Medieval source material on the internet: Charters
Charters
For a brief guide to charters,
click here
For some medieval records in Ancestry's UK and Ireland Collection,
click here
- DEEDS - Documents of Early England Data Set (Michael Gervers, University of Toronto)
Searchable collection of the Latin texts of more than 10000 charters extracted from 190 published sources, mainly from the 12th and 13th centuries. The original emphasis was on Essex (the acronym originally stood for Documents of Essex England Data Set), but the collection also covers other parts of England and Wales. The largest numbers of charters come from Lincoln Cathedral, the Order of the Knights of the Hospital of St John, and the abbeys of Oseney, Cirencester and Eynsham. Normally a scan of the printed source - often including an abstract in English - can also be viewed.
The website also offers an online facility to estimate the date of a medieval charter.
- The English Deeds Collection (Harvard Law School Library)
From the HOLLIS Classic catalogue search page, under "Search Type:" choose "Other call number" and in "Search For:" specify "Deeds." This will display abstracts of more than a thousand medieval and early modern English deeds.
- Harvard Law School Library also provides an "online exhibition", entitled History in Deed: Medieval Society and The Law in England, 1100-1600,
including many English abstracts arranged by theme or locality (unfortunately not illustrated).
- Writings 1350-1359 (WAALT: the Wiki for the Anglo-American Legal Tradition Website)
Listing, in progress, of documents recording land transactions enrolled in common law records, with links to photographs of the records.
- Four English Land Grants
Images, Latin transcriptions and English translations;
three from Yorkshire, another of unknown origin; 13th-15th centuries
- A descriptive catalogue of ancient deeds in the Public Record Office:
- Monasticon Anglicanum:
- Sir William Dugdale, Monasticon Anglicanum (Monastic Matrix, Ohio State University)
PDF files of the 1817-1830 edition, by John Caley, Henry Ellis and the Rev. Bulkeley Bandinel. The files are linked from the "Table of Contents" for each volume.
- Roger Dodsworth and William Dugdale, Monasticon Anglicanum. [Volume 1.] (1655) (Google Books [Hints and tips])
[Other copies at: Google Books [Hints and tips].]
- William Dugdale, ed., Monasticon Anglicanum. Volume 3. (1673) (Google Books [Hints and tips])
[Other copies at: Google Books [Hints and tips].]
- William Dugdale, Monasticon Anglicanum. (1693) (Internet Archive - Text Archive)
Abridged edition.
[Other copies at: Internet Archive - Text Archive.]
- Sir William Dugdale; John Caley, Henry Ellis and the Rev. Bulkeley Bandinel, eds., Monasticon Anglicanum. Volume 6, part 1. (1830) (Gallica; Bibliothèque Nationale de France)
- Sir William Dugdale; John Caley, Henry Ellis and the Rev. Bulkeley Bandinel, eds., Monasticon Anglicanum. Volume 6, part 2. (1830) (Gallica; Bibliothèque Nationale de France)
- Sir William Dugdale; John Caley, Henry Ellis and the Rev. Bulkeley Bandinel, eds., Monasticon Anglicanum. Volume 6, part 3. (1830) (Gallica; Bibliothèque Nationale de France)
- Sir William Dugdale, Monasticon Anglicanum. Volume 6, part 2. (1846) (Google Books [Hints and tips])
- Sir William Dugdale, Monasticon Anglicanum. Volume 6, part 3. (1849) (Google Books [Hints and tips])
- Historical Manuscripts: Deeds (Kenneth Jacob)
Transcripts and abstracts of deeds, including medieval material for Devon, Dorset, Essex, Kent, Lincolnshire, London, Norfolk, Pembrokeshire, Shropshire, Suffolk, Sussex and Yorkshire (PDF files).
- Anglo-Saxon Charters web site.
This site contains many listings and texts of Anglo-Saxon charters, as well as much background material.
Among the main collections are:
- E. H. Bates, ed., Two cartularies of the Benedictine abbeys of Muchelney and Athelney in the county of Somerset (1899) (Google Books [Hints and tips])
Somerset Record Society, number 14. English abstract of the Muchelney cartulary, with some transcripts; partial English abstract of the Athelney cartulary
[Other copies at: Internet Archive - Text Archive: 1 ; 2 .]
-
Charters of Barking Abbey
(Sean Miller, Joint Committee on Anglo-Saxon Charters)
Provisional Latin texts
- William Hunt, ed., Two Chartularies of the Priory of St. Peter at Bath. (1893) (Internet Archive - Text Archive)
Somerset Record Society, volume 7. Latin transcript and English abstracts.
