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List of lord chancellors and lord keepers

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The following is a list of lord chancellors and lord keepers of the Great Seal of England and Great Britain. It also includes a list of commissioners of Parliament's Great Seal during the English Civil War and Interregnum.

Lord chancellors and lord keepers of England, 1050–1707

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11th century

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12th century

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13th century

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14th century

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15th century

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1500–1654

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Image Name Term of office Monarch
(reign)
Henry Deane, Archbishop of Canterbury, Keeper 1500 1502 Henry VII

(1485–1509)
William Warham, Archbishop of Canterbury, Keeper to 1504 1502 1515
Henry VIII

(1509–1547)
Thomas Wolsey, Cardinal Archbishop of York 1515 1529
Thomas More[b] 1529 1532
Thomas Audley
(Lord Audley of Walden from 1538)[b]
1532 1544
Lord Wriothesley 1544 1547
Edward VI

(1547–1553)
Lord St John, Keeper 1547 1547
Lord Rich[b] 1547 1551
Thomas Goodrich, Bishop of Ely 1552 1553
Stephen Gardiner, Bishop of Winchester 1553 1555 Mary I

(1553–1558)
Nicholas Heath, Archbishop of York 1555 1558
Nicholas Bacon, Lord Keeper 1558 1579 Elizabeth I

(1558–1603)
Thomas Bromley 1579 1587
Christopher Hatton 1587 1591
In commission: 1591 1592
John Puckering, Lord Keeper[b] 1592 1596
Thomas Egerton, Lord Keeper to 19 July 1603
(Lord Ellesmere from 1603;
Viscount Brackley from 1616)
6 May
1596
5 March
1617
James I

(1603–1625)
Francis Bacon, Lord Keeper to 1618
(Lord Verulam from 1618
Viscount St Alban from 1621)
7 March
1617
1621
In commission: 1621 1621
John Williams, Bishop of Lincoln, Lord Keeper 1621 1625
Thomas Coventry, Lord Keeper
(Lord Coventry from 1628)
1625 1640 Charles I

(1625–1649)
Lord Finch, Lord Keeper[b] 1640 1641
Lord Lyttleton of Mounslow, Lord Keeper
(Took Great Seal to the King in 1642)
1641 1645
Richard Lane, Lord Keeper 1645 1650
Charles II

Court in exile
from 1649
Vacant 1650 1653
Edward Herbert, Lord Keeper 1653 1654

The Great Seal was captured and destroyed by Parliament on 11 August 1646.

Commissioners of Parliament's Great Seal 1643–1660

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Image Name[2] Term
In commission: Nov 1643 – Oct 1646
In commission: 1646–1648
In commission: 1648–1649
In commission: 1649–1654
In commission: 1654–1656
In commission: 1656–1659
In commission: January–June 1659
In commission: June 1659 – 1660
In commission: 1660–1660

From the Restoration (1660) to the Act of Union (1707)

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Lord Chancellor and Lord Keeper Term of office Other peerage(s) Monarch
(reign)
Edward Hyde 13 January
1658
30 August
1667
Baron Hyde in 1660
Earl of Clarendon in 1661
Charles II

(1660–1685)
Orlando Bridgeman[c] 31 August
1667
17 November
1672
Anthony Ashley Cooper
1st Earl of Shaftesbury
17 November
1672
9 November
1673
Heneage Finch (Lord Keeper until 1675)
(Lord Finch from 10 January 1673,
Earl of Nottingham from 12 May 1681)
9 November
1673
18 December
1682
Francis North[c] 20 December
1682
5 September
1685
Baron Guilford in 1683
James II

(1685–1688)
Lord Jeffreys 28 September
1685
December
1688
In commission: 4 March
1689
14 May
1690
Mary II

(1689–1694)
&
William III

(1689–1702)
In commission: 14 May
1690
22 March
1693
John Somers (Lord Keeper until 1697)
(Lord Somers from 1697)
23 March
1693
27 April
1700
In commission: 27 April
1700
31 May
1700
Nathan Wright[c] 31 May
1700
11 October
1705
Anne

(1702–1714)
William Cowper[c] 11 October
1705
4 May
1707
Baron Cowper in 1706

Lord high chancellors and lord keepers of Great Britain (1707–present)

