Aristocratic Accounting: the Bute Estate in Glamorgan 1814–1880

The aristocracy played a significant role in the development of the British economy in the first half of the nineteenth century, not only as the owners of most of the agricultural land but also as promoters of urban development, transportation links and mineral extraction. One of the most important aristocratic families was that of the Marquesses of Bute, who made a crucial contribution to the development of the city and port of Cardiff and the South Wales coal industry. During this period, however, the Butes seldom lived on their Glamorgan estate, and they thus had to institute systems whereby the estate could be managed at a distance. This paper examines the accounting information used to manage a large aristocratic estate, and considers its relevance in the light of the economic, political and social objectives of the nineteenth century British aristocracy.