Cheshire

The chamberlain of Cheshire (the county palatine of Chester) was responsible for conveying the election writ to the sheriff. During this period the chamberlain were the 3rd Earl of Derby (1559-65), the Earl of Leicester (1565-88), the 4th Earl of Derby (1588-93) and Lord Keeper Egerton (1593-1603). They do not appear to have exercised undue influence on the county elections, which followed the usual pattern of the period, with the leading landowning families taking their turn as knights of the shire. The only exception was Thomas Egerton I, whose elections for Cheshire in 1584 and 1586 are attributable to his position as solicitor-general, his connexions with the 4th Earl of Derby and his interests in the county. No evidence of a by-election has been found following William Booth’s death in 1579.