County town#Historic counties of England
{{Short description|County's administrative centre in Ireland and Great Britain}}
{{More citations needed|date=April 2025}}
{{Use British English|date=October 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2020}}
In Great Britain and Ireland, a county town is usually the location of administrative or judicial functions within a county, and the place where public representatives are elected to parliament. Following the establishment of county councils in England in 1889, the headquarters of the new councils were usually established in the county town of each county; however, the concept of a county town pre-dates these councils.
The concept of a county town is ill-defined and unofficial. Some counties in Great Britain have their administrative bodies housed elsewhere. For example, Lancaster is the county town of Lancashire, but the county council is in Preston. Owing to the creation of unitary authorities, some county towns in Great Britain are administratively separate from the county. For example, Nottingham is separated from the rest of Nottinghamshire, and Brighton and Hove is separate from East Sussex. On a ceremonial level, both are in their own respective counties geographically.
Great Britain, historic
=England=
This list shows towns or cities which held county functions at various points in time.
{{notelist}}
=Scotland=
| class="wikitable sortable" | |
| County | County town |
|---|---|
| {{flag|Aberdeenshire}} | Aberdeen{{efn|group=Scotland|In 1900 Aberdeen became a county of a city and thus outside the remit of the county council.}} |
| Angus (or Forfarshire) | Forfar |
| Argyll | Lochgilphead (formerly Inveraray){{efn|group=Scotland|Inveraray (the seat of the Duke of Argyll) was regarded as the county town until 1890, when the Argyll County Council was created with headquarters in Lochgilphead.}} |
| Ayrshire | Ayr |
| {{flag|Banffshire}} | Banff |
| {{flag|Berwickshire}} | Duns, Scottish Borders (formerly Berwick-upon-Tweed, formerly Greenlaw) |
| Bute | Rothesay |
| {{flag|Caithness}} | Wick |
| Clackmannanshire | Alloa (formerly Clackmannan) |
| Cromartyshire | Cromarty |
| Dumfriesshire | Dumfries |
| Dunbartonshire | Dumbarton |
| {{flag|East Lothian}} (or Haddingtonshire) | Haddington |
| Fife | Cupar |
| Inverness-shire | Inverness |
| Kincardineshire | Stonehaven (formerly Kincardine) |
| Kinross-shire | Kinross |
| {{flag|Kirkcudbrightshire}} | Kirkcudbright |
| Lanarkshire | Lanark{{efn|group=Scotland|The headquarters of the Lanark County Council were established in 1890 in Glasgow. In 1893 Glasgow became a county of itself, and was therefore outside the council's area. The county council moved to Hamilton in 1964.Notice in Edinburgh Gazette, 28 February 1964 that county council's address changed from Lanarkshire House, 191 Ingram Street, Glasgow C1 to County Buildings, Hamilton from 6 April 1964}} |
| Midlothian (or Edinburghshire) | Edinburgh{{efn|group=Scotland|Edinburgh was a county of itself, and therefore lay outside the remit of the county council.}} |
| {{flag|Morayshire}} (or Elginshire) | Elgin |
| Nairnshire | Nairn |
| {{flag|Orkney}} | Kirkwall |
| Peeblesshire | Peebles |
| Perthshire | Perth |
| Renfrewshire | Renfrew{{efn|group=Scotland|The headquarters of Renfrew County Council were in Paisley from 1890.}} |
| Ross-shire | Dingwall (also the county town of Ross and Cromarty) |
| Roxburghshire | Jedburgh (formerly Roxburgh){{efn|group=Scotland|Newtown St Boswells was the administrative headquarters of the county council established in 1890.}} |
