As Rod Neep is retiring, Archive CD Books Ltd will cease trading and the company will be closed down. The company is not being sold. We expect the close to take place on 30th September 2007, after which this on-line catalogue and ordering will no longer be available.

Any orders received by this date will be processed and posted during the following couple of weeks. Because we expect to be busy making many more CDs than normal please be patient for your delivery.

Catalogue prices shown on these pages are the normal prices, BUT AT THE TIME OF CHECKOUT A 50% DISCOUNT WILL BE APPLIED on all orders where the normal order price is greater than £15.00 (before tax and postage)

Includes the Matthew Paris Shields c. 1244-59, Glover's Roll c. 1253-8 and Walford's Roll c. 1273.

From the preface:

'The Matthew Paris Shields are the work of a clerk, a keen, and accurate observer, but one who looked at heraldry from the outside. Glover's and Walford's Rolls, on the other hand, look like the work of heralds, or just possibly of knights, at all events of men personally and professionally involved in the subject.'

In the book ancient families arms are described and discussed and there are often biographical and genealogical notes to accompany them, for example:

From Walford's Roll:

BREUSE. John de Brusse d' or a treys chevrons de gules a une bordure d' azur endente. Cf 141, 111. CII (a) writes 'bod' for bordure. CII (b) makes the border argent, but C I, as also E 337 an F 406, both of which paint it engrailed, confirm azure.

Sir John de Breuse, s. and h. of Robert (d.1276), held lands in Hants., Glos., Surrey, Som., and Essex. (Cal. Inq. ii. 194.) He was dead by Whitsun 1284, when his heirs, minors, were found to be overlords of Spargrove manor, Som. (Ibid. 526)

COLLINS PEERAGE OF ENGLAND

A Genealogical Account and Historical Account of all the Peers of England, now existing, either by tenure, summons or creation.

Their descendants and collateral lines.

Their births, marriages and issues.

Famous acts both in war and peace.

Religious and charitable donations.

Deaths, places of burial, monuments.

Many valuable memoirs never before published.

Also their coats of arms, crests and supporters engraved on copper plates. (about 100 plates in total).

By Arthur Collins. Printed for Innys and others in 1741. The work comprises around 2000 pages. (21cm by 13cm). In 4 volumes.

PLUS: A Supplement to the Peerage of England. 2 volumes by Arthur Collins. Printed for Innys, and others, in 1750.

This is a supplement to the original 4 volumes of the Peerage of England. Includes all the additional Peers from 1740. Gives all the details about them as listed for the original 4 volumes. The supplementary volumes total around 800 pages. There are about 12 pages of plates.

A superb and very rare reference!

Published in five volumes by The Harleian Society this is an essential reference set for medieval historians and genealogists alike.

Although the title suggests that it contains the details only of those who were knights during the reign of Edward I, many of these men had been made Knights by his father and continued to serve his son, Edward II.

Of particular historical note are the infamous 'favourites' of Edward II, Piers de Gaveston and Hugh le Despenser, and John Balliol Edward's 'puppet king' of Scotland.

An intriguing book which details the lives and families of men from one of the most turbulent periods in British history.

An excellent reference book with details of some of the very oldest families. It includes an extensive list of sources and indexes of names, Norman overlords and their under-tenants in England

An index to the pedigrees in the genealogical manuscripts of Sir Ralph Bigland, Garter King of Arms.

Complied by the Rev. Joseph Hunter, transcribed and published in 1894-6 by The Harleian Society in four large volumes.

Completely filled with pedigrees of families, chiefly from Yorkshire, Derbyshire, Cheshire and Lancashire although the branches of these families extend to most parts of Britain and date from the 17th to 19th centuries.

The final volume contains a huge index of thousands of people.

The Harleian Society published Familia Minorum Gentium in four volumes between 1894-6. This work was originally compiled by Joseph Hunter.

In 1931 there appeared on the market some folio volumes which upon inspection were obviously some of Hunter's loose sheets used in the preparation of his work. They contain many extra pedigrees, chiefly of Yorkshire, Derbyshire, Cheshire and Lancashire families, although there are some from other counties.

Records of Grants of Arms, in some cases as early as 1450, upto the early nineteenth century.

Published by The Harleian Society in three large books. Volume one contains the names of those granted the right to bear arms to the end of the seventeenth century. The second and third books cover the years 1687 to 1898.

The Heralds at the College of Arms consider these books to be one of the most important reference sources available to them and we consider ourselves extremely fortunate to be able to make them available on CD to historians and genealogists all over the world.

Published in 1804 this contains the lives of all the Kings, Heralds and Pursuivants from the reign of King Richard III.

A superb 546 page volume, published by The Harleian Society in 1873, which describes Knights made during the reigns of King Charles II, James II, William III and Queen Mary, King William alone, and Queen Anne. It also gives each Knight's pedigree (their ancestors and their descendants) plus lots of other information and dates etc.

From the preface to the book:

2nd Edition 1841 - Coats of Arms (illustrated) and lineages of hundreds of families whose Baronetcies became extinct, often through the lack of a male heir.

This well known Burkes Peerage is comprehensive and well indexed. Published in 1881 it follows a time when many changes occurred in the peerage.

It contains lists of Peers and Baronets, Family Surnames, Courtesy Titles, Daughters of Peers and Baronets married to commoners, Archbishops and Bishops, Foreign titles held by British subjects, Privy Councillors, Knights of various orders and those who received the Victoria Cross.

Also listed are the person's genealogy and where applicable an illustration of their coat of arms.

During the 1500s and 1600s, the Heralds visited each county and recorded the pedigrees of families. In many cases the pedigrees date back to Norman times (the 11th century).

These records form an extremely important source of information for family historians. During the late 1800s and early 1900s, the Harleian Society published a large series of books containing transcripts of these ancient documents. The books also include descriptions or illustrations of the coats of arms of these people.

We are very pleased indeed to have set up a project of co-operation with the Harleian Society to digitise this very important collection of books, which are now extremely rare and almost impossible to obtain.

The contents of this book includes the Visitation of Staffordshire made in 1663-1664 plus a series of additions by William Dugdale, Norroy King of Arms.

Pedigrees of Yorkshire families compiled from twelve manuscript volumes by The Harleian Society. The principal family names are organised alphabetically and there is an excellent index which makes the finding of other names very easy indeed.

Kindly loaned to The Archive CD Books Project by The Harleian Society.