Jason Loch
@jasonloch.bsky.social
I am a historian of the British constitution whose work focuses on the Crown, the House of Lords, and the Church of England.
You can read my blog here: venerablepuzzle.wordpress.com.
You can read my blog here: venerablepuzzle.wordpress.com.
Yesterday I shared the Royal Warrant and Letters Patent that formalized Andrew's loss of royal status. Today: my analysis of their numerous drafting anomalies, evidence of Whitehall's increasingly fuzzy grasp of constitutional minutiae. venerablepuzzle.wordpress.com/2025/12/02/t...
The Oddly Worded Instruments That Undid a Prince
In late October, it was announced that the King would formally strip Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor of his royal status. At the start of November, the Gazette announced that the King had issued a Warra…
venerablepuzzle.wordpress.com
December 3, 2025 at 12:18 AM
Yesterday I shared the Royal Warrant and Letters Patent that formalized Andrew's loss of royal status. Today: my analysis of their numerous drafting anomalies, evidence of Whitehall's increasingly fuzzy grasp of constitutional minutiae. venerablepuzzle.wordpress.com/2025/12/02/t...
CBAI entry: cbaionline.org/corpus/items...
December 2, 2025 at 12:40 AM
CBAI entry: cbaionline.org/corpus/items...
CBAI entry: cbaionline.org/corpus/items...
December 2, 2025 at 12:40 AM
CBAI entry: cbaionline.org/corpus/items...
Royal Warrant directing the Secretary of State to remove the Duke of York from the Roll of the Peerage. Note that, instead of the King's full signature, he simply wrote "Appd CR" like it was a submission.
December 1, 2025 at 8:41 PM
Royal Warrant directing the Secretary of State to remove the Duke of York from the Roll of the Peerage. Note that, instead of the King's full signature, he simply wrote "Appd CR" like it was a submission.
Letters Patent removing the style of "Royal Highness" and titular dignity of "Prince" from Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. It has a number of drafting issues such as omitting the hyphen in his surname.
December 1, 2025 at 8:37 PM
Letters Patent removing the style of "Royal Highness" and titular dignity of "Prince" from Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. It has a number of drafting issues such as omitting the hyphen in his surname.
At one time, the Lord Privy Seal received Letters Patent upon appointment, though precisely when this custom ended has been something of a mystery. However, I may have finally found the answer. venerablepuzzle.wordpress.com/2025/11/26/a...
A Tale of Two Patents
On December 7, 1990, Queen Elizabeth II may have quietly ended a centuries-old tradition. Her new Prime Minister, John Major, had reshuffled the Cabinet after taking over from Margaret Thatcher, an…
venerablepuzzle.wordpress.com
November 27, 2025 at 1:39 AM
At one time, the Lord Privy Seal received Letters Patent upon appointment, though precisely when this custom ended has been something of a mystery. However, I may have finally found the answer. venerablepuzzle.wordpress.com/2025/11/26/a...
Text of a Royal Warrant of Edward VIII granting arms and supporters to South Australia. This was the only grant he made during his brief reign (CBAI 439).
November 20, 2025 at 9:53 PM
Text of a Royal Warrant of Edward VIII granting arms and supporters to South Australia. This was the only grant he made during his brief reign (CBAI 439).
Recently added to the Corpus of British Administrative Instruments: King George V's Warrant directing the Earl Marshal to place the Duke of Kent in the House of Lords. cbaionline.org/corpus/items...
Royal Warrant - For Placing the Duke of Kent in the House of Lords [1934-10-30] · Corpus of British Administrative Instruments
cbaionline.org
November 18, 2025 at 11:46 PM
Recently added to the Corpus of British Administrative Instruments: King George V's Warrant directing the Earl Marshal to place the Duke of Kent in the House of Lords. cbaionline.org/corpus/items...
Recently added to the Corpus of British Administrative Instruments: A Royal Warrant of King George V granting the title of "Captain" to the Elder Brethren of Trinity House and giving them precedence after Captains of the Royal Navy. cbaionline.org/corpus/items...
Royal Warrant - Style of 'Captain' and Precedence to the Elder Brethren of Trinity House [1912-12-18] · Corpus of British Administrative Instruments
cbaionline.org
November 14, 2025 at 12:42 AM
Recently added to the Corpus of British Administrative Instruments: A Royal Warrant of King George V granting the title of "Captain" to the Elder Brethren of Trinity House and giving them precedence after Captains of the Royal Navy. cbaionline.org/corpus/items...
