Lydia Catherine Brydges, Duchess of Chandos, papers

The collection, which spans from 1538-2002 (bulk 1548-1780), contains 927 items pertaining chiefly to the business and financial activities of Lydia Catherine Van Hattem Davall Brydges, Duchess of Chandos (1693-1750), in the intervening six years between the death of her husband James Brydges, Duke of Chandos, and her own, as well as the activities of her extended family. In addition, there is correspondence with her family, lawyers, and estate officials, information about the Cannons auctions and the sale of other Brydges properties, and some sixteenth- and seventeenth-century records pertaining to her own family and the Mayne and Goodall families, who once lived at the Van Hattem seat at Dinton Hall in Buckinghamshire. There are also a large number of papers and deeds concerning various properties held by the family, including Cannons, Shaw and Speen. Some pieces are in Latin.

This collection has several strong points for the purpose of research. It fills in a critical gap in the Brydges family papers (a sub-collection of the Huntington's Stowe Archive). During the six years between the death of the Duke of Chandos and her own, Duchess Lydia, family lawyers and estate officials, had to oversee the Cannons auctions and sale of other Brydges' properties, in order to pay off the huge debts left by the Duke at his death. Thus the collection is a valuable archive concerning the later life and circumstances of an early 18th century British aristocratic widow. One weakness of the collection is there is very little material actually from or written by Duchess Lydia. Another strength of the collection is, among the correspondence and financial documents, the presence of women as both landowners and business people in the 16th and 17th centuries.

The papers consist of the following series:

1. Correspondence (Boxes 1-12)

Arranged alphabetically by author. The majority of the correspondence is addressed to Duchess Lydia. Included are three sets of longer runs of letters from John Pudsey, formerly the personal secretary to James Brydges, Duke of Chandos; Luke Richardson, a clerk and receiver to the Six-penny Writ Office, Cursitor and Personal Secretary to Lydia, Duchess of Chandos; and Joseph Biscoe, a lawyer and member of the Fire and Fees Office in London. The correspondence also includes letters addressed to John Vanhattem (both Duchess Lydia's father and brother), as well as letters written by various family members and employees.

2. Accounts and Financial (Boxes 13-15)

Arranged chronologically (1583/84-1788). This series includes bonds, receipts, and accounts from, mainly, Dinton, Buckinghamshire, and Shaw, Berkshire, having to do with Dinton Hall and the estate at Shaw. There are also household accounts for Duchess Lydia dating from the time before she married James Brydges, Duke of Chandos; also included, are documents from the Van Hattem family.

3. Deeds (Boxes 16-31)

Arranged by alphabetically by county, then chronologically (1538[/39]-1791). This series includes deeds, indentures, leases, feoffments, quitclaims for the lands associated with the estate at Dinton Hall, near Aylesbury. The documents in this series are mainly connected to the three families who owned this property at various times, beginning in 1617: the Mayne, the Van Hattem, and the Goodall families; the series also includes documents in connection with the family of Duchess Lydia's first husband, Sir Thomas Davall M.P.

4. Manorial and Estate (Boxes 32-34)

Arranged by alphabetically by county. This series includes documents relating to the various lands and estates connected to James Brydges, Duke of Chandos, and the Van Hattem family, including Shaw, Speen, Dinton Hall, Grays Thurrock, and Cannons. The documents include lists of tenants, rents and peat; particulars, articles of agreement, and valuations, as well as land surveys. Also in this series, is the Dinton Hall Guest Book (1885-1909), which includes three B&W photographs of Dinton Hall and grounds.

5. Personal Papers (Boxes 35-38)

Arranged chronologically (1663-1780). Included in this series are wills, marriage settlements, licenses, appointments, etc. The documents relate to Dinton Hall and to the Davall, Van Hattem, Mayne, and Goodall families.

6. Misc., including Legal (Box 39)

Arranged chronologically (1682-1750). This series includes documents relating to the manufacture of gun powder and the East India Company, the Court of Chancery and miscellaneous legal pieces. Also included are miscellaneous household lists of coarse linen and Table "Linnen."

7. Ephemera (Boxes 40-41)

Arranged alphabetically by subject. This series includes the research material collected by Major Paul Payne; it includes correspondence, notes, photocopies, printed material about the Duke of Chandos, the Davall and Van Hattem families, Shaw Hall, Dinton Hall, Cannons and Cavendish Square. This series also includes the packing crate inventory and collection inventory list created by Bernard Quaritch in 2002. Box 41 contains two items which are damaged and very fragile and need conservation; these cannot be paged without curator's approval.