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is　regarded　as　naturally　associated　with　wealth；　and　he　who






becomes　rich　gradually　climbs　to　a　position　indistinguishable






from　that　which　he　would　have　occupied　if　he　had　been　nobly　born。






What　is　thus　new　in　the　system　is　the　clear　account　of　nobility






as　a　status；　having　its　origin　in　the　organic　structure　of






ancient　society；　but　nevertheless　in　practice　having　perpetually






fresh　beginnings。






　　　　The　enormous　importance　which　belongs　to　wealth　and　specially






to　wealth　in　cattle；　in　the　early　Aryan　society　reflected　by　the






Brehon　tracts；　helps；　I　think；　to　clear　up　one　great　difficulty






which　meets　us　on　the　threshold　of　an　enquiry　into　the　origin　of






aristocracies。　I　suppose　that　the　popular　theory　on　the　subject






of　the　privileged　class　in　modern　communities　is　that　it　was






originally　indebted　for　its　status；　if　not　for　its　power　or






influence；　to　kingly　favour。　An　Englishman　once　questioned　the






Emperor　Paul　of　Russia　on　the　position　of　the　Russian　nobility。






'The　only　man　who　is　noble　in　my　dominions；'　said　the　Czar；　'is






the　man　to　whom　I　speak；　for　the　time　that　I　am　speaking　to　him。'






