Mayor of Monmouth

Mayor of Monmouth
Incumbent Cllr. Jane Gunter (2014)
Term length	1 year
Website	Town Council

The Mayor of Monmouth is an elected position given to a town councillor in Monmouth in Wales. The position dates back about 750 years.

The position of Mayor in Monmouth was established in the thirteenth century by the people who were controlling the town's market. A seal was obtained from King Henry III confirming the rights and privileges of the position and the right to also establish bailiffs for the town. The position was confirmed in 1447 when Henry VI granted a charter to the town which permitted the town to raise taxes to pay for the town and also gave some freedom from the King's taxes. (Henry VI's father had been born in the town.) This charter confirmed the position of mayor as an annual elected position and agreed that two maces should be carried before the elected person. These maces survive and carry the arms of the Duchy of Lancaster.

An elected mayor and bailiffs came to lead this body and by the middle of the thirteenth century a seal had been acquired from King Henry III with certain privileges. The office of mayor can be dated from this time.

John Speed mentions the position again in 1611 when he itemises the authorities as a mayor, two bailiffs and fifteen councillors. This list is still true in 2012.

In 1813 that was a court case concerning the over the influence of the Duke of Beaufort in the appointment of Mayors of Monmouth. The case was won by a team including local historian, Charles Heath but the Duke found other ways of gaming the system. Heath eventually became Mayor in 1819 and 1821.

In 1835 the Municipal Corporations Act adjusted the powers but identified 1666 as the defining date of Monmouth's last charter.

William Sambrook who was a local chemist and a keen supporter of Monmouth Baptist Church was elected Mayor of Monmouth nine times.

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Wikipedia