Hearthweru

The Hiredmenn or Hearthweru (Old English: heorþ-werod) were the household retainers of an Anglo-Saxon lord or king. An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary defines them as "A band of household retainers".^[1] They're closely comparable to later Housecarls and the Comitatus.

There term for a lord or great man's household in Old English, was Híréd,^[2] cognate with Hird, and heorþ referred to the house's Hearth.^[3] In addition, they had a litany of terms for the member of a lord's household. This included cniht, hiredmann (hirdman), and after the Danish Conquest of England, huscarl.^[4] Cniht would develop into the modern term, knight. Not all of these words are exact synonyms, and hiredmann also refers to paid warriors.

A king's Hearth was usually populated by thegns, but a lord's could also include ceorls in some cases. Anglo-Saxon charters can be used to decipher some of a lord's relations. For example, the King's thegn (a thegn who owes loyalty only to the king) Morcar was given lands in Derbyshire in 1009, including Weston-on-Trent, Crich, and Smalley by King Æthelred^[5] in 1011^[6] and 1012. Diplomas were exclusive to the king, and thus lords' households are harder to decipher. However, wills are also valuable. The will of Æthelstan Ætheling names his chaplain and cnihts as beneficiaries.^[7] An Anglo-Saxon lord's Hiredmenn served as his bodyguards, his messangers, and his companions in battle.^[8]

Since the early years of the Anglo-Saxon migration, tribal leaders and lords maintained a personal band of companions, who served as his guards, enforcers, and military elites. These were known as gesiths, but towards the 8th century the word was replaced by thegn, which also denoted a noble landholder.^[9] From the early generations of the migration to Britain, this personal warband was known in Old English as Hearthweru.^[10]

When going to war, Anglo-Saxon rulers expected their military household to join them on campaign. In the early Anglo-Saxon period, this made up almost the entirety of the small armies. In the fragment of the Fight at Finnsburh poem, one of the sides has only 60 men.^[11] In the later period, they were augmented by the Fyrd. The laws of Ine prescribe a fine of 30 shillings for a commoner who neglected his military duty, and much larger fines for noblemen.^[12]

The Hiredmenn fought at the frontlines of a shieldwall or otherwise the most difficult areas of battle, if not alongside their lord.^[13] An advantage that the members a lord's Hearth had on the battlefield was their Esprit d'Corps. The Hearthweru were expected to fight with the utmost bravery and loyalty, moreso than the average soldier. In the poem, The Battle of Maldon, Ealdorman Byrhtnoth's retainers are said to have continued fighting to the bitter end, even after their lord was slain.^[14][15]