Sheriff of Nottingham (position)

The Sheriff of Nottingham was historically the office responsible for enforcing law and order in Nottingham and bringing criminals to justice. For years the post has been directly appointed by the Lord Mayor of Nottingham and in modern times, with the existence of the police force, the position is entirely ceremonial and sustained to boost tourism due to the legendary connection with the fictional Sheriff of Nottingham in the tales of Robin Hood. However, the historical position goes back to Anglo-Saxon times. The office is sometimes confused with that of the High Sheriff of Nottinghamshire (that office had previously existed, from 1068 until 1568, as Sheriff of Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire and the Royal Forests).

Responsibility for enforcing the law and keeping the peace in Anglo-Saxon England fell to the sheriff or shire-reeve (which is a contraction of the Old English word for county and reeve or greave). Different types of reeves attested before the Conquest include the high-reeve, town-reeve, port-reeve, shire-reeve (predecessor to the sheriff), reeve of the hundred and the reeve in charge of a manor, its post-conquest meaning. England in the early 11th century employed the services of shire reeves to assist in the detection and prevention of crimes. Groups of 10 families or "tithings" under a hundredman (later constable) could call upon them. The reeve of an entire shire was a shire-reeve, predecessor to the sheriff.^[1]

After the Norman Conquest, specific counties appointed sheriffs to enforce the law (such as Yorkshire for example), although sometimes the duties of these sheriffs would cross the border of their respective counties.^[2] Nottingham would have come under the "High Sheriff of Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire" after the Norman Conquest.

The Sheriff during the reign of King John was Philip Marc. Marc was so unpopular that he was specifically mentioned in the Magna Carta, which demanded his removal.

In 1449, the city of Nottingham itself appointed its own sheriff for the first time.^[3] However, the post was held simultaneously between two men, William Sadler and Thomas Lyng. The sheriffs at that time may have been responsible for "the delivery of prisoners to the courts, the collection of rents and taxes and generally keeping the 'King's Peace'".

The position of Sheriff of Nottingham began to become a key feature in the tales and legends of Robin Hood from the 14th century onwards.^[4][5] While the position in the tales was seen as fictional and as a caricature, it was indicative of the potential for power to abused and corrupted in the medieval period.^[6]

From 1450 until 1835, the office was shared between two people, one of whom may have been chosen by the Mayor, the other by the town council. The reversion to a single sheriff was explained by the mayor and aldermen of Lincoln as "Local Government changes" (possibly the Municipal Corporations Act 1835).

The office is considered largely ceremonial, expected to attend local events when the monarch is present and promoting the city in tourism and business. There are interviews with Joan Casson, John Hartshorne and Leon Unczur all recent sheriffs, describing the role of the present-day Sheriff of Nottingham. The first female sheriff was appointed in 1931.

Source^[7]

Liaqat Ali was elected Sheriff on May 20, 2024.^[8]