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   Tory        Whig        Conservative        Liberal        Labour        National Labour        National Liberal
High Chancellor and Lord Keeper Term of office Party Ministry Other peerage(s) Monarch
(Reign)
William Cowper
1st Baron Cowper
4 May
1707
23 September
1710[3]
 
Godolphin–Marlborough
 
see below Anne

(1702–1714)
Oxford–Bolingbroke
In commission: 26 September
1710
19 October
1710
Simon Harcourt
1st Baron Harcourt
[d]
19 October
1710
21 September
1714
Tory Viscount Harcourt in 1721
William Cowper
1st Baron Cowper
21 September
1714
15 April
1718
Townshend Earl Cowper in 1718 George I

(1714–1727)
Stanhope–Sunderland I
In commission: 18 April
1718
12 May
1718
Stanhope–Sunderland II
Thomas Parker
1st Baron Parker
12 May
1718
7 January
1725
Whig Earl of Macclesfield in 1721
Walpole–Townshend
In commission: 7 January
1725
1 June
1725
Peter King
1st Baron King
1 June
1725
29 November
1733
George II

(1727–1760)
Walpole
Charles Talbot
1st Baron Talbot
29 November
1733
14 February
1737
Philip Yorke
1st Baron Hardwicke
21 February
1737
19 November
1756
Whig Earl of Hardwicke in 1754
Carteret
Broad Bottom
(I & II)
Newcastle I
In commission: 19 November
1756
30 June
1757
Pitt–Devonshire
1757 Caretaker
Robert Henley
1st Baron Henley
[e]
30 June
1757
30 July
1766
Whig Pitt–Newcastle Earl of Northington in 1764
George III

(1760–1820)
[f]
Bute
Grenville
(WhigTory)
Rockingham I
Charles Pratt
1st Baron Camden
30 July
1766
17 January
1770
Whig Chatham
(WhigTory)
Earl Camden in 1786
Grafton
(WhigTory)
Charles Yorke
MP for Cambridge University
17 January
1770
20 January
1770
Whig [g]
In commission: 21 January
1770
23 January
1771
North
Henry Bathurst
1st Baron Apsley
23 January
1771
3 June
1778
Tory Succeeded as Earl Bathurst in 1775
Edward Thurlow
1st Baron Thurlow
3 June
1778
7 April
1783
Tory
Rockingham II see below
Shelburne
(WhigTory)
In commission: 9 April
1783
23 December
1783
Fox–North
(WhigTory)
Edward Thurlow
1st Baron Thurlow
23 December
1783
15 June
1792
Tory Pitt I Baron Thurlow in 1792
In commission: 15 June
1792
28 January
1793
Alexander Wedderburn
1st Baron Loughborough
28 January
1793
14 April
1801
Earl of Rosslyn in 1801
John Scott
1st Baron Eldon
14 April
1801
7 February
1806
Tory Addington see below
Pitt II
Thomas Erskine
1st Baron Erskine
7 February
1806
1 April
1807
Whig All the Talents
(WhigTory)
John Scott
1st Baron Eldon
1 April
1807
12 April
1827
Tory Portland II Earl of Eldon in 1821
Perceval
Liverpool
George IV

(1820–1830)
John Copley
1st Baron Lyndhurst
2 May
1827
24 November
1830
Tory Canning
(CanningiteWhig)
Goderich
(CanningiteWhig)
Wellington–Peel
William IV

(1830–1837)
Henry Brougham
1st Baron Brougham and Vaux
24 November
1830
21 November
1834
Whig Grey Baron Brougham and Vaux in 1860
Melbourne I
John Copley
1st Baron Lyndhurst
21 November
1834
8 April
1835
Conservative Wellington Caretaker
Peel I
In commission: 23 April
1835
16 January
1836
Melbourne II
Charles Pepys
1st Baron Cottenham
16 January
1836
30 August
1841
Whig see below
Victoria

