to reign, lasted in general construction down to the time of the Norman
Conquest. The royal charters were usually drawn up in Latin, sometimes
in Anglo-Saxon, and began with a preamble or exordium (in some instances
preceded by an invocation headed with the chrismon or with a cross), in
the early times of a simple character, but, later, drawn out not
infrequently to great length in involved and bombastic periods. Then
immediately followed the disposing or granting clause, often accompanied
with a few words explaining the motive, such as, for the good of the
soul of the grantor; and the text was closed with final clauses of
varying extent, protecting the deed against infringement, &c. In early
examples the dating clause gave the day and month (often according to
the Roman calendar) and the year of the indiction; but the year of the
Incarnation was also immediately adopted; and, later, the regnal year
also. The position of this clause in the charter was subject to
variation. The subscriptions of the king and of the personages
witnessing the deed, each preceded by a cross, but all written by the
hand of the scribe, usually closed the charter. A peculiarity was the
introduction, in many instances, either in the body of the charter, or
in a separate paragraph at the end, of the boundaries of the land
granted, written in the native tongue. The sovereigns of the several
kingdoms of the Heptarchy, as well as those of the United Kingdom,
usually styled themselves _rex_. But from the time of AEthelstan, A.D.
825-840, they also assumed fantastic titles in the text of their
charters, such as: _rex et primicerius_, _rex et rector_, _gubernator et
rector_, _monarchus_, and particularly the Greek _basileus_, and
_basileus industrius_. At the same time the name of Albion was also
frequently used for Britain.

A large number of documents of the Anglo-Saxon period, dating from the
7th century, has survived, both original and copies entered in
chartularies. Of distinct documents there are nearly two hundred; but a
large proportion of these must be set aside as copies (both contemporary
and later) or as spurious deeds.

Although there is evidence, as above stated, of the use of seals by
certain of the Mercian kings, the method of authentication of diplomas
by seal impression was practically unknown to the Anglo-Saxon
sovereigns, save only to Edward the Confessor, who, copying the custom
which obtained upon the continent, adopted the use