Constitutio domus regis

Constitutio domus regis
Establishment of the King's Household
Languagemedieval Latin
Datecirca 1136
ProvenanceDurham Cathedral
GenreAdministrative document
SubjectHandbook listing offices of the household of King Henry I of England
Period covered1100–1135

The Constitutio domus regis (or Establishment of the King's Household), was a handbook written around 1136 that discussed the running of the household of King Henry I of England,[1] as it was in the last years of Henry's reign.[2] It was probably written for the new king, Stephen. It gives what every officer and member of the household should be paid, what other allowances they should be given, as well as listing all offices in the household.[3] It is likely that the author of the work was Nigel who was treasurer under Henry I and became Bishop of Ely in 1133,[4] although this is not accepted by all historians.[1]

The Constitutio lists the offices and officers in three main grades. The first consists of the chancellor, the stewards, master butler and chamberlain, and the constables.[5] The Treasury, or Exchequer, was already separate from the household of the king by the time the document was composed;[6] for, although the head of the treasury, the Treasurer, was listed in the document,[7] the rest of the treasury officials are not covered.[6] It covers the whole of the domus regis, or household of the king.[8]

It isn't until the Household Ordinances of 12 November 1279 that another document regulating the king's household survives.[9]

References

  1. ^ a b Lyon Constitutional and Legal History p. 112
  2. ^ Coredon Dictionary pp. 83–84
  3. ^ Chrimes Introduction to the Administrative History p. 22
  4. ^ Kealey Roger of Salisbury p. 24
  5. ^ Chrimes Introduction to the Administrative History p. 23
  6. ^ a b Chrimes Introduction to the Administrative History p. 27
  7. ^ Mason "Administration and Government" Companion to the Anglo-Norman World p. 148
  8. ^ Coredon Dictionary p. 105
  9. ^ Chrimes Introduction to the Administrative History p. 135

Sources

  • Chrimes, S. B. (1966). An Introduction to the Administrative History of Mediaeval England (Third ed.). Oxford, UK: Basil Blackwell.
  • Coredon, Christopher (2007). A Dictionary of Medieval Terms & Phrases (Reprint ed.). Woodbridge, UK: D. S. Brewer. ISBN 978-1-84384-138-8.
  • Kealey, Edward J. (1972). Roger of Salisbury, Viceroy of England. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press. ISBN 0-520-01985-7.
  • Lyon, Bryce Dale (1980). A Constitutional and Legal History of Medieval England (Second ed.). New York: Norton. ISBN 0-393-95132-4.
  • Mason, Emma (2002). "Administration and Government". In Harper-Bill, Christopher; Van Houts, Elizabeth (eds.). A Companion to the Anglo-Norman World. Woodbridge, UK: Boydell. pp. 135–164. ISBN 978-1-84383-341-3.

Further reading

  • Amt, Emilie; Church, S.D., eds. (2008). Dialogus de Scaccario, and Constitutio Domus Regis The Dialogue of the Exchequer, and The Establishment of the Royal Household. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-925861-1.