Chancery Administrative Records

Division within PL

c1377-1844

Records of the Palatinate of Lancaster's Chancery relating to responsibilities for managing judicial and administrative processes.

Comprises:

• Close rolls, PL 2
• Patent rolls, PL 1
• Chancery warrants, PL 3
• Commissions and inquisitions of lunacy, PL 5
• Deeds, PL 29
• Files of writs from the Central Courts of Common Law to the Chancellor, PL 13
• Inquisitions post mortem, PL 4

From 1351-1361 all instruments under the Palatinate seal were enrolled together; the surviving rolls from this period are at

DL 37

Instruments under the Palatinate seal began to be enrolled in the Duchy enrolment books

DL 42

For Palatinate warrants and inquisitions post mortem from the late 15th century onwards see the record series below. Henry VII appears to have reverted to the use of a separate Palatinate patent roll, this became the usual practice under Henry VIII, and so continued:

DL 7

DL 12

Public Record(s)

English

7 series

Topics

Mental illness

Landed estates

In 1351, the Duke of Lancaster acquired certain royal powers within his Palatinate. These powers included possessing his own Chancery to manage both legal and administrative processes. From the outset administrative practices in the Palatinate Chancery, and the record-keeping to which they gave rise, mirrored those of the royal Chancery. From 1351 to 1361 all instruments under the Palatinate seal were enrolled together. From 1377 enrolments began to be based on the nature of the document being issued and, following royal administrative practice, separate patent and close roll series were created.

During the 15th century the Chancery of the Duchy of Lancaster, based in London, gradually outstripped in importance the Palatinate Chancery, based in Lancashire. Sir Richard Fowler's appointment in 1471 as the first Chancellor of both Palatinate and Duchy signalled the fact that the centre of Palatinate administration had become, in effect, part of the Duchy administration in London. Only the judicial machinery remained in Lancashire after the early 16th century.