Counts in England were generally not permitted to grant the lower title of Baron. William had granted this right to only three men: Odo, the Earl of Hereford, and the Earl of Shrewsbury.
Robert had also granted this right to Eric, but Eric didn't plan on using it for the time being. After all, he had only just taken up his post.
The Earl of Hereford had only ever created one Baron—his own younger brother. Odo, despite being the King's brother, had never created a single Baron, nor had Belem's father, Roger, the Earl of Shrewsbury.
Based on the amount of land he had received, Eric could probably support about three hundred Knights.
Eric's Warband had originally consisted of forty-seven men. In the last battle at the Trent River, he had lost sixteen, leaving only thirty-one.
He enfeoffed all the members of his Warband as Knights, granting them knight's fees.
