The lowliest order given to those who enter the Livery Companies, such as the Mercers' Grocers' or Drapers' in the City of London, is 'Liveryman', which confers on the holder, for an extra fee, the Freedom of the City. Entry to the Livery Companies is through either patrimony, apprenticeship or redemption, where you can buy your way out of slavery and onto the bottom rung of the oligarchy, led by the Master and his Wardens.

Once the "Rules of Behaviour" have been accepted, it was, until recently, the right of any Freeman (or woman) to drive their flock of sheep across London Bridge.

But with the price of sheep at market falling by over 30% per year, surely soon to match the 1327 price of 1 shilling and 6 pence per animal (source: http://www.ex.ac.uk/~ajgibson/scotdata/prices/ex/sheep.html), livestock owners are facing hardship. Unsurprisingly, this right to drove has recently been recinded to be replaced by the freedom to use the Guildhall's carpark on Tuesday afternoons.

It should be noted that, to keep in line with current Best Practice, flock drovers should check their sheep for lice, footrot and Ovine Johne’s disease beforehand, lest they incur penalties similar to those meted out by the New Zealand authorities, where there are powers to:

• return the sheep to the property of origin;
• move the sheep to the property of destination;
• move the sheep to a different property with the prior approval of the district veterinarian for that area;
• take the sheep to an abattoir for slaughter.
• (Source: http://www.agric.nsw.gov.au/Sheep/Sheep_pub/sw102.htm)