Initially an office for lifetime, assigned by the Sovereign, the role of High Sheriff became annually appointed from the Provisions of Oxford in 1258.
[1] Besides the judicial importance of the role, it had ceremonial and administrative functions and executed High Court Writs.
[2] The first (High) Shrievalties were established before the Norman Conquest in 1066, dating back to Saxon times.
[3] In 1908, an Order in Council made the Lord-Lieutenant the Sovereign's prime representative in the counties of the United Kingdom and reduced the precedence of the High Sheriff's role.
[4] Despite that, the office-holder retained their responsibilities for the preservation of law and order in a county.