Recently added to the Corpus of British Administrative Instruments: The Royal Warrant for passing Letters Patent under the Great Seal for conferring a baronetcy on Denis Thatcher. To date, this is the most recent baronetcy to be created. cbaionline.org/corpus/items...
Royal Warrant - For Letters Patent Conferring the Baronetcy of Thatcher of Scotney [1991-02-04] · Corpus of British Administrative Instruments
cbaionline.org
November 11, 2025 at 10:01 PM
Recently added to the Corpus of British Administrative Instruments: The Royal Warrant for passing Letters Patent under the Great Seal for conferring a baronetcy on Denis Thatcher. To date, this is the most recent baronetcy to be created. cbaionline.org/corpus/items...
Recently added to the Corpus of British Administrative Instruments: Statute of the Order of the Garter allowing the appointment of Lady Companions. cbaionline.org/corpus/items...
Royal Warrant - Statute of the Order of the Garter For the Appointment of Lady Companions [1987-10-01] · Corpus of British Administrative Instruments
cbaionline.org
November 10, 2025 at 8:51 PM
Recently added to the Corpus of British Administrative Instruments: Statute of the Order of the Garter allowing the appointment of Lady Companions. cbaionline.org/corpus/items...
Is Andrew still the Duke of York? Legally yes, officially no. My new post explores the ambiguous nature of being removed from the Roll of the Peerage. venerablepuzzle.wordpress.com/2025/11/06/a...
Administrative Oblivion: Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and the Roll of the Peerage
On October 30, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor[1] was abruptly removed from the Roll of the Peerage. Although the media is portraying this as tantamount to the revocation of his peerages, that’s not act…
venerablepuzzle.wordpress.com
November 7, 2025 at 4:55 AM
Is Andrew still the Duke of York? Legally yes, officially no. My new post explores the ambiguous nature of being removed from the Roll of the Peerage. venerablepuzzle.wordpress.com/2025/11/06/a...
We may never see the instruments removing Andrew from the Order of the Garter and the Royal Victorian Order. They were likely prepared and countersigned by officers of the relevant Orders without passing through the Crown Office. 1/2
November 6, 2025 at 4:47 PM
We may never see the instruments removing Andrew from the Order of the Garter and the Royal Victorian Order. They were likely prepared and countersigned by officers of the relevant Orders without passing through the Crown Office. 1/2
Recently added to the Corpus of British Administrative Instruments: Queen Elizabeth II's Letters Patent granting the titular dignity of Prince to the Duke of Edinburgh. cbaionline.org/corpus/items...
Letters Patent - Titular Dignity of Prince [1957-02-22] · Corpus of British Administrative Instruments
cbaionline.org
November 4, 2025 at 11:29 PM
Recently added to the Corpus of British Administrative Instruments: Queen Elizabeth II's Letters Patent granting the titular dignity of Prince to the Duke of Edinburgh. cbaionline.org/corpus/items...
Recently added to the Corpus of British Administrative Instruments: Queen Elizabeth II's 1960 Declaration stating that certain of her descendants would bear the name of "Mountbatten-Windsor." cbaionline.org/corpus/items...
Order in Council - Recording Queen Elizabeth II's Declaration Regarding the Name Mountbatten-Windsor [1960-02-08] · Corpus of British Administrative Instruments
cbaionline.org
November 3, 2025 at 10:27 PM
Recently added to the Corpus of British Administrative Instruments: Queen Elizabeth II's 1960 Declaration stating that certain of her descendants would bear the name of "Mountbatten-Windsor." cbaionline.org/corpus/items...
I've been working on a curated collection of Letters Patent, Royal Warrants, Ministerial Submissions, and similar material called the Corpus of British Administrative Instruments. 1/2 cbaionline.org/corpus/
Corpus of British Administrative Instruments
cbaionline.org
October 31, 2025 at 6:07 PM
I've been working on a curated collection of Letters Patent, Royal Warrants, Ministerial Submissions, and similar material called the Corpus of British Administrative Instruments. 1/2 cbaionline.org/corpus/
As the Palace announces that the King has initiated a process to remove Prince Andrew's titles, his name has already disappeared from the Roll of the Peerage. But what, exactly, does that mean? venerablepuzzle.wordpress.com/2025/10/30/e...
