What Did an English Earl Actually Do?
Even if you’re not from the U.K., you’re likely familiar with the titles of British nobility from countless movies and TV shows. Known as the peerage system, this noble hierarchy consists of five ranks today: duke, marquess, earl, viscount, and baron. The title of earl — the oldest in the peerage system — dates back to the end of the early medieval period, during the reign of King Canute (or Cnut) in the 11th century. It is equivalent to the rank of count in other European countries and has no feminine form, so a female with this title is known as a countess.
In the peerage system, nobles are often referred to by their titles rather than their surnames. These titles typically correspond to the names of an estate, earldom, or territory associated with the noble family. For example, Richard Neville, known as the “Kingmaker” for his pivotal role in the Wars of the Roses, was best known by his title, the Earl of Warwick.
Today, there are around 190 earls in the U.K., but while the title still carries prestige, the role is mostly ceremonial, with few formal responsibilities. Yet during the Middle Ages, earls were powerful leaders who wielded considerable influence over their territory and the kingdom at large. Here are a few of the duties that English earls were once expected to manage.
Earls Governed Large Regions of the Kingdom
During the early medieval period, before the creation of the titles of duke and marquess in 1337 and 1386, respectively, earls were the highest-ranking members of the nobility, second only to the royal family. Earls were appointed by the ruling monarch and were responsible for governing large areas of the kingdom. The lands they oversaw could include several shires (counties), collectively known as a “fief” or “earldom.”
Earls acted as royal governors, representing the king in their territories. They oversaw their estates, enforced royal laws throughout the earldom, made judgments in county courts, and collected fines and taxes for the crown from the people living on their lands. Earls were entitled to a share of the money they collected on behalf of the crown, so their lands served as a source of great wealth as well as power.
After the Norman Conquest in 1099, William the Conqueror began to make changes to the traditional system of nobility. He sought to limit the power of earls by ending their judicial control and tax-collecting responsibilities. They were also restricted to overseeing a single county and many of their former duties were taken over by the county sheriff.
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Earls Served as Advisers to the King
The United Kingdom’s upper house of Parliament, known as the House of Lords, has its roots in a body of government from Anglo-Saxon England (the period of English history before the Norman Conquest) called the witan. Named for the Anglo-Saxon phrase “witenagemot,” or “meeting of the wise men,” the witan was made up of noble lords, including earls and barons, as well as religious officials such as abbots and bishops. This group served as a council of advisers to the king (England did not have a ruling queen until Mary I was crowned in 1553). The king would call on the witan to get support for decisions such as granting land, making new laws, or levying taxes.
In the 14th century, two distinct houses of Parliament were established. The House of Commons was made up of representatives from the towns and counties, while the House of Lords was composed of religious leaders, known as lords spiritual, and nobles, including earls and other members of the peerage, known as lords temporal. Before the Norman Conquest, the title of earl was not automatically hereditary, and the territory that defined an earldom was not permanent. By the reign of King Richard II in the 14th century, earldoms were either hereditary or life appointments, and by the 15th century, the vast majority of lords temporal in the House of Lords had inherited their titles. This tradition continued for centuries, and it wasn’t until 1999 that nobles’ automatic right to inherit a seat in Parliament was abolished.
Medieval Earls Were Also Military Leaders
In Anglo-Saxon England, a role known as ealdorman served as a high-ranking court official responsible for enforcing the king’s laws within a local shire. The office of ealdorman evolved into the title of earl, a word of Scandinavian origin that was introduced during the reign of the Danish King Canute (Cnut) in the 11th century. Earls assumed many of the leadership duties of the role: They were tasked with keeping the peace, exercising justice, and raising armies in the king’s name. Under the feudal system, earls granted small parcels of land to knights and vassals in exchange for military services. Knights helped enforce the laws, defending landholdings and seizing other nearby lands, and could become lords themselves.
After William the Conqueror reduced the size of earldoms, earls took on the role of military governors over smaller, more strategic areas of land. They were responsible for overseeing coastal areas and vulnerable borders, and had the authority to imprison lawbreakers. In later centuries, the number of earls and earldoms were reduced through extinction of titles and sale of land. By the 1800s, the role of earl was increasingly focused on social obligations, helping to facilitate important alliances for the crown and strategic marriages between nobles. Despite the reduction in formal responsibilities and landholdings, earls and other members of the British peerage continued to hold a substantial amount of power through personal wealth and political influence as members of Parliament.
