Ceremonial counties of England

Ceremonial counties,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> formally known as counties for the purposes of the lieutenancies,<ref name="sched_1" /> are areas of England to which lord-lieutenants are appointed. A lord-lieutenant is the monarch's representative in an area.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Shrieval counties have the same boundaries and serve a similar purpose, being the areas to which high sheriffs are appointed. High sheriffs are the monarch's judicial representative in an area.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

The ceremonial counties are defined in the Lieutenancies Act 1997, and the shrieval counties in the Sheriffs Act 1887. Both are defined as groups of counties used for local government.

History

The historic counties of England were originally used as areas for administering justice and organising the militia, overseen by a sheriff. From Tudor times onwards a lord-lieutenant was appointed to oversee the militia, taking some of the sheriff's functions.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Certain towns and cities were counties corporate, which gave them the right to appoint their own sheriffs and hold their own courts. Whilst in theory the counties corporate could have had separate lieutenants appointed for them, in practice all of them except London shared a lieutenant with the wider county from which they had been created.Template:Efn London had instead a commission of lieutenancy, headed by the Lord Mayor.<ref name=statutesatlarge>Template:Cite book</ref> The long-standing practice of appointing lieutenants jointly to the wider county and any counties corporate it contained was formalised by the Militia Act 1882.<ref name="auto">Template:Cite book</ref>

Apart from the inclusion of the counties corporate, the counties for the purposes of lieutenancy generally corresponded to the judicial counties. The exception was Yorkshire, which was one judicial county, having a single Sheriff of Yorkshire, but from 1660 onwards each of Yorkshire's three ridings had its own lieutenant.

In 1889, elected county councils were established under the Local Government Act 1888, taking over the administrative functions of the quarter sessions. Certain towns and cities were made county boroughs, independent from the county councils. In counties where the quarter sessions had been held separately for different parts of the county, such as the Parts of Lincolnshire, each part was given its own county council. The area administered by a county council was called an administrative county. As such, some of the judicial or lieutenancy counties comprised several administrative counties and county boroughs.<ref>Template:Cite legislation UK Section 59</ref>

The Ordnance Survey adopted the term 'geographical county' to describe the widest definition of the county. In most cases this was the lieutenancy county; the exceptions were Yorkshire, where the judicial county was larger on account of it being split into its three ridings for lieutenancy purposes, and the County of London where the administrative county was larger on account of the City of London and the rest of the county being separate for both judicial and lieutenancy purposes.<ref name=OS/>

The counties lost their judicial functions in 1972, after which the main functions of the counties were the administrative functions of local government.<ref name=courtsact/> Despite the loss of their functions, sheriffs continued to be appointed to the former judicial counties up until 1974.<ref>Template:London Gazette</ref>

In 1974, administrative counties and county boroughs were abolished, and a new system of metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties was introduced instead. Sheriffs were renamed 'high sheriffs' and both they and the lieutenants were appointed to the new versions of the counties.<ref>Template:Cite legislation UK</ref><ref>Template:London Gazette</ref>

The counties of Avon, Cleveland and Humberside, each of which had only been created in 1974, were all abolished in 1996. They were divided into unitary authorities; legally these are also non-metropolitan counties. As part of these reforms, it was decided to define counties for the purposes of lieutenancy differently from the local government counties in some cases, effectively reverting to the pre-1974 arrangements for lieutenancies. Whereas the lieutenancies had been defined slightly differently from the shrieval counties prior to 1974, it was decided in 1996 that the high sheriffs and lieutenants should be appointed to the same areas. Regulations amending the Sheriffs Act 1887 and specifying the areas for the appointment of lieutenants were accordingly brought in with effect from 1 April 1996.<ref name=1995regs>Template:Cite legislation UK</ref><ref name=1997act>Template:Cite legislation UK</ref>

