372 HORSE-SHOES AND HORSE-SHOEING. 



tion, however, was as yet one of no great honour ; for we 

 find that the wehr-geld, or ' blood-money,' of the mareschal 

 in the Salic, German, and Burgundian laws, was only 

 forty sous-d'or, a lower price than that fixed for a Roman 

 tributary, which was sixty sous. The murderer of a 

 Prankish noble had to pay six hundred sous, and for a 

 common Frank two hundred. A Roman or Gallo-Roman's 

 life was valued at one hundred sous. The sous-d'or was 

 equal to about fifteen francs present money. 



With the more universal adoption of nail-shoeing, the 

 horse was rapidly becoming a very important animal in 

 civilization at the commencement of the middle ages, and 

 by far the most essential portion of a chevalier's property. 

 The ' comes marestalli' was, therefore, as we might expect, 

 a very distinguished personage, and held high rank. We 

 have already seen that with the Celts in Wales, the groom 

 of the rein occupied a dignified position as well as the 

 smith ; and the mareschal in France was no less in favour, 

 as we have had occasion to notice ; for after the time of 

 Charlemagne, he had not only the care of all the horses of 

 kings or princes, but was appointed to superior commands 

 in the army, ranking finally as one of the most exalted 

 personages at Court. 



There was nothing degrading in a nobleman shoeing 

 horses during the era of chivalry ; and the mareschal, in 

 the loth and i ith centuries, was on a footing of equality 

 with the chamberlain, falconer, and other officers who 

 formed the establishment of the chevalier or prince. In 

 the suite of a great noble there was an ccuyer de corps, the 

 highest in rank ; then an eciiijer de chamhre, or chamber- 

 lain ; an ccuyer de tcihle, or carver; an ecuyer dccurie, or 



