| Lady Mayor of London | |
|---|---|
 Flag of the Lady Mayor | |
 | |
| Style | MyLord/Lady mayor The Right Honourable |
| Residence | Mansion House, EC4 |
| Appointer | Electors:Aldermen |
| Term length | One year |
| Inaugural holder | SirHenry FitzAlan |
| Formation | 1189 |
| Salary | None (pro bono) |
| Website | Official website |
TheLady Mayor of London is themayor of theCity of London, England, and theleader of theCity of London Corporation. Within the City, the Lady Mayor is accordedprecedence over all individuals except thesovereign[1] and retains various traditional powers, rights, and privileges, including thetitle andstyleThe Right Honourable Lady Mayor of London.
One of the world's oldest continuously electedcivic offices, it is entirely separate from the directly electedmayor of London, a political office controlling a budget which covers the much larger area ofGreater London. Dame Susan Langley serves as the 697th Lord/Lady Mayor (for 2025–2026).
The Corporation of London changed its name to the City of London Corporation in 2006, and accordingly the titleLord/Lady Mayor of the City of London was introduced, so as to avoid confusion with that of Mayor of London. The legal and commonly used title remainsLord/Lady Mayor of London. TheLord/Lady mayor is elected atCommon Hall each year onMichaelmas, and takes office on the Friday before the second Saturday in November, atThe Silent Ceremony. TheLady Mayor's Show is held on the day after taking office; the Lady Mayor, preceded by a procession, travels to theRoyal Courts of Justice at theStrand to swear allegiance to the Sovereign/Monarch before theJustices of theHigh Court.
Currently, the Lady Mayor's main role is to represent and promote the businesses and residents in the City of London. Today these are mostly financial businesses, and the Lady Mayor is regarded as the champion of the entire UK-based financial sector. As leader of the Corporation of the City of London, the Lady Mayor serves as the key spokesman for the local authority and also has important ceremonial and social responsibilities. The Lady Mayor is non-affiliated politically (not a member of any political party), typically delivering hundreds of speeches and addresses per year and attending many receptions and other events in London and beyond, and usually makes overseas visits under the auspices of theFCDO.[2] The Lady Mayor isex officioRector ofCity University of London andAdmiral of the Port of London.
The Lady Mayor is assisted by theMansion HouseEsquires including theCity Marshal,Sword Bearer andCommon Crier, as well as theChaplain,VenerableRay Pentland. The Lady Mayor has six Cadet Aides de Camp representing the Uniformed Youth Organisation branches connecting with the City Cadet Forces. The ADCs welcome inquiries to arrange new affiliations.[3][4]
Historically known asLord Mayor of London, in 2025 the title was restyled asLady Mayor of London following the appointment of DameSusan Langley to the position.
Of the 69 cities in the United Kingdom, the City of London is among the 30 with lord mayors (or, inScotland,lords provost). The Lord Mayor is entitled to the prefixThe Right Honourable; the same privilege extends only to the lord mayors ofYork,Cardiff, Bristol andBelfast, and to the lords provost ofEdinburgh andGlasgow. The style is used when referring to the office, not to the holder: thus, "The Rt Hon Lord Mayor of London" would be correct, while "The Rt Hon Alastair King" would be incorrect. The prefix applies personally only toprivy counsellors and peers.
Women who have previously held the office have been known as aLord Mayor but Alderwoman DameSusan Langley DBE taking office in November 2025 announced her intention to adopt the style of Lady Mayor following the established precedent of having Lady Justices and indeed currently a Lady Chief Justice. The wife of a male Lord Mayor is styled asLady Mayoress, but no equivalent title exists for the husband of a female Lord Mayor or Lady Mayor. A female Lord Mayor or an unmarried male Lord Mayor may appoint a female consort, usually a fellow member of the Corporation, to the role of Lady Mayoress. In speech, a Lord Mayor is referred to as "My Lord Mayor", and a Lady Mayoress as "My Lady Mayoress".
It was once customary for Lord Mayors to be appointedknights upon taking office andbaronets upon retirement, unless they already held such a title. This custom was generally followed from the 16th to the 19th centuries; creations became more regular from 1889 onward. From 1964 onward, the regular creation of hereditary titles such as baronetcies was phased out, so subsequent Lord Mayors were offered knighthoods (and, until 1993, most often as Knight Grand Cross of theOrder of the British Empire (GBE)). Since 1993, Lord Mayors have not automatically received a national honour upon appointment, but have been madeknights bachelor upon retirement.Gordon Brown's Government broke with that tradition by makingIan Luder aCBE after his term of office in 2009, and the following yearNick Anstee declined offers of an honour. Furthermore, foreign heads of state visiting the City of London on a UK state visit, diplomatically bestow upon the Lord Mayor one of their suitable national honours. For example, in 2001King Abdullah II ofJordan createdSir David Howard a Grand Cordon (First Class) of theOrder of Independence. Recently Lord Mayors at the beginning of their term have been appointedknights or dames of St John by the late QueenElizabeth II, Sovereign Head of theOrder of St John untilher death in 2022.