(1837–1901)
John Copley
1st Baron Lyndhurst
3 September
1841
27 June
1846
Conservative Peel II
Charles Pepys
1st Baron Cottenham
6 July
1846
19 June
1850
Whig Russell I Earl of Cottenham in 1850
In commission: 19 June
1850
15 July
1850
Thomas Wilde
1st Baron Truro
15 July
1850
21 February
1852
Whig
Edward Sugden
1st Baron St Leonards
[h]
27 February
1852
17 December
1852
Conservative Who? Who?
Robert Rolfe
1st Baron Cranworth
28 December
1852
21 February
1858
Whig Aberdeen
(PeeliteWhig)
Palmerston I
Frederic Thesiger
1st Baron Chelmsford
26 February
1858
11 June
1859
Conservative Derby–Disraeli II
John Campbell
1st Baron Campbell
[h]
18 June
1859
24 June
1861
Liberal Palmerston II
Richard Bethell
1st Baron Westbury
26 June
1861
7 July
1865
Liberal
Robert Rolfe
1st Baron Cranworth
7 July
1865
26 June
1866
Liberal
Russell II
Frederic Thesiger
1st Baron Chelmsford
6 July
1866
29 February
1868
Conservative Derby–Disraeli III
Hugh Cairns
1st Baron Cairns
29 February
1868
1 December
1868
Conservative see below
William Wood
1st Baron Hatherley
9 December
1868
15 October
1872
Liberal Gladstone I
Roundell Palmer
1st Baron Selborne
15 October
1872
17 February
1874
Liberal see below
Hugh Cairns
1st Baron Cairns
21 February
1874
21 April
1880
Conservative Disraeli II Earl Cairns in 1878
Roundell Palmer
1st Baron Selborne
28 April
1880
9 June
1885
Liberal Gladstone II Earl of Selborne in 1882
Hardinge Giffard
1st Baron Halsbury
24 June
1885
28 January
1886
Conservative Salisbury I see below
Farrer Herschell
1st Baron Herschell
6 February
1886
20 July
1886
Liberal Gladstone III
Hardinge Giffard
1st Baron Halsbury
3 August
1886
11 August
1892
Conservative Salisbury II
Farrer Herschell
1st Baron Herschell
18 August
1892
21 June
1895
Liberal Gladstone IV
Rosebery
Hardinge Giffard
1st Baron Halsbury
29 June
1895
4 December
1905
Conservative Salisbury
(III & IV)

(Con.Lib.U.)
Earl of Halsbury in 1898
Edward VII

(1901–1910)
Balfour
(Con.Lib.U.)
Robert Reid
1st Baron Loreburn
10 December
1905
10 June
1912
Liberal Campbell-Bannerman Earl Loreburn in 1911
Asquith
(I–III)
George V

(1910–1936)
Richard Haldane
1st Viscount Haldane
10 June
1912
25 May
1915
Liberal
Stanley Buckmaster
1st Baron Buckmaster
25 May
1915
5 December
1916
Liberal Asquith Coalition
(Lib.Con.Lab.)
Viscount Buckmaster in 1933
Robert Finlay
1st Baron Finlay
10 December
1916
10 January
1919
Conservative Lloyd George
(I & II)

(Lib.Con.Lab.)
Viscount Finlay in 1919
F. E. Smith
1st Baron Birkenhead
10 January
1919
19 October
1922
Conservative Viscount Birkenhead in 1921
Earl of Birkenhead in 1922
George Cave
1st Viscount Cave
24 October
1922
22 January
1924
Conservative Law
Baldwin I
Richard Haldane
1st Viscount Haldane
22 January
1924
6 November
1924
Labour MacDonald I
George Cave
1st Viscount Cave
6 November
1924
28 March
1928
Conservative Baldwin II
Douglas Hogg
1st Baron Hailsham
28 March
1928
4 June
1929
Conservative Viscount Hailsham in 1929
John Sankey
1st Baron Sankey
7 June
1929
7 June
1935
Labour MacDonald II Viscount Sankey in 1932
National Labour National I
(N.Lab.Con.N.Lib.
Lib.
National II
(N.Lab.Con.N.Lib.
Lib. until 1932
)
Douglas Hogg
1st Viscount Hailsham
7 June
1935
9 March
1938
Conservative National III
(Con.N.Lab.N.Lib.)
Edward VIII

