This is a list of Keepers of the Records in the Tower of London. The position was medieval in origin, and ended in 1838 with the creation of the London
Public Record Office
The Public Record Office (abbreviated as PRO, pronounced as three letters and referred to as ''the'' PRO), Chancery Lane in the City of London, was the guardian of the national archives of the United Kingdom from 1838 until 2003, when it was ...
.
In the 16th century the distinction was made between
Chancery Rolls from the reign of
Richard III onwards, which were under the direct control of the
Master of the Rolls
The Keeper or Master of the Rolls and Records of the Chancery of England, known as the Master of the Rolls, is the President of the Civil Division of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales and Head of Civil Justice. As a judge, the Master of ...
, and earlier Rolls that were kept in the
Tower of London
The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, which is sep ...
, with a designated Keeper. The Masters of the Rolls wished to keep at least a theoretical control over the Keepers, but until 1604 and a judgement against
Sir Roger Wilbraham there was no case law to support the claim.
Keepers
*Under Elizabeth I:
Sir Henry Stafford.
*1567:
William Bowyer William Bowyer may refer to:
Politicians
* William Bowyer (15th century MP), in 1411 MP for Newcastle-under-Lyme
* William Bowyer (died 1602), MP for Stafford
* William Bowyer (Keeper of the Records), MP for Westminster and Keeper of the Records in ...
.
*1576:
Michael Heneage and
Thomas Heneage
Sir Thomas Heneage PC (1532 – 17 October 1595) was an English politician and courtier at the court of Elizabeth I.
Early and personal life
Thomas Heneage the Younger was born at Copt Hall, Epping, Essex, the son of Sir Robert Heneage and Luc ...
jointly.
*1601:
William Lambarde, with Peter Proby.
*1604–1612:
Robert Bowyer and
Henry Elsynge jointly.
*1623:
John Borough.
*1643:
John Selden
John Selden (16 December 1584 – 30 November 1654) was an English jurist, a scholar of England's ancient laws and constitution and scholar of Jewish law. He was known as a polymath; John Milton hailed Selden in 1644 as "the chief of learned ...
, parliamentary appointee. The royalist choice was the
Lancaster Herald,
William Ryley. Parliament took on Ryley, who had come to London, in 1644, who served as clerk of the records.
*1651: The
Long Parliament
The Long Parliament was an English Parliament which lasted from 1640 until 1660. It followed the fiasco of the Short Parliament, which had convened for only three weeks during the spring of 1640 after an 11-year parliamentary absence. In Septem ...
decided that the
Master of the Rolls
The Keeper or Master of the Rolls and Records of the Chancery of England, known as the Master of the Rolls, is the President of the Civil Division of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales and Head of Civil Justice. As a judge, the Master of ...
should take over the post, with a clerk to look into the records. Ryley, who had been assistant to Selden, retained the post.
*1660–1669:
William Prynne.
*1669–1686:
Algernon May.
*1686–1689:
Robert Brady.
*1689–1707?:
William Petyt.
*1707–1730:
Richard Topham.
*1712:
John Anstis.
*1730–1754:
David Polhill.
*1754–1755:
William Hay.
*1755–1783:
John Shelley.
*1783–?:
Thomas Astle.
*1803–1819:
Samuel Lysons.
*1819–1840:
Henry Petrie.
Notes
{{reflist, 30em
Tower of London
The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, which is sep ...
Tower of London
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