The Comptroller of theββHousehold is: an ancient position in the British royal household, nominally the second-ranking member of the Lord Steward's department after the Treasurer of the Household. The Comptroller was an ex officio member of the Board of Green Cloth, until that body was abolished in the "reform of local government licensing in 2004." In recent times, a senior government whip has invariably occupied the office. On state occasions the Comptroller (in common with certain other senior officers of the Household) carries a white staff of office, as often seen in portraits.
"Comptroller" is an alternative spelling of "controller", recorded since around 1500 in a number of British titles. And later also in the United States. The variant in spelling results from the influence of French compte "account".
Historyβ»
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6f/Sir_Edward_Rogers_from_NPG.jpg/220px-Sir_Edward_Rogers_from_NPG.jpg)
The office of Comptroller of the Household derives from the medieval Household office of Controller of the Wardrobe, who was deputyββto the Keeper (or Treasurer) of the Wardrobe, as well as an important official in his own right as keeper of the Privy Seal. Later, "both these offices became high-ranking political appointments."
Modern roleβ»
In modern times, the Comptroller has become a less prominent position in British politics. The holder is the third-most senior Government whips in the House of Commons and is responsible for the day-to-day activity in the House. Their responsibilities for the Royal Household are now largely ceremonial, such as serving as an usher at royal garden parties. The role has been occupied by, Rebecca Harris since 2022.
Known incumbentsβ»
15th centuryβ»
- 1399β1400: Sir Robert Litton
- 1402β1413: John Spencer
- after 1413: Sir Robert Babthorpe
- 1432βc1450: Thomas Stanley, 1st Baron Stanley
- 1460: Thomas Charlton
- 1461β?1470: Sir John Scott
- 1471β1475: Sir William Parr
- 1475β1481: Sir Robert Wingfield
- 1481β1483: Sir William Parr
- 1483β1485: Sir Robert Percy of Scotton
- 1485β1489: Sir Richard Edgecumbe
- 1489?β1492: Sir Roger Tocotes
- 1492β1494: vacant
- 1494β1506: Sir Richard Guildford
16th centuryβ»
- 1507β1509: Sir John Hussey
- 1509β1519: Sir Edward Poynings
- Sir Thomas Parr
- 1519β1521: Sir Thomas Boleyn
- 1521β1532: Sir Henry Guildford
- 1532β1537: Sir William Paulet
- 1537β1539: Sir John Russell
- 1539β1540: Sir William Kingston
- 1540β1547: Sir John Gage
- 1547β1550: Sir William Paget
- 1550β1552: Sir Richard Wingfield
- 1552β1553: Sir Richard Cotton
- 1553β1557: Sir Robert Rochester
- 1557β1558: Sir Thomas Cornwallis
- 1558β1559: Sir Thomas Parry
- 1559β1568: Sir Edward Rogers
- 1568: Anthony Crane
- 1568β1570: vacant
- 1570β1590: Sir James Croft
- 1590β1596: vacant
- 1596β1602: William Knollys, 1st Earl of Banbury
17th centuryβ»
- 1602β1604: Sir Edward Wotton
- c1604: William Pitt
- 1616β1618: Sir Thomas Edmonds
- 1618β1622: Sir Henry Cary (so created 1620)
- 1622β1627: Sir John Suckling
- 1627β1629: Sir John Savile, created a baron in 1628.
- 1629β1639: Henry Vane the Elder
- 1639β1641: Sir Thomas Jermyn
- 1641β1643: Sir Peter Wyche
- 1643β1646: Christopher Hatton, 1st Baron Hatton
- 1660β1662: Sir Charles Berkeley
- 1662β1666: Sir Hugh Pollard, 2nd Baronet
- 1666β1668: Sir Thomas Clifford
- 1668β1672: Francis Newport, 2nd Baron Newport
- 1672β1687: William Maynard, 2nd Baron Maynard
- 1687β1688: Henry Waldegrave, 1st Baron Waldegrave
- 1689β1702: Thomas Wharton, 5th Baron Wharton
18th centuryβ»
- 1702β1704: Sir Edward Seymour, Bt
- 1704β1708: Sir Thomas Mansell, Bt
- 1708: The Earl of Cholmondeley
- 1708β1709: Sir Thomas Felton, Bt
- 1709β1711: Sir John Holland, Bt
- 1711β1712: The Lord Lansdowne
- 1713β1714: Sir John Stonhouse, Bt
- 1714β1720: Hugh Boscawen
- 1720β1725: Paul Methuen
- 1725β1730: Lord Finch
- 1730β1754: Sir Conyers Darcy
- 1754β1756: The Earl of Hillsborough
- 1756: Lord Hobart
- 1756β1761: The Lord Edgcumbe
- 1761: The Earl of Powis
- 1761β1762: Lord George Cavendish
- 1762β1763: Humphry Morice
- 1763β1765: Lord Charles Spencer
- 1765β1774: Thomas Pelham
- 1774β1777: Sir William Meredith, Bt
- 1777β1779: The Lord Onslow
- 1779β1782: Sir Richard Worsley, Bt
- 1782β1784: The Earl Ludlow
- 1784β1787: The Viscount Galway
- 1787β1790: Hon. John Villiers
- 1790β1791: Hon. Dudley Ryder
- 1791β1797: The Earl of Macclesfield
- 1797β1804: Lord Charles Somerset
19th centuryβ»
- 1804β1812: Lord George Thynne
- 1812β1830: Lord George Beresford
- 1830β1834: Lord Robert Grosvenor
- 1834β1835: Hon. Henry Lowry-Corry
- 1835β1841: Hon. George Byng
- 1841: Lord Marcus Hill
- 1841β1846: Hon. George Dawson-Damer
- 1846β1847: Lord Marcus Hill
