The History of William Marshal was commissioned by his son shortly after William’s death in 1219 to celebrate the Marshal’s remarkable life; it is an authentic, contemporary voice. The manuscript was discovered in 1861 by French historian Paul Meyer. Meyer published the manuscript in its original Anglo-French in 1891 in two books. This book is a line by line translation of the first of Meyer’s books; lines 1-10152. Book 1 of the History begins in 1139 and ends in 1194. It describes the events of the Anarchy, the role of William’s father John, John’s marriages, William’s childhood, his role as a hostage at the siege of Newbury, his injury and imprisonment in Poitou where he met Eleanor of Aquitaine and his life as a knight errant. It continues with the accusation against him of an improper relationship with Margaret, wife of Henry the Young King, his exile, and return, the death of Henry the Young King, the rebellion of Richard, the future King Richard I, war with France, the death of King Henry II, and the capture of King Richard, and the rebellion of John, the future King John. It ends with the release of King Richard and the death of John Marshal.
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Paternal Family Tree: Devereux
Maternal Family Tree: Elizabeth Merbury
Around 1432 Walter Devereux Baron Ferrers of Chartley was born to [his father] Walter Devereux [aged 45] and [his mother] Elizabeth Merbury at Weobley, Herefordshire.
Around 1446 Walter Devereux Baron Ferrers of Chartley [aged 14] and Anne Ferrers 8th Baroness Ferrers Chartley were married. They were fourth cousin twice removed.
In 1450 [his father-in-law] William Ferrers 7th Baron Ferrers of Chartley [aged 38] died. His daughter [his wife] Anne succeeded 8th Baroness Ferrers of Chartley. Walter Devereux Baron Ferrers of Chartley [aged 18] by marriage Baron Ferrers of Chartley.
Around 1455 [his son] Robert Devereux was born to Walter Devereux Baron Ferrers of Chartley [aged 23] and [his wife] Anne Ferrers 8th Baroness Ferrers Chartley.
On 22nd April 1459 [his father] Walter Devereux [aged 72] died.
In 1464 [his son] John Devereux 9th Baron Ferrers of Chartley was born to Walter Devereux Baron Ferrers of Chartley [aged 32] and [his wife] Anne Ferrers 8th Baroness Ferrers Chartley. He married (1) before 1488 Cecily Bourchier Baroness Ferrers Chartley and had issue (2) before 3rd May 1501 Elizabeth Langham Baroness Ferrers Chartley.
On 9th January 1469 [his wife] Anne Ferrers 8th Baroness Ferrers Chartley died. Her son John [aged 5] succeeded 9th Baron Ferrers of Chartley.
In 1472 King Edward IV of England [aged 29] appointed new Garter Knights given the large number of vacant positions as a result of the recent Warwick rebellion:
203rd John Mowbray 4th Duke of Norfolk [aged 27].
204th John Stafford 1st Earl Wiltshire [aged 44].
205th Walter Devereux Baron Ferrers of Chartley [aged 40].
206th Walter Blount 1st Baron Mountjoy [aged 56].
207th John Howard 1st Duke of Norfolk [aged 47].
208th John de la Pole 2nd Duke of Suffolk [aged 29].
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On 17th April 1483 the coffin of Edward IV [deceased] was carried to Westminster Abbey [Map] by Edward Stanley 1st Baron Monteagle [aged 21], John Savage [aged 39], Thomas Wortley [aged 50], Thomas Molyneux [aged 38], probably John Welles 1st Viscount Welles [aged 33] who had married Edward's daughter Cecily), John Cheney 1st Baron Cheyne [aged 41], Walter Hungerford [aged 19], Guy Wolston [aged 50], John Sapcote [aged 35], Thomas Tyrrell [aged 30], John Risley, Thomas Dacre 2nd Baron Dacre Gilsland [aged 15], John Norreys, Louis de Bretelles and John Comyn 4th Lord Baddenoch.
Those in the procession included:
Thomas St Leger [aged 43], widow of Edward's sister Anne.
