Editing Earl (section)

=== Norman Conquest ===
{{Further|List of earls in the reign of William the Conqueror}}
[[File:Odo bayeux tapestry detail.jpg|thumb|Odo of Bayeux, fighting in the [[Battle of Hastings]] as shown in the [[Bayeux Tapestry]]. Odo was later made Earl of Kent.|300x300px]]

The [[Norman Conquest]] of 1066 introduced a new [[Anglo-Normans|Anglo-Norman]] aristocracy that gradually replaced the old Anglo-Saxon elite.{{Sfn|Powell|Wallis|1968|p=33}} In [[Duchy of Normandy|Normandy]], a [[duchy]] in the [[France in the Middle Ages|Kingdom of France]], the equivalent of an earl was a [[count]].{{Sfn|Green|2017|p=61}}  The definition and powers of French counts varied widely. Some counts were nearly independent rulers who gave only nominal loyalty to the [[King of France]]. In Normandy, counts were junior members of the [[House of Normandy|Norman dynasty]] with responsibility for guarding border regions.{{Sfn|Crouch|1992|pp=54–56}} In 1066, there were three Norman counts: [[Richard, Count of Évreux|Richard of Évreux]], [[Robert, Count of Eu|Robert of Eu]], and [[Robert of Mortain]].{{Sfn|Powell|Wallis|1968|p=18}} 

[[William the Conqueror]] ({{reign|1066|1087}}) reduced the size of earldoms; those created after 1071 had responsibility for one shire.{{Sfn|Crouch|1992|p=57}} Like Norman counts, earls became military governors assigned to vulnerable border or coastal areas. To protect the [[Welsh Marches]], the king made [[Roger de Montgomery]] the [[earl of Shrewsbury]] and [[Hugh d'Avranches, Earl of Chester|Hugh d'Avranches]] the [[earl of Chester]] {{Crossreference|(see [[Marcher Lord]])}}. Likewise, the king's half-brother [[Odo of Bayeux]] was made [[earl of Kent]] to guard the [[English Channel]].{{Sfn|Huscroft|2016|pp=82–83}} 

After the [[Revolt of the Earls]] in 1075, only four earldoms remained, all held by Anglo-Normans: Kent, Shrewsbury, Chester, and Northumbria. This number was reduced to three after 1082 when Odo of Bayeux was arrested and deprived of Kent.{{Sfn|Powell|Wallis|1968|pp=32–33}} At the death of [[William Rufus]] in 1100, there were five earldoms: Chester, Shrewsbury, [[Earl of Surrey|Surrey]] (or Warrenne), [[Earl of Warwick|Warwick]], and [[Earl of Huntingdon|Huntingdon]]–[[Earl of Northampton|Northampton]]. In 1122, [[Henry I of England|Henry I]] made his [[illegitimate]] son [[Robert, 1st Earl of Gloucester|Robert]] the [[earl of Gloucester]].{{Sfn|Powell|Wallis|1968|pp=51 & 60}}

After the Conquest, new earldoms tended to be named for the city and castle in which they were based. Some titles became attached to the family name rather than location. For example, the holder of the [[earldom of Surrey]] was more commonly called "Earl Warenne". The same was true of the [[earldom of Buckingham]], whose holder was called "Earl Gifford". These earls may have preferred to be known by family names that were older and more prestigious than their newer territorial designations.{{Sfn|Crouch|1992|pp=57–58}}