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Official papers deriving from administrative procedures of central government, dated between 1581 and 1887, consisting of manuscript copies and published versions of speeches, addresses and official letters, Acts of Parliament, petitions and cases, proclamations, lists of ministers and MPs, and miscellaneous other political papers. The majority originate from the second half of the seventeenth century, giving an instructive view of the relations between the Stuart monarchs and their respective parliaments, against a background of political unrest and religious dissension. Recurrent themes include the Dutch invasion, the accession and policies of William III, Jacobite resistance, Protestant religion, European wars, taxation, home and foreign trade, and national finance.

Letters exchanged between members of the Maurice and Owen families of Clenennau and Brogyntyn, and other correspondence from friends or associates in Wales and England, together with a number of important official documents deriving from county administration in Caernarfonshire during the Tudor and Stuart periods, 1485, 1573-1698. Many of the early letters and papers, 1580-1622, relate to the joint deputy lieutenancy in Caernarfonshire of Sir William Maurice and Sir John Wynn, showing their preoccupation with the raising and organisation of militia troops for the defence of Caernarfonshire and for despatch to Ireland. Other topics include Sir William Maurice's position as deputy vice-admiral of North Wales and the protracted civil lawsuits in which he was engaged. The collection also constitutes an important historical source for the conduct of the Civil War in North Wales. Items from that period primarily concern Sir John Owen and his brother, Col. William Owen, Royalist commanders at Conwy and Harlech respectively, and their subsequent treatment under the Commonwealth and Restoration, 1643-1666. Many of the letters from 1678 to 1698 reveal the life of Sir Robert Owen, his debts, estate business, cultural interests and attachment to the Jacobite cause, together with contemporary political news. Apart from individuals already mentioned, prominent correspondents include the Privy Council of Elizabeth I, mostly through Henry Herbert, President of the Council in the Marches of Wales, 1587-1600; Sir Henry Johnes of Abermarlais, 1605-1616; Ralph, Lord Eure, 1607-1617; members of the Brynker family, 1603-1681; the Wynn family of Glyn and Sylfaen, 1625-1697; the Anwyl family of Park, 1636-1693; Charles I, Prince Rupert and Prince Maurice, 1642-1647; Lord Byron, 1644-1648; John Williams, Archbishop of York, 1645-1646; George Twisleton, 1649-1660; the Godolphin family of Abertanat, 1658-1698; John Gadbury, 1679-1688; and Edward Lhuyd, 1696-1697.

Private letters exchanged between Margaret Godolphin, [c. 1698]-1764, and various members of the Godolphin family of Abertanat, Eton and Thames Ditton, 1698-1763, including her parents, Sydney and Susanna, her sisters, Ellen and Mary, her nephew, Francis, their Hoblyn and Pendarves relatives, and others; together with letters from friends, solicitors and other professionals. The contents reflect in great detail the personal, domestic and social circumstances of an eighteenth century upper class family, against the background of the Jacobite Wars. Recurrent topics include the management of the Abertanat estate, especially the exploitation of timber, the death of Master Henry Godolphin, 1722, physical ailments, financial investments, family settlements and inheritance. The correspondence of Ellen, Margaret and Mary Godolphin from 1728 to 1730 shows a preoccupation with the reluctance of Miss Mary Godolphin to marry William Owen of Porkington!

Large scrapbook of historical and literary material comprising notes and transcripts relating to the history of France, 1748-1772, and to Prince Charles, Kevenhuller and Prince Esterhazy, 1743; a list of European rulers and wars fought by Britain between 1739 and 1780; notes and copies of documents relating to the activities and executions of prominent Jacobites, 1745-1752; copies of letters from and to Lord Bath concerning the Shrewsbury election [post-1741]; a poem entitled Arma Virumque Cano on General Hawley 's defeat in Scotland; a list of those who voted against the bill for suspending the Habeas Corpus Act, 1746; notes on the history of Italy; Denbigh election results; and an account in French of Willem Bentinck 's part in the appointment of William IV of Orange as Stadtholder of Holland, 1747.