Harleian Manuscript 433

Introduction:

The Society’s edition of Harleian MS 433 was first published in print in four volumes over the years 1979 to 1983. Harleian MS 433 may be said to be one of the most important manuscript sources for the history of the late fifteenth century and for Richard III in particular.

It demonstrates how Yorkist government depended on the personal activity of the king and how he exercised his royal patronage. Most of the book consists of grants which were made under the signet, also letters and matters relating to the royal revenues which also passed through the signet office. The signet seal enabled the king to exercise his authority directly, since it was held by his secretary and thus under his immediate control, as opposed to the Privy Seal, held by its Keeper, and the Great Seal, kept by the Lord Chancellor.

There is much of interest in these volumes not found elsewhere, for example the only record of the last summer in the life of Richard’s son, or the letter to his mother asking her to favour one of his servants. There are several lists, for example a list of office holders at the death of Edward IV, a list of fees paid to officers on the royal estates and a list of legal terms used in grants and letters. These lists can be described as reference material for the officers in the signet office or indeed for the king. Volume 4 is a very full index to the names of the people and places mentioned in the manuscript and of the topics covered.

Presentation:

•  For each of Volumes 1–3, the body of the book, numbered in Arabic figures from p. 1 onwards, is presented in a separate PDF file, and the PDF page numbers are identical to the book’s page numbers: this makes it easier to look up pages when using the Index volume, Volume 4.

•  The introductory pages of Volumes 1–3, numbered in roman numerals, are presented in separate PDF files.

•  Click the images shown to download the associated PDF. Some of the PDFs are large, so may take a short while to download!

Volumes:

     • Volume 1: Introduction

     • Volume 1: pp 1-289

     • Volume 2: Introduction

     • Volume 1: pp 1-230

     • Volume 3: Introduction

     • Volume 3: pp 1-260

     • Volume 4: Index

Volume 1 Introduction

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Volume 1 pp 1-289

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Volume 2 Introduction

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Volume 2 pp 1-230

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Volume 3 Introduction

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Volume 3 pp 1-260

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Volume 4 Index

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