The high sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown (prior to 1974 the office previously known as sheriff).[1] 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 elsewhere or are now obsolete, so that its functions are now largely ceremonial. The high sheriff changes every March.
This is a list of high sheriffs of Kent.[2]
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- ^ "Sheriffs appointed for a county or Greater London shall be known as high sheriffs, and any reference in any enactment or instrument to a sheriff shall be construed accordingly in relation to sheriffs for a county or Greater London." ("Government Act 1972: Section 219".[permanent dead link])
- ^ The History and Topographical Survey of the County of Kent Vol 1 (1797) Edward Halsted pp 177–213 from British History on line. List of Sheriffs to 1796 accessed 17 November 2007