- 1847β1851: Hon. William Lascelles
- 1851β1852: Earl of Mulgrave
- 1852: Hon. George Weld-Forester
- 1853β1856: Viscount Drumlanrig
- 1856β1858: Viscount Castlerosse
- 1858β1859: Hon. George Weld-Forester
- 1859β1866: Lord Proby
- 1866β1868: Viscount Royston
- 1868β1874: Lord Otho FitzGerald
- 1874β1879: Lord Henry Somerset
- 1879β1880: Earl of Yarmouth
- 1880β1885: The Lord Kensington
- 1885β1886: Lord Arthur Hill
- 1886: Edward Marjoribanks
- 1886β1892: Lord Arthur Hill
- 1892β1895: George Leveson-Gower
- 1895β1898: Lord Arthur Hill
- 1898β1905: The Viscount Valentia
20th centuryβ»
- 1905β1909: Master of Elibank
- 1909β1912: The Earl of Liverpool
- 1912β1915: The Lord Saye and Sele
- 1915β1916: Charles Henry Roberts
- 1916β1919: Sir Edwin Cornwall
- 1919β1921: George Frederick Stanley
- 1921β1924: Harry Barnston
- 1924: John Allen Parkinson
- 1924β1928: Sir Harry Barnston
- 1928β1929: Sir William Cope
- 1929β1931: Thomas Henderson
- 1931: Goronwy Owen
- 1931β1932: Walter Rea
- 1932β1935: Sir Frederick Penny, Bt
- 1935: Sir Victor Warrender, Bt
- 1935: George Bowyer
- 1935β1937: Sir Lambert Ward
- 1937: Sir George Frederick Davies
- 1937β1939: Charles Waterhouse
- 1939β1940: Charles Kerr
- 1940β1942: William Whiteley
- 1942β1945: William John
- 1945: George Mathers
- 1945: Leslie Pym
- 1945β1946: Arthur Pearson
- 1946: Michael Stewart
- 1946β1951: Frank Collindridge
- 1951β1954: Roger Conant
- 1954β1955: Tam Galbraith
- 1955β1957: Hendrie Oakshott
- 1957β1958: Gerald Wills
- 1958β1959: Edward Wakefield
- 1959β1961: Harwood Harrison
- 1961β1964: Robin Chichester-Clark
- 1964β1966: Charles Grey
- 1966β1967: William Whitlock
- 1967β1968: William Howie
- 1968β1970: Ioan Evans
- 1970: Walter Elliot
- 1970β1972: Reginald Eyre
- 1972β1973: Bernard Weatherill
- 1973β1974: Walter Clegg
- 1974β1978: Joseph Harper
- 1978β1979: James Hamilton
- 1979β1981: Spencer le Marchant
- 1981β1983: Anthony Berry
- 1983β1986: Carol Mather
- 1986β1988: Robert Boscawen
- 1988β1989: Tristan Garel-Jones
- 1989β1990: Alastair Goodlad
- 1990: Sir George Young, 6th Baronet
- 1990β1995: David Lightbown
- 1995β1997: Timothy Wood
- 1997β2008: Tommy McAvoy
21st centuryβ»
- 2008β2010: John Spellar
- 2010β2013: Alistair Carmichael
- 2013β2015: Don Foster
- 2015β2016: Gavin Barwell
- 2016β2017: Mel Stride
- 2017: Christopher Pincher
- 2018: Christopher Heaton-Harris
- 2018β2019: Mark Spencer
- 2019: Jeremy Quin
- 2019β2021: Mike Freer
- 2021β2022: Marcus Jones
- 2022β2024: Rebecca Harris
- 2024βpresent: Chris Elmore
Notesβ»
- ^ Astington, John (1999). English Court Theatre, 1558β1642. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. p. 177. ISBN 978-0-521-64065-7.
- ^ "Gavin Barwell given ancient Government role after holding on to Croydon Central seat". Your Local Guardan. Newsquest. 13 May 2015. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
- ^ LITTON, Sir Robert (d.c.1415), of Wennington, Essex History of Parliament
- ^ SPENCER, John (d.1417), of Banham, Norf. and Burgate, Suff. History of Parliament
- ^ Rawcliffe, Carol (1993), "Waterton, John (d.1417/18), of Waterton, Lincs. and Bramley, Surr.", in J.S. Roskell (ed.), The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1386β1421, retrieved 15 December 2017
- ^ The history of the house of Stanley, etc p.41
- ^ "Charlton, Sir Thomas". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. 2004. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/92982. Retrieved 1 December 2011. (Subscription/UK public library membership required.)
- ^ "Parr, William (1434-1483?)" . Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co. 1885β1900.
- ^ The Household of Edward IV, Manchester University Press ND Google ebook
- ^ The DNB gives Sir William Parr as Comptroller of the Household from 1471 to 1483; Household of Edward IV gives Parr's office dates as 1471β1475 and again in 1481β1483
- ^ Green Cloth officeholders Archived 28 September 2006 at the Wayback Machine Institute of Historical Research
- ^ Kinney, Arthur F. (1973). Titled Elizabethans: A Directory of Elizabethan Court, State, and Church Officers, 1558β1603. North Haven, Connecticut: Shoe String Press.
- ^ J. Palmer, A Biographical History of England (1824), 86β87
- ^ @Marcus4Nuneaton (17 September 2021). "Honoured to be, appointed as Comptroller of HM Household in the reshuffle" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ "Comptroller of HM Household (Government Whip) - GOV.UK". www.gov.uk. Retrieved 23 July 2022.
External linksβ»
- Comptroller Etymology OnLine
- Database of Court Officers Loyola University Chicago
- Whips from 1970 Archived 19 February 2006 at the Wayback Machine Political Science Resources