William Parr [aged 49].
William Stonor [aged 33].
Henry Ferrers [aged 40].
James Radclyffe [aged 43].
George Browne [aged 43].
Gilbert Debenham [aged 51].
John Howard 1st Duke of Norfolk [aged 58] walked in front of the coffin with Edward's personal arms.
John Marlow Abbot Bermondsey followed by:
Bishop Thomas Kempe [aged 93].
Bishop John Hales [aged 83] (Bishop of Chester?).
Bishop Robert Stillington [aged 63].
Bishop William Dudley [aged 58].
Cardinal John Morton [aged 63] (as Bishop of Ely).
Bishop Edmund Tuchet [aged 40] (as Bishop of Rochester).
Bishop Peter Courtenay, and.
Bishop Lionel Woodville [aged 36].
Archbishop Thomas Rotherham [aged 59] brought up the rear.
Cardinal Thomas Bourchier [aged 65], then Archbishop of Canterbury, took no part due to infirmity.
John de la Pole Earl Lincoln 1st [aged 21]; the King's nephew,.
William Hastings 1st Baron Hastings [aged 52].
Thomas Grey 1st Marquess Dorset [aged 28].
William Herbert 2nd Earl Pembroke 1st Earl Huntingdon [aged 32] (some sources say Earl of Huntingindon?).
William Berkeley 1st Marquess Berkeley [aged 57].
Thomas Stanley 1st Earl of Derby [aged 48].
Richard Fiennes Baron Dacre Gilsland [aged 68].
John Sutton 1st Baron Dudley [aged 82].
George Neville 4th and 2nd Baron Abergavenny [aged 43].
John Tuchet 6th Baron Audley, 3rd Baron Tuchet [aged 57].
Walter Devereux Baron Ferrers of Chartley [aged 51].
Edward Grey 1st Viscount Lisle [aged 51].
Henry Lovell 9th Baron Marshal 8th Baron Morley [aged 7].
Richard Woodville 3rd Earl Rivers [aged 30].
John Brooke 7th Baron Cobham [aged 35].
Richard Hastings Baron Willoughby [aged 50].
John Bourchier 6th Baron Ferrers of Groby [aged 45].
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On 22nd August 1485 King Richard III of England [aged 32] was killed during the Battle of Bosworth. His second cousin once removed Henry Tudor [aged 28] succeeded VII King of England.
Humphrey Cotes [aged 35] died. It isn't clear on which side he was fighting.
Those supporting Henry Tudor included:
John Blount 3rd Baron Mountjoy [aged 35].
John Cheney 1st Baron Cheyne [aged 43].
Richard Guildford [aged 35].
Walter Hungerford [aged 21].
Thomas Stanley 1st Earl of Derby [aged 50].
Edward Woodville Lord Scales [aged 29].
Edward Courtenay 1st Earl Devon [aged 26].
Rhys ap Thomas Deheubarth [aged 36].
Jasper Tudor 1st Duke Bedford [aged 53].
William Beaumont 2nd Viscount Beaumont [aged 47].
Giles Daubeney 1st Baron Daubeney [aged 34].
William Stanley [aged 50].
Roger Kynaston of Myddle and Hordley [aged 52].
Henry Marney 1st Baron Marney [aged 38].
William Brandon [aged 29] was killed.
James Harrington [aged 55] was killed.
John Howard 1st Duke of Norfolk [aged 60] was killed and attainted. He was buried firstly at Thetford Priory, Norfolk [Map] and therafter at Church of St Michael the Archangel, Framlingham [Map]. Duke Norfolk, Baron Mowbray, Baron Segrave, Baron Howard forfeit.
John Sacheverell [aged 85] was killed.
Philibert Chandee 1st Earl Bath
William Norreys [aged 44], Gilbert Talbot [aged 33], John de Vere 13th Earl of Oxford [aged 42] and John Savage [aged 41] commanded,.
Robert Poyntz [aged 35] was knighted.