The office of Mayor was instituted in 1189, the first holder beingHenry Fitz-Ailwin de Londonestone. The Mayor of the City of London has been elected by the City, rather than appointed by the sovereign, since a royal charter issued byKing John in 1215. The title "Lord Mayor" came to be used after 1354, when it was granted to Thomas Legge byKing Edward III.
Lord Mayors are elected for one-year terms, and customarily serve only one term. Numerous individuals have served multiple terms, including:
As Mayor
As Lord Mayor
Almost 700 people have served as Lord Mayor.
DameMary Donaldson, elected in 1983, and DameFiona Woolf, elected in 2013, are women to have already held the office of Lord Mayor. Alderwoman DameSusan Langley has assumed the Mayoralty in 2025–2026, setting the precedent of taking office as Lady Mayor.[6]
Some Lord Mayors in theMiddle Ages, such as SirEdward Dalyngrigge (1392), did not live in London. Since 1435, the Lord Mayor has been chosen from amongst thealdermen of the City of London.
The Lord Mayor is elected at Common Hall, comprisingliverymen belonging to all of the City'slivery companies. Common Hall is summoned by the sitting Lord Mayor; it meets atGuildhall onMichaelmas Day (29 September) or on the closest weekday. Voting is by show of hands; if any liveryman so demands, balloting is held a fortnight later.
The qualification to stand for election is that one must have served as a City sheriff and be a current alderman. Since 1385, prior service assheriff has been mandatory for election to the Lord Mayoralty. Two sheriffs are selected annually by Common Hall, which meets onMidsummer's Day for this purpose. By an ordinance of 1435, the Lord Mayor must be chosen from amongst thealdermen of the City of London. Those on the electoral roll of each of the City's 25 wards select one alderman, who formerly held office for life or until resignation. Each alderman must now submit for re-election at least once in every six years.
The Lord Mayor is sworn in each November, on the day before the Lord Mayor's Show (see below). The ceremony is known as the "Silent Ceremony" because, aside from a short declaration by the incoming Lord Mayor, no speeches are made. At Guildhall, the outgoing Lord Mayor transfers the mayoral insignia – theseal, the purse, thesword and themace — to the incoming Lord Mayor.
The day after being sworn into office, the Lord Mayor leads a procession from the City of London to the Royal Courts of Justice in theCity of Westminster, where the Lord Mayor swears allegiance to the Crown. This pageantry has evolved into one of London's longest-running and most popular annual events, known as the "Lord Mayor's Show". The Lord Mayor travels in the City'sstate coach that was built in 1757 at a cost of £1,065.0s.3d. Nowadays, this festival combines traditional British pageantry with the element ofcarnival,[7] and since 1959 it has been held on the second Saturday in November. Participants include the livery companies, bands and members of the military, charities and schools. In the evening, a fireworks display is held.
The Lord Mayor is a member of the City of London's governing body, theCity of London Corporation (incorporated asThe Mayor and Commonalty and Citizens of the City of London). The Corporation comprises theCourt of Aldermen and theCourt of Common Council; the former includes only the aldermen, while the latter includes both aldermen and common councilmen. The Lord Mayor belongs to and presides over both bodies.
The main role of the Lord Mayor is to represent, support and promote all aspects of the UK's financial service industries, including maritime. This is undertaken as head of the City of London Corporation and includes hosting visiting foreign government ministers, business people and dignitaries as well as conducting foreign visits of their own.[2]
Banquets hosted by the Lord Mayor serve as opportunities for senior government figures to deliver major speeches. At the Lord Mayor's Banquet (held on the Monday after the Lord Mayor's Show), thePrime Minister delivers thekeynote address. At the Bankers' Dinner in June, theChancellor of the Exchequer delivers a speech known as the "Mansion House Speech", which takes its name from the Lord Mayor's residence. At the Easter Banquet, also hosted each year at theMansion House, theForeign Secretary addresses an audience of international dignitaries.
The Lord Mayor takes part in major state occasions; for example, in 2013, the then-Lord Mayor, SirRoger Gifford, carried theMourning Sword atMargaret Thatcher's funeral, processing ahead of the Queen andPrince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, intoSt Paul's Cathedral.
