WiththeChieftaincyoftheTribetheearlyhistoryofmodernAristocracyandmodernKingshipbegins。Thesetwogreatinstitutionshad，infact，atfirstthesamehistory，andtheWesternworldlongcontinuedtobearthemarksoftheiroriginalidentity。TheManorwithitsTenementallandsheldbythefreetenantsoftheLord，andwithitsDomainwhichwasinimmediatedependenceonhim，wasthetypeofallthefeudalsovereigntiesintheircompleteform，whethertheruleracknowledgedasuperiorabovehimorwhetherheatmostadmittedoneinthePope，ortheEmperor，orGodhimself。IneveryCounty，orDukedom，orKingdomthereweregreattenantsholdingdirectlyofitsheadandonsomesortofparitywithhim；andtherewasaDomainunderhismoreimmediategovernmentandathisimmediatedisposal。Thereisnoobscurerandmoredifficultsubjectthantheoriginoftheclasswhosepowerwasthekeystoneofallthesepoliticalandproprietaryconstructions，andnoneonwhichthescantiestcontributionstoourknowledgearemorewelcome。
Thereisoneviewoftheoriginalconditionofprivilegedclasseswhich，thoughheldbylearnedmen，hasbeenagooddealweakenedoflatebyGermanresearch，andseemstomestillfarthershakenbyportionsoftheBrehonlaw。Thisistheimpressionthattheyalwaysconstituted，astheypracticallydonow，adistinctclassorsectionofthecommunity，eachmemberoftheclassstandinginacloserrelationtotheothermembersthantotherestofthenationalortribalsocietytowhichallbelong。Itcannotbedoubtedthattheearliestmodernaristocracieshaveasafact，whentheyarefirstdiscerned，thisparticularaspect。MrFreeman’NormanConquest，’i。88saysthatthe’differencebetweeneorlandceorlisaprimaryfactfromwhichwestart。’Tacitusplainlydistinguishedthenoblefromthenon-noblefreemanintheGermanicsocietieswhichheobserved；andCaesar，asIstatedinanotherLecture，dividesalltheContinentalCeltictribesintotheEquitesandthePlebs。Wecanunderstandthataspectatorlookingatasetoftribalcommunitiesfromtheoutsidewouldnaturallyclasstogetherallmenvisiblyexaltedabovetherest；butneverthelessthisisnotquitetheappearancewhichearlyGermanicsocietywearsintheeyesofenquirerswhofollowthemethodofVonMaurerandLandau。
EachChieforLordappearstothemtohavebeennoblelesswithreferencetoothernoblementhanwithreferencetotheotherfreetribesmencomprisedinthesamegroupwithhimself。Nobilityhasmanydiverseorigins；butitschiefsourceseemstohavebeentherespectofco-villagersorassemblagesofkinsmenforthelineofdescentinwhichthepurestbloodofeachlittlesocietywasbelievedtobepreserved。Similarly，theBrehonlawsuggeststhattheIrishChiefswerenottheclassbythemselveswhichthecorrespondingorderamongtheContinentalCeltsappearedtoCaesartobe，butwerenecessarilytheheadsofseparategroupscomposedoftheirkindredoroftheirvassals。’Everychief，’
saysthetextwhichIquotedbefore，’rulesoverhisland，whetheritbegreatorwhetheritbesmall。’AndwhiletheIrishlawdescribesthewayasIshallpointoutinwhichacommonfreemancanbecomeachief，italsoshowsthatthepositiontowhichheattainsisthepresidencyofagroupofdependants。
Neverthelessthepersonsthuselevatedundoubtedlytendtobecome，fromvariouscauses，aclassbythemselvesandaspecialsectionofthegeneralcommunity；anditisveryprobablethatthetendencywasatworkfromtheearliesttimes。Itisfarthertoberemarkedthatsomearistocracieswerereallyasectionofthecommunityfromtheveryfirst。Thisstructureofsocietyisproducedwhereoneentiretribalgroupconquersorimposesitssupremacyuponothertribalgroupsalsoremainingentire，orwhereanoriginalbodyoftribesmen，villagers，orcitizens，graduallygathersrounditselfamiscellaneousassemblageofprotecteddependants。Therearemanyknowninstancesofbothprocesses，andtheparticularrelationoftribalgroupswhichtheformerimplieswascertainlynotunknowntotheCelticsocieties。
