Cheshire in the Domesday Book was recorded as a much larger county than it is today. Its northern border was the River Ribble, and it was recorded with eighteen hundreds, six of which were north of the River Mersey.

In 1182 the land north of the Mersey became administered as part of the new county of Lancashire instead. Later, the hundreds of Atiscross and Exestan became part of Wales. Over the years the ten hundreds consolidated to just seven — Broxton , Bucklow , Eddisbury , Macclesfield , Nantwich , Northwich , and Wirral.

In a local government reform in 1974, some areas near the border with Lancashire became part of the new counties of Greater Manchester and Merseyside, notably Stockport, and the Wirral area around Birkenhead. Also at this time, Cheshire regained Warrington and the surrounding district from Lancshire.

Halton and Warrington became unitary authorities independent of Cheshire on April 1, 1998.

See also

• History of England