![]() On occasions, the lord even passed down his heirlooms to his closest household knights, thus suggesting the two-way nature of oaths of fealty. Now like their predecessors, the familia were given their fair share of remuneration and rations (as opposed to a consistent salary), with bannerets (high-ranking English knights who fought under their own banner) receiving 4 shillings and ordinary English knights receiving 2 shillings (which was increased to 3 on active duty). ![]() And it should be noted that this number rather increased with the passing of the decades. They were accompanied by the royal squires, sergeants, and their own personal squires – thus possibly amounting to a king’s elite retinue of around 300-350 men. A muster list from circa 1225 AD showed how Henry III himself could only raise a force of around 100 household knights. Suffice it to say, in most cases, the familia was very well armed and armored, with the king’s very own familia forming the nucleus of his royal army. In essence, this elite retinue of mounted warriors contributed to a logistically advantageous situation, especially in marches and areas that saw frequent skirmishes. In the latter’s case, these household warriors were known as the familia, and as such consisted of a core body of troops (both knights and squires) who were close to their lord or king. The Frankish battle-hardened scarae followed this tradition and so did the lordly class of 13th-century England. The Germanic tribal warlords and ‘kings’ had their chosen followers who were offered the high ranks of hearthweru (or heath-guard) warriors.
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