The patent rolls are a series of administrative records compiled in the English, British and United Kingdom Chancery, running from 1201 to the present day.
Extract from the Patent Roll for 3 John (1201–2), as published by the Record Commission in 1835 using record type
Letters patent are a type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by a monarch, president or other head of state, generally granting an office, right, monopoly, title or status to a person or corporation. Letters patent can be used for the creation of corporations or government offices, or for granting city status or a coat of arms. Letters patent are issued for the appointment of representatives of the Crown, such as governors and governors-general of Commonwealth realms, as well as appointing a Royal Commission. In the United Kingdom, they are also issued for the creation of peers of the realm.
Letters patent issued by Queen Victoria in 1900 creating the office of Governor-General of Australia as part of the process of Federation
Letters patent transferring a predecessor of the University of Lorraine to Nancy in 1768
Letters patent issued by the United States United States General Land Office
