Precedence
In 1515, the Court of Aldermen of the City of London settled an order of precedence for the 48 livery companies then in existence, which was based on the companies' economic or political power. The first 12 companies are known as the Great Twelve City Livery Companies. There are now 108 companies.
The Merchant Taylors and the Skinners have always disputed their precedence, so once a year (at Easter) they exchange sixth and seventh place in the order. This alternation is one of the theories for the origin of the phrase "at sixes and sevens", as the master of the Merchant Taylors has asserted a number of times, although the first use of the phrase may have been before the Taylors and the Skinners decided to alternate their position.
Read more about this topic: Livery Company
Famous quotes containing the word precedence:
“It is difficult to separate the tapestry
From the room or loom which takes precedence over it.”
—John Ashbery (b. 1927)
“What is line? It is life. A line must live at each point along its course in such a way that the artist’s presence makes itself felt above that of the model.... With the writer, line takes precedence over form and content. It runs through the words he assembles. It strikes a continuous note unperceived by ear or eye. It is, in a way, the soul’s style, and if the line ceases to have a life of its own, if it only describes an arabesque, the soul is missing and the writing dies.”
—Jean Cocteau (1889–1963)
“Let not England forget her precedence of teaching nations how to live.”
—John Milton (1608–1674)