(1936)
National IV
(Con.N.Lab.N.Lib.)
George VI

(1936–1952)
Frederic Maugham
Baron Maugham
9 March
1938
3 September
1939
Conservative Viscount Maugham in 1939
Thomas Inskip
1st Viscount Caldecote
3 September
1939
12 May
1940
Conservative Chamberlain War
(Con.N.Lab.N.Lib.)
John Simon
1st Viscount Simon
10 May
1940
27 July
1945
National Liberal Churchill War
(All parties)
Churchill Caretaker
(Con.N.Lib.)
William Jowitt
1st Baron Jowitt
27 July
1945
26 October
1951
Labour Attlee
(I & II)
Viscount Jowitt in 1947
Earl Jowitt in 1951
Gavin Simonds
Baron Simonds
30 October
1951
18 October
1954
Conservative Churchill III Baron Simonds in 1952
Viscount Simonds in 1954
Elizabeth II

(1952–2022)
David Maxwell Fyfe
1st Viscount Kilmuir
18 October
1954
13 July
1962
Conservative Earl of Kilmuir in 1962
Eden
Macmillan
(I & II)
Reginald Manningham-Buller
1st Baron Dilhorne
13 July
1962
16 October
1964
Conservative Viscount Dilhorne in 1962
Douglas-Home
Gerald Gardiner
Baron Gardiner
16 October
1964
19 June
1970
Labour Wilson
(I & II)
Quintin Hogg
Baron Hailsham of St Marylebone
20 June
1970
4 March
1974
Conservative Heath
Frederick Elwyn Jones
Baron Elwyn-Jones
5 March
1974
4 May
1979
Labour Wilson
(III & IV)
Callaghan
Quintin Hogg
Baron Hailsham of St Marylebone
4 May
1979
13 June
1987
Conservative Thatcher I
Thatcher II
Michael Havers
Baron Havers
13 June
1987
26 October
1987
Conservative Thatcher III
James Mackay
Baron Mackay of Clashfern
28 October
1987
2 May
1997
Conservative
Major I
Major II
Derry Irvine
Baron Irvine of Lairg
2 May
1997
12 June
2003
Labour Blair I
Blair II
Charlie Falconer
Baron Falconer of Thoroton
12 June
2003
27 June
2007
Labour
Blair III
Jack Straw[i]
MP for Blackburn
28 June
2007
11 May
2010
Labour Brown
Kenneth Clarke
MP for Rushcliffe
12 May
2010
4 September
2012
Conservative Cameron–Clegg
(Con.L.D.)
Baron Clarke of Nottingham for Life in 2020
Chris Grayling
MP for Epsom and Ewell
4 September
2012
9 May
2015
Conservative Baron Grayling for Life in 2024
Michael Gove
MP for Surrey Heath
9 May
2015
14 July
2016
Conservative Cameron II
Liz Truss[j]
MP for South West Norfolk
14 July
2016
11 June
2017
Conservative May I
David Lidington
MP for Aylesbury
11 June
2017
8 January
2018
Conservative May II
David Gauke
MP for South West Hertfordshire
8 January
2018
24 July
2019
Conservative
Robert Buckland
MP for South Swindon
24 July
2019
15 September
2021
Conservative Johnson I
Johnson II
Dominic Raab
MP for Esher and Walton
15 September
2021
6 September
2022
Conservative
Brandon Lewis
MP for Great Yarmouth
6 September
2022
25 October
2022
Conservative Truss
Charles III

(2022–present)
Dominic Raab
MP for Esher and Walton
27 October
2022
21 April
2023[4]
Conservative Sunak
Alex Chalk
MP for Cheltenham
26 April
2023
5 July
2024
Conservative
Shabana Mahmood
MP for Birmingham Ladywood
5 July
2024
Incumbent Labour Starmer

