Clerk of the Ordnance

Office of the Clerk of the Ordnance
Board of Ordnance Arms preserved on a gun tampion in Gibraltar
Member ofBoard of Ordnance (1545-1855)
Reports toMaster-General of the Ordnance
AppointerPrime Minister
Subject to formal approval by the King-in-Council
Term lengthNot fixed (typically 3–9 years)
Inaugural holderJohn Rogers
Formation1554-1857

The Clerk of the Ordnance was a subordinate of the Master-General of the Ordnance and a member of the Board of Ordnance from its constitution in 1597. He was responsible for the correspondence and for the financial bookkeeping of the Board. The office was abolished in 1857.

Clerks of the Ordnance (pre-Restoration)

  • 28 February 1554: John Rogers
  • 9 February 1560: William Painter
  • 21 June 1595: Sir Stephen Riddlesden (d. 1607)
  • 18 July 1603: John Riddlesden (joint)
  • 12 June 1623: Francis Morrice
  • 30 September 1635: Edward Sherburne (Senior)
  • December 1641: Edward Sherburne (junior)

Clerks of the Ordnance (Parliamentary)

  • bef. 1643: John White
  • 1656: Lewis Audley
  • bef. 1660: Thomas Nicholls

Clerks of the Ordnance (post-Restoration)

References

  • http://www.history.ac.uk/office/ordnance.html