AmongtheScottishHighlanderssomeentireseptsorclansarestatedtohavebeenenslavedtoothers；andontheverythresholdofIrishhistorywemeetwithadistinctionbetweenfreeandrent-payingtribeswhichmaypossiblyimplythesamekindofsuperiorityandsubordination。
ThecircumstanceofgreatestnoveltyinthepositionoftheChiefwhichtheBrehonlawappearstometobringoutisthis：
WhateverelseaChiefis，heisbeforeallthingsarichman；
not，however，rich，aspopularassoCiationswouldleadustoanticipate，inland，butinlivestock——inflocksandherds，insheep，andbeforeallthingsinoxen。Hereletmeinterposetheremark，thattheoppositioncommonlysetupbetweenbirthandwealth，andparticularlywealthotherthanlandedproperty，isentirelymodern。InFrenchliterature，sofarasmyknowledgeextends，itfirstappearswhentherichesofthefinancialofficersoftheFrenchmonarchy——theSuperintendentsandFarmersGeneral——begintoattractattention。Withusitseemstobeexclusivelytheresultofthegreatextensionandproductivenessofindustrialundertakingsonthelargestscale。
ButtheheroesoftheHomericpoemsarenotonlyvaliantbutwealthyOdyss。xiv。96-106；thewarriorsoftheNibelungen-Liedarenotonlynoblebutrich。InthelaterGreekliteraturewefindprideofbirthidentifiedwithprideinsevenwealthyancestorsinsuccession，eptapappoiplonsioi；andyouarewellawarehowrapidlyandcompletelythearistocracyofwealthassimilateditselfintheRomanStatetothearistocracyofblood。PassingtotheIrishChief，wefindthetractcalledthe’Cain-Aigillne’layingdownp。279that’theheadofeverytribeshouldbethemanofthetribewhoisthemostexperienced，themostnoble，themostwealthy，themostlearned，themosttrulypopular，themostpowerfultooppose，themoststeadfasttosueforprofitsandtobesuedforlosses。’Therearemanyotherpassagestothesameeffect；andoncloselyexaminingthesystemasIproposetodopresentlywecanperceivethatpersonalwealthwastheprincipalconditionoftheChief’smaintaininghispositionandauthority。
ButwhiletheBrehonlawssuggestthatthepossessionofpersonalwealthisaconditionofthemaintenanceofchieftainship，theyshowwithmuchdistinctnessthatthroughtheacquisitionofsuchwealththeroadwasalwaysopentochieftainship。WearenotaltogetherwithoutknowledgethatinsomeEuropeansocietiesthehumblefreemanmightberaisedbywealthtothepositionwhichafterwardsbecamemodernnobility。
Onefact，amongtheveryfewwhicharetolerablywellascertainedrespectingthespecificoriginofparticularmodernaristocraciesis，thataportionoftheDanishnobilitywereoriginallypeasants；andthereareintheearlyEnglishlawssometracesofaprocessbywhichaCeorlmightbecomeaThane。Thesemightbefactsstandingbythemselves，andundoubtedlythereisstrongreasontosuspectthatthecommencementsofaristocracyweremultifold：buttheBrehontractspointoutinseveralplaces，withlegalminuteness，themodeinwhichapeasantfreemaninancientIrelandcouldbecomeachief。TherearefewpersonagesofgreaterinterestspokenofintheselawsthantheBo-Aire，literallythe’cow-nobleman。’Heis，tobeginwith，simplyapeasantwhohasgrownrichincattle，probablythroughobtainingtheuseoflargeportionsoftribe-land。