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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Sofonisba Anguissola is in Painters.
Around 1532 Sofonisba Anguissola was born.
Around 1555 Sofonisba Anguissola (age 23). Portrait of Joanna of Austria Grand Duchess Tuscany (age 7).
Joanna of Austria Grand Duchess Tuscany: On 24th January 1547 she was born to Ferdinand I Holy Roman Emperor and Anne Jagiellon. On 18th December 1565 Francesco I de Medici Grand Duke of Tuscany and she were married. She by marriage Grand Duchess Tuscany. She the daughter of Ferdinand I Holy Roman Emperor and Anne Jagiellon. On 10th April 1578 Joanna of Austria Grand Duchess Tuscany died.
Around 1556 Sofonisba Anguissola (age 24). Self-Portrait.
Around 1560 Sofonisba Anguissola (age 28). Self-Portrait.
Around 1563 Sofonisba Anguissola (age 31). Portrait of Elizabeth Valois Queen Consort Spain (age 17).
Around 1573 Sofonisba Anguissola (age 41). Portrait of Anna of Austria Queen Consort Spain (age 23).
Around 1573 Sofonisba Anguissola (age 41). Portrait of Philip "The Prudent" II King Spain (age 45).
Around 1599 Sofonisba Anguissola (age 67). Portrait of Elizabeth Valois Queen Consort Spain.
Around 1624 Anthony Van Dyck (age 24). Portrait of Sofonisba Anguissola (age 92) aged ninety-two.
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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On 16th November 1625 Sofonisba Anguissola (age 93) died.