Catalogue description Palatinate of Chester: Chester and Flint County Courts and Macclesfield Hundred Court: Mainprise Rolls

The series contains mainprise rolls of two kinds, undertaking either to appear in court or to keep the peace until the next session, either generally or in respect of particular individuals. The termination or renewal of the arrangement at the end date is often recorded in a postea. There are sometimes cross-references to the appropriate series of plea rolls.

It is comprised of three separate sub-series. The main one, that for the county court of Chester, runs from 1344 to 1546, although it does not cover every year. There is a separate sub-series for the sessions held by the justice of Chester in Flintshire from 1386 to 1528, but which also does not cover every year and contains some major gaps, including the whole of the reigns of Henry VI and Edward IV. A third sub-series, for the Macclesfield Hundred Court, covers most of the period from 1377 to 1396.

For mainprises made in the Chester Exchequer Court, see CHES 5