The King's Secretary and the Signet Office in the XV Century [Paperback]

Miss Otway-Ruthven examines the history of the office of the King's Secretary.Miss Otway-Ruthven examines the history of the office of the King's Secretary from 1377, the first appearance of a King's Secretary, to 1509, demonstrating its rise from the comparative unimportance of a confidential clerkship to a position worthy of the attention of a bishop and a fitting instrument of Tudor Government.Miss Otway-Ruthven examines the history of the office of the King's Secretary from 1377, the first appearance of a King's Secretary, to 1509, demonstrating its rise from the comparative unimportance of a confidential clerkship to a position worthy of the attention of a bishop and a fitting instrument of Tudor Government.Important as it is in the general political and diplomatic history of the times, the history of the office of the King's Secretary is often neglected. Miss Otway-Ruthven has therefore used the original documents and sources for her information. She traces the history of the office from 1377, the first appearance of a King's Secretary, to 1509, demonstrating its rise from the comparative unimportance of a confidential clerkship to a position worthy of the attention of a bishop and a fitting instrument of Tudor Government.Foreword; 1. The sources; 2. Introduction; 3. The Signet; 4. The Secretary: duties; 5. The Secretary: qualifications and position; 6. The French Signatories; 7. The Signet office; 8. The clerks of the Signet; Bibliography; Appendices; Index.