The antient usage in bearing of such ensigns of honour as are commonly call'd arms with a catalogue of the present nobility of England / by William Dugdale ... ; to which is added, a catalogue of the present nobility of Scotland and Ireland, &c.

THE Bookseller TO THE READER.

THe frequent complaints I have heard, from several learned and Ingenuous per∣sons, of the errors and defects in all the Catalogues, of late Printed, of the Nobi∣lity in his Majesties Dominions, created in me a belief, that the publication of exact and correct Ca∣talogues thereof, wou'd be very acceptable to the pub∣lick. And this induced me, to attempt it. In or∣der whereunto, I obtained the preceeding Catalogue of the Nobility of England, from the Author of the aforegoing Treatise, a person who by reason of his Office of Garter, is best enabled to publish it most correctly and Authentickly. And in August last (the Parli∣ament of Scotland then sitting) by the favour of a freind there. I procured a copy, of the then Lord R••gister his Role of the Nobility of Scotland. But their Christian names not being inserted therein, my

Correspondent was so careful and industrious, as to in∣form himself thereof, either from the several Noble∣men themselves, then assembled into Parliament, or from the near Relations, or intimate acquaintances of those absent; and for those few Christian names of which he could receive no certain information, he hath left blanks; and having thus procured it, he trans∣mitted it to me. Since when it hath been communi∣cated to several, very intelligent persons in the affairs of that Kingdom, who have very well approved thereof, so that I may with a modest assurance affirm this present Catalogue to be more accurate then most of this nature hitherto publish'd. And yet I will not confidently averr that there are no errors there∣in, for I am told the Nobility of Scotland are no more careful, then the Noblemen of England, to Re∣gister their descents and successions; the defect of which doth almost occasion an impossibility, with an accurate exactness to publish any Catalogue of this nature. But if any person shall percieve any error or defect therein, or any Nobleman judges himself in∣jured, either by any omission or misrecitall of his name or title, if he shall be pleased to notify it to me, with directions how it ought to be corrected and supplyed, or to inform therein Mr. Robert Meine Post-Master of (Edinburgh) I shall take all possible care that in the next edition all the errors may accordingly be a∣mended, and all due right don to every individual Nobleman.

To the present Catalogue, is annexed a list of all

the Shires and Royal Burroughs in Scotland, with the number of Barons, Commissioners, and Burg∣hesses they do respectively retaine to serve in Par∣liament. Which I have don in the same manner, as in compliance with the desires of several persons, I have published the preceeding Alphabetical Catalogue of all the Shires, Cities, Burroughs and Cinque-Ports in England and Wales.