Skip to main content
Funded and Managed by
City of London Corporation
The London Archives

City of London Corporation: administrative records

Research guide

1. About this guide

This guide provides an overview of the records produced by the governing bodies of the City of London Corporation, the Court of Aldermen and the Court of Common Council, from the 13th century to the modern day.

The records of the Court of Aldermen and Court of Common Council are an excellent starting point for anyone researching the City of London Corporation and its activities.

2. How is the City of London Corporation governed?

The City of London Corporation is the local authority for the City of London, or Square Mile. The Corporation operates through the Lord Mayor, Aldermen and Members of the Court of Common Council, who are elected by the residents and businesses of the 25 Wards in the City of London. Until the 17th and 18th centuries, the Court of Aldermen was the premier governing body of the City of London, but its present-day role has diminished with the development of the Court of Common Council. The Aldermen remain an integral part of the Corporation, and the Court of Aldermen still deals with matters such as the Livery Companies and the Freedom of the City of London. Much of the work of the City of London Corporation is now delegated to the Court of Common Council which is the primary decision-making assembly. The Court of Common Council is non-party political and works through committees which are mainly made up of Members of the Common Council.

3. Court of Aldermen and Court of Common Council

3.1. Records

The business of the Court of Aldermen and Court of Common Council have been recorded in different volumes over the centuries. From 1275, the business of both courts were recorded in the Letter Books in COL/AD/01. From 1416, business of the Court of Common Council moved from the Letter Books to the Journals in COL/CC/01/01. Throughout most of the fifteenth century, the business of the Court of Aldermen was recorded in both the Letter Books and the Journals of the Common Council interchangeably. In 1495, the Court of Aldermen established its own set of records known as the Repertories in COL/CA/01/01, and its business migrated away from the Letter Books and the Journals after this date.

Here is an overview of the records:

Letter Books in COL/AD/01 which cover 1275-1689. These volumes are named for the letter of the alphabet written on the spine. The volumes run A-Z, followed by an ‘&c’ volume, then run AA-ZZ. Letter Books A-K are digitised and are available to view on TLA’s catalogue. Letter Books A-BB are available on microfilm. During the 13th and 14th centuries, the Letter Books recorded both Common Council and Court of Aldermen business. From the sixteenth century onwards, the volumes only recorded important and legally binding information of note that was copied from the Repertories and Journals.

Journals of Common Council in COL/CC/01/01 which cover 1416-2000. The Journals were created in 1416 to record the meetings of the Common Council. Prior to this date, the court’s meetings were recorded in the Letter Books. During the fifteenth century, the Journals also recorded business from the Court of Aldermen. Journals from 1416-1811 are available on microfilm but are also available to order on the catalogue.

Repertories of the Court of Aldermen in COL/CA/01/01 which cover 1495-1998. The Repertories were created in 1495 to record the meetings of the Court of Aldermen. Prior to this date, the Court’s meetings were recorded in both the Letter Books and the Journals. Repertories from 1495-1853 are available on microfilm but also are available to order on the catalogue.

Papers: both the Court of Common Council and the Court of Aldermen have surviving papers that were presented to the courts for discussion. Not all business within the Journals and Repertories has corresponding papers, but in some cases an original petition or report can be matched with a Journal or Repertory entry.

  • Court of Common Council papers in COL/CC/06 which cover the period 1643-1700 with gaps, then 1700-2004.
  • Court of Aldermen papers in COL/CA/05 which cover the period 1663-2001.

Printed Minutes: in the 19th century, both the Court of Common Council and the Court of Aldermen began producing printed minutes which act as a guide to both the Journals and Repertories, as well as the corresponding papers.

  • Court of Common Council printed minutes in COL/CC/04/01 which cover 1811- 2004. The minutes from 1913 to 2000 are available to view in the library in our public rooms.
  • Court of Aldermen printed minutes in COL/CA/03/01 which cover 1853-2000. The minutes from 1940 to 2000 are available to view in the library in our public rooms.

3.2. Indexes

There are several indexes for the letter books, journals and repertories:

  • Combined index to repertories, journals and letter books, 1416-c.1750 in COL/AD/01/059-061.
  • Calendars for letter books A-K compiled by Reginald R. Sharpe on British History Online.
  • Subject index to the journals, 1416-1811 in COL/CC/01/02/001-004.
  • Combined index to the repertories and journals, c.1450-1700 in COL/CC/01/02/008.
  • Index to the journals,1416-1590 compiled in the 19th century by William Alchin, a former Librarian at Guildhall Library, in COL/CC/01/02/010.
  • Journals 1-6 covering 1416 to 1462 were indexed by Professor Caroline Barron in the 1960s. These entries are being slowly added to the catalogue, but the original card index can be consulted in the public rooms. Please speak to the team about accessing these.
  • Subject index to the Repertories, 1495-1857 in COL/CA/01/02.
  • Index to the Repertories, 1599-1673 compiled in the 19th century by William Alchin, a former Librarian at Guildhall Library, in COL/CA/01/03.

It is important to note that the original numbering of the journals and repertories does not always correspond with the modern reference. For example, journal 56 is now COL/CC/01/01/054 and repertory 48 is COL/CA/01/01/052. It is possible to search the catalogue by the original number by using the prefixes JORS or REPS. For journal 56, you would search for JORS/56 and for repertory 45, it would be REPS/45.

For the printed minutes of the Court of Common Council and Court of Common Council, we have the following indexes:

  • Index to the Court of Common Council printed minutes, 1811-1949 in COL/CC/04/04. Index from 1927 to 1949 is available to view in the library in our public rooms.
  • Index to the Court of Aldermen, 1853-1936 in COL/CA/03/04. Index from 1927 to 1949 is available to view in the library in our public rooms.

4. Further records of the City of London Corporation

You can search the main records of the City of London Corporation on the catalogue under reference code COL. Scroll down to Collection Tree View to see the full list.

Other related records can be found in the catalogue under the prefix CLA. Here are some examples:

5. Records held elsewhere

Petitions, reports and orders of the Court of Aldermen and Common Council are sometimes found in the State Papers and in the Privy Council records at The National Archives.