Erasing the Duke of York: The Roll of the Peerage and the limits of removal
Buckingham Palace today announced that the King has “initiated a formal process to remove the Style, Titles and Honours of Prince Andrew.” The style of Royal Highness, the title of prince, and his …
venerablepuzzle.wordpress.com
October 31, 2025 at 2:23 AM
As the Palace announces that the King has initiated a process to remove Prince Andrew's titles, his name has already disappeared from the Roll of the Peerage. But what, exactly, does that mean? venerablepuzzle.wordpress.com/2025/10/30/e...
The Lord Chancellor makes a number of ecclesiastical appointments including presentations to Crown benefices valued at less than £20 in The King's Book. Here's what an instrument of appointment to one of these benefices looks like. 1/3
October 9, 2025 at 6:50 PM
The Lord Chancellor makes a number of ecclesiastical appointments including presentations to Crown benefices valued at less than £20 in The King's Book. Here's what an instrument of appointment to one of these benefices looks like. 1/3
Becoming Archbishop of Canterbury used to be an expensive proposition. Edward White Benson had to pay a total of £885/5/6. According to The National Archives' currency converter, that is the equivalent of approximately £58,591.66! 1/2
October 9, 2025 at 1:07 AM
Becoming Archbishop of Canterbury used to be an expensive proposition. Edward White Benson had to pay a total of £885/5/6. According to The National Archives' currency converter, that is the equivalent of approximately £58,591.66! 1/2
After the King approves the Prime Minister's submission recommending Sarah Mullally, the Crown Office will prepare a Warrant to pass a congé d'élire under the Great Seal authorizing the College of Canons to elect a new Archbishop. 1/17
October 7, 2025 at 7:46 PM
After the King approves the Prime Minister's submission recommending Sarah Mullally, the Crown Office will prepare a Warrant to pass a congé d'élire under the Great Seal authorizing the College of Canons to elect a new Archbishop. 1/17
Many of us saw Penny Mordaunt preside over the Accession Council. But was she actually Lord President? This post unpacks the constitutional ambiguity behind her role, and why it matters. venerablepuzzle.wordpress.com/2025/09/16/a...
A very British fudge
On September 10, 2022, Penny Mordaunt presided over the King’s Accession Council. Since then, there has been some confusion regarding the nature of her role. Was she Lord President or merely Acting…
venerablepuzzle.wordpress.com
September 16, 2025 at 4:42 PM
Many of us saw Penny Mordaunt preside over the Accession Council. But was she actually Lord President? This post unpacks the constitutional ambiguity behind her role, and why it matters. venerablepuzzle.wordpress.com/2025/09/16/a...
The Docquet Book is a record of instruments prepared by the Crown Office, including Letters Patent, Warrants of Appointment, Proclamations, and Writs of Summons. Here are some recent entries I received via a FOI request (it's oddly formatted because that's how I received it). 1/6
September 12, 2025 at 9:13 PM
The Docquet Book is a record of instruments prepared by the Crown Office, including Letters Patent, Warrants of Appointment, Proclamations, and Writs of Summons. Here are some recent entries I received via a FOI request (it's oddly formatted because that's how I received it). 1/6
The office copy of the submission for Lord Wright's appointment as Master of the Rolls notes that it was submitted to King George V unsigned "after an explanation by Sir Claud [Schuster] over the telephone, the Lord Chancellor not being available" [LCO 6/918].
September 11, 2025 at 9:23 PM
The office copy of the submission for Lord Wright's appointment as Master of the Rolls notes that it was submitted to King George V unsigned "after an explanation by Sir Claud [Schuster] over the telephone, the Lord Chancellor not being available" [LCO 6/918].
Summons to a meeting of the Privy Council for the purpose of swearing-in new Ministers. [PREM 49/2130].
September 10, 2025 at 6:30 PM
Summons to a meeting of the Privy Council for the purpose of swearing-in new Ministers. [PREM 49/2130].
Correspondence with the Palace regarding Augustus Andrewes Uthwatt's appointment as a High Court Justice, including the informal advice, the reply from the King's Private Secretary, and the formal submission [LCO 6/1582].
July 9, 2025 at 7:48 PM
Correspondence with the Palace regarding Augustus Andrewes Uthwatt's appointment as a High Court Justice, including the informal advice, the reply from the King's Private Secretary, and the formal submission [LCO 6/1582].