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PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON
LISTS AND INDEXES
No. IX.
LIST
OF
SHERIFFS
ENGLAND AND
WALES,
FROM THE EARLIEST TIMES TO A.D. 1831,
COMPILED FROM DOCUMENTS IN THE
PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE.
BY ARRANGEMENT WITH
HER MAJESTY’S STATIONERY OFFICE, LONDON
NEW
YORK:
KRAUS REPRINT CORPORATION
1963
Calligraphic Amendments
incorporated from the master copy
in the Search Room of the
Public Record Office
This series was first published on behalf of the Public
Record Office by Her Britannic Majesty’s Stationery
Office as follows: Vols 1-38 between 1892 and 1912;
Vol 39: 1913; Vols 40-43: 1914; Vol 44: 1915; Vol 45:
1917; Vols 46-48: 1922; Vol 49: 1923; Vol 50: 1927;
Vols 51-52: 1929; Vol 53: 1931; Vol 54: 1933; Vol 55:
1936. Reprinted by permission and with the authority
ofthe Controller ofHer BritannicMajesty’sStationery
Office.
Kraus Reprint Corporation
16 East 46th Street, New York, 17, N.Y.
The manuscript amendments in this edition are
© British Crown Copyright 1963.
Printed in the United Statesof America
FOR AN INTRODUCTION TO THIS REPRINTED SERIES, SEE VOLUME
I.
PREFACE.
The following List lias been compiled in order to meet a want very
generally felt by students. Many of the principal books on English
topography contain lists of the Sheriffs of the particular counties to which
they relate but these lists are in many cases inaccurate and incomplete.
;
Although more comprehensive lists are to be found in various libraries,
only two have been printed, and neither of these covers so long a period
as the present List, which comes down to the date at which the ancient
series of Pipe Rolls was discontinued. That given in Fuller’s Worthies of
England extends only to the year 1662, while the elaborate aod valuable
List by Mr. L. O. Pike in the Thirtyfirst Report of the Deputy
Keeper ofthe Records stops at the fourth year of Edward III.
Partly owing to the fact that the year as reckoned at the Exchequer did
not correspond either with that of the Christian era, or with the regnal year
of the King for the time being, it is generally difficult to ascertain from
any of the old lists the actual term of office of any particular sheriff.
In the present List the dates are given in the simplest form, the years
being reckoned as beginning on the 1st of January. Surnames are given in
the forms found in the rolls and Gazettes sometimes perhaps erroneous,
,
but unimportant variations in the spelling of them occurring in any sheriff’s
term of office have been ignored. To avoid repetition, no entries have been
made for those years in which there was no change of sheriff. The names
printed in italics are those of unacr-slieriffs, or others Avbo rendered sheriffs’
accounts at the Exchequer, widows and executors, however, being omitted.
The List has been compiled by Mr. A. Hughes, of the Public Record
Office, with some assistance from Mr. J. Jennings with regard to the more
recent pait of the work. Mr. Hughes has also prepared the following
account of the materials upon which the List is based.
3rd May 1898. H. C. MAXWELL LYTE.
The authorities used in compiling the following List of Sheriffs are for the most part
of two kinds; the accounts rendered by the sheriffs, and the actual records of their
appointments. Other sources have been employed only as checks, or to supply
information where neither accounts nor appointments were forthcoming. Up to the
year 1202 no regular record of appointment exists, and in the case of the Welsh
counties, Chester City, and Durham, there are no accounts for a later date than 1660.
But whenever possible the two main sources of information have been carefully
compared, and anv discrepancies in their evidence will be found noted in the list.
As. regards other sources of information, the names of the sheriffs mentioned in
Domesday Book have been included, the names of all personsdescribed as “ vicecomites”
in the description of each county being grouped under that county, with a note of
interrogation prefixed to the names of those who were, probably, sheriffs of other
counties. The Red Book of the Exchequer has supplied those for the first year of
Henry II. In the case of Durham, the Episcopal Register of Inquisitions post mortem,
has been useful for the period during which the offices of escheator and sheriff in that
palatinate wei’e held by the sameperson. A careful examination of monasticcartularies,
ancient deeds, and other local records, might, perhaps, have furnished some names now
lacking, but it has not been thought desirable to delay the publication of the list for the
necessarily uncertain results of so extensive an enquiry. The endorsements of the writs
filed with the Parliamentary Returns and with the proceedings of the courts of great
sessions for Wales (Mainprise Files) have, however, been consulted, and, indeed, have
been found the only available authorities for the sheriffs of Carmarthen Borough and
Haverfordwest.
