In England the office of
Historiographer Royal was created by King
Charles II to honour the prolific writer
James Howell. It came with an annual salary of £200 and a
butt of
sack. Earlier,
Bernard Andreas had fulfilled a similar role in the court of King
Henry VII. Howell was followed in the office first by
John Dryden and then
Thomas Shadwell, both of whom were concurrently appointed
Poet Laureate; as a result the salary was increased to £300 a year. When Shadwell died in 1692, the appointments were split: the Historiographer's salary reverted to £200, while the butt of sack went to the Poet Laureate (along with the remaining £100). At first, the Historiographer was appointed by
Letters Patent; but from 1692 the appointment was made by
warrant of the
Lord Chamberlain. In reality, however, there were few duties or responsibilities attached to the appointment, and it mostly served as a mark of
patronage. In 1782, in common with other
sinecures, the post of Historiographer in England was suppressed; however it was revived in the early 19th century. It lapsed on the accession of Queen Victoria; however
G. P. R. James (the last holder) was not deprived of the office and continued to be referred to as Historiographer Royal in later years. ==List of Historiographers Royal in England==