The regulations were then consolidated into the Lieutenancies Act 1997. When Herefordshire, Rutland and Worcestershire were re-established as local government counties in 1997 and 1998 no amendment was made to the 1997 Act regarding them, allowing them to also serve as their own lieutenancy areas.<ref name=HerefordandWorcester>Template:Cite legislation UK</ref><ref name=LeicestershireandRutland>Template:Cite legislation UK</ref> The lieutenancy counties have not changed in area since 1998, although the definitions of which local government counties are included in each lieutenancy have been amended to reflect new unitary authorities being created since 1997.<ref name=1997act/>

In legislation the lieutenancy areas are described as 'counties for the purposes of the lieutenancies'; the informal term 'ceremonial county' has come into usage for such areas, appearing in parliamentary debates as early as 1996.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Shrieval counties

Template:See also The shrieval counties are defined by the Sheriffs Act 1887 as amended, in a similar way to the lieutenancies defined by the Lieutenancies Act 1997. Each has a high sheriff appointed (except the City of London, which has two sheriffs).

Definition

The Lieutenancies Act 1997 defines counties for the purposes of lieutenancies in terms of metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties (created by the Local Government Act 1972, as amended) as well as Greater London and the Isles of Scilly (which lie outside the 1972 Act's system). Although the term is not used in the act, these counties are sometimes known as "ceremonial counties". The counties are defined in Schedule 1, paragraphs 2–5<ref name="sched_1">Template:UK-LEG</ref> as amended<ref name="amend_1">Template:UK-LEG</ref> (in 2009,<ref name="amend_2">Template:UK-LEG</ref> 2019<ref name=Dorset>Template:Cite web</ref> and 2023).<ref name=Cumbria>The Cumbria (Structural Changes) Order 2022</ref>

Generally, each time a new non-metropolitan county is created, the 1997 Act is amended to redefine the existing areas of the lieutenancies in terms of the new areas.Template:NoteTag No such amendment was made in 1997 when Rutland was made a unitary authority or in 1998 when Herefordshire and Worcestershire were re-established; those three therefore have been given their own lieutenants again since the passing of the 1997 Act. The actual areas of the ceremonial counties have not changed since 1998.

Lieutenancy areas since 1998

These are the 48 counties for the purposes of the lieutenancies in England, as currently defined:

Lieutenancy areas of England since 1998

Location	Land area<ref name="popstats"/>		Population (Template:English cerem counties)<ref name="popstats">Template:English cerem counties</ref>	Density<ref name="popstats"/>		CompositionTemplate:Efn
	(Template:Km2)	(Template:Mi2)		(/Template:Km2)	(/Template:Mi2)
Bedfordshire	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Template:Cslist
Berkshire	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Template:Cslist
Bristol	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Bristol
Buckinghamshire	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Template:Cslist
Cambridgeshire	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Template:Cslist
Cheshire	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Template:Cslist
City of LondonTemplate:Efn	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	City of London
Cornwall	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Template:Cslist
Cumbria	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Template:Cslist
Derbyshire	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Template:Cslist
Devon	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Template:Cslist
Dorset	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Template:Cslist
Durham	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Template:Cslist
East Riding of Yorkshire	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Template:Cslist
East Sussex	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Template:Cslist
Essex	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Template:Cslist
Gloucestershire	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Template:Cslist
Greater London	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	None (see London boroughs)
Greater Manchester	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Greater Manchester
Hampshire	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Template:Cslist
Herefordshire	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Herefordshire
Hertfordshire	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Hertfordshire
Isle of Wight	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Isle of Wight
Kent	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Template:Cslist
Lancashire	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Template:Cslist
Leicestershire	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Template:Cslist
Lincolnshire	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Template:Cslist
Merseyside	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Merseyside
Norfolk	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Norfolk
North Yorkshire	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Template:Cslist
Northamptonshire	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Template:Cslist
Northumberland	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Northumberland
Nottinghamshire	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Template:Cslist
Oxfordshire	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Oxfordshire
Rutland	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Rutland
Shropshire	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Template:Cslist
Somerset	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Template:Cslist
South Yorkshire	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	South Yorkshire
Staffordshire	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Template:Cslist
Suffolk	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Suffolk
Surrey	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Surrey
Tyne and Wear	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Tyne and Wear
Warwickshire	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Warwickshire
West Midlands	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	West Midlands
West Sussex	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	West Sussex
West Yorkshire	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	West Yorkshire
Wiltshire	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Template:Cslist
Worcestershire	Template:Convert	Template:English cerem counties	Template:Convert	Worcestershire

Geographical counties 1889–1974

Template:England Ceremonial Counties Labelled Map After the creation of county councils in 1889, there were counties for judicial and shrieval purposes, counties for lieutenancy purposes, and administrative counties and county boroughs for the purposes of local government.

