52°11′10″N 2°10′59″W / 52.186°N 2.183°W The Croome collection – the archive of the Earls of Coventry – came into public ownership in 2005 as part of the Acceptance in Lieu of Inheritance Tax Scheme,[1] whereby the nation accepts valuable assets to set against tax liabilities. In 2006, after making a case to the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA) for housing the collection, Worcestershire Record Office was identified as its new permanent home. A project is currently underway to catalogue the collection according to the International Standard for Archival Description (ISAD(G), making it fully accessible to the public for the first time.
The Croome Collection takes its name from Croome Court in Croome D'Abitot, Worcestershire, the seat of the Coventry family from the 1592 until 1948. It is an internationally significant archive that has been created over hundreds of years by the Coventry family and their estate. The archive includes substantial runs of papers relating to the estates of the family, including plans, rentals, deeds and correspondence. It also includes unique records relating to the building, decoration and furnishing of Croome Court and the creation and development of the parkland surrounding it, which was Lancelot "Capability" Brown's first complete landscape work.[2]