When reading romance novels about English gentry and nobility I always wonder about the rankings. I know diddlysquat about this subject, mostly because I am American. I decided to do some digging to see if I could sort the matter out. Luckily there are a lot of resources on the matter.
The first thing I was determined to find out was the order of the rankings. I always thought an Earl was as noble as a Duke or fairly similar. An Earl is far less substantial than you might think. In fact they seem to be quite plentiful; perhaps that is why so many romance novels include an Earl. A Marquis, on the other hand was more substantial than I gave credit. For some reason, I always assumed it was on similar footing as a Viscount. Whoops-- social faux pas, anyone?
The order of rank is as follows:
- Duke/Duchess
- Marquis (alternative spelling: Marquess)/Marchioness
- Earl/Countess
- Viscount/Viscountess
- Baron/Baroness
Baronets and Knights are not peers. A baronet is a hereditary knight. The title of Sir goes down through the generations. His wife is referred to as Lady.
The rarest rank of nobility is the Duke with his dukedom, making Barons by their rank far more abundant.
About the only thing I got right was the order of the Viscounts and Barons.
Did you know there were several peerages?
The isles of Britain and Ireland had in total five different peerages. Those of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain, and the United Kingdom! No wonder the country has so many names in history! Also, a noble man could belong to more than one peerage!
Labels of Address (loosely):
This doesn't include salutations of correspondence. The first bit is how to do the introduction on the different levels of nobility followed by how to address them in formal speech.
- Duke/Duchess: His Grace/Her Grace (insert title); His Grace/Her Grace
- Marquis/Marchioness: Most Honorable (insert title); Lord/Lady
- Earl/Countess: Right Honorable (insert title); Lord/Lady
- Viscount/Viscountess: Right Honorable (insert title); Lord/Lady
- Baron/Baroness: Right Honorable (insert title); Lord/Lady
Originally posted 2008-08-07 05:39:59. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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