# Master of the Rolls

The Keeper or Master of the Rolls and Records of the Chancery of England, known as the Master of the Rolls, is the President of the Civil Division of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales and Head of Civil Justice. As a judge, the Master of the Rolls is second in seniority in England and Wales only to the Lord Chief Justice. The position dates from at least 1286, although it is believed that the office probably existed earlier than that.
The Master of the Rolls was initially a clerk responsible for keeping the "Rolls" or records of the Court of Chancery, and was known as the Keeper of the Rolls of Chancery. The Keeper was the most senior of the dozen Chancery clerks, and as such occasionally acted as keeper of the Great Seal of the Realm. The post evolved into a judicial one as the Court of Chancery did; the first reference to judicial duties dates from 1520. With the Judicature Act 1873, which merged the Court of Chancery with the other major courts, the Master of the Rolls joined the Chancery Division of the High Court and the Court of Appeal, but left the Chancery Division by the terms of the Judicature Act 1881. The Master of the Rolls had also been warden of the little-used Domus Conversorum for housing Jewish converts, which led to the house and chapel being used to store legal documents and later becoming the location of the Public Record Office. He retained his clerical functions as the nominal head of the Public Record Office until the Public Records Act 1958 transferred responsibility for it to the Lord Chancellor. One residual reminder of this role is the fact that the Master of the Rolls of the day continues to serve, ex officio, as President of the British Records Association. The Master of the Rolls was also previously responsible for registering solicitors, the officers of the Senior Courts.
One of the most prominent people to hold the position was Thomas Cromwell, a highly influential figure during the reign of Henry VIII; more recently, Lord Denning held the position for 20 years, from 1962 to 1982, and made sweeping changes in the common law. The current Master of the Rolls is Sir Geoffrey Vos, who took office in January 2021.

## The Rolls Estate

The substantial estate of the Domus Conversorum, between London and Westminster, became attached to the office of Master of the Rolls, and was known as the "Rolls Estate", regarded as virtually an Inn of Court.

