The High Steward of Colchester is a ceremonial office awarded by

Colchester Borough Council Colchester ( ) is a city in Essex, in the East of England. It had a population of 122,000 in 2011. The demonym is Colcestrian. Colchester occupies the site of Camulodunum, the first major city in Roman Britain and its first capital. Colchest ...

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. The

stewardship Stewardship is an ethical value that embodies the responsible planning and management of resources. The concepts of stewardship can be applied to the environment and nature, economics, health, property, information, theology, cultural resources e ...

was established by

royal charter A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta (great charter) of 1215, bu ...

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

dated 9 July 1635. The charter, naming all the officials and councillors of the Council, stipulated that: :''"henceforth for ever there may be and shall be in the borough a High Steward to advise and direct the Mayor and Commonality in the chief business touching that borough which High Steward shall continue in the office of High Steward during his natural life."'' The 1835 Municipal Corporation Act abolished most High Stewards and only allowed Colchester’s petition to retain a High Steward on condition that the wording of the Charter ''"...advise and direct..."'' be reduced to merely ''"...advise..."'' The office was held by Professor Ivor Crewe until his resignation in July 2009 and remained vacant from 2009 to 2015. Following his defeat at the 2015 UK General Election, former

Colchester Colchester ( ) is a city in Essex, in the East of England. It had a population of 122,000 in 2011. The demonym is Colcestrian. Colchester occupies the site of Camulodunum, the first major city in Roman Britain and its first capital. Colches ...

MP, Sir Bob Russell, was appointed to the position, which he currently holds. He held the seat for the Liberal Democrats for 18 years, from 1997 to 2015.

Office holders

* The

Earl of Holland Earl of Holland was a title in the Peerage of England. It was created in 1624 for Henry Rich, 1st Baron Kensington. He was the younger son of Robert Rich, 1st Earl of Warwick, and had already been created Baron Kensington in 1623, also in the Pe ...

, who was beheaded. * The

Duke of Albemarle The Dukedom of Albemarle () has been created twice in the Peerage of England, each time ending in extinction. Additionally, the title was created a third time by James II in exile and a fourth time by his son the Old Pretender, in the Jacobite ...

, who lived in

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

, and never even visited the town. *

Charles Crickitt Charles Alexander Crickitt (12 January 1736 – 16 January 1803) was an English banker and politician. He was a Member of Parliament for Ipswich from 1784 until his death in 1803. Crickitt started his banking career in Colchester in 1774, and set ...

, who duelled with a local member of the clergy. *

John Pitt, 2nd Earl of Chatham General John Pitt, 2nd Earl of Chatham, also 2nd Viscount Pitt and 2nd Baron Chatham, (9 October 1756 – 24 September 1835) was a British soldier and politician. He spent a lengthy period in the cabinet but is best known for commanding the dis ...

1807–1818 *John Round 1818–1860, former

Tory A Tory () is a person who holds a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalism and conservatism, which upholds the supremacy of social order as it has evolved in the English culture throughout history. Th ...

MP for

Ipswich Ipswich () is a port town and borough in Suffolk, England, of which it is the county town. The town is located in East Anglia about away from the mouth of the River Orwell and the North Sea. Ipswich is both on the Great Eastern Main Line r ...

and

Maldon Maldon (, locally ) is a town and civil parish on the River Blackwater, Essex, Blackwater estuary in Essex, England. It is the seat of the Maldon District and starting point of the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation. It is known for Maldon Sea ...

. *

John Gurdon Rebow John Gurdon Rebow (1799 - 11 October 1870) was an English Liberal Party politician who sat in the House of Commons in two periods between 1857 and 1870. Rebow was born as "Gurdon" the son of Theophilus Thornhaugh Gurdon of Letton, Norfolk and his ...

, of

Wivenhoe House Wivenhoe House is a grade II-listed house located in Colchester, Essex. It is in use as a 4-star hotel. History Wivenhoe House's history began in 1759 when Isaac Rebow asked Thomas Reynolds to build the house. In 1816, owner Major-General Franci ...

, MP for

from 1865. 1861–1870 *George Henry Errington, banker and former

High Sheriff of Essex The High Sheriff of Essex was an ancient sheriff title originating in the time of the Angles, not long after the invasion of the Kingdom of England, which was in existence for around a thousand years. On 1 April 1974, under the provisions of the ...

1870–1883 *

Francis Cowper, 7th Earl Cowper Francis Thomas de Grey Cowper, 7th Earl Cowper (11 June 1834 – 18 July 1905), known as Viscount Fordwich from 1837 to 1856, was a British Liberal politician. He was Lord Lieutenant of Ireland from 1880 to 1882. Overwhelmingly by inherit ...

Viscount Cowdray Viscount Cowdray, of Cowdray in the County of Sussex, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1917 for the industrialist Weetman Pearson, 1st Baron Cowdray, head of the Pearson conglomerate. He had already been create ...

1910–1927, industrialist and former MP for

Annie Pearson, Viscountess Cowdray Annie Pearson, Viscountess Cowdray, GBE (''née'' Cass; 4 June 1860 – 15 April 1932) was an English society hostess, suffragist and philanthropist. She was nicknamed the "Fairy Godmother of Nursing" due to her financial patronage of the Royal ...

1927–1932 in succession to her husband. * Sir

William Gurney Benham Sir William Gurney Benham, FSA, FRHS (; 16 February 1859 – 13 May 1944) was a British newspaper editor, published author and three times Mayor of Colchester. Early life and family William Benham was born on 16 February 1859 to Edward Benha ...

, three times mayor and local notable 1933–1944 * Field Marshal Wavell,

Viceroy A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the French word ''roy'', meaning "k ...

of India 1947–1950. *Sir Percy Saunders CBE, businessman, former mayor and member of Colchester council for 30 years. 1950–1962. *

Cuthbert Alport, Baron Alport Cuthbert James McCall Alport, Baron Alport, (22 March 1912 – 28 October 1998) was a Conservative Party politician, minister, and life peer. Early life "Cub" Alport was educated at Haileybury College, Haileybury, Hertfordshire, England, and ...

, former MP for

. October 1967 – 1988. 21st High Steward * Professor

Ivor Crewe Sir Ivor Martin Crewe DL FAcSS (born 15 December 1945) was until 2020 the Master of University College, Oxford, and President of the Academy of Social Sciences. He was previously Vice-Chancellor of the University of Essex and also a Professo ...

, 2003–2009. 22nd High Steward * Sir Bob Russell, former MP for

, 2015–present. 23rd High Steward

References

{{reflist
High Stewards speech 2003

History of Colchester