The office of High Sheriff

High Sheriff

A high sheriff is, or was, a law enforcement officer in the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States.In England and Wales, the office is unpaid and partly ceremonial, appointed by the Crown through a warrant from the Privy Council. In Cornwall, the High Sheriff is appointed by the Duke of...

 is over 1000 years old, with its establishment before the Norman Conquest. The Office of High Sheriff remained first in precedence in the counties until the reign of Edward VII

Edward VII of the United Kingdom

Edward VII was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910...

 when an Order in Council in 1908 gave the Lord-Lieutenant the prime office under the Crown as the Sovereign's personal representative. The High Sheriff remains the Sovereign's representative in the County for all matters relating to the Judiciary and the maintenance of law and order.

The county of Avon

Avon (county)

Avon was, from 1974 to 1996, a non-metropolitan and ceremonial county in the west of England.The county was named after the River Avon, which runs through the area. It was formed from parts of the historic counties of Gloucestershire and Somerset, together with the City of Bristol...

 was formed in 1974 and abolished in 1996. Before and after this time the area covered was in a variety of other shrievalties, including Somerset

High Sheriff of Somerset

The Office of High Sheriff of Somerset is an ancient High Sheriff title which has been in existence for over one thousand years. The position was once a powerful position responsible for collecting taxes and enforcing law and order in Somerset a county in South West England. In modern times the...

, Bristol

High Sheriff of Bristol

This is a list of High Sheriffs of the County of City of Bristol, England.The office of High Sheriff is over 1000 years old, with its establishment before the Norman Conquest...

 and Gloucestershire

High Sheriff of Gloucestershire

This is a list of High Sheriffs of Gloucestershire.The High Sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. Formerly the High Sheriff was the principal law enforcement officer in the county but over the centuries most of the responsibilities associated with the post have been transferred...

.

Officeholders

• 1974: Hugh Charles Innes Rogers, of Beach House
• 1975: John Foster Robinson CBE
  CBE
  CBE and C.B.E. are abbreviations for "Commander of the Order of the British Empire", a grade in the Order of the British Empire.Other uses include:* Chemical and Biochemical Engineering...
  
   TD
  Territorial Decoration
  The Territorial Decoration was a medal of the United Kingdom awarded for long service in the Territorial Force and its successor, the Territorial Army...
  
  , of St. Georges Hill
• 1976: Simon Melville Wills, of the Manor House, Walton-in-Gordano
• 1977: Malcolm Allinson Anson, of Hill Court
• 1978: Ewart Agnew Boddington, of Fanshawe Brook Farm
• 1979: Thomas Lloyd Robinson TD, of Lechlade
• 1980: Mary Ada Phoebe Towill, of Urchinwood Manor
• 1981: Roderick Macdonald Davidson, of 13 Buckingham Vale, Clifton
  Clifton, Bristol
  Clifton is a suburb of the City of Bristol in England, and the name of both one of the city's thirty-five council wards. The Clifton ward also includes the areas of Cliftonwood and Hotwells...
  
  
• 1982: Peter Douglas Smith, of Westbrook
• 1983: Colonel Charles James Stewart OBE TD, of Thornton
• 1984: Christopher Wilson Thomas CBE, of Bourne House
• 1985: Robert Edward John Bernays, of Old Down House, Tockington
  Tockington
  Tockington is a village in South Gloucestershire, England. Historically the village developed around farming based mainly on the rearing of cattle on the fertile flood plains. In more recent times Tockington has become an attractive location for commuters, being situated within the Green Belt and...
  
  
• 1986: Sir Alexander Walter Merrison FRS
  Royal Society
  The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...
  
  , of The Manor, Hinton Blewett
• 1987: Robert Alexander Chermside, of The Old Rectory, Tormarton
  Tormarton
  Tormarton is a village in South Gloucestershire, England. Its name comes from Thor Maer Tun meaning The settlement with the thorn on the boundary. It is one mile North-East of junction 18 of the M4 motorway, with the A46 road and close to the border between Wiltshire and South Gloucestershire. As...
  
  
• 1988: Charles Richard Thurlow Laws, of Jerome House
• 1989: Sir George White, 4th Baronet, of Pypers
• 1990: Robert Foxcroft Robertson-Glasgow, of Hinton House
• 1991: Andrew Milton Reid, of Parsonage Farm
• 1992: Francis William Greenacre, of 3 Cecil Road, Clifton
• 1993: Hylton Henry Bayntun-Coward
• 1994: Christopher Marsden-Smedley, of Church Farm
• 1995: James Napier Tidmarsh
  Jay Tidmarsh
  Sir James Napier Tidmarsh, KCVO, M.B.E. was the Lord Lieutenant of Bristol from 1996 until 2007.Sir James Tidmarsh spent most of his working life in the manufacturing industry in the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand. Originally a shoe maker, in 1972 he set up his own company...
  
   KCVO
  Royal Victorian Order
  The Royal Victorian Order is a dynastic order of knighthood and a house order of chivalry recognising distinguished personal service to the order's Sovereign, the reigning monarch of the Commonwealth realms, any members of her family, or any of her viceroys...
  
  , MBE
  MBE
  MBE can stand for:* Mail Boxes Etc.* Management by exception* Master of Bioethics* Master of Bioscience Enterprise* Master of Business Engineering* Master of Business Economics* Mean Biased Error...
  
  , of 8 Princes Buildings, Clifton
• 1996: George Robert Paget Ferguson, of 5 Windsor Terrace, Clifton