The Groom of the Stool (formally styled: "Groom of the King's Close Stool to King (name)") was the most intimate of a monarch's courtiers, whose physical intimacy naturally led to him becoming a man in whom much confidence was placed by his royal master, and with whom many royal secrets were shared as a matter of course. This secret information he was privy to, whilst it would never have been revealed, to the discredit of his honour, in turn led to him becoming feared and respected and therefore powerful within the royal court in his own right. The office developed gradually over decades and centuries into one of administration of the royal finances, and under Henry VII the Groom of the Stool became a powerful official involved in setting national fiscal policy, under the "Chamber System".

Origin of the Office

The appellation "Groom of the Stool"; derived from the item of furniture now known as a commode or portable lavatory (Old English & Norse Stol or Stoll meaning a chair), was in the earliest times a male servant in the household of an English monarch who was in charge of providing at all times adequate and seemly facilities for the monarch's natural bodily function of excretion or defecation, and indeed assisted in the facilitating of his bodily functions and in his cleansing or washing thereafter.

Often when the visit of a modern monarch is planned, for example during the construction of a new building, a special royal lavatory pavilion is built for the occasion.

Evolution of the Office

In the early years of Henry VIII

Henry VIII of England

Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...

's reign, the title was awarded to court companions of the King who spent time with him in the Privy chamber

Privy chamber

A Privy chamber was the private apartment of a royal residence in England. The gentlemen of the Privy chamber were servants to the Crown who would wait and attend on the King and Queen at court during their various activities, functions and entertainments....

. These were generally the sons of noblemen or important members of the gentry. In time they came to act as virtual personal secretaries to the King, carrying out a variety of administrative tasks within his private rooms. The position was an especially prized one, as it allowed one unobstructed access to the King's attention. David Starkey

David Starkey

David Starkey, CBE, FSA is a British constitutional historian, and a radio and television presenter.He was born the only child of Quaker parents, and attended Kendal Grammar School before entering Cambridge through a scholarship. There he specialised in Tudor history, writing a thesis on King...

 writes: "The Groom of the Stool had (to our eyes) the most menial tasks; his standing, though, was the highest ... Clearly then, the royal body service must have been seen as entirely honorable, without a trace of the demeaning or the humiliating." Further, "the mere word of the Gentleman of the Privy Chamber was sufficient evidence in itself of the king's will," and the Groom of the Stool bore "the indefinable charisma of the monarchy."

Abolition of the Office

In 1558, the male domination of royal private quarters came to an end, and Kat Ashley was appointed First Lady of the Bedchamber by Elizabeth I of England

Elizabeth I of England

Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...

, a position that put her "in charge of the bedchamber," a duty formerly performed by the Groom of the Stool. The office effectively came to an end when it was "neutralized" in 1559.

Re-establishment of the Office in altered form

The position survived in a much more senior form, devoid of its original functions, as Groom of the Stole

Groom of the Stole

Groom of the Stole in the British Royal Household is a position dating from the Stuart era but which evolved from the earlier Groom of the Stool, an office in existence until the accession of Elizabeth I. The original nomenclature derived from the chair used in the performance of the function...

 (a Victorian

Victorianism

Victorianism is the name given to the attitudes, art, and culture of the later two-thirds of the 19th century. This usage is strong within social history and the study of literature, less so in philosophy. Many disciplines do not use the term, but instead prefer Victorian Era, or simply "Late 19th...

 spelling per Starkey, op.cit.), until 1901. These were always senior noblemen. In the French royal court, a similar position was called "Porte-Coton."

Grooms of the Stool under Henry VIII

• Sir William Compton
  William Compton (courtier)
  Sir William Compton was one of the most prominent courtiers during the reign of Henry VIII of England. Born around 1482, Compton was about nine years older than his king, but the two became close friends. Compton was the eldest son of Edmund Compton of Warwickshire and became an attendant on young...
  
   (1509–1526)
• Sir Henry Norris (1526–1536)
• Sir Thomas Heneage (1536–1546)
• Sir Anthony Denny
  Anthony Denny
  Sir Anthony Denny was a confidant of Henry VIII of England. Denny was the most prominent member of the Privy chamber in Henry's last years having, together with his brother-in-law John Gates, charge of the "dry stamp" of Henry's signature, and attended Henry on his deathbed. He also served as...
  
   (1546–1547)

Heneage and Denny, as servants 'whom he used secretly about him', were privy to Henry VIII's most intimate confidences about Anne of Cleves

Anne of Cleves

Anne of Cleves was a German noblewoman and the fourth wife of Henry VIII of England and as such she was Queen of England from 6 January 1540 to 9 July 1540. The marriage was never consummated, and she was not crowned queen consort...

. He told them he doubted her virginity, on account of 'her brests so slacke.'