| Selkirkshire | Selkirk |
| {{flag|Shetland}} | Lerwick |
| Stirlingshire | Stirling |
| {{flag|Sutherland}} | Dornoch{{efn|group=Scotland|The headquarters of Sutherland County Council were at Golspie from 1890.}} |
| West Lothian (or Linlithgowshire) | Linlithgow |
| Wigtownshire | Wigtown{{efn|group=Scotland|Stranraer became the administrative headquarters of the Wigtown county council in 1890, and was sometimes described as the "county town" thereafter.}} |
{{notelist|group=scotland}}
=Wales=
Following the Norman invasion of Wales, the Cambro-Normans created the historic shire system (also known as ancient counties). Many of these counties were named for the centre of Norman power within the new county (Caernarfonshire named for Caernarfon, Monmouthshire named for Monmouth) others were named after the previous medieval Welsh kingdoms (Ceredigon becomes Cardigan, Morgannwg becomes Glamorgan). The 1535 Laws in Wales Act established the historic counties in English law, but in Wales they were later replaced with eight preserved counties for ceremonial purposes and the twenty two principal areas are used for administrative purposes. Neither of these subdivisions use official county towns, although their administrative headquarters and ceremonial centres are often located in the historic county town.John Davies, A History of Wales, Penguin, 1993, {{ISBN|0-14-028475-3}}
| class="wikitable sortable" | |||
| Name in English | Name in Welsh | County town in English | County town in Welsh |
|---|---|---|---|
| {{flag|Anglesey}} | Ynys Môn | Llangefni (formerly Beaumaris?) | Llangefni Biwmares |
| {{flagicon image|Flag of Brecknockshire.svg}} Brecknockshire | Brycheiniog | Brecon | Aberhonddu |
| {{flag|Caernarfonshire}} (formerly Carnarvonshire) | Sir Gaernarfon | Caernarfon | Caernarfon |
| {{flag|Cardiganshire}} | Ceredigion | Cardigan | Aberteifi |
| Carmarthenshire | Sir Gaerfyrddin | Carmarthen | Caerfyrddin |
| Denbighshire | Sir Ddinbych | Ruthin (formerly Denbigh) | Rhuthun (formerly Dinbych) |
| {{flag|Flintshire}} | Sir y Fflint | Mold (formerly Flint) | Yr Wyddgrug (formerly Y Fflint) |
| {{flag|Glamorgan}} | Morgannwg | Cardiff | Caerdydd |
| {{flag|Merioneth}} or Merionethshire | Meirionnydd or Sir Feirionnydd | Dolgellau | Dolgellau |
| Montgomeryshire | Sir Drefaldwyn | Welshpool (formerly Montgomery) | Y Trallwng (formerly Trefaldwyn) |
| {{flag|Monmouthshire}} | Sir Fynwy | Monmouth | Trefynwy |
| {{flag|Pembrokeshire}} | Sir Benfro | Haverfordwest (formerly Pembroke) | Hwlffordd (formerly Penfro) |
| Radnorshire | Sir Faesyfed | Presteigne (formerly New Radnor) | Llanandras (former Maesyfed) |
{{notelist|group=Wales}}
Great Britain, post 19th-century reforms
With the creation of elected county councils in 1889, the administrative headquarters in some cases moved away from the traditional county town. Furthermore, in 1965 and 1974 there were major boundary changes in England and Wales and administrative counties were replaced with new metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties. The boundaries underwent further alterations between 1995 and 1998 to create unitary authorities, and some of the ancient counties and county towns were restored. (Note: not all headquarters are or were called County Halls or Shire Halls e.g.: Cumbria County Council's HQ up until 2016 was called The Courts and has since moved to Cumbria House.) Before 1974, many of the county halls were in towns and cities that had the status of a county borough i.e. a borough outside the county council's jurisdiction.
