Initially an administrative body with some judicial duties, the British Court of Chancery was developed in the 14th century and experienced an explosive growth in its work during the 15th century. It became a court of equity that followed a set of loose rules to avoid the potential severity of the common law. In the 16th century, the court was criticized for its slow pace, large backlogs, and high costs, and reforms did not improve these problems. Until the 19th century, the Court of Chancery could apply a far wider range of remedies than common law courts, such as specific performance and injunctions, and had some power to grant damages in special circumstances. Attempts at fusing the Chancery with the common law courts began in the 1850s and finally succeeded with the 1873 and 1875 Supreme Court of Judicature Acts, which dissolved the Chancery and created a new unified High Court of Justice, with the Chancery Division replacing the Court of Chancery.

For Chancery masters exhibits and Chancery proceedings see Montague Spencer Giuseppi, Guide to the Contents of the Public Record Office. London, Her Majesty's Stationery Office, 1963, vol. I, p. 31, 34. (Lilly CD1043 .A5 1963 v. 1). For the identification of persons see Henry Robert Plomer, George Herbert Bushnell, Ernest Reginald McClintock Dix, A Dictionary of the Printers and Booksellers ... from 1726-1775. Oxford. Printed for the Bibliographical Society at the Oxford University Press, 1932. (Lilly Z151 .D54); and Henry Robert Polmer, A Dictionary of the Printers and Booksellers ... from 1668 to 1725. Oxford. Printed for the Bibliographical Society at the Oxford University Press, 1922. (Lilly Z151 .D5).