## List of Masters of the Rolls
### Gallery

* Thomas Cromwell, a highly influential figure during the reign of Henry VIII
* Sir Thomas Egerton, who served as Lord Keeper and Lord Chancellor for 21 years
* Sir John Trevor, the last Speaker of the House of Commons to resign in over 300 years until the resignation of Michael Martin in 2009
* Sir Nathaniel Lindley, who made key judgments in a variety of important cases and was the last Serjeant-at-Law appointed, the last to sit as a judge and the last surviving.
* Tom Bingham, Baron Bingham of Cornhill, who helped establish the UK Supreme Court
| Name | Term of office | Term of office | Other positions |
| John Langton | 2 September 1286 | 1 October 1295 | Lord Chancellor 1292–1302, 1307–1310 |
| Adam Osgodby | 1 October 1295 | 19 August 1316 | — |
| William Airmyn | 19 August 1316 | 26 May 1324 | — |
| Richard Airmyn | 26 May 1324 | 4 July 1325 | — |
| Henry de Cliff | 4 July 1325 | 20 January 1334 | — |
| Michael Wrath | 20 January 1334 | 28 April 1337 | — |
| John de St Paul | 28 April 1337 | 10 January 1341 | Archbishop of Dublin 1349–1362, Lord Chancellor of Ireland 1350–1356 |
| Thomas Evesham | 10 January 1341 | 21 February 1341 | — |
| John Thoresby | 21 February 1341 | 2 July 1346 | — |
| David Wollore | 2 July 1346 | 28 March 1371 | — |
| William Burstall | 28 March 1371 | 8 September 1381 | — |
| John Waltham | 8 September 1381 | 24 October 1386 | Lord Privy Seal 1386–1389, Lord Chancellor 1349–1356 |
| John Burton | 24 October 1386 | 22 July 1394 | — |
| John Scarle | 22 July 1394 | 11 September 1397 | Lord Chancellor 1399–1401 |
| Thomas Stanley | 11 September 1397 | 24 September 1402 | — |
| Nicholas Bubwith | 24 September 1402 | 2 March 1405 | Lord Privy Seal 1405–1406, Lord High Treasurer 1407–1408 |
| John Wakering | 2 March 1405 | 3 June 1415 | Lord Privy Seal 1415–1416 |
| Simon Gauntsede | 3 June 1415 | 28 October 1423 | — |
| John Frank | 28 October 1423 | 13 November 1438 | — |
| John Stopyndon | 13 November 1438 | 29 March 1447 | — |
| John Kirkeby | 29 March 1447 | 23 December 1461 | — |
| Robert Kirkeham | 23 December 1461 | 12 February 1471 | — |
| William Morland | 12 February 1471 | 29 April 1471 | — |
| John Alcock | 29 April 1471 | 16 March 1472 | Lord Chancellor 1475, 1485–1487 |
| John Morton | 16 March 1472 | 9 January 1479 | Lord Chancellor 1487–1500, Archbishop of Canterbury 1486–1500 |
| Robert Morton | 9 January 1479 | 22 September 1483 | — |
| Thomas Barowe | 22 September 1483 | 22 August 1485 | — |
| Robert Morton jointly with William Eliot | 22 August 1485 | 26 February 1487 | Jointly from 13 November 1485 |
| David William | 26 February 1487 | 5 May 1492 | — |
| John Blyth | 5 May 1492 | 13 February 1494 | — |
| William Warham | 13 February 1494 | 1 February 1502 | Keeper of the Great Seal 1502–1504, Lord Chancellor 1504–1515, Archbishop of Canterbury 1503–1532 |
| William Barons | 1 February 1502 | 13 November 1504 | — |
| Christopher Bainbridge | 13 November 1504 | 22 January 1508 | Archbishop of York 1508–1514 |
| John Yonge | 22 January 1508 | 12 May 1516 | — |
| Cuthbert Tunstall | 12 May 1516 | 20 October 1522 | Lord Privy Seal 1523–1530 |
| John Clerk | 20 October 1522 | 9 October 1523 | — |
| Thomas Hannibal | 9 October 1523 | 26 June 1527 | — |
| John Taylor | 26 June 1527 | 8 October 1534 | Archdeacon of Derby 1516–1533, Archdeacon of Buckingham 1516–1534 |
| Thomas Cromwell | 8 October 1534 | 10 July 1536 | Secretary of State 1533–1536, Lord Privy Seal 1536–1540 |
| Christopher Hales | 10 July 1536 | 1 July 1541 | Solicitor General 1525–1529, Attorney General 1529–1536 |
| Sir Robert Southwell | 1 July 1541 | 13 December 1550 | — |
| John Beaumont | 13 December 1550 | 18 June 1552 | — |
| Sir Robert Bowes | 18 June 1552 | 18 September 1553 | — |
| Sir Nicholas Hare | 18 September 1553 | 5 November 1557 | Speaker of the House of Commons 1539–1540 |
| Sir William Cordell | 5 November 1557 | 30 May 1581 | Solicitor General 1553–1557, Speaker of the House of Commons 1558 |
| Sir Gilbert Gerard | 30 May 1581 | 10 April 1594 | Attorney General 1559–1581 |
| Sir Thomas Egerton | 10 April 1594 | 18 May 1603 | Solicitor General 1581–1592, Attorney General 1592–1594, Lord Chancellor 1596–1617, First Lord of the Treasury 1613–1614 |
| Edward Bruce, 1st Lord Kinloss, 1st Lord Bruce | 18 May 1603 | 14 January 1611 | — |
| Sir Edward Phelips | 14 January 1611 | 1 September 1614 | Speaker of the House of Commons 1603–1611 |
| Sir Julius Caesar | 1 September 1614 | 18 April 1636 | Chancellor of the Exchequer 1606–1614 |
| Sir Dudley Digges | 18 April 1636 | 30 March 1639 | — |
