Reeve (England)

Anglo-Saxon status

Cyning (king)

Ealdorman (Earl after c.1000)

Hold / High-reeve

Thegn (thane)

Thingmen / housecarl (retainer)

Reeve / Verderer (bailiff)

Ceorl (churl, free tenant)

Villein (serf)

Cottar (cottager)

Þēow (thrall, slave)

v t e

In Anglo-Saxon England, a reeve (Old English: gerefa) was an administrative official serving the king or a lesser lord in a variety of roles. After the Norman Conquest, it was an office held by a man of lower rank, appointed as manager of a manor and overseer of the peasants. In this later role, historian H. R. Loyn observes, "he is the earliest English specialist in estate management."^[1]