The 1888 Act used the term 'entire county' to refer to the group of administrative counties and county boroughs created within each judicial county.<ref>Section 100</ref> The Ordnance Survey used the term 'geographical county' to refer to this wider definition of the county.<ref name=OS>Template:Cite book</ref>

Yorkshire had three lieutenancies, one for each riding, but was a single judicial county with one sheriff, and was counted as one geographical county by Ordnance Survey.<ref>Template:Cite web Note the distinction in the key and on the map between the boundaries of geographical counties and the administrative counties.</ref>

The counties lost their judicial functions in 1972 under the Courts Act 1971 which abolished the quarter sessions and assizes.<ref name=courtsact>Template:Cite legislation UK</ref> Sheriffs continued to be appointed for each county despite the loss of the judicial functions. Certain towns and cities were counties corporate appointing their own sheriffs. The counties corporate were all included in a wider county for lieutenancy purposes, except the City of London which had its own lieutenants.

The geographical counties were relatively stable between 1889 and 1965. There were occasional boundary changes, notably following the Local Government Act 1894 which said that parishes and districts were no longer allowed to straddle county boundaries. After that most boundary changes were primarily to accommodate urban areas which were growing across county boundaries, such as when Caversham was transferred from Oxfordshire to Berkshire as a result of being absorbed into the County Borough of Reading in 1911.

The lieutenancies and judicial / shrieval counties were defined as groups of administrative counties and county boroughs, and so were automatically adjusted if the boundaries of those administrative areas changed. There were two exceptions to this rule (one only briefly). The county borough of Great Yarmouth straddled Norfolk and Suffolk for judicial and lieutenancy purposes until 1891 when it was placed entirely in Norfolk for those purposes.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The county borough of Stockport straddled Cheshire and Lancashire for judicial and lieutenancy purposes - it was placed entirely in Lancashire for judicial purposes in 1956 but continued to straddle the two counties for lieutenancy purposes until 1974.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Efn

