The City of London’s list of ancient and modern Livery companies has got a bit longer, as the Court of Aldermen has approved a new applicant.
The City of London’s Livery Companies trace their origins to medieval guilds, acting as both regulators of their trades and, in the centuries before the modern welfare state, as social care services.
Some are ancient, with origins in the earliest trades, such as ironmongery, swordmaking, brewing beer, and printing – and some are modern, such as accounts, computing, and now… Human Resources.
The Company of HR Professionals was established in 2015 as a Guild and elevated to a Company without Livery in 2022. It’s now got the full package as it has been upgraded to a Company with Livery – making it the City of London’s 114th Livery Company.
You can watch the declaration here at 9:40 minutes.
It means their members will be able to participate in elections of the City Sheriffs and Lord Mayor, take part in the Lord Mayor’s Show, and most important of all – take sheep across a London bridge.
There’s been a bit of a surge in creating new Livery Companies in recent years. Most of the Companies were created before 1848, and then there was a lengthy gap until 1932, since when 33 livery companies have been set up, reflecting the changes in the City trades in the 20th century.
To form a new Livery Company, the group needs to first set up a Guild, then, after a number of years, they can apply to become a Company without Livery, and then four years later, to apply for full Livery – allowing them to wear robes of office at formal events in the City.
