Free US Law Dictionary

Yeoman

Yeoman is a term used to indicate a variety of positions or social classes. In the 15th century, a yeoman was also a farmer of middling social status who owned his own land and often farmed it himself; an equivalent in Germany is Freibauer ("freehold farmer"). In this context the term is similar to the Russian kulak.

In the Middle Ages, a yeoman was identified as a rank or position in a noble or royal household, with titles such as Yeoman of the Chamber, Yeoman of the Crown, Yeoman Usher, King's Yeoman, and various others. Most duties were connected with protecting the sovereign and dignitaries as a bodyguard, such as the Yeomen of the Guard, attending the sovereign with various tasks as needed, or duties assigned to his office.

As such, yeoman may refer to several general meanings:

• A man holding a small landed estate, a minor landowner
• A freeman, or man born free
• A small prosperous farmer, especially from the Elizabethan era onwards (16th-17th century)
• A freeborn servant in a noble or royal household (12th-15th century)
• A deputy, assistant, journeyman, a loyal or faithful servant

"Yeoman" may also refer specifically to:

• A member of a British reserve cavalry unit called a yeomanry (similar to a militia) traditionally raised from respected and moderately wealthy commoners in England and Wales, and today part of the Territorial Army.
• In the Royal Navy, United States Coast Guard, United States Navy, and other maritime or naval services, a yeoman is a petty officer with usually secretarial, clerical, pay or other administrative duties. In the Royal Navy, a Yeoman of Signals is a signalling/tactical communications petty officer.
• A member of the Yeomen of the Guard or Yeomen Warders of the Tower of London.
• A servant in the British Royal Household at Windsor Castle (Yeoman of the Cellar, etc.)
• In the Royal Corps of Signals in the British Army, a supervisory soldier normally between the ranks of sergeant to Warrant Officer Class 1.
• "The Canon's Yeoman's Prologue and Tale" appears in Geoffrey Chaucer's Canterbury Tales.