- William H. Turner, ed., Calendar of charters and rolls preserved in the Bodleian Library. (1878) (Internet Archive - Text Archive)
- William Thomas Lancaster, Abstracts of the charters and other documents contained in the chartulary of the priory of Bridlington in the East Riding of the county of York (1912) (Internet Archive - Text Archive)
This is a scan of a copy given by the author to J. W. Clay, and contains many of Clay's annotations.
- Henry J. Ellis and Francis B. Bickley, eds, Index to the charters and rolls in the Department of Manuscripts, British Museum. Volume 1. Index Locorum. (1900) (Internet Archive - Text Archive)
- Henry J. Ellis, ed., Index to the charters and rolls in the Department of Manuscripts, British Museum. Volume 2. Religious houses and other corporations, and Index locorum for acquisitions from 1882 to 1900. (1912) (Internet Archive - Text Archive)
- [H. C. Maxwell-Lyte and others, eds,] Two cartularies of the Augustinian priory of Bruton and the Cluniac priory of Montacute in the county of Somerset (1894) (Google Books [Hints and tips])
Somerset Record Society, number 8. English abstracts.
[Other copies at: Internet Archive - Text Archive: 1 ; 2 .]
- C. V. Collier, Documents at Burton Agnes. (Guy Vincent, this site)
From Transactions of the East Riding Antiquarian Society, volume 18, pp. 56-114 (1912) and volume 19, pages 1-39 (1913). Abstracts of numerous documents from the 13th century and later, mainly relating to Yorkshire. PDF file (15.5 MB).
- Index to Catalogue of Buxton Deeds (to 1517) (The Buxton Papers, Cambridge University Library)
Index of names and places mentioned in medieval charters and title deeds among the papers of the Buxton family of Norfolk; the index refers to a catalogue held at Cambridge University Library. See also Index to Catalogue of Buxton Papers, Index to Calendar of Buxton Letters and List of wills in the Buxton Papers.
- Canterbury Cathedral Charters (Kent Archives Service)
Searchable abstracts of over 7000 medieval charters.
-
Colchester Deeds of the Fourteenth and Fifteenth
Centuries from The Archives of the Mercers' Company of London, Cartulary of Dean John Colet
(Richard Britnell, Medieval Colchester)
Calendar in English
- Congleton
[Cheshire] Borough Charters (David Roffe)
Online transcript, in progress, of the 19th-century abstracts of a large collection
of charters (13th century and later), in preparation for the publication of a calendar.
A preliminary analysis of the charters is also available
- F. M. Stenton, ed., Documents illustrative of the social and economic history of the Danelaw from various collections. (1920) (Internet Archive - Text Archive)
Latin transcripts, mainly of charters.
- Isaac Herbert Jeayes, compiler, Descriptive Catalogue of Derbyshire Charters in Public and Private Libraries and Muniment Rooms (1906) (Google Books [Hints and tips])
[Other copies at: Internet Archive - Text Archive: 1 ; 2 ; 3 .]
- Arthur William Crawley-Boevey The cartulary and historical notes of the Cistercian abbey of Flaxley otherwise called Dene Abbey, in the county of Gloucester (1887) (Google Books [Hints and tips])
[Other copies at: Internet Archive - Text Archive: 1 ; 2 ; 3 .]
- Gloucester:
Historia et cartularium monasterii Sancti Petri Gloucestriae
(gallica;
Bibliothèque Nationale de France; numbers for "Recherche libre" field: N050233-N050235)
PDF format; Latin text from the edition of William Henry Hart
(Rolls Series 33, vols 1-3; 1863-1867)
- Medieval
Charters and the Landscape: Between Durham and the Sea, 1100-1500
[Haswell, county Durham] (Richard Britnell)
A discussion of the evolution of field patterns, 12th-14th centuries, from the evidence of
charters, illustrated by aerial photographs - with links to images, transcripts and
English abstracts of 15 charters
- J. Horace Round, ed., Calendar of documents preserved in France, illustrative of the history of Great Britain and Ireland. Volume 1. 918-1206. (1899) (Internet Archive - Text Archive)
English abstracts, including many charters from Normandy, mainly from Record Commission transcripts (class PRO31/8); no more volumes published.
[Other copies at: Internet Archive - Text Archive.]
- William Oliver Roper, ed., Materials for the history of the church of Lancaster. Volume 1. (1892) (Google Books [Hints and tips])
Chetham Society, new series, number 26. Volume 1 of 4. First part of a Latin transcript of the cartulary of Lancaster Priory.
