‘History and Historiography’ shows that the history of the inns of court has tended to be written from a foreshortened perspective, taking insufficient account of changes in the function and operation of the societies.‘Membership and Residence’ traces the impact of a massive expansion in student enrolments from the mid-sixteenth century, including the resultant shortage of on-site accommodation, while explaining why the nature of the surviving records and the inns’ own distinctive practices and requirements makes it impossible to precisely determine their size as residential institutions during this period. It concludes with a brief account of the changes in ‘Architecture and Topography’ consequent upon the inns’ membership expansion.