Robert Willis

“ Another pair of seals, of an entirely new design, are also due to Edward IV. The first (L) is much plainer than the preceding ones; it is divided into three broad compartments for the king and his shields, and two narrow ones at the edges for the guards as usual. The guards have no canopies, and the shield compartments, in lieu of a canopy, have only an ogee arch supporting a roof, with lead lines marked upon it, which indeed enables us at once to recognise this seal. The king has a projecting canopy. The legend has "Anglie et Francie." ”

“ There exists a small seal (N) which is engraved in the French "Tresor de Numismatique," and is by the editors assigned to Henry VI., but by Wailly, who describes it, to Henry VII., no dated impression being quoted. Its diameter is small, being the same as that of the small silver seal (K) of Henry VI., and like that it has the small French counter seal, instead of the horseman of our obverse. Its design is imitated from the L and M of Edward IV., but the lateral guards are removed, leaving no figures upon the seal except the king and his lions. ”

“ Seal G, "which was made in accordance with the peace of Bretigny." is the richest and handsomest of them all. It is engraved in Rymer as appended to a document dated July 19, 1363; and is also described by Wailly, and said by him to be employed for sealing a great number of acts relating to the treaty of Bretigny in 1360 and following years, which are preserved in the archives of France [41] . Its legend omits the title of France altogether; but differs in the latter half from those of the seals B C, which also omitted France ”

“ Its history is accurately recorded by Rymer [43] , according to whom it regularly accompanied him in his different absences, until he finally returned on the 18th of May, 1300, after the peace of Bretigny; shortly after which it must have been put away to make room for the Bretigny seal, although this fact is not formally recorded. It is the first great seal of England in which tabernacle-work is introduced, and its design is therefore richer than the preceding ones. Sandford engraves an impression from a deed dated Westminster, May 2, 1341, a time when the king was in England. ”

“ The silver seal therefore was still the one commonly employed for English affairs, and this is confirmed by a memorandum in 1433 [57] , stating that as the bishop is about to leave England on certain negotiations, the great silver seal, "Magnum Sigillum Regium de Argento," is committed to the charge of the keeper of the rolls to use in his absence. ”

“ In 1371 Robert de Thorp was made chancellor, in the place of the bishop of Winchester who is recorded in the usual form [34] to have delivered the great seal (E [35] ) to the king on the 14th of March, on Monday, and on the succeeding Wednesday the king delivered the said seal to Robert de Thorp. But on the 28th of March "the bishop of Winchester, late chancellor, delivered to the king at Westminster two great seals and two private seals [36] , which the king lately used, and which had remained in the custody of the said bishop. ”

“ Also the side guards have canopies in lieu of pent-houses. The legend has "Anglie et Erancie." It is the only seal which Speed engraves for this king; and an impression dated 8 E. IV. in the treasury of Caius College, shews that it was used in the first part of his reign. Mr. Doubleday has also a cast of another seal (GG) of this monarch, which is a copy, in inferior workmanship, of the Bretigny No. 2, with the same legend, and differs only in some of the tracery of the panelling, and in having three fleurs-de-lis in the French arms. ”

“ The Benedictine editor, after describing them, merely adds, "Ce que nous disons ici des monoies de Henri V. pent s'apliquer à ses sceaux." Until an impression of the great seal used from May 21, 8 H. V. to Oct. 21, 1 H. VI., is produced, we cannot tell whether a new matrix was used or an old one altered. I incline to believe that the golden matrix was altered, for then we get a very consistent history, as follows: (1.) The chancellor delivered a golden seal after the death of H. V., which was put away a month after the death of Charles VI. because its legend was wrong. ”

“ The former legend has "fracie et anglie," and the words are separated by fleurs-de-lis. The latter has "anglie et francie," the words being also separated by common colons. Henry the VIIIth used the same matrix, adding according to Wailly (p. 116.) a great fleur-de-lis before the horse's head on the right side of the obverse, and different dated specimens exist in the French archives up to 15 Apr. 1533. (24 H. VIII.) Impressions in the archives of Caius College and Catharine Hall, shew that a lion was also added on the left side. ”

“ Wailly imagines the seal B to have been the third seal, and C to have been the second, but he had no date to guide him in assigning this place to the latter seal, which he knew only from the engraving in the new edition of Rymer. The dates which I have given, combined with the extracts from Rymer, are sufficient to justify my statement, which agrees with Sandford, and is also confirmed by an allusion to the fleur-de-lis, in a letter from Edward to the chancellor of Ireland, dated October, 1327, and accompanying the announcement of the new seal B, already quoted at p. ”

“ Personal seals, such as the seals of kings and bishops, may generally be assigned to the time at which the office in question was undertaken by the individual, and thus their date is fixed, with some few exceptions where two or more were employed by the same person ”

“ To John de Chychester, a goldsmith of London, in money paid to him for making two silver seals for the privy seal of the Lord the king, 7l. 18s. 8d." (Devon, Issue Roll, p. 175.) This appears to belong to the seals made after the peace of Bretigny. The only other entry of this class for this reign, except those already given, is in 1356. "Aug. 2. To Will, de Morton, a goldsmith of London, in money paid to him for making a certain seal for the king's use, 3l." (p. 163.) ; which it is impossible to appropriate. ↑ "Liberavit magnum sigillum ejusdem regis." (Rymer, p. 911.) ”

“ Tom. iv. p. 212. ↑ Rymer, tom. x. p. 253. ↑ Ibid., p. 262. ↑ As there is some apparent confusion between the two documents just quoted, it may be as well to state their contents more minutely; the first document (Rymer, p. 253.) states that the golden seal of Henry V. was delivered by his late chancellor, the bishop of Durham, on the 28th Sep., and given into the custody of Simon Gaunstede, the keeper of the rolls, who accordingly sealed divers letters patent with it, and kept it until the 20th of November, when he delivered it up, and it was deposited in the treasury. ”