But reliance has been placed mainly on accounts and appointments. The accounts
entered on the Pipe Rolls, as a rule, run from Michaelmas to Michaelmas but the dates
;
of the corresponding appointments range from September to February, so that in most
cases the sheriffaccounts from a date precedinghis actual appointment. The date given
in the list is the date of appointment when ascertainable, and in the absence of any
notes to the contra-y, it may be assumed that the corresponding account runs from the
preceding Michaelmas. When the date of appointment has not been ascertained, the
date given is that from which the account runs. Where this date is expressed as a year
only, “ Michaelmas” may always be supplied. It should be noted, however, that after
1743 appointments were made in Hilary Term, although the normal accounts still
continued to run from Michaelmas.
Any town obtaining the rank of a county generally acquired the right of electing its
own sheriffor sheriffs, and the date for the election (usually Michaelmas) was prescribed
in the foundation charters.
The accounts of the early Welsh sheriffs frequently quote the actual date of
appointment.
The method of appointing the sheriffs of shires varied somewhat at different times
and in different localities. In the vast majority of instances, the appointment was
made by the Crown upon the advice of the permanent council. Special cases were,
however, fairly numerous. The sheriffdom might be the inheritance of a private family,
as in the case of Westmoreland throughout the period dealt with: or Worcester, and
Staffordshire for certain periods. The county might be an ancient palatinate ultimately
falling into royal hands, like Cheshire, in which case the king appointed as earl, or as
king, or as both. The Duke of Cornwall holds the sheriffdom of that county as duke,
appointing a deputy, originally his under-sheriff, to carry out the duties of the
office. But normally the sheriff received a commission from the Crown, the king’s
choice being guided by the advice of one or more of Ids great officers ofState, or the
appointment being given to a candidate elected by the county. Such elections meet us
at three periods: (1.) During the ascendancy of Simon de Montfort, when the county
courts appeared to have submitted names to the council of barons, the actual appoint-
ments being made at the Exchequer. (2.) During the reign of Edward I. when notices
occur of four knights of the shire nominating a candidate for the approval of the Lord
Treasurer, into wl.ose hands the right of appointment had drifted at this period.
(3.) Between the years 1338 and 1340. But throughout most of the period the names
were selected by the council, and the sheriff acted in virtue of a commission issued in
the king’s name under the Great Seal.
Specimens of the different manners in which the issue of such commissions was
recoi'ded, are given below. First come the various developments of the normal
form (Nos. I. to III.), as modified successively by the Provisions of Oxford (Nos. IV.
and V.), and their abrogation (Nos. YI. and VII.), the practice of Walter de Langton
(Nos. VIII. to X.), and the ordinances of 1311 (No. XI.). A late instance for the reign
ofEdward III. (No. XII.) is given to show how little the form of appointment was
affected by the statutes of 14 and 28 Edward III., restricting the term of the office to
i 85011. Wt.23155. a 2
;
a year. Evidence cf the procedure leading up to the issue of the commission is afforded
by a specimen of the “Pricked Lists.” (No. XIII.) This method of signifying the
sovereign’s pleasure as to the appointment continues to the present day. It has not
been thought necessary to reprint any of the readily accessible entries in the Journals
of the Houses of Parhament for the period (1643 to 1653) during which the appoint-
ments were made by ordinance of Parliament but a brief extract is given of the
announcement of the names of the sheriffs of; the year in the first number of the
official Gazette (No. XIV.). Examples follow of cases diverging from the normal system.
The procedure for the registration at the Exchequer ofthe appointment by a sheriff in
fee of his deputy (No. XV.) a specimen of the appointment of a sheriff of Lancashire
by letters patent issued out of; the chancery of the Duchy (No. XVI.) : a specimen ofthe
appointment of a sheriffof Durham county by the bishop as lord palatine (No. XVII.)
;
specimens of the records of appointments of Welsh sheriffs (Nos. XVIII. and XIX.)
before 1540, when the procedure for Wales was assimilated to that for England the
;
appointment of the first sheriff of Bristol (No. XX.), and the procedure for officially
notifying the fact to the Exchequer (No. XXL). The privilege of complete freedom
of choice was conceded to Bristol by Henry VII. and was granted by the foundation
charters to the other town-counties of the realm.
The case of London is somewhat more complex. The light ofelecting the sheriffs for
London and Middlesex was granted to the city by Henry I. by charter. (Piinted in
Stubbs’s “Select Charters,” p. 108.) Stephen and the Empress Matilda granted the
shrievalty to Geoffrey de Mandeville (1141-1142) and, having regard to this fact and
to the circumstance that the known charters of Henry II. and Richard I. do not refer
to the right of election, it seems probable that it was lost by the city until specifically
re-granted by a charter of the 9th of July in the first year of King John. This
charter was referred to by Henry III. (Charter Roll, 11 Hen. III., p. 1, rn. 16) and
was confirmed by subsequent Kings (see especially Charter Roll, 1 Hen. IV. p. 3, No. 8,
and Patent Roll, 2 Edw. IV. p. 5 mm. 23-28), but the right of appointment was
temporarily resumed by the Crown in 1266 to 1268, 1270, 1293, and 1392. Documents
XXII. and XXIII. show the method of notifying to the Exchequer the results of the
elections; Document XXIV. shows the successful assertion in 1329 of the privilege
granted, among others, to the city by charter of 6 Mar. 1327 (Charter Roll, 1 Edw. III.