| Sir Charles Caesar | 30 March 1639 | 28 January 1643 | — |
| The Lord Colepeper (royalist) | 28 January 1643 | 3 November 1660 | Chancellor of the Exchequer 1642–1643 |
| William Lenthall (parliamentary) | 10 November 1643 | 14 May 1659 | Speaker of the House of Commons 1640–1647, 1647–1653, 1654–1655, 1659–1660 |
| Sir Harbottle Grimston, Bt | 3 November 1660 | 12 January 1685 | Speaker of the House of Commons 1660 |
| Sir John Churchill | 12 January 1685 | 20 October 1685 | Attorney-General 1673–85 |
| Sir John Trevor | 20 October 1685 | 13 March 1689 | — |
| Sir Henry Powle | 13 March 1689 | 13 January 1693 | Speaker of the House of Commons 1689 |
| Sir John Trevor | 13 January 1693 | 20 May 1717 | Speaker of the House of Commons 1685–1689, 1693–1717 |
| Sir Joseph Jekyll | 13 July 1717 | 19 August 1738 | — |
| Sir John Verney | 9 October 1738 | 5 August 1741 | — |
| Sir William Fortescue | 5 November 1741 | 16 December 1749 | — |
| Sir John Strange | 11 January 1750 | 18 May 1754 | Solicitor General 1737–1742 |
| Sir Thomas Clarke | 29 May 1754 | 13 November 1764 | — |
| Sir Thomas Sewell | 4 December 1764 | 6 March 1784 | — |
| Sir Lloyd Kenyon | 30 March 1784 | 7 June 1788 | Attorney General 1782–1783, 1783–1784, Lord Chief Justice 1788–1802 |
| Sir Richard Arden | 14 June 1788 | 23 May 1801 | Solicitor General 1782–1783, 1783–1784, Attorney General 1784–1788, Chief Justice of the Common Pleas 1801–1804 |
| Sir William Grant | 27 May 1801 | 31 December 1817 | Solicitor General 1799–1801 |
| Sir Thomas Plumer | 6 January 1818 | 24 March 1824 | Solicitor General 1807–1812, Attorney General 1812–1813 |
| The Lord Gifford | 5 April 1824 | 4 September 1826 | Solicitor General 1817–1819, Attorney General 1819–1824, Chief Justice of the Common Pleas 1824 |
| Sir John Singleton Copley | 14 September 1826 | 1 May 1827 | Solicitor General 1819–1824, Attorney General 1824–1826, Lord Chancellor 1827–1830, 1834–1835, 1841–1846 |
| Sir John Leach | 3 May 1827 | 14 September 1834 | Vice Chancellor of England 1818–1827 |
| Sir Charles Pepys, Bt | 29 September 1834 | 19 January 1836 | Solicitor General 1834, Lord Chancellor 1836–1841, 1846–1850 |
| The Lord Langdale | 19 January 1836 | 28 March 1851 | — |
| The Lord Romilly | 28 March 1851 | 29 August 1873 | Solicitor General 1848, Attorney General 1850 |
| Sir George Jessel | 30 August 1873 | 21 March 1883 | Solicitor General 1871–1873 |
| The Lord Esher | 3 April 1883 | 18 October 1897 | Solicitor General 1868 |
| Sir Nathaniel Lindley | 25 October 1897 | 10 May 1900 | — |
| The Lord Alverstone | 10 May 1900 | 22 October 1900 | Lord Chief Justice 1900–1913 |
| Sir Archibald Levin Smith | 23 October 1900 | 19 October 1901 | — |
| Sir Richard Collins | 19 October 1901 | 6 March 1907 | — |
| Sir Herbert Cozens-Hardy (The Lord Cozens-Hardy from 1914) | 6 March 1907 | 30 April 1918 | — |
| Sir Charles Swinfen Eady | 2 May 1918 | 20 October 1919 | — |
| The Lord Sterndale | 31 October 1919 | 17 August 1923 | President of the Probate, Divorce and Admiralty Division 1918–1919 |
| Sir Ernest Pollock (The Lord Hanworth from 1926) | 12 October 1923 | 7 October 1935 | Solicitor General 1919–1922, Attorney General 1922. |
| The Lord Wright | 7 October 1935 | 27 April 1937 | — |
| The Lord Greene | 27 April 1937 | 1 June 1949 | — |
| Sir Raymond Evershed (The Lord Evershed from 1956) | 1 June 1949 | 19 April 1962 | — |
| The Lord Denning | 19 April 1962 | 29 September 1982 | — |
| Sir John Donaldson (The Lord Donaldson of Lymington from 1988) | 30 September 1982 | 1 October 1992 | — |
| Sir Thomas Bingham | 1 October 1992 | 4 June 1996 | Lord Chief Justice 1996–2000; Senior Lord of Appeal in Ordinary 2000–2008 |
| The Lord Woolf | 4 June 1996 | 6 June 2000 | Lord Chief Justice 2000–2005 |
| The Lord Phillips of Worth Matravers | 6 June 2000 | 3 October 2005 | Lord Chief Justice 2005–2008, President of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom 2009–2012 |
| Sir Anthony Clarke (The Lord Clarke of Stone-cum-Ebony from May 2009) | 3 October 2005 | 30 September 2009 | Justice of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom, 2009–2017 |
| The Lord Neuberger of Abbotsbury | 1 October 2009 | 30 September 2012 | President of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom, 2012–2017 |
| Lord Dyson | 1 October 2012 | 2 October 2016 | Justice of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom, 2010–2012 |
| Sir Terence Etherton (The Lord Etherton from December 2020) | 3 October 2016 | 11 January 2021 | Chancellor of the High Court, 2013–2016 |
| Sir Geoffrey Vos | 11 January 2021 | Incumbent | Chancellor of the High Court, 2016–2021 |

