III - The Navy Treasurer's Declared Account for 1562–1563

Summary

This is the final or returned account for the period covered by the preceding Quarter Book, as presented by Gonson to the Exchequer, and is one in a regular series going back to 1548. It is, however, an exceptional example because it covers the period of the Le Havre operation, and was subject to scrutiny by a commission appointed under the great seal on 5 August 1564 to examine all recent military spending. In addition to the Navy Treasurer's account, the commissioners were required to view those of the late Treasurer of the wars in Normandy, the Surveyor of victuals at Berwick, and the Lieutenant of the Ordnance. Gonson's account incorporates the full text of the commission, and is signed by Lord Treasurer Winchester, Secretary Cecil and the four other commissioners who attended to this part of the investigation. In other respects Gonson's account follows the established format. As is several times explicitly stated, it is based on the Quarter Book, but considerably compresses and often re-assembles its material. It will be seen that the auditors’ markings to 4 are sometimes echoed here by the gathering of various items of expenditure under composite headings. The reorganisation can, however, most readily be demonstrated in the recepta. As more fully explained in the Introduction to Section II, the corresponding entries in the two accounts have been supplied with identifying symbols: #A and #B preface ordinary and extraordinary warrants for 1562; #X and #Y the like for 1563.

While the Quarter Book is a straightforward and comprehensive record of sums received and disbursed, it is the returned account which constitutes the official financial statement of the Treasurer of Marine Causes. In common with most estate and institutional accounts of the period, its purpose is not primarily to show gain or loss, but to clear the accountant of his liabilities. Unpaid credits are therefore counted in with the sums he actually received from the Exchequer and elsewhere to make up the total for which he is responsible. Against this he sets the deficit (‘superplusage’) on his previous account along with his new disbursements, and carries forward the same old unpaid credits. These sums make up his discharge; and since this is higher than his charge, the account ends again in ‘superplusage’. For the Navy this represents, in modern terms, an overdrawn current account.