the x. yere of his regne, with Lorde Hastynges, that was the Kynges Chambearlyne, Lorde Say, withe dyverse other knyghtes and squires, passed and saylede overe the see into Flaunders, to his brother-in-lawe1 the Duke of Burgeyne2, for socoure and helpe, &c.
Note 1. The Harl. MS. 7353, is a most curious roll on vellum, containing pictures on one side representing parts of scripture history, and on the other assumed similar transactions in the life of Edward IV. We have, 1. The King on his throne. 2. The King encouraging his soldiers. 3. The King with a triple sun shining upon him through three golden crowns, and saying "Domine! quid vis me facere? [Lord! What do you want me to do?]" 4. Pardoning Henry after the battle of Northampton. 5. Setting sail for Calais. At the bottom is a genealogical tree, with portraits of all the members of the houses of York and Lancaster, very fantastically arranged.
Note 2. Duke of Burgeyne. Charles the Bold (age 36), Duke of Burgundy, married Edward's sister on the 18th of June, 1467 [1468?]. It was to this marriage that Edward owed his preservation abroad, and the final recovery of his kingdom. An account of the marriage, with the reception of the Princess in Flanders, may be seen in MS. Cotton. Nero, C. IX. Cf. Cart. Antiq. Mus. Brit. XI. 54.
Croyland Chronicle 1470. As soon as this reached the king's ears by the secret agency of a spy, he found himself compelled to consult his own safety and that of his followers by a precipitate flight to the port of Bishop's Lynn1, in Norfolk. Here finding some ships, he caused himself and his followers, nearly two thousand in number, to be conveyed across the sea to Holland, a territory of the duke of Burgundy. These events took place about the festival of Michaelmas [29th September 1470], in the year of our Lord, 1470, it being the ninth year of the reign of the said king Edward.
Note 1. Now known as King's Lynn. The name was changed from Bishop's Lynn to King's Lynn in 1537 during the Dissolution of the Monasteries.