No. 76), that the sheriffs ofLondon and Middlesex should be exempted from taking the
oath until they passed their accounts.
Theprincipallegislation affectingthe appointmentofsheriffsingeneralandthe duration
of their term of office consists of the Provisions of Oxford,theStat. 28 Edw. 1. c. 8., and
an Order in Council, quoted on Fine Roll 12 Edw. III., allowing the county to elect a
suitable candidate for adoption by the Exchequer or Council; the Ordinances of 1311,
confirmed by the Statute of Lincoln, 9 Edw. II., and later statutes, requiring the
a2p1pEodinwt.meIInIt. ct.o7.b,emauknidnerg tthhee tGerrematofSeoaflfi;cethoeneStayteuatreson1ly4,Ebdutw,.aIpIpI.arSetn.tlI.y,c.no7.t, parned-
venting re-appointment; the Stat. 42 Edw. III. c. 9. definitely limiting the term to one
year; the Stat. 1 Rich. II. c. 11. forbidding re-appointment within three years; and
the Stat. 23 Hen. VI. c. 7. imposing a fine on the sheriff should the statutory term be
exceeded.
Certain of such breaches,however,occurringunderspecialcircumstances werecondoned
by special legislation, viz. Stat. 9 Hen. V. St. I. c. 5 28 Hen. VI. c. 3, and 8 Edw. IV.
c. 4. Finally, by Stat. 12 Edw. IV. c. 1., the outgoi;ng sheriff was in all cases enjoined
to continue acting till the actual assumption of office by his successor.
The accounts of the normal English county, whether shire or town, will be found on
the Pipe Rolls. The palatinates of Durham, Lancaster, and Chester had their own
exchequers, and the same statement applies to North and South Wales. The accounts
of their sheriffs, which now exist in the Public Record Office, will be found in the
series of Ministers’ Accounts. The case of the two Welsh town-counties is peculiar,
the sheriffs being exempted from accounting at any exchequer.
The appointment of the sheriffs of the normal English county were recorded as
follows: from 1202 to 1258 on the Patent or Fine Rolls of the Chancery; from 1258 to
1259 on the Memoranda Rolls of the Exchequer; from 1260 to 1278 on the Patent or
Fine Rolls; from 1278 to 1311 on the Memoranda Rolls, and, rarely, on the Fine Roll
from 1311 to 1608 on the Fine Rolls; from 1608 to 1638 on the Fine Roll, but with
many omissions which can be partially supplied from the “ Sheriff's Rolls” and the
“ Miscellaneous Rolls,” Nos. 12, 22, and 23 of the Chancery Petty Bag Office. From
1638 to 1643 records of the appointments no longer exist; from 1643 to 1653 the
appointments were entered in the Journals of the Houses ofParliament from 1653 to
;
1660 there are no records. For the year 1660 there is a Sheriffs Roll in the Petty
Bag series ; from 1660 to 1665 there are no records ; from 1665 to the end of the list
the appointments are to be found in the London Gazette from 1700 onwards some
information is also obtainable from the series of Sheriffs Rolls; in the Six Clerks Office.
The appointments of undersheriffs by sheriffs in fee are recorded on the Memoranda
Rolls, as a rule, under the heading “ Presentationes,” and for the sheriffs of palatinates
the recordsof their respective chanceries have been searched.
Some appointments of early Welsh sheriffs are noted on the Welsh and Fine Rolls
of the English Chancery others are recorded in the headings of the accounts rendered
;
by such officers, and in the Chamberlain’s accounts, which quote the appointment of the
sheriffas authority for the payment of his salary.
In thecase of towns, owing to the elective nature of the office,'and to the fact that
the sheriffs were allowed to take their oaths in the locality, but little evidence is knotra
to exist in the Public Record Office except in the form ofaccounts.
It is, perhaps, necessary to add an explanation as to the ascription of the titles of
" knight ” and “ esquire” to the persons mentioned in the list. When they occur in
the record of the appointment the case of course presents no difficulty when they
;
occur in the heading of the account, but not in the appointment, recourse has been
had to the entries on the “ Adventus Vicecomitum” membranes of the Memoranda
Rolls, and from such enquiries it appears that the style given in the Pipe Roll refers to
the date on which the account was entered, a date generally from three to nine months
later than the close of the term of office, and sometimes even more.
Peculiar difficulties have been encountered in making that part of the list which
relates to South Wales. Owing to two of the counties being in private hands, and to
the sheriffs of the other two not rendering any accounts, the available evidence is
meagre, and more than one opinion may reasonably be held as to the claims of some
°f the earlier persons named to be regarded as sheriffs. It has been thought best,
however, to err, if at all, on the side of including too much rather than too little.
