
Thecofferer of the Household was formerly an office in the English and BritishRoyal Household. Next in rank to theComptroller, the holder paid the wages of some of the servants above and below stairs, was a member of theBoard of Green Cloth, and sat with theLord Steward in theCourt of the Verge.[1][2] The cofferer was usually of political rank and always a member of thePrivy Council.[3]
The office dates from the 13th century, when it was known asCofferer of the Wardrobe. TheKeeper of the Wardrobe was at this time increasingly occupied with matters of state, and so his chiefclerk gradually took on additional responsibilities for accounting and bookkeeping, and came to be referred to as the Cofferer.[4] As such, he became in effect the working head of the Wardrobe, and acted when required aslocum tenens to the Keeper. The Cofferer had his own staff of clerks, who later came to be known as theClerks of the Green Cloth (after the green cloth covering of the table in the accounting office).[4]
By the end of the 14th century the Wardrobe had ceased to be an independent office of influence at Court; its officers were made subsidiary to theLord Steward and duly re-designated as being 'of the Household' (rather than 'of the Wardrobe').[5] The Cofferer retained his role as principal accounting officer under the Lord Steward.[6]
The office of Cofferer was abolished by theCivil List and Secret Service Money Act 1782.[7] By the same means 'provision was made for more economical methods of keeping the accounts ofCivil List expenditure under theLords Commissioners of the Treasury':[6] thenceforward the accounts of the Lord Steward's Department were included in theEstimates.
| Name | Entered office | Left office | Notes | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roger Repington | In office during the reign ofEmpress Matilda in the 12th century | [8] | ||
| William Louth | 1274 | 1280 | [9] | |
| William March | 1280 | 1284 | [9] | |
| Henry Wheatley | 1284 | 1287 | [9] | |
| Walter Langton | 1287 | 1290 | Keeper of the Wardrobe, 1290 | [9] |
| John Droxford | 1290 | 1290 | Keeper of the Wardrobe, 1295 | [9] |
| Philip Everdon | 1290 | 1295 | [9] | |
| Walter Barton | 1295 | 1297 | [9] | |
| Ralph Manton | 1297 | 1303 | [9] | |
| Walter Bedwyn | 1303 | 1307 | [9] | |
| Peter Collingbourn | 1307 | 1308 | Keeper of the Wardrobe, 1312 | [9] |
| John Ockham | 1308 | 1309 | [9] | |
| Robert Wodehouse | 1309 | 1311 | Controller of the Wardrobe, 1314 | [9] |
| John Ockham | 1311 | 1314 | [9] | |
| Nicholas Huggate | 1314 | 1315 | Controller of the Wardrobe, 1326 | [9] |
| Henry Hale | 1316 | 1316 | [9] | |
| Robert Wodehouse | 1317 | 1318 | [9] | |
| Unknown | (1318–1320) | [9] | ||
| Richard Ferriby | 1320 | 1323 | Controller of the Wardrobe, 1331 | [9] |
| Unknown | (1323–1327) | [9] | ||
| Richard Bury | 1327 | 1328 | Keeper of the Wardrobe, 1328 | [9] |
| John Houton | 1328 | 1331 | [9] | |
| William Norwell | 1331 | 1334 | Keeper of the Wardrobe, 1335 | [9] |
| John Cokham | 1334 | 1335 | [9] | |
| John Houton | 1335 | 1337 | [9] | |
| Richard Nateby | 1337 | 1338 | Controller of the Wardrobe, 1338 | [9] |
| William Dalton | 1338 | 1344 | Controller of the Wardrobe, 1344 | [9] |
| Richard Eccleshall | 1334 | 1349 or 1350 | [9] | |
| Unknown | (1350–1359) | [9] | ||
| Thomas Brantingham | 1359 | 1361 | Keeper of the Wardrobe, 1368 | [9] |
| Unknown | (1361–1369) | [9] | ||
| Richard Beverley | 1369 | 1376 | Keeper of the Wardrobe, 1376 | [9] |
| John Carp | 1376 | 1390 | Keeper of the Wardrobe, 1390 | [9] |
| John Stacy | 1390 | 1395 | [9] | |