Those who fought for Richard III included:
John Bourchier 6th Baron Ferrers of Groby [aged 47].
John Conyers [aged 74].
Thomas Dacre 2nd Baron Dacre Gilsland [aged 17].
William Berkeley 1st Marquess Berkeley [aged 59].
Richard Fitzhugh 6th Baron Fitzhugh [aged 28].
John Scrope 5th Baron Scrope of Bolton [aged 48].
Thomas Scrope 6th Baron Scrope of Masham [aged 26].
Henry Grey 4th or 7th Baron Grey of Codnor [aged 50].
Edmund Grey 1st Earl Kent [aged 68].
Ralph Neville 3rd Earl of Westmoreland [aged 29].
John de la Pole Earl Lincoln 1st [aged 23].
Humphrey Stafford [aged 59].
George Talbot 4th Earl of Shrewsbury [aged 17].
Thomas Howard 2nd Duke of Norfolk [aged 42] was wounded, captured and imprisoned in the Tower of London [Map] for three years. He was attainted; Earl Surrey forfeit.
Francis Lovell 1st Viscount Lovell [aged 29] fought and escaped.
John Zouche 7th Baron Zouche Harringworth [aged 26] was captured.
John Babington [aged 62], William Alington [aged 65], Robert Mortimer [aged 43], Robert Brackenbury, Richard Ratclyffe [aged 55] and Richard Bagot [aged 73] were killed
Walter Devereux Baron Ferrers of Chartley [aged 53] was killed.
William Catesby [aged 35] was executed at Leicester, Leicestershire [Map] after the battle.
George Stanley 9th Baron Strange Knockin 5th Baron Mohun Dunster [aged 25] held as a hostage by Richard III before the Battle of Bosworth.
Henry Percy 4th Earl of Northumberland [aged 36] betrayed King Richard III of England by not committing his forces at the Battle of Bosworth.
John Iwardby [aged 35] was killed.
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Letters and Papers Foreign and Domestic Henry VIII 1532. Grants in Sep 1532.
1. Anne Rocheford (Anne Boleyn [aged 31]), one of the daughters of Thomas earl of Wiltshire and Ormond [aged 55], keeper of the Privy Seal. Charter, granting her, in tail male, the title of marchioness of Pembroke. Witnesses not given [1 Sept.].— S.B. Pat. 24 Hen. VIII. p. 1, m. 26.
(2.) Two drafts of the preceding in R. O. in Wriothesley's hand, with witnesses as in the next charter.
2. Anne Rocheford, who was created marchioness of Pembroke on the 1st Sept. inst. Charter granting her and her heirs the prerogative and pre-eminence due to her title of marchioness in the realms of England and France. Witnesses: Edward archbp. of York; Stephen bp. of Winchester, the King's secretary; John bp. of London; Thomas duke of Norfolk [aged 59], treasurer of England; Charles duke of Suffolk [aged 48], steward marshal; Thomas earl of Wiltshire, keeper of the Privy Seal; John earl of Oxford [aged 61], the King's chamberlain; George earl of Shrewsbury [aged 64], steward of the King's household; Thomas Audeley [aged 44], knt., keeper of the Great Seal; William lord Sandys of Vynes [aged 62], chamberlain of the King's household; Walter Devereux lord Ferrers; William Fitzwilliam, treasurer of the King's household, and William Powlet, comptroller of the same, knts., and others. Windsor, 1 Sept. 24 Hen. VIII. — S.B. Pat. p. 1, m. 26.
(2.) Draft of the preceding in Wriothesley's hand in R. O.
3. Anne Rocheford, one of the daughters and heirs of Thomas earl of Wiltshire and Ormond, keeper of the Privy Seal, created marchioness of Pembroke by charter 1 Sept. 24 Hen. VIII. Annuity of £1,000. for life out of the issues of the honor, manor, or lordship of Hunnesdon, Herts, and of the manors of Stansted Abbot, Roydon, Bourehouse, Pisso, Filolls, and Coxhall, Herts and Essex; and of all Crown lands in co. Pembroke, and in Gilgarran, Emlyn, Diffrynbryan, Maynardove, Kenendrym, Llanstephan, Penryn, Oyesterlowe, Traynclynton, Westhaverforde, Llewelleston, Roche, Sayntismells, and Camrosse, S. Wales.— S B. (undated.) Pat. 24 Hen. VIII. p. 1, m. 25 (undated).
