Lord High Constable of England

Lord High Constable of England
Lord High Constable of England
	Admiral Sir Tony Radakin with the Lord High Constable's baton at the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla in 2023
Type	Great Officer of State
Appointer	The Monarch
Term length	At His Majesty's pleasure
Formation	1139
First holder	The 1st Earl of Hereford

The Lord High Constable of England is the seventh of the Great Officers of State,^[1] ranking beneath the Lord Great Chamberlain and above the Earl Marshal.^[2] This office is now called out of abeyance only for coronations. The Lord High Constable was originally the commander of the royal armies and the Master of the Horse. He was also, in conjunction with the Earl Marshal, president of the court of chivalry or court of honour. In feudal times, martial law was administered in the court of the Lord High Constable.^[1]

The constableship was granted as a grand serjeanty with the Earldom of Hereford by the Empress Matilda to Miles of Gloucester, and was carried by his heiress to the Bohuns, earls of Hereford and Essex. They had a surviving male heir, and still have heirs male, but due to the power of the monarchy the constableship was irregularly given to the Staffords, Dukes of Buckingham; and on the attainder of Edward Stafford, the third Duke, in the reign of King Henry VIII, it became merged into the Crown.^[1] Since that point it has not existed as a separate office, except as a temporary appointment for the coronation of a monarch; in other circumstances the Earl Marshal exercises the traditional duties of the office.^[1]^[3]

The Lacys and Verduns were hereditary constables of Ireland from the 12th to the 14th century; and the Hays, earls of Erroll, have been hereditary Lord High Constables of Scotland from early in the 14th century.^[1]^[4]

Lord High Constables of England, 1139–1521

1139–1143: Miles of Gloucester, 1st Earl of Hereford
1143–1155: Roger Fitzmiles, 2nd Earl of Hereford
1155–1159: Walter of Hereford
1159–1164: Henry Fitzmiles
1164–1176: Humphrey III de Bohun
1176–1220: Henry de Bohun, 1st Earl of Hereford
1220–1275: Humphrey de Bohun, 2nd Earl of Hereford and 1st Earl of Essex
1275–1298: Humphrey de Bohun, 3rd Earl of Hereford and 2nd Earl of Essex
1298–1322: Humphrey de Bohun, 4th Earl of Hereford and 3rd Earl of Essex
1322–1336: John de Bohun, 5th Earl of Hereford and 4th Earl of Essex
1336–1361: Humphrey de Bohun, 6th Earl of Hereford and 5th Earl of Essex
1361–1373: Humphrey de Bohun, 7th Earl of Hereford, 6th Earl of Essex and 2nd Earl of Northampton

A cousin was alive who was not granted the titles due to him and his heirs: Gilbert de Bohun, died 1381

1373–1397: Thomas of Woodstock, 1st Duke of Gloucester (5th surviving son of King Edward III and husband of Eleanor de Bohun, elder daughter and co-heiress of Humphrey de Bohun, 7th Earl of Hereford)
1397–1399: Humphrey, 2nd Earl of Buckingham
1399–1403: Henry Percy, 1st Earl of Northumberland
1403–?: John of Lancaster, 1st Duke of Bedford (died 1435)
1445–1450: John Beaumont, 1st Viscount Beaumont (died 1460)
?–1455: Edmund Beaufort, 2nd Duke of Somerset
1455: Humphrey Stafford, 1st Duke of Buckingham
1455–1456: Richard, Duke of York
1456–1460: Humphrey Stafford, 1st Duke of Buckingham
1461–1467: John Tiptoft, 1st Earl of Worcester
1467–1469: Richard Woodville, 1st Earl Rivers
1469–1470: Richard, Duke of Gloucester
1470–1471: John de Vere, 13th Earl of Oxford
1471–1483: Richard, Duke of Gloucester
1483: Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham
1483–1504: Thomas Stanley, 2nd Baron Stanley
1504–1521: Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham

Lord High Constables of England, 1522–present

At this point, the office merged with the Crown and was revived only for coronations. It was held at coronations by the following individuals:

Name	Year	Notes	Sources
The Marquess of Dorset	1547	coronation of Edward VI
The Earl of Arundel	1553	coronation of Mary I
The Earl of Arundel	1559	coronation of Elizabeth I
The Earl of Worcester	1603	coronation of James I and Anne
The Duke of Buckingham	1626	coronation of Charles I
The Earl of Northumberland	1661	coronation of Charles II
The Duke of Grafton	1685	coronation of James II and Mary
The Duke of Ormonde	1689	coronation of William III and Mary II
The Duke of Bedford	1702	coronation of Anne
The Duke of Montagu	1714	coronation of George I
The Duke of Richmond and Lennox	1727	coronation of George II and Caroline
The Duke of Bedford	1761	coronation of George III and Charlotte
Field Marshal The Duke of Wellington	1821	coronation of George IV
	1831	coronation of William IV and Adelaide
	1838	coronation of Queen Victoria
The Duke of Fife	1902	coronation of Edward VII and Alexandra
The Duke of Fife	1911	coronation of George V and Mary
The Marquess of Crewe	1937	coronation of George VI and Elizabeth
Field Marshal The Viscount Alanbrooke	1953	coronation of Elizabeth II
Admiral Sir Tony Radakin	2023	coronation of Charles III and Camilla	^[5]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Lord High Constable" . Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
^ Archives, The National. "The Cabinet Papers". www.nationalarchives.gov.uk. HM Government. Archived from the original on 7 June 2023. Retrieved 6 July 2023.
^ Slater, Stephen (2002). The Complete Book of Heraldry. Anness Publishing. p. 172. ISBN 0-7548-1062-3.
^ Alistair, Bruce (2002). Keepers of the Kingdom. Cassell. pp. 60–61. ISBN 0-304-36201-8.
^ The Royal Household (27 April 2023). "Roles to be performed at the Coronation Service at Westminster Abbey". The Royal Family. Retrieved 29 April 2023.

This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Lord High Constable". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.