Additional Hardwick Manuscripts

These items are different in nature to rest of the Hardwick Manuscripts, firstly in that they are largely papers, such as settlements and letters patent, whilst most of the items in this collection are manuscript volumes. These records probably more closely resemble the Hardwick Drawers collection which contains largely indentures and deeds. However the indentures in this series were clearly identified at some point in their history as all specifically relating to family members and the establishment of the Cavendish inheritance, rather than related to tenants, neighbours or the estates more generally.

The muniment register is the item that links the Hardwick Drawers collection to this one, as it lists the places and locations of deeds that were in the Hardwick Drawers in the early 17th century.

This Additional Hardwick Manuscripts series also contains inventories, which are also present in HMS/2 and are records which were created as another way for Cavendish family members to keep record of their property. The settlements here also relate to many of the copies written into HMS/2/15.

HMS/5/3 and HMS/5/1, both purchased for the 11th Duke of Devonshire, are an financial account book of William St Loe and an Inventory of Sir William Cavendish's house at Northaw.

These items were, prior to December 2016, kept in two boxes labelled "Bess and Earls' Miscellanea." The majority of the papers evidently have a similar custodial history to those found in the Hardwick Manuscript and Hardwick Drawers collections, but as of December 2016 they remained uncatalogued and thus without a reference number.

Some material was bought at auction in the 20th century, and then placed with this material. This has been noted at item level. The catalogue here was based on a pre-existing list, made c.2000.

This additional series was created to make clear the custodial link between the two series. When cataloguing the collection in 2021, it was decided to keep this series separate to preseve the slightly different custodial history of these records from the main collection of Hardwick Manuscripts first listed by Eugenie Strong in 1905-8.

Other deeds relating to the estate can be found in the Hardwick charters (GB 2495 HC).

Other estate deeds, indentures, inventories, accounts and letters patent can be found in the Hardwick drawers GB 2495 H/143, H/144, H/145, and H/146.

The Hardwick Drawers listed above are of a very similar type to the material in this additional series and provide greater detail about the compiling of the family estates and the their management during this period.

H/143 contains the following inventories:

H/143/25 "A collection of hangings of tapestry at Roehampton and Southampton House and formerly at Devonshire House and Bishopsgate".

H/143/2 "Inventory of the goods of Sir William Cavendish" and a deed to continue the same in the family, 1559.

H/143/8 Inventory of the plate sent from London to the country, 21 August 1587.

H/143/31 "Inventory of goods of the Countess Dowager [Elizabeth nee Cecil] at Chatsworth", 27 February 1684.

H/143/30 "An inventory of plate taken at Chatsworth", 26 August 1682.