| Thomas More | 1395 | 1399 | Keeper of the Wardrobe, 1401 | [9] |
| Unknown | ||||
| John Spencer | 1413 | 1413 | Keeper of the Great Wardrobe, 1413 | [10][11] |
| William Kinwolmarsh | In office during the reign ofHenry V | [12] | ||
| Unknown | ||||
| John Kendale | 1461 | 1470 | [13] | |
| John Elrington | 1471 | 1474 | Keeper of the Wardrobe, 1474 | [13] |
| Richard Jeny | 1479 | [13] | ||
| James Blundell | 1479 | 1481 | [13] | |
| John Belle | 1483 | 1485 | [13] | |
| Laurence Warham | In office in 1485 | [14] | ||
| John Payne | 1486 | 1492 | [14] | |
| William Fisher | 1492 | 1494 | [14] | |
| William Cope | 1494 | 1505 | [14] | |
| Edward Cheseman | by 1508 | [14] | ||
| John Shurley | 1509 | 1527 | [14] | |
| Sir Edmund Peckham | 1524 or 1527 | 1547 | [14][15] | |
| John Ryther | 1547 | 1552 | [14][16] | |
| Thomas Weldon | 1552 | 1553 | [14][17] | |
| Sir Richard Freeston | 1553 | 1557 | [14] | |
| Michael Wentworth | 1558 | 1558 | [14][18] | |
| Thomas Weldon and Richard Ward | 1558 | 1559 | [14][17][19] | |
| Thomas Weldon | 1559 | 1567 | [14][17] | |
| Richard Ward | 1567 | 1578 | [14][19] | |
| Anthony Crane | 1578 | 1580 | [14] | |
| John Abingdon | 1580 | 1582 | [14] | |
| Gregory Lovell | 1582 | 1597 | [14] | |
| SirHenry Cocke | 1597 | 1610 | [14][20] | |
| Sir Robert Vernon | 1610 | 1615 | [14][20] | |
| SirArthur Ingram | 1615 | 1615 | Suspended | [14][20] |
| SirMarmaduke Dayrell | 1615 | cont. | [14][20] | |
| Sir Marmaduke Dayrell and SirHenry Vane | 1625 | 1632 | [14][20] | |
| Sir Henry Vane and SirRoger Palmer | 1632 | 1632 | [14][20] | |
| Sir Roger Palmer | 1632 | 1643 | [14] | |
| William Ashburnham | 1642 | 1646 | [3][21] | |
| Commonwealth | (1649–1660) | [21] | ||
| William Ashburnham | 1660 | 1679 | [7] | |
| Henry Brouncker, 3rd Viscount Brouncker, from 1684 Viscount Brouncker | 1679 | 1685 | [7] | |
| Sir Peter Apsley | 1685 | 1689 | [7] | |
| Francis Newport, 1st Viscount Newport, from 1694Earl of Bradford | 1689 | 1702 | [7] | |
| SirBenjamin Bathurst | 1702 | 1704 | [7] | |
| Francis Godolphin, from 1706 Viscount Rialton | 1704 | 1711 | First period in office; succeeded asEarl of Godolphin in 1712 | [7] |
| Samuel Masham, from 1712Baron Masham | 1711 | 1714 | [7] | |
| Francis Godolphin, 2nd Earl of Godolphin | 1714 | 1723 | Second period in office | [7] |
| William Pulteney | 1723 | 1725 | CreatedEarl of Bath in 1742 | [7] |
| Henry Clinton, 7th Earl of Lincoln | 1725 | 1728 | [7] | |
| Vacant | (1728–1730) | [7] | ||
| Horatio Walpole | 1730 | 1741 | CreatedBaron Walpole in 1756 | [7] |
| Thomas Winnington | 1741 | 1744 | [7] | |
| Samuel Sandys, 1st Baron Sandys | 1744 | 1744 | [7] | |
| Edmund Waller | 1744 | 1747 | [7] | |
| Henry Pelham-Clinton, 9th Earl of Lincoln | 1747 | 1754 | Succeeded asDuke of Newcastle in 1768 | [7] |
| Sir George Lyttelton, 5th Baronet | 1754 | 1756 | CreatedBaron Lyttelton in 1756 | [7] |
| Thomas Osborne, 4th Duke of Leeds | 1756 | 1761 | [7] | |
| James Grenville | 1761 | 1761 | [7] | |
| Percy Wyndham-O'Brien, 1st Earl of Thomond | 1761 | 1765 | [7] | |
| Richard Lumley-Saunderson, 4th Earl of Scarbrough | 1765 | 1766 | [7] | |
| Hans Stanley | 1766 | 1774 | [7] | |
| Jeremiah Dyson | 1774 | 1776 | [7] | |
| Hans Stanley | 1776 | 1780 | [7] | |
| Francis Ingram-Seymour-Conway, Viscount Beauchamp | 1780 | 1782 | Succeeded asMarquess of Hertford in 1794 | [7] |
The Board of Green Cloth audited the accounts of the Royal Household and sat as a court on offences committed on ... for premises controlled by the Royal Palaces, and did not finally disappear until 2004, following the Licensing Act 2004.