These sacred choral compositions number eleven; a twelfth of disputed authorship is not considered here.

Handel wrote the anthems as composer in residence at Cannons, the court of James Brydges, who became the First Duke of Chandos in 1719.

With a leading Jubilate, an additional closing anthem in different scoring, and in different order, they were published in the Samuel Arnold edition of Handel's works.

In 1717, Handel became composer in residence at Cannons in Middlesex, seat of James Brydges, Earl of Carnarvon, who in 1719 became the First Duke of Chandos.

The organ was modified over the years, but it was restored in 1994, using the surviving parts of the original 1716 single-manual instrument as a reference.

[6] Handel probably selected and compiled the texts himself, drawing from both the Book of Common Prayer (BCP) and from a metrical version of the psalms by Nahum Tate and Nicholas Brady, published as New Version of the Psalms (NVP) in 1696.

[8] In the Samuel Arnold edition of Handel's works, there were twelve anthems, one in two versions, and a No.

[1] The scoring of the anthems adjusts to the musicians available at the church, resulting, with only few exceptions, in a three-part choir of soprano, tenor and bass, and similarly an orchestra without violas, with oboes playing in unison, two violins and basso continuo.

[10] John A. Davis wrote that they contain "almost every type and style of Handel's music", and thus "present a rather comprehensive panorama of the composer's creative output".