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The mystery of the missing members: the first 600 Chartered Accountants in England and Wales

This research article by Peter Boys investigates and corrects long-standing factual errors in the recorded history of ICAEW and its five founder bodies — particularly with regard to the membership of those bodies at the time of the granting of a royal charter in May 1880.

The article first appeared in Accounting, Business & Financial History, Volume 14, Number 1, March 2004, and can also be accessed on the Journal's web site.

It is reproduced here by kind permission of the publishers, Taylor & Francis.

About the author

Peter Boys BA FCA graduated from the University of Kent at Canterbury with a first-class honours degree in Accounting. He spent five years with Touche Ross & Co. before becoming a lecturer in accounting at his former University. Peter Boys retired in 1999. He has contributed numerous articles to Accountancy, and is especially interested in the history of the accountancy profession. Browse our catalogue for more information on articles and books by Peter Boys.

In 2003 Peter Boys first brought his work to an online audience with What's in a name: Firms' simplified family trees on the web, a popular update to his series of highly praised family trees showing the development of the big accountancy firms of the day.

Also by Peter Boys on the ICAEW website

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