Cyning (king) |
Ealdorman ( Earl after c.1000) |
Hold / High-reeve |
Thegn (thane) |
Thingmen / housecarl ( retainer) |
Reeve / Verderer (bailiff) |
Ceorl (churl, free tenant) |
Villein (serf) |
Cottar (cottager) |
Þēow (thrall, slave) |
Ealdorman ( /ˈɔːldərmən/, Old English pronunciation: [ˈæ͜ɑɫ.dorˌmɑn]) [1] was an office in the government of Anglo-Saxon England. During the 11th century, it evolved into the title of earl.
The Old English word ealdorman was applied to high-ranking men. It was equated with several Latin titles, including princeps, dux, comes, and praefectus. The title could be applied to kings of weaker territories who had submitted to a greater power. For example, a charter of King Offa of Mercia described Ealdred of Hwicce as "subregulus ... et dux ('underking and ealdorman')." [2]
In Wessex, the king appointed ealdormen to lead individual shires. [2] Under Alfred the Great ( r. 871–899), there were nine or ten ealdormen. Each West Saxon shire had one, and Kent had two (one for East Kent and one for West Kent). [3]
In the 10th century, the kings of Wessex successfully unified England into one kingdom, and ealdormen became the local representatives of the monarch. [2] The ealdorman commanded the shire's fyrd (army), co-presided with the bishop over the shire court, and enforced royal orders. He had a right to the "third penny": one-third of the income from the shire court and one-third of the revenue from tolls and dues levied in the boroughs. The king could remove ealdormen. [4] [5]
Starting with Edward the Elder ( r. 899–924), it became customary for one ealdorman to administer three or four shires together as an ealdormanry. [6] One ealdormanry covered Wessex east of Selwood and another covered Wessex west of Selwood. [2] By 965, Mercia had four or five ealdormen and Northumbria only one. [7] The boundaries of the ealdormanries are unknown, and they may not have covered the entire kingdom. It is possible that the king kept some areas under his personal jurisdiction. [4]
In the 11th century, the term eorl, today's earl, replaced that of ealdorman, but this reflected a change in terminology under Danish influence rather than a change in function. [8]