At the meeting on the 26th January 2017 we arranged to have a talk given by the West Yorkshire Lieutenancy, which was organised by our council member Jas. Shergill J.P. and what a good and interesting evening it turned out to be.
The deputy Lord Lieutenant who addressed us at our meeting was David Pearson, a very charming gentleman indeed, dressed in his fine Brigadier’s uniform with a splendid sword as you can see from the photograph below. He started off by giving a history of the Kings of Britain after the Romans had left, of which there were quite a few at that time, ending up with the time of Henry the Eighth’s reign. Henry then set up these Lieutenants to look after the Shires, also Sheriffs to help to maintain stability in the Shires and take responsibility for raising forces to combat foreign-led unrest, and to be the Monarch’s representative.
Generally the post today is to arrange and host visits for all members of the Royal Family and to cover for them when they cannot attend in person. What we found amazing is that those holding these posts, all over Britain, are all unpaid volunteers and have to pay for their very expensive uniforms, of which they have at least three for all occasions and ceremonies and visits, and they even pay for the swords.
He had some good stories of his adventures in his post and we all had a very enjoyable evening, and then off to the pub with him for a pint….
by Alex Rogers – Council Member – Leeds Association of Engineers
28th January 2017
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