What does 'esquire to the body' mean?

[retrospectory]

Hi all,

I've just found a relative who was 'esquire to the body' of Henry VII but have no idea what it means - any ideas?

Many thanks...Helen 

[behindthefrogs]

Esquire to the body was a fairly high position in the court of a king or queen.  A man with this title would come from a respectable family.  He was a knight or the son of a knight, and would be a personal attendant to the king or queen usually with major responsibilties in their household.  He would often have other titles, like master of the hounds, which reflected his actual responsibilities

[retrospectory]

That's great, thank you - Google was of no help whatsover.

Yes, my dad's 'twelve times' great grandfather was Sir Thomas Phillips of Pembrokeshire, and his ' four times' great grandfather was Sir Aaron ap Rhys who was a knight of the Third Crusade, so I guess that would just about do it! 

[stanmapstone]

The office of esquire of the body, was of a very honourable nature. It is thus described in the household book of Edward the Fourth, Esquiers for the body, four, noble of condition, whereof always two be attendaunt upon the king's person to array and unarray hym, to watche day and nyght to dress hym in his clothes, and they be callers to the chaumberlayn if any thing lak for his person, or "plesaunce; theyre busines is in many secrets, some sitting in the king's chaumber, some in the hall with persones of like service, which is called knyghts service, taking every of them for his lyvery, at night, a chete loffe, one quart wyne, &c." Their fee was 7½d. a day while in waiting .
http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=45374&strquery=esquire%20to%20the%20body

Stan

[behindthefrogs]

What is slightly strange about that definition is that queens of that period also had esquires to the body.  The functions that it describes would have been performed by their ladies in waiting.

For example Sir Henry Knollys was esquire to the body to Elizabeth I

David

[stanmapstone]

It looks as though the correct term is "Esquire for the Body" which produces many Google hits.
The office of the esquire consisted of several departments ; the esquire for the body, the esquire of the chamber, the esquire of the stable, and the carving esquire

Stan

[behindthefrogs]

I agree Stan although when you examine various transcriptions the terms "esquire of/to/for the body" seem to be interchangeable.

David

[BorderReiver]

That's interesting to know.  It seems that, according to the Richard III Society, my ancestor Sir Richard Salkeld was an Esquire of the Body to Richard III.  He also fought at Towton with Edward IV's Yorkist Army.

[fastfusion]

"Esquire to the body" is an expression for a servant of the crown in the employ of the realm, and used as admission of respect for the job that servant partakes by the crown or the scribe representing the crown.

I once recieved a letter from ER and I was addressed as Esquire(period) yet it was written as a form of respect given that I was a child at the time, but having observed the dignitries of ERs full title.

If I owned land I would also be priviliged to use the title.

It has slightly changed meaning since its inception but basically means E ' (of ) Squire