J.C. Sainty’s professional career was spent in the service of the House of Lords culminating in his appointment as Clerk of the Parliaments 1983-90. He was also Editor of the Office-Holders series published by the Institute of Historical Research, providing accounts of the development and personnel of government departments. In addition to his interest in parliamentary history he maintains a continuing concern with the history of office-holding generally and the identification of officials of the central government in particular.