Lord Mayor of London

The Right Honourable The Lord Mayor of London is the Mayor of the City of London and head of the Corporation of London. The Lord Mayor of London is to be distinguished from the Mayor of London; the former is an officer only of the City of London, while the Mayor of London governs a much larger area known as Greater London. Within the City of London, the Lord Mayor has precedence over other individuals and has various special powers, rights and privileges.

Titles and honours

Of the 66 Cities in the United Kingdom, the City of London is among the 30 that have Lord Mayors (or, in Scotland, Lord Provosts). The Lord Mayor is entitled to the style The Right Honourable; the same privilege extends only to the Lord Mayors of Bristol, York, Cardiff and Belfast, and to the Lord Provosts of Edinburgh and Glasgow. The style, however, is used when referring to the office as opposed to the holder thereof; thus, "The Rt Hon. The Lord Mayor of London" would be correct, while "The Rt Hon. John Smith" would be incorrect. The latter style applies only to Privy Counsellors.

Related Topics:
United Kingdom - Scotland - Lord Provost - The Right Honourable - Bristol - York - Cardiff - Belfast - Edinburgh - Glasgow - Privy Counsellors

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A woman who holds the office is also known as a Lord Mayor. A male Lord Mayor's wife is known as a Lady Mayoress; no equivalent privilege exists for female Lord Mayor's husband. In speech, a Lord Mayor is referred to as "My Lord Mayor," and a Lady Mayoress as "My Lady Mayoress."

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It was once customary for Lord Mayors to be created knights upon taking office and baronets upon retirement. The custom was applied inconsistently from the sixteenth until the nineteenth centuries; creations became more regular from 1889 onwards. From 1964 onwards, the regular creation of hereditary dignities such as baronetcies ceased, but Lord Mayors continued to be granted knighthoods (usually of the rank of Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire) until 1993. Since 1993, Lord Mayors have not received any automatic honours upon appointment; instead, they have been created Knights Bachelor upon retirement. Furthermore, when foreign heads of state visit the United Kingdom, they sometimes confer honours on the Lord Mayor. For example, in 2001, David Howard was created a Grand Cordon, First Class, of the Order of Independence of Jordan following the state visit of King Abdullah II.

Related Topics:
Knight - Baronet - Sixteenth - Nineteenth - 1889 - 1964 - Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire - 1993 - Knights Bachelor - 2001 - David Howard - Jordan - King Abdullah II

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