The Corporation of Bristol possess in their Archives several valuable manuscript volumes. Among them one of the most prized is The Mayor's Kegister or Mayor's Kalendar, an evidence of the worthy design of a Town Clerk, 400 years ago, to collect together for the benefit of his fellow citizens some account of the history of their town, their privileges and liberties, their local and social customs, and of the municipal laws of London which they made their exemplar.

In honorem dei omnipotentis gloriamque, laudem suæ benedictæ Fo. 0 b. matris, pro tranquillitate pacis ac prosperitate villam Bristolliæ inhabitantium, necnon pro consuetudinibus, ordinationibus, liber tatibus, et franchesiis dictæ villæ melius imposterum fore conservatis et manutentis, ad requisitum et mandatum venerabilis viri Willi. Spencer, Maioris dictæ villæ, et omnium discretorum virorum dicti majoris consultorum, ego, Robertus Ricart, ex tune ibidem communis clericus electus a Festo sancti Michaelis Archangeli, anno regni regis E. quarti post conquestum decimo octavo, isturn librum incepi, composui, et conscripsi de diversis croniclis, consuetudinibus, legibus, libertatibus, ac aliis memorandis et necessariis diversis, ad perpetuam rei memoriam inviolabiliter observandis.

[This First Part consists in the MS. of folios Ob to 19a, and contains the history of Britain from Brute to the defeat of Harold by William the Conqueror. Ricart himself says it is “a cronicula Brute,” and he appears to have followed Geoffrey of Monmouth as far as Constantine, the successor to King Arthur. In his abridgement from this author he has made several variations, omitting certain names altogether, and altering others, as Aurylambros for Aurelins Ambrosius, Donebaude for Dunwallo Mulmutius, Corynbatrus for Gurgiunt Brabtruc, &c. Ricart often gives the number of years a king reigned where Geoffrey does not, the figures seldom agreeing even in those cases in which Geoffrey gives them. It is curious too that though Geoffrey accounts, after his fashion, for the founding of many towns in Britain, he does not once mention Bristol, although his history was dedicated to that very Robert Earl of Gloucester who played so important a part in the annals of the city. Ricart, however, was an apt pupil, and, not to suffer his famous city to be behind others in antiquity, he introduces the building of Bristol by Brynne, one of the British kings.

[The intent of the second Part, as regards Bristol, is shown in the prologue (before, p. 4), and in the paragraph above. It carries on the general history from the Norman Conquest, 1066, till the death of John, occupying forty leaves (fos. 20b to 59a). It mainly consists of a yearly chronicle of events, political, ecclesiastical, and general, and is for the most part translated and abridged from the Chronicle of Matthew of Westminster, in many places following his language very closely. A few passages bear traces of the writer's having had recourse to other sources, among which Roger of Wendover may have been one ; he also inserts here and there facts relating to ecclesiastical affairs not to be found in his original. But we find less allusion than might be expected to the share that Bristol had in past affairs, or to the illustrious personages who were at times within her walls, little in fact beyond the imprisonment of King Stephen in the Tower of Bristowe in 1140, and the imprisonment and death in the Castle of Eleanor, sister to Arthur, and niece to King John.

[In the Third Part Eicart carries on the yearly chronicle, but heads each year with the names of the mayor and proyosts, stewards, bailiffs, or sheriffs, as the case may be, beginning with the 1st Henry III. The narration of “Actes done” is but slight : in the earlier years it has been mainly drawn from Mathew of Westminster. There are many pages where nothing beyond the names of the officers appears, each page being arranged with the headings for two years, but time or opportunity having failed the compiler to fill them in. Coming near the writer's own time, however, and later, many notices of value to local history are scattered through the pages, along with the general history. It is remarkable that one of those is related at length by Fabyan, who was a contemporary, though it is little, if at all, mentioned in other chronicles.

This here you Mr. Maiour, Mr. Aldermen, Mr. Sheryves, and the rest here present, that I, Thomas Hannam, Recorder elect of this City of Bristoll, shall and will be from henceforth faythfull and true vnto our Soueraigne Ladie the Quenes Maiestie, her heires and successors, and shall and will be beneficiall and true to the Maiour and Cominalty of this City, duringe the tyme of my said office, in what may appertaine therevnto to my power, and geve therevnto the best councell I can, without any partyalty, love, favour or hate. I shall and will, duringe the said tyme, truely and indifferently geve myne advise to the vttermost of my skyll, in all manner of pleas or causes to be holden in any of the Quenes Courtes of Recorde within the said Citye, wherevnto I shalbe for that purpose made privie.

[The intent of this Part is seen in the Preface to it, before p. 5, but it is not carried out as fully as it might have been, no references being actually made to any “bokes or levis,” not even to the Charters of Henry III. It principally consists of the Charter of Confirmation of 20 Dec, 47 Edw. III. (1374), a long document, which recites and includes four others, all made in the same year:* namely, the Charter 8 Aug. 47 Edw. III., which made Bristol into a County, and gave other privileges (Seyer's Charters of Bristol, 1812, No. 12); and the Exemplification of the Perambulation of the Bounds of the County so made, Oct. 30, 47 Edw. III. (Seyer, No. 15); which last itself recites the Letters Patent of 1 September, directing the perambulation to be made (Scyer, No. 13), and the record of the Perambulation, made on 30 September, in the same year (Seyer, No. 14). All this occupies fos. 211a to 224a, and is in Bicart's own hand, the front page having a floral illuminated border round it with a handsome initial letter. In copying the Charter, however, Eicart has omitted the first two clauses (“Edwardus dei, &c.” and “Inspeximus,”) and has begun with the third clause (“Edwardus dei,” &c.) which is in fact the first recital. This omission another hand has supplied on the blank page opposite (fo. 210b), apparently from an Inspeximua of Edw. IV., as it adds one more clause in which Edward is spoken of as “nuper Rex.”

[The Sixth Part, which occupies 40 closely written leaves, for the most part in Ricart's own hand, is in ten (unnumbered) sections, the headings or titles to eight of which are written in red ink, in the same stylo as in the earlier portion of the volume. Several of the initials are ornamental letters, and spaces are left for others that have not been filled up.

Of these sections, nine out of the ten are already in print; they are contained in different parts of the Liber Albus of London,‡ in many cases word for word, though here and there, besides a few obvious errors of the copyist, are differences in spelling, grammar, and occasionally in wording, which give interesting variations of reading. They have not however seemed of sufficient importance to justify the reprint of those parts here; all that has been done therefore is to give the titles and to indicate the pages of the Liber Albus or otherwise where they may be found. But of the remaining section, which stands fifth among the rest ([5], p. 94), none, with the exception of a few sentences, is found in either the Liber Albus or Liber Custumarum of London, though Parts III. and IV. of the former contain many portions touching on some of the same subjects: much of it being of great interest it is here given entire. It bears evident marks of being, as Eicart says, “wretin oute of a boke,” for not only is there no direct reference to Bristol, but several parts which have special application to London only have been copied with the rest. Such are the passages relating to the Thames, the King's coronation, the payments from foreign merchants, &c.; doubtless he may have thought that these too would not bo useless as “grete presidents” for the City of Bristol.