We have clearly here the origin of Coke’s error, when he writes:
Many very ancient copies you may find of this Modus, one whereof we have seen in the reign of H. 2, which contains the manner, forme, and usage of Gilbert de Scrogel, marshall of England, in what manner he occupied and used the said roome and office in all his time, and how he was admitted etc. at the coronation of H. 2 (‘Institutes,’ 4, xxi.).
For the error is only found in the above petition.
Now, it ought to be obvious that no such person as Gilbert Marshal, earl of ‘Strogoil,’ could have existed in 1154, for the Marshals did not inherit till a later time that Earldom, which was held in 1154 by the house of Clare. It has indeed been suggested that for “Gilbert” we should read “Richard,”[607] but this will not help us. For, to secure consistency, we should have to read “Richard de Clare.” Nevertheless, it has been loosely assumed, on no other evidence, that Richard de Clare, earl of Pembroke (“Striguil”) acted as Marshal of England at the coronation of Henry II. in 1154.[608] And on this foundation antiquaries have raised theories to which we must return.
The real explanation is perfectly simple. On turning to fo. 86d. of the MS. we find an entry “de officio marescalcie,” which we can positively identify as taken from fo. 232 of the ‘Red Book of the Exchequer’ (p. 759) where it is found among the “services” at Queen Eleanor’s coronation in 1236. Then turning back to Countess Margaret’s claim (fo. 65d), we find that it enshrines, in Norman French, this entry word for word. Therefore the whole error has been caused by the words “as coronement le Roy Henri second” (1154) applied to an entry which really related to the coronation of Queen Eleanor (1236)! “Gilbert Mareschall Conte de Strigoil” had no existence at the former date, but he actually held the marshal’s rod in 1236.[609]
Camden, it seems, is responsible, in the first instance, for the theory that the office of “Marshal of England” was distinct in origin and character from that of Marshal of the Household. Strangely enough, in his earlier essay,[610] he made no such distinction, but, on the contrary, stated that Roger Bigod “was he which first stiled himselfe marescallus Angliæ, whereas all his predecessors used noe other stiles than the simple addition of marescallus.” In his second essay (3rd Nov., 1603)[611] he gave a list of the “Marshals of England,” deducing the office from a grant of Stephen, who “made Gilbert Clare earl of Pembroke and Marshal of England, with the state of inheritance, who ... was commonly called earl of Stryghall.” Thus arose the whole theory which Thoms, following Camden, adopts in his ‘Book of the Court’ (pp. 241, 244), namely, that the two offices were accidentally united by the marriage of William (the) Marshal (of the Household) with Isabel, heiress of the earls of Pembroke, “Marshals of England.”
From Thoms this theory has found its way into the ‘Complete Peerage.’ I need not here say more than that I have carefully examined the evidence, and that, after the alleged union of the offices, there is no trace of their being granted as more than one. When John confirmed (20th April, 1200) the marshalship to William Marshall, it was as
magistratum maresc’ curie nostre quam magistratum Gillebertus Marescallus Henrici Regis avi patris nostri et Johannes filius ipsius Gilleberti disrationaverat coram predicto Rege Henrico in curia sua.[612]
And when William’s younger son Gilbert obtained it from Henry III., after his brother’s death, we read of the king (11th June, 1234)—
Tradens ei virgam marescalcie curie sue sicut moris est et sicut eam antecessores ejus melius et liberius habuerunt.[613]