The bulk of this series consists of indictments for the years 1660-1867, kept in sessional files by the Clerk of the Crown. The documents are usually in the form of presentments or inquisitions, and are often annotated with the verdict and sentence.
The years before 1660 are less well represented. During the reigns of Henry VI and Edward IV indictments were filed with writs of indictments and writs of assizes (the possessory assizes and nuisance were treated as Crown business in the Palatinate at that time), lists of officers, gaol calendars and recognizances in sessional files bearing the title 'brevia assisarum et indictamentarum'. There follows a gap until the middle of the reign of Henry VIII, after which for the remainder of his reign there are two series of files: one for indictments, and one for the writs relating to both assizes and indictments.
Occasional files refer to the latter as 'Writs of the Crown' in their cover titles. Indictments survive from the years 1525-1546, filed separately from the sessional files which also survive and are also in this series. Neither indictments nor writs of indictments nor writs of assizes survive between 1547 and 1659.
The series also contains some calendar rolls of indictments for the reigns of Edward IV, Henry VII and Henry VIII; coroners' inquisitions, 2 Charles 1-3 George IV; and some broken files of indictments.
The National Archives
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