=England, from 1889=
=England, from 1965=
| class="wikitable sortable" | ||
| County council | Date | Headquarters |
|---|---|---|
| Avon
| 1974 to 1996 | Bristol | ||
| Bristol
| 1996 onwards | Bristol | ||
| Cambridgeshire and Isle of Ely
| 1965 to 1974 | ||
| Cleveland
| 1974 to 1996 | ||
| Cumbria
| 1974 to 2023 | Carlisle | ||
| Greater London
| 1965 to 1986 and | County Hall, Lambeth (Greater London Council) (1965{{ndash}}1986) | ||
| Greater Manchester
| 1974 to 1986 | ||
| Hereford and Worcester
| 1974 to 1998 | ||
| Humberside
| 1974 to 1996 | Beverley | ||
| Huntingdon and Peterborough
| 1965 to 1974 | ||
| Lincolnshire
| 1974 onwards | Lincoln | ||
| Merseyside
| 1974 to 1986 | ||
| Suffolk
| 1974 onwards | Ipswich | ||
| Tyne and Wear
| 1974 to 1986 | ||
| West Midlands
| 1974 to 1986 | ||
| North Yorkshire
| 1974 onwards | ||
| South Yorkshire
| 1974 to 1986 | Barnsley | ||
| West Yorkshire
| 1974 to 1986 |
=Wales=
| class="wikitable sortable" | ||
| County council | Date | Headquarters |
|---|---|---|
| Anglesey | 1889 to 1974 | Beaumaris1 |
| Brecknockshire | 1889 to 1974 | Brecon |
| Caernarvonshire | 1889 to 1974 | Caernarfon |
| Carmarthenshire | 1889 to 1974 1996 onwards | Carmarthen |
| Cardiganshire | 1889 to 1974 | Aberystwyth2 |
| Ceredigion | 1996 onwards | Aberaeron |
| Clwyd | 1974 to 1996 | Mold |
| Denbighshire | 1889 to 1974 | Denbigh |
| Dyfed | 1974 to 1996 | Carmarthen |
| Flintshire | 1889 to 1974 | Mold |
| Glamorgan | 1889 to 1974 | Cardiff (county borough) |
| Gwent | 1974 to 1996 | Newport (1974–78), Cwmbran (1978–96) |
| Gwynedd | 1974 onwards | Caernarfon |
| Mid Glamorgan | 1974 to 1996 | Cardiff (extraterritorial) |
| Merionethshire | 1889 to 1974 | Dolgellau |
| Montgomeryshire | 1889 to 1974 | Welshpool |
| Monmouthshire | 1889 to 1974 | Newport (county borough from 1891) |
| Radnorshire | 1889 to 1974 | Presteigne3 |
| Pembrokeshire | 1889 to 1974 1996 onwards | Haverfordwest |
| Powys | 1974 onwards | Llandrindod Wells |
| South Glamorgan | 1974 to 1996 | Cardiff |
| West Glamorgan | 1974 to 1996 | Swansea |
| Isle of Anglesey | 1996 onwards | Llangefni |
- Due to its better transport links and more central location, some administrative functions were moved to Llangefni.
- Cardigan was often still referred to as 'the county town' due to the name link. However, assizes were held at Lampeter while Aberystwyth housed the administration of the county council. Aberystwyth was therefore the de facto county town.
- Due to its better transport links and more central location, some administrative functions were moved to Llandrindod Wells.
Ireland and Northern Ireland
=Republic of Ireland=
The follow lists the location of the administration of each of the 31 local authorities in the Republic of Ireland, with 26 of the traditional counties.
=Northern Ireland=
| class="wikitable sortable" | |
| County | County town |
|---|---|
| County Antrim | Antrim |
| County Armagh | Armagh |
| County Down | Downpatrick |
| County Fermanagh | Enniskillen |
| County Londonderry | Coleraine |
| County Tyrone | Omagh |
Note – Despite the fact that Belfast is the capital of Northern Ireland, it is not the county town of any county. Greater Belfast straddles two counties – Antrim and Down.
Jamaica
Jamaica's three counties were established in 1758 to facilitate the holding of courts along the lines of the British county court system, with each county having a county town.{{cite book |last1= Higman |first1= B. W. |last2= Hudson |first2= B. J. |title= Jamaican Place Names |url= http://www.uwipress.com/reviews/jamaican-place-names |location= Mona, Jamaica |year= 2009 |publisher= University of the West Indies Press |page= 31 |isbn= 978-976-640-306-5 |access-date= 13 December 2017 |archive-date= 13 December 2017 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20171213204456/http://www.uwipress.com/reviews/jamaican-place-names |url-status= dead }} The counties have no current administrative relevance.
| class="wikitable sortable" | |
| County | County town |
|---|---|
| Cornwall | |
| Middlesex | |
| Surrey |