County (5)
'county' is the definition.
(term for a county, eg Hampshire, Warwickshire etc)
This is all the clue.
(Other definitions for shire that I've seen before include "Berks" , "Breed of draught horse" , "English county" , "County (esp. in England)" , "Heavy horse" .)
'county' is the definition.
(English county)
This is the entire clue.
(Other definitions for essex that I've seen before include "County, its tasteless moneyed Man" , "Chelmsford's county" , "Southeastern English county" , "SE English county" , "Eastern county" .)