Geographical, shrieval, lieutenancy and administrative counties 1889–1965

Geographical county	Sheriffs Counties corporate	Lieutenants	Administrative counties County boroughs
Bedfordshire	Bedfordshire	Bedfordshire	Bedfordshire – Luton (after 1964)
Berkshire	Berkshire	Berkshire	Berkshire – Reading
Buckinghamshire	Buckinghamshire	Buckinghamshire	Buckinghamshire
Cambridgeshire	CambridgeshireTemplate:Efn	Cambridgeshire	Cambridgeshire Isle of Ely
Cheshire	Cheshire – Chester	Cheshire	Cheshire – Birkenhead – Chester – StockportTemplate:Efn – Wallasey (after 1913)
Cornwall	Cornwall	Cornwall	Cornwall Isles of ScillyTemplate:Efn
Cumberland	Cumberland	Cumberland	Cumberland – Carlisle (from 1915)
Derbyshire	Derbyshire	Derbyshire	Derbyshire – Derby
Devon	Devon – Exeter	Devon	Devon – Devonport (until 1914) – Exeter – Plymouth
Dorset	Dorset – Poole	Dorset	Dorset
Durham	Durham	Durham	Durham – Darlington (after 1915) – Gateshead – South Shields – Sunderland – West Hartlepool (after 1902)
Essex	Essex	Essex	Essex – East Ham (after 1915) – Southend-on-Sea (after 1914) – West Ham
Gloucestershire	Gloucestershire – Bristol – Gloucester	Gloucestershire	Gloucestershire – Bristol – Gloucester
Hampshire	Hampshire – Southampton	Hampshire	Hampshire Isle of Wight (after 1890) – Bournemouth (after 1900) – Portsmouth – Southampton
Herefordshire	Herefordshire	Herefordshire	Herefordshire
Hertfordshire	Hertfordshire	Hertfordshire	Hertfordshire
Huntingdonshire	HuntingdonshireTemplate:Efn	Huntingdonshire	Huntingdonshire
Kent	Kent – Canterbury	Kent	Kent – Canterbury
Lancashire	Lancashire	Lancashire	Lancashire – Barrow-in-Furness – Blackburn – Blackpool (after 1904) – Bolton – Bootle – Burnley – Bury – Liverpool – Manchester – Oldham – Preston – Rochdale – St Helens – Salford – Southport (after 1905) – StockportTemplate:Efn – Warrington (after 1900) – Wigan
Leicestershire	Leicestershire	Leicestershire	Leicestershire – Leicester
Lincolnshire	Lincolnshire – Lincoln	Lincolnshire	Holland Kesteven Lindsey – Grimsby – Lincoln
London	County of London – City of London	County of London City of London	London
Middlesex	Middlesex	Middlesex	Middlesex
Norfolk	Norfolk – Norwich	Norfolk	Norfolk – Great YarmouthTemplate:Efn – Norwich
Northamptonshire	Northamptonshire	Northamptonshire	Northamptonshire Soke of Peterborough – Northampton
Northumberland	Northumberland – Berwick-upon-Tweed – Newcastle-upon-Tyne	Northumberland	Northumberland – Newcastle-upon-Tyne – Tynemouth (after 1904)
Nottinghamshire	Nottingham – Nottingham	Nottinghamshire	Nottinghamshire – Nottingham
Oxfordshire	Oxfordshire	Oxfordshire	Oxfordshire – Oxford (after 1889)Template:Efn
Rutland	Rutland	Rutland	Rutland
Shropshire	Shropshire	Shropshire	Shropshire
Somerset	Somerset	Somerset	Somerset – Bath
Staffordshire	Staffordshire – Lichfield	Staffordshire	Staffordshire – Burton upon Trent (after 1901) – Hanley (until 1910) – Smethwick (from 1907) – Stoke-on-Trent (after 1910) – Walsall – West Bromwich – Wolverhampton
Suffolk	Suffolk	Suffolk	East Suffolk West Suffolk – Great Yarmouth (part, until 1891)Template:Efn – Ipswich
Surrey	Surrey	Surrey	Surrey – Croydon
Sussex	Sussex	Sussex	East Sussex West Sussex – Brighton – Eastbourne (after 1911) – Hastings
Warwickshire	Warwickshire	Warwickshire	Warwickshire – Birmingham – Coventry – Solihull (after 1964)
Westmorland	Westmorland	Westmorland	Westmorland
Wiltshire	Wiltshire	Wiltshire	Wiltshire
Worcestershire	Worcestershire – Worcester	Worcestershire	Worcestershire – Dudley – Worcester
Yorkshire	Yorkshire Hallamshire (after 1962) – Kingston upon Hull – York	East Riding	East Riding – Kingston upon Hull
		North Riding	North Riding – Middlesbrough
		West Riding	West Riding – Barnsley (after 1913) – Bradford – Dewsbury (after 1913) – Doncaster (after 1927) – Halifax – Huddersfield – Leeds – Rotherham (after 1902) – Sheffield – Wakefield (after 1915) – York

More significant changes to the geographical counties were made in 1965 with the creation of Greater London and of Huntingdon and Peterborough, which resulted in the abolition of the offices of Lord Lieutenant of Middlesex, Lord Lieutenant of the County of London, and Lord Lieutenant of Huntingdonshire and the creation of the Lord Lieutenant of Greater London and of the Lord Lieutenant of Huntingdon and Peterborough.

See also

• Counties of England
• Historic counties of England
• Counties in England by population
• List of ceremonial counties in England by GDP
• Lieutenancy areas of Scotland
• List of local governments in the United Kingdom
• Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics
• Preserved counties of Wales

External links

• Template:UK-LEG