Thetruenobles，orAires——awordstrikingfromitsconsonancewithwordsofsimilarmeaningintheTeutoniclanguages——aredivided，thoughwecanscarcelybelievetheclassificationtocorrespondwithanuniversalfact，intosevengrades。EachgradeisdistinguishedfromtheothersbytheamountofwealthpossessedbytheChiefbelongingtoit，bytheweightattachedtohisevidence，byhispowerofbindinghistribebycontractsliterallyof’knotting’，bythedueswhichhereceivesinkindfromhisvassalsaccordingtoasystemtobepresentlydescribed，andbyhisHonor-Price，orspecialdamagesincurredbyinjuringhim。AtthebottomofthescaleisthechiefornoblecalledtheAire-desa；andtheBrehonlawprovidesthatwhentheBo-AirehasacquiredtwicethewealthofanAire-desa，andhashelditforacertainnumberofgenerations，hebecomesanAire-desahimself。
Theadvantagesecuredtowealthdoesnot，yousee，excluderespectforbirth，butworksintoit。’Heisaninferiorchief，’
saysthe’SenchusMor，’’whosefatherwasnotachief；’andtherearemanyotherstrongassertionsofthereverenceduetoinheritedrank。Theprimaryviewofchieftainshipisevidentlythatitspringsfrompurityordignityofblood，butnoblebirthisregardedasnaturallyassociatedwithwealth，andhewhobecomesrichgraduallyclimbstoapositionindistinguishablefromthatwhichhewouldhaveoccupiedifhehadbeennoblyborn。
Whatisthusnewinthesystemistheclearaccountofnobilityasastatus，havingitsoriginintheorganicstructureofancientsociety，butneverthelessinpracticehavingperpetuallyfreshbeginnings。
Theenormousimportancewhichbelongstowealthandspeciallytowealthincattle，intheearlyAryansocietyreflectedbytheBrehontracts，helps，Ithink，toclearuponegreatdifficultywhichmeetsusonthethresholdofanenquiryintotheoriginofaristocracies。Isupposethatthepopulartheoryonthesubjectoftheprivilegedclassinmoderncommunitiesisthatitwasoriginallyindebtedforitsstatus，ifnotforitspowerorinfluence，tokinglyfavour。AnEnglishmanoncequestionedtheEmperorPaulofRussiaonthepositionoftheRussiannobility。
’Theonlymanwhoisnobleinmydominions，’saidtheCzar，’isthemantowhomIspeak，forthetimethatIamspeakingtohim。’
ImerelytakethesewordsasthestrongestpossiblestatementoftheviewtowhichIamreferring；buttheywereusedbyamonarchwithadisturbedbrain，whoseauthorityhadcontractedsomethingofanOrientalcharacterfromitslongsubordinationtoTartarpower，andtheywereneverabsolutelytrueevenofRussia。Amongourselves，however，thefavouriteassumptionseemscertainlytobe，howeverslightmaybethepracticalconsequenceswedrawfromit，thatallaristocraticprivilegehaditsorigininkinglygrace；andthisappears，onthewhole，tobethetheoryofEnglishlaw。ButtheinstitutionsofmanypartsoftheContinentlongretainedthetracesofadifferentsetofideas，andthesewerefoundwherekinglypowerwasactuallymuchgreaterthaninEngland。TheFrenchNoblesse，beforetheRevolution，wouldasabodyhaveresentedtheassertionthattheywereacreationoftheKing，andtheKingsofFrancemorethanonceadmittedthattheywereonlythemostexaltedmembersofaclasstowhichtheirownnobilitybelonged。
Kingshaveeverywherenowadays，andinmanycountrieshavehadforcenturies，amonopolyofthepowerofennobling。Thisroadtonobilityhasbeensolongtrodden，thatmeningeneralhavealmostforgottenthereeverwasanotherroute。Yethistoricalscholarshavelongknownthatnobilityconferredbyroyalgrantwas，inonesense，amoderninstitution，thoughtheyhavenotsucceededincompletelyexplaininghowitcametosupplantordwarftheinstitutionuponwhichitwasengrafted。