Timeline

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Shabana MahmoodAlex ChalkBrandon LewisDominic RaabRobert BucklandDavid GaukeDavid LidingtonLiz TrussMichael GoveChris GraylingKenneth ClarkeJack StrawCharles Falconer, Baron Falconer of ThorotonDerry Irvine, Baron Irvine of LairgJames Mackay, Baron Mackay of ClashfernMichael Havers, Baron HaversFrederick Elwyn Jones, Baron Elwyn-JonesQuintin Hogg, Baron Halisham of St MaryleboneGerald Gardiner, Baron GardinerReginald Manningham-Buller, 1st Baron DilhorneDavid Maxwell Fyfe, 1st Viscount KilmuirGavin Simonds, 1st Viscount SimondsWilliam Jowitt, 1st Baron JowittJohn Simon, 1st Viscount SimonThomas Inskip, 1st Viscount CaldecoteFrederic Maugham, Baron MaughamJohn Sankey, 1st Baron SankeyDouglas Hogg, 1st Baron HalishamGeorge Cave, 1st Viscount CaveF. E. Smith, 1st Earl of BirkenheadRobert Finlay, 1st Baron FinlayStanley Buckmaster, 1st Baron BuckmasterRichard Haldane, 1st Viscount HaldaneRobert Reid, 1st Baron LoreburnFarrer Herschell, 1st Baron HerschellHardinge Giffard, 1st Baron HalsburyRoundell Palmer, 1st Baron SelborneWilliam Wood, 1st Baron HatherleyHugh Cairns, 1st Baron CairnsRichard Bethell, 1st Baron WestburyJohn Campbell, 1st Baron CampbellFrederic Thesiger, 1st Baron ChelmsfordRobert Rolfe, 1st Baron CranworthEdward Sugden, 1st Baron St LeonardsThomas Wilde, 1st Baron TruroCharles Pepys, 1st Baron CottenhamHenry Brougham, 1st Baron Brougham and VauxJohn Copley, 1st Baron LyndhurstThomas Erskine, 1st Baron ErskineJohn Scott, 1st Baron EldonAlexander Wedderburn, 1st Baron LoughboroughEdward Thurlow, 1st Baron ThurlowHenry Bathurst, 1st Baron ApsleyCharles YorkeCharles Pratt, 1st Baron CamdenRobert Henley, 1st Baron HenleyPhilip Yorke, 1st Baron HardwickeCharles Talbot, 1st Baron TalbotPeter King, 1st Baron KingThomas Parker, 1st Baron ParkerSimon Harcourt, 1st Baron HarcourtWilliam Cowper, 1st Baron Cowper

Notes

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  1. ^ Not Lord Chancellor as such, but exercised those functions as regent until she appointed William of Kilkenny; only woman to do so until Liz Truss was appointed in 2016.
  2. ^ a b c d e A former Speaker of the House of Commons.
  3. ^ a b c d Lord Keeper of the Great Seal
  4. ^ Lord Keeper of the Great Seal until 7 April 1713.
  5. ^ Lord Keeper of the Great Seal until 16 January 1761.
  6. ^ The Prince of Wales served as prince regent from 5 February 1811.
  7. ^ Charles Yorke, who had been associated with the opposition, was persuaded to accept appointment as Lord Chancellor and was to have been created Baron Morden. However on meeting with his erstwhile opposition colleagues he became ashamed of his action. He refused to sign the patent conferring the peerage on himself and then committed suicide.
  8. ^ a b A former Lord High Chancellor of Ireland.
  9. ^ First non-peer to serve as Lord Chancellor since Robert Henley as Lord Keeper of the Seal in 1760.
  10. ^ First woman to hold the office, and first to exercise its functions since Eleanor of Provence in 1254.

References

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  1. ^ "Swearing In of the Lord Chancellor" (PDF). The Right Hon. The Lord Thomas of Cwmgiedd Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales. Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales. 21 July 2016. Retrieved 18 April 2022.
  2. ^ Cook and Wroughton, English Historical Facts, 1603–1688, pp. 8–9
  3. ^ Geoffrey Treasure, ‘Cowper, William, first Earl Cowper (1665–1723)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, September 2004; online edn, January 2009 accessed 27 March 2009
  4. ^ "Dominic Raab resigns over bullying report". BBC News. 21 April 2023. Retrieved 21 April 2023.

Sources

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  • John Haydn and Horace Ockerby, The Book of Dignities, third edition, W.H. Allen and Co. Ltd, London 1894, reprinted Firecrest Publishing Limited, Bath 1969, p. 352–358
  • John Lord Campbell (1845) Lives of the Lords Chancellors and Keepers of the Great Seal of England. 5th ed. (1868) London: Murray, vol. 10
  • Fryde, E. B.; Greenway, D. E.; Porter, S.; Roy, I. (1996). Handbook of British Chronology (Third revised ed.). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-56350-X.
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