William Camden

William Camden (May 2, 1551–November 9, 1623) was an English antiquarian and historian. He wrote the first topographical survey of Britain and the first detailed historical account of the reign of Elizabeth I.

Annales

In 1597, Lord Burghley suggested that Camden write a history of Queen Elizabeth's reign. Burghley gave Camden free access to his personal papers as well as a range of state archives. Camden began the work in 1607. The first part of the Annales Rerum Gestarum Angliae et Hiberniae Regnate Elizabetha, covering the reign up to 1597, appeared in 1615. The second part was completed in 1617, but was not published until 1625 (Leiden) and 1627 (London), after Camden's death.

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The Annales were not written in a continuous narrative, but rather in the style of earlier annals, giving the events of each year in a separate entry. Through sometimes criticised as being too favourably disposed towards Elizabeth and the future James I, the Annales are one of the great works of English historiography. Camden's access to source material is unparallelled; the Annales are the basis for later histories of the period and are still consulted by historians today.

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