The Lord Mayor performs numerous other functions, including serving as thechief magistrate of the City of London,admiral of the Port of London,rector ofCity, University of London, president ofGresham College, president of City of LondonReserve Forces and Cadets Association, and trustee ofSt Paul's Cathedral. The Lord Mayor also heads the City's Commission of Lieutenancy, which represents the sovereign in the City of London (other counties usually havelord lieutenants, as opposed to Commissions), and annually attends a meeting of theTreloar Trust (named afterSir William Treloar, Lord Mayor in 1906), inHampshire. The Treloar Trust runs two educational sites for disabled children: a school and college.[8]
The residence of the Lord Mayor is known as theMansion House. The establishment of the residence was considered after theGreat Fire of London (1666), but construction did not commence until 1739. It was first occupied by a Lord Mayor in 1752, whenSir Crispin Gascoigne took up residence. The official car of the Lord Mayor is aRolls-Royce Phantom VI with registration number LM 0.
In each of the eighteen courtrooms of theOld Bailey, the centre of the judges' bench is reserved for the Lord Mayor, as chief justice of the City of London. The presiding judge therefore sits to one side.[9]
It is sometimes asserted that the Lord Mayor may exclude the monarch from the City of London. This legend is based on the misinterpretation of the ceremony observed each time the sovereign enters the City atTemple Bar, when the Lord Mayor presents the City'sPearl Sword to the sovereign as a symbol of the latter's overlordship. The monarch does not, as is often purported, wait for the Lord Mayor's permission to enter the City. When the sovereign enters the City, a short ceremony usually takes place where the Lord Mayor presents a sword to the monarch, symbolically surrendering their authority. If the sovereign is attending a service at St Paul's Cathedral this ceremony would take place there rather than at the boundary of the City, simply for convenience.
The importance of the office is reflected in the composition of theAccession Council, a body which proclaims the accession of new sovereigns. The Council includes the Lord Mayor and aldermen of London, as well as members of theHouse of Lords andprivy councillors. At thecoronation banquet which follows, the Lord Mayor has the right to assist the royal butler. The same privilege is held by thelord mayor of Oxford, while themayor of Winchester may assist the royal cook. Such privileges have not been exercised since 1821, when thecoronation banquet (celebrating the coronation ofGeorge IV) was last held.[citation needed]
_School_-_Sir_Rowland_Hill_(1492%255E%25E2%2580%25931561)_-_609006_-_National_Trust.jpg)
On formal occasions the Lord Mayor wears traditional black velvetcourt dress consisting of a coat, waistcoat and knee breeches with steel cut buttons. This is worn with black silk stockings, patent court shoes with steel buckles, a white shirt with lace cuffs and a large jabot stock. This form of court dress is worn by all Lord Mayors regardless of gender.
When outdoors, the Lord Mayor wears a black beaver plushtricorne hat trimmed with black ostrich feathers and a steel 'loop' for the cockade. Traditionally, this has been made by Patey's, and re-commissioned by theWorshipful Company of Feltmakers for each incumbent Lord Mayor.
Since 1545 the Lord Mayor has worn a Royal LiveryCollar of Esses. The collar's origins are not royal,Sir John Alleyn, twice Lord Mayor, having bequeathed it to the next Lord Mayor and his successors "to use and occupie yerely at and uppon principall and festivall dayes". It was enlarged in 1567, and in its present shape has 28 Esses (theLancastrian ‘S’),Tudor roses and the tasselled knots of theGarter (alternating) and also thePortcullis, from which hangs the Mayoral Jewel.[10][11] The collar is worn over whatever the Lord Mayor may be wearing, secured onto their underdress or State Robes by means of black or white silk satin ribbons on the shoulders.
As analderman of the City of London the Lord Mayor has a scarlet gown and a violet gown, which are identical to those worn by their fellow aldermen except that they aretrained. The violet robe is worn at most formal meetings of the Corporation with the scarlet robe substituted on certain days or occasions as directed by the City Ceremonial Book.
For state occasions when the monarch is present, the Lord Mayor wears a crimson velvet robe of state trimmed with an ermine cape and facings, similar to a royal earl's coronation robe. It is tied with gold cordons, and dates from the reign of George IV.[11]
On other ceremonial occasions a black silk damask robe trimmed with gold lace is worn, of a design the same as that of theLord Chancellor. This is known as the Entertaining Gown.[11]
At coronations, the Lord Mayor wears a special coronation robe: a mantle of scarlet superfine wool trimmed with bars of gold lace and ermine and lined with white silk satin; they also carry theCrystal Sceptre as a baton of office. After the coronation, the incumbent may keep their coronation robe as a personal token.
A plain black gown is worn by the Lord Mayor in times of national mourning.[11]
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