Prefatory Note

Prefatory Note

From 1673 onwards to 1689 there is an almost total break in the continuity of the Treasury records preserved at the Public Record Office. For that portion of this gap which covers the period of Danby's tenure of the office of Lord High Treasurer, the MS. sources are fortunately still available. Up to 1861 the whole of these MS. sources were in the possession of the Duke of Leeds at Hornby Castle. In that year a small portion of these were sold to the British Museum, and this portion is here calendared with the exact Museum references as "Additional MSS. 28,074-7." The bulk, however, of Danby's Treasury records is still in the possession of the Duke of Leeds (Danby's descendant), and has been kindly placed at the disposal of the Deputy Keeper for the purpose of this Calendar. My warmest thanks are due to his Grace for his courtesy in thus facilitating the Calendar. The system of reference which has been adopted in quoting from these MSS. is of course arbitrary, as they are at present unnumbered and unclassified. The present classification of Treasury records as preserved in the Record Office has been applied to them, and the enumeration has been made consecutive, so that for example the first King's Warrant Book in the possession of the Duke of Leeds is quoted as Vol. III. as following immediately upon Vol. II. of the regular series of King's Warrant Books in the Record Office. So for the other classes.