Royal revenues collection
Overview
Financial documentation for King James I of England (1566-1625) and for some of the preceeding kings and queens of England, notably Queen Elizabeth I (1533-1603). Collection includes copies or compendiums of historical statistics concerning the English sovereign's finances through Queen Elizabeth I; proposals for financial reform; and other documents copied and probably prepared for Sir Julius Ceasar, Under-Treasurer of the Exchequer for James I of England and James VI of Scotland after his assumption of the English throne in 1603. Some items are written, revised, and/or annotated by Caesar; some are written, revised, or annotated by Thomas Sackville, who was Lord Treasurer at the time; and some are in anonymous hands.
Dates
- Creation: approximately 1603-1613; some materials have added 18th century notations
Creator
- Caesar, Julius, Sir, 1558-1636 (Compiler, Person)
- Dorset, Thomas Sackville, Earl of, 1536-1608 (Compiler, Person)
Language of Materials
Items in English unless otherwise stated--small number of items in Latin.
Conditions Governing Access
No access restrictions.
Conditions Governing Use
Spencer Library staff may determine use restrictions dependent on the physical condition of manuscript materials.
History of the Exchequer's Office
The Exchequer became a distinct government entity by the beginning of the 12th century CE, under the reign of King Henry I (reigning from 1100-1135). The agency was closely associated with the Treasury, which existed before the Norman Conquest of 1066, and the term "Exchequer" came to refer to the two entities jointly.
The lower Exchequer, or receipt, served as the office for the receipt and payment of money. The upper Exchequer was a court sitting twice a year that regulated accounts and was closely related to the Curia Regis, or King's Court.
Over the centuries the upper Exchequer developed into the judicial system and the lower Exchequer became the Treasury. By the 19th century, the lower Exchequer's various departments and officials were done away with and absorbed into other agencies. However, the head of the Treasury is called the Chancellor of the Exchequer, and the Treasury is still referred to unofficially as the Exchequer.
[Information taken from "Exchequer," Encylopedia Britannica.]
Extent
3 Volumes (3 bound volumes + 1 folder, 2 oversize boxes)
Scope and Contents
These volumes and loose papers were acquired at the same time by Spencer Research Library and roughly deal with the same financial subjects. They include abstracts of all statues concerning royal revenues since King Henry III's reign; crown lands revenues from Queen Elizabeth I's reign; a brief view of annual revenues and payments of King James I of England and Wales; a brief collection of the yearly assignments of the king's revenues and other profits collected by the order of the Lord High Treasurer of England, probably containing the projected budget for revenues from 1605-1607; and various unbound papers containing financial accounts, reports of committees, orders by the king or other branches of government, petitions, letters, historical surveys of revenues, proposals for reform, and other revenue-related matters. These loose papers, located at MS Q12, cover the years 1440-1613, but most were probably written between 1605 to 1613. The other items are volumes and are housed by size at call numbers MS P577, MS C241, MS D146, and MS E191.
Physical Location
MS P577
Physical Location
MS C241
Physical Location
MS D146
Physical Location
MS E191
Physical Location
MS Q12
Other Finding Aids
Additional information particularly regarding the bound volumes in this collection is available at ksrl.sc.royalrevenues.pdf.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Purchase, Sotheby's, October 29, 1975, lots 88-92.
Subject
- England and Wales. Exchequer -- Records and correspondence (Organization)
- James I, King of England, 1566-1625 (Person)
- Title
- Guide to the Royal Revenues Collection
- Subtitle
- Royal revenues collection
- Author
- Finding aid prepared by alh, 1975, 1976, 1988. Finding aid encoded by mwh, 2023.
- Date
- 2023
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- Finding aid written in English.
- Finding aid permalink
- https://hdl.handle.net/10407/7494576279
- Preferred citation
-
Royal revenues collection, MS Q12, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas
Repository Details
Part of the University of Kansas. Kenneth Spencer Research Library Repository