[Other copies at: Internet Archive - Text Archive.]
- William Oliver Roper, ed., Materials for the history of the church of Lancaster. Volume 2. (1894) (Internet Archive - Text Archive)
Chetham Society, new series, number 31. Volume 2 of 4. Second and concluding part of a Latin transcript of the cartulary of Lancaster Priory.
- Charter concerning the manor of Loveden, Lincolnshire, 1378
(Guy Vincent, this site)
Images, translation and notes on heraldic seals.
- [H. C. Maxwell-Lyte and others, eds,] Two cartularies of the Augustinian priory of Bruton and the Cluniac priory of Montacute in the county of Somerset (1894) (Google Books [Hints and tips])
Somerset Record Society, number 8. English abstracts.
[Other copies at: Internet Archive - Text Archive: 1 ; 2 .]
- E. H. Bates, ed., Two cartularies of the Benedictine abbeys of Muchelney and Athelney in the county of Somerset (1899) (Google Books [Hints and tips])
Somerset Record Society, number 14. English abstract of the Muchelney cartulary, with some transcripts; partial English abstract of the Athelney cartulary
[Other copies at: Internet Archive - Text Archive: 1 ; 2 .]
- Newbattle Abbey: [Cosmo Innes, ed.] Registrum S. Marie de Neubotle. Abbacie Cisterciensis Beate Virginis de Neubotle Chartarium Vetus. Accedit appendix cartarum originalium. 1140-1528. (1849) (Internet Archive - Text Archive)
Bannatyne Club, 89.
- Nottinghamshire: Manuscripts Online Catalogue (University of Nottingham)
Provides access to a large collection of records, including family and estate collections for the Mellish family of Hodsock, the Newcastle family of Clumber Park, the Middleton Collection and the Portland (London) Collection.
- Parkham-related deeds [Devon]
(Elizabeth Glover Howard, GENUKI)
Extracted items (mainly from the 16th century)
from J. C. Tingay, Calendar of Deeds Enrolled Within the County of Devon 1536 - 1673 (1930)
- Ramsey Abbey:
Cartularium monasterii de Rameseia
(gallica;
Bibliothèque Nationale de France; numbers for "Recherche libre" field: N050351-N050353)
PDF format; Latin text from the edition of William Henry Hart and the Rev. Ponsonby A. Lyons
(Rolls Series 79, vols 1-3; 1884-1893)
- Fowle family:
Deeds of various properties in ... Sandhurst in Kent (Bodiam Mill: Sources in Genealogy
and Local History for Sandhurst in Kent and nearby villages)
Abstracts of deeds at the East Sussex Record Office, 14th century and later, mainly relating to the Fowle family and the
manor of Betherinden in Sandhurst, Kent; now available by paid subscription only
- Walter de Gray Birch, Cartularium saxonicum: a collection of charters relating to Anglo-Saxon history. (1883-1893) (Oxford Text Archive)
Text of volumes 1-3, though footnotes and variant readings are not included.
- Walter de Gray Birch Cartularium saxonicum: a collection of charters relating to Anglo-Saxon history. Vol. 1, A.D. 430-839 [Part 1, 430-738] (1885) (Google Books [Hints and tips])
[Other copies at: Internet Archive - Text Archive.]
- Walter de Gray Birch, Cartularium saxonicum: a collection of charters relating to Anglo-Saxon history. Vol. 1, A.D. 430-839 [Part 2, 741-839] (1885) (Internet Archive - Text Archive)
- Walter de Gray Birch, Cartularium saxonicum: a collection of charters relating to Anglo-Saxon history. Vol. 2, A.D. 840-947 [Part 1, 840-928] (1887) (Internet Archive - Text Archive)
- Walter de Gray Birch, Cartularium saxonicum: a collection of charters relating to Anglo-Saxon history. Vol. 2, A.D. 840-947 [Part 2, 928-947] (1887) (Internet Archive - Text Archive)
[Other copies at: Internet Archive - Text Archive.]
- Walter de Gray Birch, Cartularium saxonicum: a collection of charters relating to Anglo-Saxon history. Vol. 3, A.D. 948-975 [Part 1, 948-959] (1887) (Internet Archive - Text Archive)
- Walter de Gray Birch, Index Saxonicus: an index to all the names of persons in Cartularium Saxonicum: a collection of charters relating to Anglo-Saxon history. (1899) (Internet Archive - Text Archive)
[Other copies at: Internet Archive - Text Archive: 1 ; 2 .]
