The Lord Lieutenant of Wales was an office associated with the Lord President of the Council of Wales and the Marches until the abolition of that body in 1689. The Lord Presidents of Wales were also Lord Lieutenants of Wales, except for the years 1602–1629, when the county of Glamorgan (as well as the Marcher county of Monmouthshire) formed a separate lieutenancy. Before the English Civil War, the Lord Presidents were also Lord Lieutenant of Herefordshire, Monmouthshire, Shropshire and Worcestershire, except as mentioned above; however, this practice did not continue after the English Restoration in 1660.
The last Lord President, Charles Gerard, 1st Earl of Macclesfield, retained the Lord-Lieutenancy of all Wales until his death in 1694, when the counties of North Wales were placed under William Stanley, 9th Earl of Derby and South Wales under Thomas Herbert, 8th Earl of Pembroke.
| Years | Lord Lieutenant |
|---|---|
| 24 February 1587 – 19 January 1601 | Henry Herbert, 2nd Earl of Pembroke (including Herefordshire, Monmouthshire, Shropshire and Worcestershire) |
| 20 July 1602 – 12 September 1607 | Edward la Zouche, 11th Baron Zouche (less Glamorgan; including Herefordshire, Shropshire and Worcestershire) |
| 12 September 1607 – 7 March 1617 | Ralph Eure, 3rd Baron Eure (less Glamorgan; including Herefordshire, Shropshire and Worcestershire) |
| 7 March 1617 – 24 November 1617 | Thomas Gerard, 1st Baron Gerard (less Glamorgan; including Herefordshire, Shropshire and Worcestershire) |
| 24 November 1617 – 24 June 1630 | William Compton, 1st Earl of Northampton (less Glamorgan until 1629; including Herefordshire, Shropshire and Worcestershire, and Monmouthshire after 1629) |
| 11 July 1631 – 1642 | |
| Interregnum | |
| 22 December 1660 – 20 July 1672 | |
| 20 July 1672 – 22 March 1689 | |
| 22 March 1689 – 7 January 1694 | |
| separated into North Wales and South Wales |