Ansgar the Staller
Ansgar the Staller or Esegar (c. 1025 – 1085) was one of the wealthiest and most powerful nobles in late Anglo-Saxon England. He escaped badly wounded from the Battle of Hastings in October 1066, then led the defence of London.
Ansgar the Staller | |
|---|---|
Death of Harold at Hastings, October 1066; | |
| Portreeve of London | |
| In office 1044 (assumed) – 1075 | |
| Monarchs | Edward the Confessor; Harold Godwinson |
| Sheriff of Middlesex | |
| In office 1044 (assumed) – 1075 | |
| Staller, Royal Official | |
| In office ca 1044 – 1066 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | circa 1024-1030 Unknown |
| Died | circa 1085 Normandy |
| Nationality | English |
| Parent | Aethelstan (?-after 1045) |
| Occupation | Anglo-Saxon Royal retainer, landowner, soldier |
| Military service | |
| Commands | London, October-December 1066 |
| Battles/wars | Hastings, Southwark, London Bridge |
His family were of Danish origin and held extensive estates in the Thames Valley, as well as Perivale and Northolt in Middlesex. In 1044, he replaced his father as hereditary Portreeve of London, and Sheriff of Middlesex. Edward the Confessor also made him a Staller, a term of uncertain origin, used for senior officials in his personal household.
Ansgar served Edward throughout his reign, then backed Harold Godwinson as his successor, rather than William the Conqueror. After Harold died at Hastings, he supported Edgar Ætheling (1051 to 1126), elected King of England by the Witenagemot, but never crowned.
He successfully repulsed two attacks on London, but when other surviving Anglo-Saxon leaders accepted William as king, he switched sides. However, his power and Danish connections made him dangerous; he was arrested in 1075, his lands distributed to William's supporters. He died in Normandy around 1085.
The Ansgar Freemason Lodge, in Middlesex, founded in 1931, was named after him.