Wark Castle: the Countess of Salisbury leaving Wark

This illustration comes from the 15th century Chronicles written by Jean Froissart. With some flourish, it shows the English fighting the Scots and the departure of the Countess of Salisbury from Wark Castle. Froissart was a historian who travelled widely across Europe in the 14th century and was a frequent visitor and guest of the English royal court.

Froissart wrote the Chronicles between 1370 and 1400. They comprise four books and it was his lively style of writing that inspired the many miniaturists who illustrated the work. This page comes from an illuminated copy commissioned around 1470-1480 by Louis de Gruthuse, an important Flemish nobleman, long after Froissart's death in about 1404. It is held in the national library of France, index number BNF Fr 2643 fol 97v.

This illumination is copyright of the Bibliothï¿½que nationale de France, Paris.

You can explore more of the Wark archive, see reconstructions of the castle or learn more about Wark Castle in the 14th and 15th centuries.