The Earls of Mercia: Lordship and Power in Late Anglo-Saxon England (Oxford Historical Monographs)

382 Pages·2008·2.5 MB·English

by  Stephen Baxter

THE EARLS OF MERCIA
OXFORD HISTORICAL MONOGRAPHS
Editors
r. j. w. evans j. harris
j. maddicott j. robertson
r. service p. a. slack
b. ward-perkins
The Earls of Mercia
Lordship and Power in Late
Anglo-Saxon England
STEPHEN BAXTER
1
1
GreatClarendonStreet,Oxfordox26dp
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Baxter,StephenDavid,1969-
TheEarlsofMerica:lordshipandpowerinlateAnglo-SaxonEngland/StephenBaxter.
p.cm.—(Oxfordhistoricalmonographs)
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
ISBN978–0–19–923098–3(acid-freepaper)1.Mercia,Earlsof.2.
Leofric,EarlofMercia,c.1057.3.Leofwine,EarlofMerica,ca.950–1028.
4.GreatBritain—Politicsandgovernment—449–1066.5.Great
Britain—History—AngloSaxonperiod,449–1066.6.Anglo-Saxons—
England—Mercia(Kingdom)I.Title.
DA670.M52.B392007
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Preface
TheearlsofMerciaachievedsomethinguniqueinlateAnglo-SaxonEng-
land:EaldormanLeofwine,hissonEarlLeofric,grandsonEarlÆlfgar,
andgreat-grandsonsEadwineandMorcarretainedpowerbetween994
and1071.NootherEnglisharistocraticfamilyisknowntohavesurvived
thisextraordinaryperiodofpoliticalanddynasticturbulence.Thebook
describes and explains this family’s political longevity. In doing so, it
offers a fresh interpretation of the ways in which power was mediated
and politics functioned in the early English kingdom. It examines the
nature and limits of thepowers of earls, reconstructsthemachinery of
royal patronage, considers the uses made of religious patronage in the
creation of local power structures, develops a new method for recon-
structingpre-ConquestlordshipusingDomesdayevidence,andexplores
thetensionbetweenlocalandnationalpoliticsduringthisdecisivephase
ofEnglishhistory.Itdoesnot containadefinitiveprosopographyofthe
houseofLeofwine,anexhaustivetreatmentofthereignofEdwardthe
Confessor, or a comparative analysis of the late Anglo-Saxon nobility
andtheircontinentalcounterparts;Ihopetopublishonthesetopicsin
duecourse.
I should like to take this chance to register my gratitude to some
inspirational teachers: Keith Foreman of Comberton Village College,
Cambridgeshire; Charles Malyon of Hills Road Sixth Form Col-
lege, Cambridge; John Maddicott of Exeter College, Oxford; Patrick
WormaldofChristChurch,Oxford;andCliffDaviesandJaneGarnett
of Wadham College, Oxford. The thesis which underpins this book
was written while I was a graduate student at Christ Church, and
was made possible by a grant from the Arts and Humanities Research
Board. It was adapted during my tenure of a Research Fellowship at
Magdalen College, Oxford, and was completed during the first three
yearsofmylectureshipatKing’sCollege,London.Ihavebeenfortunate
in my colleagues in both of these colleges, and have learned a great
deal from my students—especially those who have taken my Norman
Conquest special subject: much of what follows has been tested upon
and refined by them. Patrick Wormald supervised the doctoral thesis
fromwhich this bookis derived, and sustained my research for several
years with his remarkable ability to generate intellectual excitement.
viii Preface
John Blair and Ann Williams examined my thesis, suggested many
improvements, and have been generous with help and encouragement
ever since. James Campbell, George Garnett, and John Hudson read
and commented upon chapters of the book at different stages in its
development.LauraAshereadmostofthebookinmanuscriptandhas
been an unfailingsourceofinspirationand kindness.For theirvarious
acts of generosity I owe a debt of gratitude to Mark Atherton, Alison
Baxter,JuliaBarrow,DavidCarpenter,thelateReesDavies,RosFaith,
GeorgeGarnett,JohnGillingham,thelateEwenGreen,KateHind,Jim
Holt,Charles Insley, PeterJackson, Shashi Jayakumar, Simon Keynes,
JulianeKerkeker,ChrisLewis, JohnMaddicott,HenryMayr-Harting,
Jinty Nelson, John Nightingale, Bruce O’Brien, Richard Sharpe, Alan
Thacker, Matt Townend, Elizabeth Tyler, Mark Whittow and James
Willoughby.
My greatest debts are to my mother, Brenda Baxter, and to my
father,DavidBaxter,whohasreadandengagedwitheverypartofthis
book throughout its long gestation. I could not have hoped for better
intellectualcompanionship;andIcouldnotbemoregrateful.
SDB
London
30November2005
Contents
ListofFigures x
ListofPlates x
ListofTables xi
ListofAbbreviations xii
NoteonSystemsofReference xvii
1. Introduction 1
2. TheIdentityoftheHouseofLeofwine 17
3. TheExtent,Nature,andLimitsoftheLeofwinesons’Power 61
4. TheLeofwinesons’Land 125
5. TheEarlsandtheMonasteriesofMercia 152
6. LordshipandtheHouseofLeofwine 204
7. Conclusions:TheFalloftheHouseofLeofwine,1066–1071 270
Appendices 298
SelectBibliography 321
GeneralIndex 333
IndextoCitationsofAnglo-SaxonandAnglo-NormanCharters 361