MS 258: William Laud, Diary to 1643

Archive Unit
  • This material is held at
  • Reference
      GB 473 MS258
  • Dates of Creation
      England, 17th c. ca. 1621-1643
  • Name of Creator
  • Language of Material
      English Latin
  • Physical Description
      Support (paper) 198 x 75 mm. Text area: typically 195 x 60 mm. Fol. xv + 50 + xv leaves. (1 later pencil sequence of foliation in top right of each recto dated 1994 on fol. xxxr: xv 50 xvi-xxx leaves. Remnants of an original pagination? on fols 4r-7r?: [5?]-11 pages). Fols 1-3 damaged: 1 and 2 marginally and repaired; fol. 3 unrepaired with substantial loss of text. Fols 37-40 also damaged with loss of text but repaired. Binding: 20th c? brown morocco over millboard? Boards with gilt double-fillet border with circular corner ornaments, and triple fillet panel with exterior foliate corner ornaments. Board edges and turn-ins decorated in gilt. Spine divided into six compartments by 5 raised bands, with extensive gilt ornamentation. 2nd and 3rd compartments from top bear gilt text “ABP. | LAUDS | AUTOGRAPH | DIARY” and “1573 | 1643” respectively. Marbled endpapers. Binding dimensions: 203 x 82 mm.

Scope and Content

Autograph diary of William Laud (1573-1645, Archbishop of Canterbury), detailing the entire course of his life to 1643, although probably written from 1621 onwards. The last entry is in May 1643 when the diary was seized while Laud was in the Tower of London by William Prynne, who was overseeing Laud's trial. Prynne published a highly redacted version of the diary, against Laud, under the title A breviate of the life, of VVilliam Laud Arch-bishop of Canterbury: extracted (for the most part) verbatim, out of his owne diary, and other writings, under his owne hand (1644), but it was subsequently published in full by the Church of England historian Henry Wharton (1664-1695) in 1694, and in the edition of Laud's works edited by J. Bliss in 1853 (Vol. 3, pp. 109-255).

1. Fols 1r-50v: Laud, William. Diary to 1643. Chiefly English but with several passages in Latin. Single 17th c. cursive mixed hand. Written in long lines with ca. 50 lines to a page. Dates and occasional notes mainly in left hand margins, occasionally right hand margins. Some crossing through.

a. [Fol. 1 blank, apart from later note]
b. Fol. 2r. A list in Laud's hand of "Dayes of observance to me." [fol. 2v blank].
c. Fol. 3r-45r. Diary. Text: "1573. Natus fui Octob. 7. 1573. R. In infantia pene perii morbo &c. ... Maij 27. I answered it for [...]daye Maij 27 as before." With chronological sequence as follows, years reckoned using Lady Day dating [i.e. beginning 25th March]:

  • i. Fols 3r-4r: 1573-1621.
  • ii. Fols 4v-5v: 1622.
  • iii. Fols 5v-7r: 1623/4, to Jan. 16th. [fols 7v-8r blank].
  • iv. Fol. 8v: Jan. 25th-Feb. 4th. [fol. 9r blank, except for two corrections]
  • v. Fols 9v-10r: Continuation of 1623/4.
  • vi. Fols 10r-10v: 1624, to June 16th. [fol. 11r blank except for insertions]
  • vii. Fols 11v-13r: Continuation of 1624.
  • viii. Fols 13r-17v: 1625.
  • ix. Fols 17v-20v: 1626.
  • x. Fols 20v-21v: 1627.
  • xi. Fols 21v-23r: 1628.
  • xii. Fols 23r-23v: 1629.
  • xiii. Fols 23v-24v: 1630.
  • xiv. Fols 24v-25r: 1631.
  • xv. Fols 25r-26r: 1632.
  • xvi. Fols 26r-28r: 1633.
  • xvii. Fols 28r-29r: 1634.
  • xviii. Fols 29v-31r: 1635.
  • xix. Fols 31r-32r: 1636.
  • xx. Fols 32r-33r: 1637.
  • xxi. Fols 33r-35r: 1638.
  • xxii. Fols 35r-36v: 1639.
  • xxiii. Fols 36v-40v: 1640.
  • xxiv. Fols 40v-42r: 1641.
  • xxv. Fols 42r-44v: 1642.
  • xxvi. Fols 44v-45r: 1643, finishing on May 27th. [fols 45v-50r blank].

d. Fol. 50v: Items 20-23 of a list of 'projects' in Laud's hand: "20. A Newe charter for ye Colledge near Dublin ... 23. I have p[ro]cured for St. John Bap. Coll. in Oxford the p[er]pe[tual] inheritance & patronage &c." Items 20 and 21 are labelled "Done" in the left hand margin. Wharton (1695, reproduced in Bliss, 1853) reproduces the list (found on the "last leaf" of the diary, and apparently titled by Laud "Things which I have projected to do if God bless me in them") in its entirety. It is unclear when the loss of this part of the manuscript took place, but obviously after his edition appeared.

Access Information

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Acquisition Information

Note on fol. xv verso in 18th? c. hand: "Upon the old Covers of this book were written by Abp. Sancroft's own hand the following words, 'Abp. Laud's original Diary, great care to be taken of it.' B.B." According to the Coxe Supplement "After Prynne's death in 1669 Laud's papers were recovered by Archbishop Sheldon, and in 1694 the full text was published by Henry Wharton, who in December of that year handed over the MS. to St John's College."

18th c? bookplate of St John's College, Oxford, on fol. 2r. Pencil shelfmark on fol. i verso.

Other Finding Aids

This catalogue entry derives from Stewart Tiley's unpublished descriptive catalogue of the post-1500 western manuscripts at St John's College, Oxford (2018). This entry was uploaded to ArchivesHub in April 2023 as part of the St John's College Library digitization project. To learn more about the project and to find digital resources, please visit the Digital Library

Bibliography

Laud, William, 1695. The history of the troubles and tryal of the most reverend father in God, and blessed martyr, William Laud, Lord Arch-Bishop of Canterbury . Ed. Henry Wharton. London: Richard Chiswell.
Laud, William, 1853. The works of the Most Reverend Father in God, William Laud, D.D. sometime lord archbishop of Canterbury . Ed. James Bliss. Oxford: John Henry Parker.
Prynne William, 1644. A breviate of the life, of VVilliam Laud Arch-bishop of Canterbury: extracted (for the most part) verbatim, out of his owne diary, and other writings, under his owne hand . London: Printed by F.L. for Michael Sparke Senior.