(2.) Fair copy of the preceding in R. O. Large paper, pp. 2.
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[his daughter] Elizabeth Devereux was born to Walter Devereux Baron Ferrers of Chartley and Anne Ferrers 8th Baroness Ferrers Chartley. She married (1) Richard Corbet and had issue (2) after 1493 Thomas Leighton.
[his son] Richard Devereux was born to Walter Devereux Baron Ferrers of Chartley and Anne Ferrers 8th Baroness Ferrers Chartley.
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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[his daughter] Isabel Devereux was born to Walter Devereux Baron Ferrers of Chartley and Anne Ferrers 8th Baroness Ferrers Chartley.
[his daughter] Anne Devereux was born to Walter Devereux Baron Ferrers of Chartley and Anne Ferrers 8th Baroness Ferrers Chartley. She married Thomas Tyrrell and had issue.
[his father] Walter Devereux and [his mother] Elizabeth Merbury were married.
[his son] Thomas Devereux was born to Walter Devereux Baron Ferrers of Chartley and Anne Ferrers 8th Baroness Ferrers Chartley.
Kings Wessex: Great x 13 Grand Son of King Edmund "Ironside" I of England
Kings Gwynedd: Great x 9 Grand Son of Owain "Great" King Gwynedd
Kings Seisyllwg: Great x 15 Grand Son of Hywel "Dda aka Good" King Seisyllwg King Deheubarth
Kings Powys: Great x 10 Grand Son of Maredudd ap Bleddyn King Powys
Kings England: Great x 8 Grand Son of King John of England
Kings Scotland: Great x 12 Grand Son of King Duncan I of Scotland
Kings Franks: Great x 19 Grand Son of Charles "Charlemagne aka Great" King of the Franks King Lombardy Holy Roman Emperor
Kings France: Great x 14 Grand Son of Hugh I King of the Franks
Kings Duke Aquitaine: Great x 18 Grand Son of Ranulf I Duke Aquitaine
Great x 4 Grandfather: Walter Devereux 
Great x 3 Grandfather: Stephen Devereux 3 x Great Grand Son of King John of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Margery de Braose 
2 x Great Grand Daughter of King John of England
Great x 2 Grandfather: Walter "Elder" Devereux 4 x Great Grand Son of King John of England
Great x 1 Grandfather: Walter Devereux 5 x Great Grand Son of King John of England
GrandFather: Walter Devereux 6 x Great Grand Son of King John of England
Father: Walter Devereux 7 x Great Grand Son of King John of England
Great x 2 Grandfather: John Crophull
Great x 1 Grandfather: Thomas Crophull 5 x Great Grand Son of King John of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Theobald Verdun 1st Lord Verdun 
Great x 3 Grandfather: Theobald Verdun 2nd Lord Verdun
Great x 4 Grandmother: Margery Bohun Lady Verdun 
Great x 2 Grandmother: Margaret Verdun Baroness Hussey 4 x Great Grand Daughter of King John of England
Great x 4 Grandfather: Edmund Mortimer 2nd Baron Mortimer of Wigmore 
2 x Great Grand Son of King John of England
Great x 3 Grandmother: Maud Mortimer Lady Verdun 3 x Great Grand Daughter of King John of England
Great x 4 Grandmother: Margaret Fiennes 
4 x Great Grand Daughter of King Henry "Curtmantle" II of England
GrandMother: Agnes Crophull 6 x Great Grand Daughter of King John of England
Walter Devereux Baron Ferrers of Chartley 8 x Great Grand Son of King John of England
Mother: Elizabeth Merbury