time the constable's authority amongst the French became almost unbounded; in the host he was second only when the king was present, and exercised royal power in his absence; he also claimed the custody of the king's sword as a symbol of his high dignity. In most of the Continental kingdoms and principalities, whether of Roman or Northern origin, the constable was one of the most important officers, but he nowhere possessed such power as he did in France.

In the Anglo-Saxon age an officer similar to that of the constable was established in England by the title of Heretoch, but the date of its regular institution must be assigned to the year after the Norman conquest, when William I. conferred the title upon Ralph de Mortimer, and with it the title and estates of Edric, earl of Shrewsbury, who had made a bold attempt to maintain his independence in the marches of Wales.

Henry I. made the office hereditary in the family of the earl of Gloucester; it passed in the female line to the Bohuns, earls of Hereford, ten of whom held it in succession. The last of the Bohuns left two daughters, Eleanor, married to Thomas of Woodstock, (afterwards duke of Gloucester,) sixth son to King Edward III., and Mary, married to the earl of Derby, son to John of Gaunt, duke of Lancaster, who afterwards became king of England by the title of Henry IV.

Thomas of Woodstock was, in right of his wife, constituted constable of England during pleasure by his father Edward III., and this dignity was confirmed by his nephew Richard II., who also advanced him to the dignity of duke of Gloucester. The imbecile king finding his uncle too severe a censor of his folly and extravagance, procured his murder. He left one son, Humphrey Plantagenet, who was sent into Ireland by Richard II., and imprisoned in the castle of Trim. He was recalled by Henry IV., who purposed to restore him to his paternal honours, but these intentions were

baffled by Humphrey's death; he fell a victim to the plague at Chester, as he was hasting to London. The right to the office of constable passed, by the marriage of his sister Anne, to the family of the De Bohuns, earls of Stafford, and afterwards dukes of Buckingham. The dignity was revived in the person of her greatgrandson, who was the principal agent in advancing Richard III. to the throne. He afterwards revolted from Richard, and being taken prisoner was beheaded on a scaffold in the market of Salisbury. Edward, the son and heir of this unfortunate duke, was restored to all his titles and estates by Henry VII.; but in the thirteenth year of Henry VIII. he was accused of conspiring against the king's life, and suffered the usual penalties of treason. By his attainder the office lapsed to the crown, and has not been since revived, except as a matter of form at the coronation.

The office of lord high constable in Scotland was hereditary in the family of the earls of Errol, and the title is retained to the present day, though it confers no political or honorary advantages.

The EARL MARSHAL is next in dignity to the lord high constable, and appears to have been originally, like that officer, a general of cavalry, deriving his name from the German mare, which anciently signified a horse, without any distinction of sex, and schalh, an attendant. It is probable that the Normans first introduced this title to imply a high military dignity, for when Henry II. undertook the conquest of Ireland he created Henri de Montmorenci marshal of that country. The marshalsy of England appears to have been hereditary in the noble family of De Clare, earls of Strigul or Pembroke, the founders of which are celebrated in the history both of England and Ireland under the name of Strongbow. Isabel, the daughter of Strongbow the conqueror of Ireland, married William Marshal, who was created earl of Pembroke and earl marshal of

England. The office passed by marriage into the family of the Bigods, earls of Norfolk, and on the extinction of that family reverted to the crown.

Richard II. in the twentieth year of his reign revived the office in favour of Thomas Mowbray, earl of Nottingham, constituting him earl marshal of England, and directing that he and the heirs of his body should, when in the royal presence, and at all other times, bear and carry a rod of gold, tipped at each end with black enamel, and having the royal arms at the upper end, and the arms of the said earl at the lower end. Ever since which time the earls marshal have borne this official badge. By the extinction of the Mowbray family the office of earl marshal again reverted to the crown, and the great inheritance of their house was divided between the Berkeleys and the Howards, both of which were connected with the Mowbrays by marriage. Richard III. in the first year of his reign created John Howard, duke of Norfolk and earl marshal of England. But this nobleman, commonly called "Jockey of Norfolk,” was slain at the battle of Bosworth field, and attainted after his death. Henry VII. gave the office to the Berkeley family, and created William Berkeley, earl of Nottingham, earl marshal of England, but he died without issue. The office was then given to the king's son, Henry, duke of York, who afterwards became king of England.

Henry VIII. granted the office to Thomas Howard, earl of Surrey, who afterwards became duke of Norfolk. Eleven years afterwards the duke was attainted by act of parliament, and would probably have lost his head, as his son, the accomplished earl of Surrey, did, had not the king died eight days after the act of attainder was passed.

Queen Mary restored the Howards in blood, and the duke of Norfolk, the grandson of the former, became the chief ornament both of her court and that of

Elizabeth. He was unfortunately inveigled into conspiracy by Mary, queen of Scots, and was beheaded in 1572. In the year 1621 the dignity was again restored to the Howard family, in which it has since continued without interruption.

According to the usages said to have been claimed in the reign of King Henry II. by Gilbert, earl of Strigul or Pembroke, the marshal in right of his office standing next to the king, was entitled to bear in his hand the royal crown, to assist in placing it on the king's head, and, holding it by the fleur de lis fixed in front, to sustain it during the remainder of the solemnity. These claims were never renewed by the subsequent earls marshal.

In Edmondson's Heraldry we find the following account of the duties to be performed by the earl marshal. "On the coronation day, and all high festivals, it was incumbent on the marshal to appease and prevent all tumults, noise, and disturbance in the king's presence; to apprehend and keep in safe custody all offenders against the king's peace; to bring them before the high steward, and to take care that justice was done to all persons whatsoever. He was also to keep the doors of the great hall, and of all other rooms within the royal palace, excepting that of the king's bedchamber, and in all things to execute the office of a high usher. For these services he received as his fees the horse and the palfrey on which the king and the queen rode to the place of coronation, together with their bridles, saddles, and caparisons; the cloth spread on the table whereat the king dined; the cloth of estate which hung behind him at dinner; the chines of all cranes and swans served up, and sundry other fees belonging to his high office."

In modern times the earl marshal arranges the order of procession, the precedency of the peers, and the places of the principal officers; he walks next to the

high steward, bearing his baton of office, and, together with the lord high constable, introduces the champion at the banquet.

The LORD CHAMBERLAIN OF GREAT BRITAIN, has a right to livery and lodging in the royal court, and there

Earl Marshai's Staff.

are certain fees due to him from each archbishop or bishop, when they do their homage to the sovereign, and from all peers at their creation, or performing their homage. On the morning of the coronation it is his duty to bring the sovereign's principal articles of dress, upon which he claims the bed and all the furniture of the chamber for his fee. He also claims forty ells of crimson velvet for his own robes. During the coronation, the lord chamberlain has charge of the coif, linen, and gloves, to be used by the sovereign, the gold to be offered at the altar, and the royal robes; he is also to serve the sovereign with water for washing the hands before and after dinner, and to have the basin and towel for his pains. As governor of the palace he superintends the preparations in Westminster Hall for the coronation banquet, and he has the nomination of the peer who is to carry the sword of state. Henry I. granted the hereditary enjoyment of this office to the family of the De Veres, earls of Oxford, but it is now attached to the ancient barony of Willoughby d'Eresby.

The lord chamberlain of Scotland had high judicial functions, and his office was hereditary in the Lennox family; it was surrendered to the crown by the duke of Lennox in 1703.

The archbishop of Canterbury has the undisputed right of performing the ceremony of the coronation, and he receives as his fee the purple velvet chair, cushion, and footstool, whereon he sits during the ceremony.

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