ThereseemstobenodoubtthatthefirstaristocracyspringingfromkinglyfavourconsistedoftheComitatus，orCompanionsoftheKing。Althoughthereisagooddealofevidencethattheclasswasatfirstconsideredinsomewayservile，itgraduallybecameinsomecountriesthetypeofallnobility。AfewtolerablyfamiliarfactsmayservetoremindushowremarkablehasbeenthefortuneoftheroyalhouseholdsalloverWesternEurope。TheMayoroftheFrankishPalacebecameKingoftheFranks。TheChamberlainoftheRomano-GermanEmperorsisnowtheGermanEmperor。ThebloodoftheStewardofScotlandrunsintheveinsoftheKingsofEngland。TheConstablesofFrancerepeatedlyshookorsavedtheFrenchthrone。AmongourselvesthegreatofficersoftheRoyalCouncilandHouseholdstilltakeprecedenceeitherofallPeersorofallPeersoftheirowndegree。Whence，then，camethisgreatexaltationoftheMayororCountofthePalace，ofthegreatSeneschalorSteward，ofthehighChancellor，theGreatChamberlain，andHighConstable——
titleswhich，whentheydonotmarkanofficeoriginallyclerical，pointtoanoccupationwhichmustatfirsthavebeenmenial？
Itseemscertainthatthehouseholdsprangfromveryhumblebeginnings。TacitusdescribesthecompanionsoftheGermanicchiefaslivingwithhiminhishouseandsupportedbyhisbounty。MrStubbswhenstating’ConstitutionalHistory，’p。150
that’thegesithsofanEnglishkingwerehisguardandprivatecouncil，’observesthatthe’freehouseholdservantsofaceorlarealsoinacertainsensehisgesiths。’TheCompanionsoftheKingappearalsointheIrishlegalliterature，buttheyarenotnoble，andtheyareassociatedwiththeking’sbody-guard，whichisessentiallyservile。TheKingofErin，thoughheneverexistedstrictlyspeaking，saveforshortintervals，yetalways，sotospeaktendedtoexist，andtheCrithGablach，aBrehontractofwhichatranslationisgivenattheendofSullivan’seditionofO’Curry’sLectures，containsapictureofhispalaceandstate。
TheedificeintendedtobedescribedisapparentlyverymuchthesameasthegreatIcelandichouseofwhichMrDasent，inthe’StoryofBurntNjal，’hasattemptedtogiveadrawingfromthedescriptionsfoundinNorseliterature。InittheKingfeastshisguests，fromkingsandking’ssonstoaghastlycompanyofprisonersinfetters，theforfeitedhostagesofsubject-chiefsorsub-septswhohavebrokentheirengagements。TheCompanionsaretherealso，andtheyarestatedtoconsistofhisprivilegedtenantryandofhisbodyguard，whichiscomposedofmenwhomhehasdeliveredfromdeath，jail，orservitude，neverasignificantexceptionofmenwhomhehassavedonthebattle-field。IamafraidthatthepictureofIrishsocietysuppliedbytheCrithGablachmustthroughoutberegardedastoagreatextentidealortheoretical；atanyrate，thereismuchtestimonyfromEnglishvisitorstoIrelandthatmanyconsiderableIrishChiefsweremuchmorehumblyfurnishedoutthantheKingofErinatTara。YetitisverylikelythattheyallhadCompanionsattendingthem，andIsuspectthattheobligationof。maintainingalittlecourthadmuchtodowiththatstrangeprivilegewhichinlatertimeshadadeplorablehistory；therightoftheChieftogowithafollowingtothedwellingsofhistenantsandtherebefeastedatthetenant’sexpense。ThatevenpettyChiefsoftheScottishHighlandshadaretinueofthesamecharacterisknowntoallwhocanrecallthatimmortalpictureofCelticsocietywhichforthefirsttimebroughtithometomenwhowerenearlyourcontemporariesthatancientCelticlifeandmannershadexistedalmostdowntotheirdays——thenovelof’Waverley。’