Royal Warrant - Authorizing the Lord Chancellor to Pass Grants Depending Following a Demise of the Crown [1952-02-07]

Royal Warrant - Authorizing the Lord Chancellor to Pass Grants Depending Following a Demise of the Crown [1952-02-07]

Great Seal

Accession

Royal Warrant of Queen Elizabeth II authorizing the Lord Chancellor to pass grants depending under the Great Seal in accordance with the Royal Warrants of the late King George VI.

Queen Elizabeth II

LCO 6/3529

1952-02-07

T. Onslow

Page 1

L. S.

(Sgd.) Elizabeth R

RIGHT TRUSTY and Well-beloved Counsellor We greet you well!

    WHEREAS We are given to understand that there are divers Grants, Warrants, Pardons, Licences, Commissions and other things directed to you Our Chancellor of Great Britain, before the demise of Our Royal Father King George the Sixth and since Our succession to the Throne, all of which several Warrants are already engrossed for Our Great Seal and some of them dated and not as yet passed under Our Great Seal: For the ease of Our Subjects and for the speedy passing the same Grants accordingly We have thought fit hereby to give you full power and authority to pass the same Grants if you shall think fit or so many of them as you shall think fit under Our said Great Seal remaining in your Custody with the same dates without any alteration thereof or any other dates after according to your discretion.

    AND WHEREAS We are likewise given to understand that there are divers Injunctions, Decrees and Dismissions by Order of Our High Court of Justice given by the Master of the Rolls and other Commissioners which Injunctions, Decrees and Dismissions ought to be signed by Our Chancellor or Keeper of Our Great Seal for the time being and are not yet signed, We have thought good likewise to give you full power and authority to affirm and subscribe all such Injunctions, Decrees and Dismissions according to the Orders entered concerning the same in the Registers Office of Record or so many of them as you shall think fit without further hearing and to pass such

The Lord Chancellor
To pass Grants depending.

Page 2

as you shall allow and subscribe unto under Our Great Seal.

FOR all which these Our Letters shall be your sufficient Warrant.

GIVEN at Our Court at Saint James’s
the Seventh day of February, 1952;
in the First Year of Our Reign.

By Her Majesty’s Command.

(Sgd.) David Maxwell-Fyfe

To Our Right Trusty and Well-beloved
Counsellor Gavin Turnbull, Baron Simonds,
Our High Chancellor of Great Britain.

David Maxwell-Fyfe (Secretary of State for the Home Department)

Second Seal (Black)

Document is typewritten.

Capitalized incipits.

Bound in black ribbon.

The wording of this instrument is essentially the same as the Royal Warrant issued to new Lord Chancellors (cf. the Royal Warrant issued to Shabana Mahmood). The only difference is that the first paragraph refers to "things directed to you Our Chancellor of Great Britain before the demise of Our Royal Father King George the Sixth and since Our succession to the Throne instead of "things directed to Our late Lord Chancellor of Great Britain".

This document also a reference to "Injunctions, Decrees, and Dismissions" which also appears in the Royal Warrant issued to new Lord Chancellors. However, these documents do not require the Monarch's personal authorization to pass the Great Seal so it's not clear why the new Monarch has to re-authorize their sealing. It could be an example of formalism trumping logic.