An Inspeximus is an official document testifying that the current monarch has inspected and confirmed a previously granted charter ('exemplification' denotes a certified copy or transcript). In 1661, as part of the Restoration Settlement, the reconstituted Parliament passed the Corporation Act, designed to remove from office any town official suspected of disloyalty to the Crown. A quo warranto (a royal writ obliging the addressee to show by what warrant an office or franchise is held or claimed) was brought against the Stationers' charter, triggering the publication of this and other inspeximus documents (see also TSC/A/01/01/03, TSC/A/01/01/04).
Sent to NCS on 21.11.2016 for pre-scanning treatment.
A microfilm copy is on reel 71, 'Records of the Stationers' Company 1554-1920: 115 Reels of Microfilm with Printed Guide', published by Chadwyck-Healy Ltd (1989)
A microfilm copy is on reel 71, 'Records of the Stationers' Company 1554-1920: 115 Reels of Microfilm with Printed Guide', published by Chadwyck-Healy Ltd (1989)
A microfilm copy is on reel 71, 'Records of the Stationers' Company 1554-1920: 115 Reels of Microfilm with Printed Guide', published by Chadwyck-Healy Ltd (1989)
Sent to NCS on 21.11.2016 for pre-scanning treatment.
The first royal grant of incorporation was issued on 4 May 1557. This was revoked by Charles II and substituted by another charter in 1684, which bound members to take the Oath of Allegiance. The original charter was reinstated by William and Mary in 1697.
The Company's original Charter was granted by Mary Tudor in 1557. It was the final step towards incorporation, which allowed the Company to act as a collective legal entity. Following incorporation, the Company as a unit could enter and contest contracts, own land, and acquire printing privileges which could outlive the individual members of the Company. This original Charter was lost at some point in the seventeenth century. In 1661, as part of the Restoration Settlement, the reconstituted Parliament passed the Corporation Act, designed to remove from office any town official suspected of disloyalty to the Crown. Under this, the Stationers were required to produce evidence of their corporate status, in the form of inspeximus documents. In the 1680s Charles II enforced a policy of seizing and regranting borough charters, which extended to the London livery companies, and reissuing them to give the king power over the appointment of senior corporation officials. On their ascent to power, William and Mary revoked the Charters issued by Charles II, and reissued them in their original form.
See TSC/A/01/01/02 for context.
Sent to NCS on 21.11.2016 for pre-scanning treatment.