I　merely　take　these　words　as　the　strongest　possible　statement　of






the　view　to　which　I　am　referring；　but　they　were　used　by　a　monarch






with　a　disturbed　brain；　whose　authority　had　contracted　something






of　an　Oriental　character　from　its　long　subordination　to　Tartar






power；　and　they　were　never　absolutely　true　even　of　Russia。　Among






ourselves；　however；　the　favourite　assumption　seems　certainly　to






be；　however　slight　may　be　the　practical　consequences　we　draw　from






it；　that　all　aristocratic　privilege　had　its　origin　in　kingly






grace；　and　this　appears；　on　the　whole；　to　be　the　theory　of






English　law。　But　the　institutions　of　many　parts　of　the　Continent






long　retained　the　traces　of　a　different　set　of　ideas；　and　these






were　found　where　kingly　power　was　actually　much　greater　than　in






England。　The　French　Noblesse；　before　the　Revolution；　would　as　a






body　have　resented　the　assertion　that　they　were　a　creation　of　the






King；　and　the　Kings　of　France　more　than　once　admitted　that　they






were　only　the　most　exalted　members　of　a　class　to　which　their　own






nobility　belonged。






　　　　Kings　have　everywhere　nowadays；　and　in　many　countries　have






had　for　centuries；　a　monopoly　of　the　power　of　ennobling。　This






road　to　nobility　has　been　so　long　trodden；　that　men　in　general






have　almost　forgotten　there　ever　was　another　route。　Yet






historical　scholars　have　long　known　that　nobility　conferred　by






royal　grant　was；　in　one　sense；　a　modern　institution；　though　they






have　not　succeeded　in　completely　explaining　how　it　came　to






supplant　or　dwarf　the　institution　upon　which　it　was　engrafted。






There　seems　to　be　no　doubt　that　the　first　aristocracy　springing






from　kingly　favour　consisted　of　the　Comitatus；　or　Companions　of






the　King。　Although　there　is　a　good　deal　of　evidence　that　the






class　was　at　first　considered　in　some　way　servile；　it　gradually






became　in　some　countries　the　type　of　all　nobility。　A　few






tolerably　familiar　facts　may　serve　to　remind　us　how　remarkable






has　been　the　fortune　of　the　royal　households　all　over　Western






Europe。　The　Mayor　of　the　Frankish　Palace　became　King　of　the






Franks。　The　Chamberlain　of　the　Romano…German　Emperors　is　now　the






German　Emperor。　The　blood　of　the　Steward　of　Scotland　runs　in　the






veins　of　the　Kings　of　England。　The　Constables　of　France






repeatedly　shook　or　saved　the　French　throne。　Among　ourselves　the






great　officers　of　the　Royal　Council　and　Household　still　take






precedence　either　of　all　Peers　or　of　all　Peers　of　their　own






degree。　Whence；　then；　came　this　great　exaltation　of　the　Mayor　or






Count　of　the　Palace；　of　the　great　Seneschal　or　Steward；　of　the






high　Chancellor；　the　Great　Chamberlain；　and　High　Constable　






titles　which；　when　they　do　not　mark　an　office　originally






clerical；　point　to　an　occupation　which　must　at　first　have　been






menial？






　　　　It　seems　certain　that　the　household　sprang　from　very　humble






beginnings。　Tacitus　describes　the　companions　of　the　Germanic






chief　as　living　with　him　in　his　house　and　supported　by　his






bounty。　Mr　Stubbs　when　stating　（'Constitutional　History；'　p。　150）






that　'the　gesiths　of　an　（English）　king　were　his　guard　and　private






council；'　observes　that　the　'free　household　servants　of　a　ceorl






are　also　in　a　certain　sense　his　gesiths。'　The　Companions　of　the






King　appear　also　in　the　Irish　legal　literature；　but　they　are　not






noble；　and　they　are　associated　with　the　king's　body…guard；　which






is　essentially　servile。　The　King　of　Erin；　though　he　never　existed






（strictly　speaking）；　save　for　short　intervals；　yet　always；　so　to






speak　tended　to　exist；　and　the　Crith　Gablach；　a　Brehon　tract　of






which　a　translation　is　given　at　the　end　of　Sullivan's　edition　of






O'Curry's　Lectures；　contains　a　picture　of　his　palace　and　state。






The　edifice　intended　to　be　described　is　apparently　very　much　the






same　as　the　great　Icelandic　house　of　which　Mr　Dasent；　in　the






'Story　of　Burnt　Njal；'　has　attempted　to　give　a　drawing　from　the






descriptions　found　in　Norse　literature。　In　it　the　King　feasts　his






guests；　from　kings　and　king's　sons　to　a　ghastly　company　of






prisoners　in　fetters；　the　forfeited　hostages　of　subject…chiefs　or






sub…septs　who　have　broken　their　engagements。　The　Companions　are






there　also；　and　they　are　stated　to　consist　of　his　privileged






tenantry　and　of　his　body　guard；　which　is　composed　of　men　whom　he






has　delivered　from　death；　jail；　or　servitude；　never　（a






significant　exception）　of　men　whom　he　has　saved　on　the






battle…field。　I　am　afraid　that　the　picture　of　Irish　society






supplied　by　the　Crith　Gablach　must　throughout　be　regarded　as　to　a






great　extent　ideal　or　theoretical；　at　any　rate；　there　is　much






testimony　from　English　visitors　to　Ireland　that　many　considerable






Irish　Chiefs　were　much　more　humbly　furnished　out　than　the　King　of






Erin　at　Tara。　Yet　it　is　very　likely　that　they　all　had　Companions






attending　them；　and　I　suspect　that　the　obligation　of。　maintaining






a　little　court　had　much　to　do　with　that　strange　privilege　which






in　later　times　had　a　deplorable　history；　the　right　of　the　Chief






to　go　with　a　following　to　the　dwellings　of　his　tenants　and　there






be　feasted　at　the　tenant's　expense。　That　even　petty　Chiefs　of　the






Scottish　Highlands　had　a　retinue　of　the　same　character　is　known






to　all　who　can　recall　that　immortal　picture　of　Celtic　society






which　for　the　first　time　brought　it　home　to　men　who　were　nearly






our　contemporaries　that　ancient　Celtic　life　and　manners　had






existed　almost　down　to　their　days　　the　novel　of　'Waverley。'






　　　　It　seems　extremely　probable　that；　in　a　particular　stage　of






society；　this　personal　service　to　the　Chief　or　King　was






everywhere　rendered　in　expectation　of　reward　in　the　shape　of　a






gift　of　land。　The　Companions　of　the　Teutonic　kings；　in






Continental　Europe；　shared　largely　in　the　Benefices…grants　of






Roman　provincial　land　fully　peopled　and　stocked。　In　ancient






England　the　same　class　are　believed　to　have　been　the　largest






grantees　of　public　land　next　to　the　Church；　and　doubtless　we　have






here　part　of　the　secret　of　the　mysterious　change　by　which　a　new






nobility　of　Thanes；　deriving　dignity　and　authority　from　the　King；






absorbed　the　older　nobility　of　Eorls。　But　we　are　a　little　apt　to






forget　the　plentifulness　of　land　in　countries　lying　beyond　the






northern　and　western　limits　of　the　Roman　Empire；　or　just　within






them。　Mr　Thorold　Rogers；　writing　of　a　period　relatively　much






later；　and　founding　his　opinion　on　the　extant　evidence　of　returns






from　manor…lands；　speaks　of　land　as　the　'cheapest　commodity　of






the　Middle　Ages。'　The　practical　difficulty　was　not　to　obtain






land；　but　the　instruments　for　making　it　productive；　and　hence；　in






a　society　older　relatively　than　any　Teutonic　society　of　which　we






have　any　distinct　knowledge；　that　very　society　which　the　Brehon






tracts　enable　us　to　understand；　it　may　very　well　have　been　that






the　object　of　suit　at　court　was　much　less　to　obtain　land　than　to






obtain　cattle。　The　Chief；　as　I　have　already　said；　was　before　all






things　rich　in　flocks　and　herds。　He　was　military　leader；　and　a






great　part　of　his　wealth　must　have　been　spoil　of　war；　but　in　his






civil　capacity　he　multiplied　his　kine　through　his　growing　power






of　appropriating　the　waste　for　pasture；　and　through　a　system　of






dispersing　his　herds　among　the　tribesmen；　which　will　be　described






in　the　next　Lecture。　The　Companion　who　followed　him　to　the　foray；






or　was　ready　to　do　so；　cannot　but　have　been　enriched　by　his






bounty；　and　thus；　if　already　noble；　he　became　greater；　if　he　was






not　noble；　the　way　to　nobility　lay　through　wealth。　The　passage






which　I　am　about　to　read　to　you　may　serve　to　illustrate　what






probably　took　place；　though　there　is　nothing