Duchy of Lancaster: Drafts and Particulars for Letters Patent

The drafting of a patent was a distinct stage in the process of issuing instruments under the Duchy and Palatine seals. The draft would be prepared after the appropriate authority had been received and be the basis for the final engrossed patent letter. The process, however, differed with the nature of the tenure of the office or lands.

By the mid-sixteenth century, from when the drafts in this series survive, patents for offices during the monarch's pleasure could be granted by the chancellor and council of the Duchy. The chancellor would first issue a warrant to the auditor for the area involved. The auditor would then prepare a particular to be returned to the chancellor who would note it with a warrant to the clerk of the Duchy to prepare a draft. If the office was for a term of life, or land was granted in fee, however, the authority had to come from the monarch in the form of a sign manual bill.

The initial stages of the above process would be the same but the chancellor's note on the particular would be for the preparation of a sign manual bill for the royal signature. The returned bill would be the warrant and as it carried the exact form of the grant no draft would be needed.