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of the Household in August 1592, he was succeeded by John, afterwards Sir John, Heron, who had in fact acted as his assistant and kept his books from 1487.[1] Under the Tudors, with their general tendency to elaborate the personal control of government by the sovereign, the post remained one of first-class importance. It was regulated in 1511 by a statute, the recital of which sets out that it had been the practice for certain Receivers of royal lands to account before persons appointed by Henry VII 'for the more speedy payment of his revenues and the accounts of the same to be more speedily taken than could have been after the course of the Exchequer', and after accounting to pay sums to the use of the King in his chamber.[2] The record of these transactions, signed by the King or 'his trusty servant John Heron' had been no legal discharge to the accountants in the Exchequer. Henry VIII had set up by patent a body of General Surveyors and Approvers of the King's Lands to take the accounts, and the statute confirms this proceeding and appoints John Heron to be Treasurer of the Chamber, and to be answerable, with his successors, direct to the King, and not to the Exchequer.[3] John Heron continued in office until 1521.[4] His successor

  • [Footnote: which is given in C. P. R., 1 Rich. III, p. 5, m. 21, as 26 Apr. 1484.

Lovell is described as Treasurer of the King's Chamber on 26 Feb. 1486 and of the Queen's Chamber about the following Easter (Campbell, i. 228, 316). There is no patent for him, and my impression is that both posts had been annexed to the Chancellorship of the Exchequer, granted him on 12 Oct. 1485 (C. P. R., 1 Hen. VII, p. 1, m. 18).]

  1. ↑ Newton, 354, with a full account of Heron's career.
  2. ↑ This arrangement had already been legalized by 1 Hen. VIII, c. 3 (Statutes, iii. 2), which authorizes the payment of certain revenues to Heron as General Receiver, 'and to other persons . . . hereafter in like office to be deputed and assigned as in the time of the late . . . King Henry the vij^{th} hath been used', but does not refer to him as Treasurer of the Chamber.
  3. ↑ 3 Hen. VIII, c. 23 (Statutes, iii. 45). It is provided by § 6 'that the Kinges forenamed trusty servant John Heron be from hensfurth Tresourer of the Kinges Chamber, and that he by the name of Tresourer of the Kinges Chambre be named accepted and called; and that he and every other persone whom the King hereaftur shall name and appoint to the said roome or office of Tresourer of his Chamber be not Charged ne chargeable for any suche his or their Receipt of any parte or parcell of the premisses as before ys expressed or therefor to accompte answere or make repayment to any persone or persones other then to the King or his heires in his or their Chamber, and not in the said Eschequier'. The Act only had force to 30 Nov. 1512, but it was continued by 4 Hen. VIII, c. 18, 6 Hen. VIII, c. 24, 7 Hen. VIII, c. 7, 14-15 Hen. VIII, c. 15, and made permanent by 27 Hen. VIII, c. 62 in 1535 (Statutes, iii. 68, 145, 182, 219, 631). The account of this legislation in Newton, 361, treats the Act of 6 Hen. VIII as its starting-point.
  4. ↑ His salary was at first £10, afterwards £25 a quarter (Brewer, iii. 407). He died on 10 June 1522 (Newton, 358).
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