## Peerages created for the Master of the Rolls

Since the Act of Union 1707 :
| Master of the Rolls | Title | Created | Current status | Other Judicial Roles |
| Sir Lloyd Kenyon | Baron Kenyon | | Extant | Lord Chief Justice of the King's Bench |
| Sir Richard Arden | Baron Alvanley | 22 May 1801 | Extinct 24 June 1857 | Lord Chief Justice of the Common Pleas |
| Sir Robert Gifford | Baron Gifford | 30 January 1824 | Extant | Lord Chief Justice of the Common Pleas |
| Sir John Copley | Baron Lyndhurst | 25 April 1827 | Extinct 12 October 1863 | Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain |
| Sir John Copley | Baron Lyndhurst | 25 April 1827 | Extinct 12 October 1863 | Lord Chief Baron of the Exchequer |
| Sir Charles Pepys | Earl of Cottenham | 11 June 1850 | Extant | Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain |
| Sir Charles Pepys | Baron Cottenham | 20 January 1836 | Extant | Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain |
| Sir Henry Bickersteth | Baron Langdale | 23 January 1836 | Extinct 18 April 1851 | None |
| Sir John Romilly | Baron Romilly | 3 January 1866 | Extinct 29 June 1983 | None |
| Sir William Brett | Viscount Esher | 11 November 1897 | Extant | None |
| Sir William Brett | Baron Esher | 24 July 1895 | Extant | None |
| Sir Nathaniel Lindley | Baron Lindley as Law Lord | 10 May 1900 | Extinct 9 December 1921 | None |
| Sir Richard Webster | Viscount Alverstone | 24 November 1913 | Extinct 15 December 1915 | Lord Chief Justice of England |
| Sir Richard Webster | Baron Alverstone | 18 June 1900 | Extinct 15 December 1915 | Lord Chief Justice of England |
| Sir Richard Collins | Baron Collins as Law Lord | 6 March 1907 | Extinct 3 January 1911 | None |
| Sir Herbert Cozens-Hardy | Baron Cozens-Hardy | 1 July 1914 | Extinct 11 September 1975 | None |
| Sir Charles Swinfen Eady | Baron Swinfen | 1 November 1919 | Extant | None |
| Sir William Pickford | Baron Sterndale | 14 November 1918 | Extinct 17 August 1923 | None |
| Sir Ernest Pollock | Viscount Hanworth | 17 January 1936 | Extant | None |
| Sir Ernest Pollock | Baron Hanworth | 28 January 1926 | Extant | None |
| Sir Robert Wright | Baron Wright as Law Lord | 11 April 1932 | Extinct 27 June 1964 | None |
| Sir Wilfrid Greene | Baron Greene | 16 July 1941 | Extinct 16 April 1952 | None |
| Sir Raymond Evershed | Baron Evershed | 20 January 1956 | Extinct 3 October 1966 | None |
| Sir Tom Denning | Baron Denning as Law Lord | 24 April 1957 | Extinct 5 March 1999 | None |
| Sir John Donaldson | Baron Donaldson of Lymington as Life Peer | 15 February 1988 | Extinct 31 August 2005 | None |
| Sir Tom Bingham | Baron Bingham of Cornhill as Law Lord | 4 June 1996 | Extinct 11 September 2010 | Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales |
| Sir Harry Woolf | Baron Woolf as Law Lord | 1 October 1992 | Extant | Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales |
| Sir Nick Phillips | Baron Phillips of Worth Matravers as Law Lord | 12 January 1999 | Extant | President of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom |
| Sir Nick Phillips | Baron Phillips of Worth Matravers as Law Lord | 12 January 1999 | Extant | Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales |
| Sir Tony Clarke | Baron Clarke of Stone-cum-Ebony as Life Peer | 29 May 2009 | Extant | None |
| Sir David Neuberger | Baron Neuberger of Abbotsbury as Law Lord | 11 January 2007 | Extant | President of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom |
| Sir Terence Etherton | Baron Etherton as Life Peer | 23 December 2020 | Extant | Chancellor of the High Court |