Preface

The progress of British historical studies has long been impeded by the lack of lists of office-holders. Even where such lists exist they are often incomplete or inaccurate and fail to provide the kind of information that enables the student to relate the offices themselves to their institutional background.

It is with the object of remedying this situation that the present series Office-Holders in Modern Britain has been devised. The immediate purpose of the series, which is in the course of preparation at the Institute of Historical Research, is to provide lists of the officials who served in the departments of the central government between the Restoration and 1870. Each volume will contain a short introduction discussing the development of the department with which it is concerned and notes explaining the various offices and grades within the department as well as lists of appointments and an alphabetical list giving details of the periods of service of each official.

Part of the original research for this first volume was undertaken by Mr D. M. Gransby. The material was checked, supplemented and re-arranged by Mr J. C. Sainty, who also wrote the introduction and the explanatory notes. The Institute of Historical Research is extremely grateful to him for making such useful information available in so convenient a form.

A. G. Dickens

Acknowledgements

I am grateful to the many librarians and archivists who have helped to make this work possible. I am particularly indebted to Dr Henry Roseveare for his unfailing encouragement at all stages in the preparation of the lists.

J. C. S.