True or False: Notaries were initially appointed by the Popes and later by the Archbishop of Canterbury in England.

• A. False
• B. The King of England
• C. True
• D. Local magistrates

Answer: (C)

Notaries have origins in the Latin notaries who served in the papal chancery, recording acts and contracts for the church and the wider realm. In medieval England, the authority to appoint notaries was held by church authorities, especially the Archbishop of Canterbury, who granted commissions to act as notaries within England. That progression—from papal appointment to ecclesiastical (archbishop) appointment—fits the historical pattern, so the statement is true. The idea that such authority came from the king or from local magistrates doesn’t align with how notaries were historically established in England.