Update (2018): We've come a long way since our group was founded 7 years ago. Although we've continually refined our approach, the original principles remain the same, and many of those flowed from the choice of our name. 'Thegn' - English spelling (pronounced 'Thane' - as in its Scottish and Shapespeareian spelling) strictly pertains to a position of nobility in early medieval society - mutually loyal and honour-bound military 'companions' (gesithas) in the service of a high lord or king, and by extension, the tribe or kingdom. Strictly a term from the 10th century onward, it might be thought that our use of the term 'Thegns' implies we only portray this tier of society, but this is not the case. Rather, our work seeks to bring to life all aspects of the period we represent within the limits of available sources. What is the significance of our use of the word 'Thegn' then? Pertaining to mutually loyal members of a hearth-troop (heorðgeneatas) dedicated to each-other and a shared cause, our name reflects the close bonds and mutual loyalty of our tight-knit team with firm friendships forged through shared struggle and many nights spent togther sharing stories, drinking ale or mead, and swearing oaths round the hearth-fire. It is on those nights, perhaps more than at any other time, that define what it is to be a Thegn. Additionally, its derivation being from the verb ðegan meaning 'to serve' - it is a reminder that all our work is in service of our mission - not our own advancement but the memory of our 'cultural ancestors' and the sharing of their treasures and their story with the public.
Þá Ðegnas Miercisc (The Thegns of Mercia) work to bring to life the archaeology and culture of the Anglo-Saxons and to an extent 'Vikings', and portray a number of roles in society, and sub-periods. However a significant part of our work remains the portrayal of a small group of mutually loyal professional warriors, which is what our name pertains to. The word 'Thegn' has acquired layers of meaning through history, but the original concept of þegnscipe (being a thegn) is much more than the purely military and deserves some exploration.
Etymology
The Old English word þegn / ðegn literally means ‘military follower’. It is also glossed as ‘servant, attendant and retainer, probably deriving from the verb ðegan - to serve. It derives from the Proto-Germanic *þegnaz. (It is cognate with the Old Norse þegn - meaning a freeman, Old High German thegan and German Degen "thane, warrior, hero"), It is thought to derive from the Proto-Indo-European *tek-no- , from the root *tak- "to beget, give birth to".)
The modern spelling is from the Scottish where, in the early 13th century, it came to mean "chief of a clan, king's baron," and probably predominated in English due to influence of Shakespeare’s bloodiest play, "Macbeth;"
(First Witch)Normal orthographic changes from the Old English ðegn should have produced Modern English *thain. This was the spelling used (after some dispute with his publishers) by Tolkein in his “Lord of the Rings”.
48 All hail, Macbeth! hail to thee, Thane of Glamis!
(Second Witch)
49 All hail, Macbeth, hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor!
(Third Witch)
50 All hail, Macbeth, thou shalt be king hereafter!
In Old English literature, the term þegn is used to describe either an aristocratic retainer or more usually a nobleman. As a class, the thain was ranked below the Ealdorman or high reeve but well above the ceorl or free yeoman-farmer. However the underlying idea of the thegn was always a military one.
The precursor of the thegn was, in some sense, the gesith (gesiþ /gesið). The gesiþ was a companion of the king or high lord and a member of his 'comitatus'.
Among the Germanic tribes during the Migration Period and into the Anglo-Saxon Age in Britain it seems the arrangement was similar but more feudal; the leader fed his comitatus (hence the Old English term Lord - Old English - hláford "ruler", earlier hláfweard, literally "one who guards the loaves," from hláf - "loaf" + weard "keeper,") and kept them close to him in peace as well as in war. He supplied their weapons and horses and shared with them the spoils of war.
However, unlike in Roman Society, the Germanic comitatus or gedriht, were bound together by much more than self interest. This was a unique friendship structure of mutual obligation; the drihten’s men were sworn to live, breathe and die for their lord in battle; it being a terrible disgrace to survive him. In exchange the leader was obligated to govern in consultation with his senior warriors, his heorðgeneatas, or hearth-companions, whom he had probably grown up with. The Drihten also was expected to honour and reward his heorðwerod (hearth-troop) with gifts of gold and land. The mutual reverence, respect and love thus engendered made for a strong, cohesive military unit.
Recorded in writing only in the time of Æþelstan but probably in use much before then, the term ðegn came to mean a military gesith. By the 10-11th century, the term is clearly being used for a member of the territorial nobility. The thegn held his land from the king or other lord and would be expected to come to his lord’s side in time of war, bringing with him all his warriors.
In a document called Geþyncðo (“Dignities” : a legal treatise on social class probably penned by Wulfstan, Archbishop of York between 1002-1023) it is written that :
“Once it used to be that people and rights went by dignities and councillors of the people were then entitled to honour, each according to his rank, whether noble (eorl) or ceorl, retainer or lord.”Wulfstan then goes on to list the requirements of wealth and service by which a ceorl could rise to thegnhood:
"And if a ceorl throve, so that he had fully five hides of his own land, church and kitchen, bellhouse and burh-gate-seat and special duty in the king's hall, then was he thenceforth of thegn-right (ðegnriht) worthy."In a similar way a successful thegn might aspire to become an earl. In addition to this there were others who were described as thegns on account of their birth (ðegnboren). Thus thegnhood was partly inherited and partly acquired.
"And if a merchant throve, so that he fared thrice over the wide sea by his own means, then was he thenceforth of thegn-right worthy."
Wulfstan then goes on to distinguish between four different types of thegn and their qualifications:
At the top of the pyramid stood the thegn who rode in the king's household band (híred) and had a 'median thegn' to serve him and to represent him in court with a preliminary oath (forað).
A less privileged type was the king's thegn who lacked any such representative at court. On the next level was the ‘median thegn’, who held at least five hides of his own, but served a king's thegn, attended him in the king's hall and was qualified to represent him with an oath. Finally, there was also a lower type of median thegn, who did not meet all these requirements of land and service.
The twelve senior ðegns of the hundred played a part in the early English system of justice. By a law of Ethelred II they seem to have acted as the judicial committee of the court for the purposes of accusation and thus they have some connection with the grand jury of modern times.
The wergild of a thegn (ðegngylde, ðegnwer) was set as 1,000 scillingas (46 oz. of gold) or around six times as much as a ceorl. This is equivalent to £100,000 today.
The modern title of ‘count’ derives from the Norman-French counte, from the Latin comitem (nom. comes) "companion”. Similarly the title ‘Duke’ derives from the Norman-French duc and directly from the Latin dux (gen. ducis)- "leader, commander". The Anglo-Saxon term ðegn was usually translated into Latin as comes, just as eorl was translated as dux.
____
Our team frequently talk about their colleagues as their 'hearth-troop' - a reference to the social structure of thegns loyal to each-other and a shared cause, bound by oaths and many nights spent together around the hearth of the mead-hall. This is the spirit we try to capture with every encampment and hall-night we share. We remain mindful, however, of the root of the word Thegn as servant, from the verb ðegan - to serve. Our work is not for the glorification of any individual, or a competition between members; In our case we are servants not to an appointed drihten, but to our cause; the fair and honest portrayal of our 'cultural ancestors', to encouraging engagement with this rich period, and to public education.
