DISPLAY CASE
Later Charters
This is the first charter to refer to the Mayor of Reading. As well as reciting earlier charters it grants specific powers to the Mayor to supervise cloth making in the town. Although this is the first charter to mention the office of Mayor, the title had been in use since at least the early 14th century. The first Mayor recorded in the Borough archive was John Le Goldsmyth, who is mentioned in a lease of 1324, though we know from other sources the names of at least four earlier Mayors. The 1254 agreement between the Gild and the Abbey made reference to the Warden of the Gild and this title and that of Mayor were interchangeable from the late 13th century.
Henry VII’s Great Seal
Reference: R/IC1/5
This image shows a close-up of Henry VII’s Great Seal. Like that of Edward III, the front of the seal shows the King seated on his coronation throne.
Henry VII’s Great Seal
Reference: R/IC1/5
Also like Edward III’s Great Seal, the rear of Henry VII’s showed the King on horseback. The lighter coloured wax that can be seen around the edge is where the seal has been repaired.
Reading’s Charter from James I
Reference: R/IC1/9
This beautifully illustrated charter actually does little more than confirm a charter granted by Elizabeth I in 1560.
Elizabeth’s charter had significantly increased the level of organisation in the Borough. It constituted a 22 member council, allowed the Borough to take over the Abbey’s annual fairs and also granted much of the Abbey stone to the Borough for bridge repairs. It was also the first charter to define the borough boundary – from the middle of Caversham bridge, to the confluence of the Kennet and the Thames, to roughly the start of the Shinfield Road, around through Coley Park and Battle Farm.
Reading’s Charter from Charles I
Reference: R/IC1/10
This charter remained the principal governing document for the Borough until the reforms of the Municipal Corporations Act 1835. The Council was increased to 25 members, and gained additional powers to prevent subdivision of dwellings, the use of thatch, and for the first time, to levy rates to pay for ‘any burden [which] shall hereafter fall on the Borough’.