ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 1447
http://www.s-gabriel.org/1447
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From: "S Friedemann" 
26 Mar 1999

Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel!

You said you wanted to be <Rhiannon Wandersword the Dread Celtic Pirate>.
For that, we'll <thwack> you soundly, and move on to your real question:
what are authentic titles for treasurer and marshal?  Here is the
information we have found.

The term <exchequer> in medieval England referred to a department or office
of state that was in charge of the royal coffers.  However, this appears to
refer solely to the office, not the person holding the office; the correct
term for the person in the office of exchequer would be <treasurer>.
Alternatively, the head officer of the exchequer of England in the 13th
century was called <Chancellor of the Exchequer>; this would be an
acceptable title as well. [1]

In the 13th to 16th centuries, we found the forms <tresourer> and
<tresurer>; in the 14th to 17th centuries, the spellings <tresorer>,
<tresorere>, <tresoriere>, <treserour>, and <tressurrer>.  Other examples
that we found are as follows [1]:

  les Thresorers de nos Eschekers, 1292
     "the Treasurers of our Exchequer"

  Tresorere of {th}e kynge eschekere, c. 1330

  the lord trezerer, 1556

  the Threasourer of our Exchequier, 1562

  high Treasurer, 1589

<Marshal> and <constable> are derived from the Latin words <marescalis> and
<comes stabuli>, both of which deal with the care and upkeep of the king's
personal force of horsemen.  In fact, <comes stabuli> means "earl of the
stable."  Different countries in Europe used different combinations of these
offices; while most kingdoms had both, Portugal had one person in an office
that covered both areas [2], and the Iberian Christian states had an office
called the <alferes> or <alferez>, or royal standard bearer, who was second
in command under the king.

<Earl marshal>, as far as we can tell, is unique to the British Isles; it is
the equivalent of what was called <constable> elsewhere.  In England, the
Earl Marshal was an earl with military duties, but not a direct commander of
the armies.  Depending on what country's style you would like to follow,
<marshal>, <constable>, or <earl marshal> are all appropriate terms. [1,4]

Period spellings of these titles that we found are <Marescal on
Engleneloand>, "Marshal of England," in 1258, <william {th}e mareschal> in
1297, <{th}e erle Marschalle>, c. 1330, and <Erle marchall>, 1480. [1] The
{th} represents the letter "thorn," which looks like a <b> and a <p>
superimposed on top of each other, and is pronounced like the <th> in
<thing>.

We hope that this letter has been useful to you, and that you will not
hesitate to write again if any part was unclear or if you have further
questions.  Research and commentary on this letter was provided by Giles
Leabrook, Margaret Makafee, Pedro de Alcazar, Arval Benicoeur, Talan Gwynek,
Rouland Carre, and Walraven van Nijmegen.

For the Academy,
--Aryanhwy merch Catmael
     March 26, 1999

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References:

[1] --, _The Compact Edition of the Oxford English Dictionary_ (New York:
Oxford University Press, 1973).

[2] Lopes, Ferna~o, _The English in Portugal, 1367-87 : extracts from the
chronicles of Dom Fernando and Dom Joa~o / Ferna~o Lopes_, Derek W. Lomax &
R.J. Oakley.trans. and ed. (Warminster, England : Aris & Phillips, c1988).

[3] Menendez Pidal, Ramon_The Cid and His Spain_, trans. by Harold
Sunderland, London, John Murray, 1934,
pp. 89-90

[4] Encyclopedia Britannica