Editorial Note

EDITORIAL NOTE

Volume Twelve of the Victoria History of Gloucestershire has been produced under the partnership of the University of Gloucestershire (formerly the Cheltenham and Gloucester College of Higher Education) and Gloucestershire County Council with the University of London's Institute of Historical Research. The partnership, first formed in 1996, has been renewed for a further five-year term from April 2006 and the University of London wishes to thank the University of Gloucestershire and the County Council for their generous support.

Dr Nicholas Herbert, County Editor since 1970, retired in 2003 to be replaced by Dr Carrie Smith until 2006. In 2007 Dr John Juřica, Assistant Editor since 1973, was appointed County Editor and Dr Simon Draper was appointed in turn Research Assistant and Assistant Editor.

The authors and editors of the volume have drawn widely on information and advice from many people and bodies, too numerous to be mentioned here but named in the footnotes to the articles with which they helped. All are warmly thanked. Particular thanks are owed to the late David Bick of Newent, the late Brian Frith of Gloucester, Ms E.M. Goulding of Newent, Mrs Rosalind Lowe of Goodrich (Herefs.), Mr John Rhodes of Gloucester, Mr Donald Sherratt of Taynton, Mr Brian Smith of Vowchurch (Herefs.), Mrs Jennifer Thick of Dymock, the late Kenneth Tomlinson of Newent, Mrs Jill Voyce of Huntley, and Mr Eric Warde of Newent.

For allowing access to records in their possession thanks are owed to His Grace the Duke of Beaufort for items in the Badminton Muniments, for which Mrs Margaret Richards was archivist, to the late Andrew Foley of Stoke Edith (Herefs.) for items in the Hereford Record Office, to the trustees of the Madresfield estate, to Dymock parish council, to the county archivists of Hampshire, Herefordshire, and Worcestershire, to the deans and chapters of Gloucester, Hereford, and Westminster, and to the archivists of Birmingham City Archives, the House of Lords Record Office, and the Shakespeare Centre Library and Archive (formerly Shakespeare Birthplace Trust) at Stratford-upon-Avon (Warws.). The staff of Gloucestershire Archives under the county and diocesan archivist, Mr N.W. Kingsley and from 2005 Heather Forbes, continued their indispensable aid. The office was renamed Gloucestershire Archives in 2005 following the transfer to it from Gloucester Library of the Gloucestershire Collection. The library of the Bristol and Gloucestershire Archaeological Society housed at the Francis Close Hall campus of the University of Gloucestershire remained an invaluable resource.

The structure, aims and progress of the Victoria History as a whole are described on the VCH website (www.victoriacountyhistory.ac.uk).