household
household. Originally not merely the domestic residence of the monarch but the place from which the kingdom was governed. No very rigid distinction was made between its different functions. But as administration grew more complex and requests for justice more common, offices became more specialized and departments were hived off to undertake particular tasks. By the time of the Constitutio domus regis in 1135, there were many separate officers, with the chancellor at the head, followed by the treasurer, lord high steward, chamberlain, butler, and constable, down to the turnspits, carters, scullions, and watchmen. Early to develop was the chamber, which dealt with revenue, and out of which evolved the Exchequer and the courts of law. The Chancery also developed in England since the size of the kingdom meant more need for writs and instructions, which the scriptorium or secretariat provided. At first the whole household moved from place to place, with only a skeleton staff left behind: when the king was absent in Normandy officers left in England had to possess some discretionary authority. The peripatetic nature of the household became increasingly inconvenient and in clause 17 of Magna Carta in 1215 it was declared that Common Pleas would be heard in one place. At length the household and its offshoots settled at Westminster, with other royal palaces in reasonable proximity. A permanent headquarters allowed more comfort and more ceremonial and the household developed into the court.
J. A. Cannon
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household