- Sir Archibald Campbell Lawrie, ed., Early Scottish Charters prior to A.D. 1153 (1905) (Google Books [Hints and tips])
[Other copies at: Internet Archive - Text Archive: 1 ; 2 ; 3 .]
- T. Walter Hall and A. Hermann Thomas, Descriptive catalogue of the charters, rolls, deeds, pedigrees, [etc] forming the Jackson Collection at the Sheffield Public Reference Library. (1914) (Internet Archive - Text Archive)
Includes English abstracts of charters.
[Other copies at: Internet Archive - Text Archive.]
- Spotland: Medieval Deeds from Chetham's Library (Medieval Documentation for Salford Hundred)
Scans of medieval deeds relating to Spotland (in Rochdale), Lancashire.
- Tybotot/Chaworth: Real and False Crusading Charters (Nat Taylor)
Image of a contract dated 1270, by which Robert Tybotot [d. 1298] and Payn de Chaworth [d. 1279] agree to accompany the Lord Edward on crusade. Large jpg file (1.8MB) from a photograph of British Library, Additional Charter 19829, in Jonathan Riley-Smith, ed., Oxford Illustrated History of the Crusades, p. 63 (Oxford, 1995). With an image of a 19th-century fake crusading contract from France.
- Whalley Abbey:
- W. A. Hulton, ed., The Coucher Book or Chartulary of Whalley Abbey, volume 1 (1847) (Google Books [Hints and tips])
Chetham Society, old series, volume 10. Latin transcript.
[Other copies at: Google Books [Hints and tips]; Internet Archive - Text Archive: 1 ; 2 ; Medieval Documentation for Salford Hundred.]
- W. A. Hulton, ed., The Coucher Book or Chartulary of Whalley Abbey, volume 2 (1847) (Google Books [Hints and tips])
Chetham Society, old series, volume 11. Latin transcript.
[Other copies at: Google Books: 1 ; 2 [Hints and tips]; Internet Archive - Text Archive: 1 ; 2 ; 3 ; Grimshaw Origins and History.]
- W. A. Hulton, ed., The Coucher Book or Chartulary of Whalley Abbey, volume 3 (1848) (Google Books [Hints and tips])
Chetham Society, old series, volume 16. Latin transcript.
[Other copies at: Google Books: 1 ; 2 [Hints and tips]; Internet Archive - Text Archive: 1 ; 2 ; 3 ; Grimshaw Origins and History.]
- W. A. Hulton, ed., The Coucher Book or Chartulary of Whalley Abbey, volume 4 (1849) (Google Books [Hints and tips])
Chetham Society, old series, volume 20. Latin transcript. Includes an index to all four volumes.
[Other copies at: Google Books [Hints and tips]; Internet Archive - Text Archive: 1 ; 2 ; Grimshaw Origins and History.]
- [J. C. Atkinson, ed.] Cartularium abbathiae de Whiteby, ordinis S. Benedicti, fundatae anno MLXXVIII. (1879) (Google Books [Hints and tips])
Surtees Society, volume 69. Part 1 (continued in volume 72). Latin transcript.
[Other copies at: Internet Archive - Text Archive: 1 ; 2 .]
- [J. C. Atkinson, ed.] Cartularium abbathiae de Whitby, ordinis S. Benedicti, fundatae anno MLXXVIII. (1881) (Google Books [Hints and tips])
Surtees Society, volume 72. Part 2 (continued from volume 69). Latin transcript.
[Other copies at: Internet Archive - Text Archive.]
- Catalogue
of Wolley Charters (British Library/Royal Holloway College, University of London)
Searchable catalogue of a collection of 1039 charters, mainly from the 13th and 14th centuries,
relating to Derbyshire, neighbouring counties, and the North of England.
- Worcester: Early Medieval Record-Keeping: exploring the preservation of medieval memoranda (Jonathan Herold, University of Toronto)
Transcripts and images of a late 11th-century cartulary from Worcester (the St Wulfstan Cartulary, also known as the Nero-Middleton or St Oswald's Cartulary), with corresponding material from two other cartularies, the Liber Wigornensis and Hemming's Cartulary, and transcripts of other early Acta. The site also includes discussion and bibliography.
- William Farrer, ed., Early Yorkshire charters, volume 1 (1914) (Internet Archive - Text Archive)
- William Farrer, ed., Early Yorkshire charters, volume 2 (1915) (Internet Archive - Text Archive)
- William Farrer, ed., Early Yorkshire charters, volume 3 (1915) (Internet Archive - Text Archive)