Staller (

Old English Old English ( or , or ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. It developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Anglo-S ...

: or ) was a title used in late

Anglo-Saxon England Anglo-Saxon England or early medieval England covers the period from the end of Roman Empire, Roman imperial rule in Roman Britain, Britain in the 5th century until the Norman Conquest in 1066. Compared to modern England, the territory of the ...

for high-ranking officials in the royal household. It was first used in the 11th century but fell out of use after the

Norman Conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Normans, Norman, French people, French, Flemish people, Flemish, and Bretons, Breton troops, all led by the Du ...

Etymology

Its origin, and exact meaning, are disputed. One suggestion is it derives from the

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

(), a title used in the

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived History of the Roman Empire, the events that caused the ...

and later adopted by the

Franks file:Frankish arms.JPG, Aristocratic Frankish burial items from the Merovingian dynasty The Franks ( or ; ; ) were originally a group of Germanic peoples who lived near the Rhine river, Rhine-river military border of Germania Inferior, which wa ...

. Laurence M. Larson argued it derived from

Old Norse Old Norse, also referred to as Old Nordic or Old Scandinavian, was a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants ...

and was introduced into England by

Cnut the Great Cnut ( ; ; – 12 November 1035), also known as Canute and with the epithet the Great, was King of England from 1016, King of Denmark from 1018, and King of Norway from 1028 until his death in 1035. The three kingdoms united under Cnut's rul ...

(). Ann Williams agrees it was Scandinavian in origin. It possibly indicated someone with a seat () in the king's hall, in other words, an official within the royal household. In Latin texts, stallers were referred to as () or ().

Role

Williams argues that similar officials existed before the 11th century. In the late 10th century, the title () appears in the records. The name suggests a person who is especially close to the king. The first confirmed occurrence of ''staller'' in England was by

Edward the Confessor Edward the Confessor ( 1003 – 5 January 1066) was King of England from 1042 until his death in 1066. He was the last reigning monarch of the House of Wessex. Edward was the son of Æthelred the Unready and Emma of Normandy. He succeede ...

(), who used it for senior members of his personal household. Their duties appear to have been flexible.

Ralph the Staller Ralph the Staller or Ralf the Englishman (died 1069/70) was a noble and landowner in both Anglo-Saxon and post-Conquest England. He first appears in charters from Brittany, where he was described as Ralph / Ralf the Englishman, and it was in Br ...

and Ansgar the Staller are listed as royal stewards in a forged

diploma A diploma is a document awarded by an educational institution (such as a college or university) testifying the recipient has graduated by successfully completing their courses of studies. Historically, it has also referred to a charter or offi ...

of 1060. They, along with

Robert FitzWimarc Robert fitz Wimarc (died before 1075, Theydon Mount, Chipping Ongar, Ongar, Essex) was a kinsman of both Edward the Confessor and William of Normandy, and was present at Edward's death bed. Nothing of his background is known except his kinship t ...

and Bondi the Staller, are identified as in an authentic 1065 diploma. Bondi likely performed some service related to royal hunting because he is titled in

Domesday Book Domesday Book ( ; the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book") is a manuscript record of the Great Survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...

. The stallers also performed a military function and probably supervised the

housecarl A housecarl (; ) was a non- servile manservant or household bodyguard in medieval Northern Europe. The institution originated amongst the Norsemen of Scandinavia, and was brought to Anglo-Saxon England by the Danish conquest in the 11th centur ...

s (royal bodyguards).

Office-holders

* Ansgar the Staller (fl. 1044–1066) * Bondi the Staller (fl. 1065) * Eadnoth the Constable (died 1068), also known as Eadnoth the Staller, Anglo-Saxon landowner and steward to kings Edward the Confessor and Harold Godwinson * Osgod Clapa, London *

(1011–1068) *

(died before 1075), also known as Robert the Staller * Tovi Pruda (fl. 1018–1043)

Citations

References

* * * * 1st edition available to read onlin
here
* {{refend Anglo-Saxon England