n. [ AS. scīre, scīr, a division, province, county. Cf. Sheriff. ] 1. A portion of Great Britain originally under the supervision of an earl; a territorial division, usually identical with a county, but sometimes limited to a smaller district; as, Wiltshire, Yorkshire, Richmondshire, Hallamshire. [ 1913 Webster ]

An indefinite number of these hundreds make up a county or shire. Blackstone. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A division of a State, embracing several contiguous townships; a county. [ U. S. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ Shire is commonly added to the specific designation of a county as a part of its name; as, Yorkshire instead of York shire, or the shire of York; Berkshire instead of Berks shire. Such expressions as the county of Yorkshire, which in a strict sense are tautological, are used in England. In the United States the composite word is sometimes the only name of a county; as, Berkshire county, as it is called in Massachusetts, instead of Berks county, as in Pensylvania. [ 1913 Webster ]

The Tyne, Tees, Humber, Wash, Yare, Stour, and Thames separate the counties of Northumberland, Durham, Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, etc. Encyc. Brit. [ 1913 Webster ]

Knight of the shire. See under Knight. --
Shire clerk, an officer of a county court; also, an under sheriff. [ Eng. ] --
Shire mote (Old. Eng. Law), the county court; sheriff's turn, or court. [ Obs. ] Cowell. Blackstone. --
Shire reeve (Old Eng. Law), the reeve, or bailiff, of a shire; a sheriff. Burrill. --
Shire town, the capital town of a county; a county town. --
Shire wick, a county; a shire. [ Obs. ] Holland. [ 1913 Webster ]

. One of an English breed of heavy draft horses believed to be descended largely from the horses used in war in the days of heavy armor. They are the largest of the British draft breeds, and have long hair on the back of the cannons and fetlocks. Brown or bay with white on the face and legs is now the commonest color. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]