High Sheriff of Durham

This is a list of the High Sheriffs of County Durham, England. In most counties the High Sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. In the Palatinate of Durham the officeholder was appointed by and was accountable to the Bishop of Durham until 1836 when the Crown claimed authority. 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 defunct, so that its functions are now largely ceremonial. The High Sheriff changes every March. High Sheriffs of County Durham 1146 Osbert 15th century 18 January 1401: Sir Robert Conyers 24 August 1406: Sir Percival de Lyndeley 2 June 1414: Sir William Claxton 2 January 1420: Robert Eure 6 May 1436: Sir William Bowes 4 October 1437: Robert Ogle 1 October 1438: William Pudsay 5 December 1441: Geoffrey Midleton 28 December 1461: John de Aderton 8 December 1462: Geoffrey Midleton 7 March 1467: William Claxton 6 August 1469: Henry Radclyff 14 August 1470: Sir George Lumley 20 November 1476: Robert Tempest 4 October 1482–1502: Sir Ralph Bowes