The Teutonic Order is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society c. 1190 in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem was formed to aid Christians on their pilgrimages to the Holy Land and to establish hospitals. Its members have commonly been known as the Teutonic Knights, having historically served as a crusading military order for supporting Catholic rule in the Holy Land and the Northern Crusades during the Middle Ages, as well as supplying military protection for Catholics in Eastern Europe.
The Swedish nobility has historically been a legally and/or socially privileged class in Sweden, and part of the so-called frälse. The archaic term for nobility, frälse, also included the clergy, a classification defined by tax exemptions and representation in the diet. Today the nobility does not maintain its former legal privileges although family names, titles and coats of arms are still protected. The Swedish nobility consists of both "introduced" and "unintroduced" nobility, where the latter has not been formally "introduced" at the House of Nobility (Riddarhuset). The House of Nobility still maintains a fee for male members over the age of 18 for upkeep on pertinent buildings in Stockholm.
Freiherr, Freifrau and Freiin are designations used as titles of nobility in the German-speaking areas of the Holy Roman Empire and in its various successor states, including Austria, Prussia, Bavaria, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, etc. Traditionally, it denotes the titled rank within the nobility above Ritter (knight) and Edler and below Graf. The title superseded the earlier medieval form, Edelherr.
The term von ( ) is used in German surnames either as a nobiliary particle indicating a noble patrilineality, or as a simple preposition used by commoners that means 'of' or 'from'.
The Austrian nobility is a status group that was officially abolished in 1919 after the fall of Austria-Hungary. Austria's system of nobility was very similar to that of Germany, as both countries were previously part of the Holy Roman Empire (962–1806).
Edler was until 1919 the lowest rank of nobility in Austria-Hungary and Germany, just beneath a Ritter, but above untitled nobles, who used only the nobiliary particle von before their surname. It was mostly given to civil servants and military officers, as well as those upon whom the lower rank of an Order had been conferred. The noun Edler comes from the adjective edel ("noble"), and translated literally means "noble [person]". In accordance with the rules of German grammar, the word can also appear as Edle, Edlem, or Edlen depending on case, gender, and number.
The House of Hohenlohe is a German princely dynasty. It formerly ruled an immediate territory within the Holy Roman Empire, which was divided between several branches. In 1806, the area of Hohenlohe was 1,760 km² and its estimated population was 108,000. The motto of the house is Ex flammis orior. The Lords of Hohenlohe were elevated to the rank of Imperial Counts in 1450, and from 1744, the territory and its rulers were princely. In 1825, the German Confederation recognized the right of all members of the house to be styled as Serene Highness, with the title of Fürst for the heads of its branches, and the title of prince/princess for the other members. From 1861, the Hohenlohe-Öhringen branch was also of ducal status as dukes of Ujest.
The German nobility and royalty were status groups of the medieval society in Central Europe, which enjoyed certain privileges relative to other people under the laws and customs in the German-speaking area, until the beginning of the 20th century. Historically, German entities that recognized or conferred nobility included the Holy Roman Empire (962–1806), the German Confederation (1814–1866), and the German Empire (1871–1918). Chancellor Otto von Bismarck in the German Empire had a policy of expanding his political base by ennobling nouveau riche industrialists and businessmen who had no noble ancestors. The nobility flourished during the dramatic industrialization and urbanization of Germany after 1850. Landowners modernized their estates, and oriented their business to an international market. Many younger sons were positioned in the rapidly growing national and regional civil service bureaucracies, as well as in the officer corps of the military. They acquired not only the technical skills but the necessary education in high prestige German universities that facilitated their success. Many became political leaders of new reform organizations such as agrarian leagues, and pressure groups. The Roman Catholic nobility played a major role in forming the new Centre Party in resistance to Bismarck's anti-Catholic Kulturkampf, while Protestant nobles were similarly active in the Conservative Party.
Uradel is a genealogical term introduced in late 18th-century Germany to distinguish those families whose noble rank can be traced to the 14th century or earlier. The word stands opposed to Briefadel, a term used for titles of nobility created in the early modern period or modern history by letters patent. Since the earliest known such letters were issued in the 14th century, those knightly families in northern European nobility whose noble rank predates these are designated Uradel.
The von Rohr is an old German noble family, also belonging to the Swedish and Finnish nobility.
Henninger is a family name that originated in Germany. The name is attested as 'Honigar' from the 13th century in Bavaria, and was borne by members of the nobility of the Holy Roman Empire and by the family that founded the Henninger Brewery. It is most prevalent today in Baden-Württemberg.
The House of Finck von Finckenstein is a noble family classified as Uradel. It is one of the oldest Prussian aristocratic families extant, dating back to the 12th century in the Duchy of Carinthia.
Klinkowström or Klinckowström is a noble house of German origin with Prussian-Austrian and Swedish branches.
The Sydow family or simply von Sydow is the name of two noble families. One, belonging to an ancient nobility, originated in Brandenburg was part of the German nobility. The other, more recent one, also of German descent, hailing from Stettin, later moved to Sweden and became part of the Swedish nobility. According to an oral tradition, the Swedish family is related to the noble German family von Sydow, known since the 13th century. However, there is no written evidence for this.
A nobiliary particle is a type of onomastic particle used in a surname or family name in many Western cultures to signal the nobility of a family. The particle used varies depending on the country, language and period of time. In some languages, it is the same as a regular prepositional particle that was used in the creation of many surnames. In some countries, it became customary to distinguish the nobiliary particle from the regular one by a different spelling, although in other countries these conventions did not arise, occasionally resulting in ambiguity. The nobiliary particle can often be omitted in everyday speech or certain contexts.
Mathias Franz Graf von Chorinsky Freiherr von Ledske was first Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brno, Imperial and Royal senior Privy Counsellor of the Imperial and Royal Privy Council of the Habsburg monarchy and with his equally eminent brothers the first Counts of Chorinsky.
The House of Hardenberg is an old German noble family of the Princes, Counts and Barons von Hardenberg or their Danish branch with their ancestral seat at Nörten-Hardenberg since 1287 to this day.
The House of Sickingen is an old southwest German noble family. The lords of Sickingen belonged to the Kraichgau nobility and from 1797 to the Imperial nobility. Significant relatives emerged from the family, who achieved great influence in both spiritual and secular offices. Reinhard von Sickingen was Prince-Bishop of Worms from 1445 to 1482 and Kasimir Anton von Sickingen was Prince-Bishop of Constance from 1743 to 1750. Imperial Knight Franz von Sickingen (1481-1523) was a leader of the Rhenish and Swabian knighthood.
The Hirsch von Pomischel family is the name of a noble family historically active in the Kingdom of Bohemia. Originally from the Duchy of Pomerania, branches of this family also lived in Silesia and the Kingdom of Hungary. In Pomerania, they are known as the von Pomeiske; in Silesia, as von Pomyschl. In Hungary, with its Hungarian noble predicate, as Pomichal de Réthe.
The Buttlar family is the name of an old Upper Franconian-Hessian noble family. The lords of Buttlar originate from the ancient nobility of Buchonia. Branches of the family also reached Westphalia, Saxony, Prussia, Curonia, France, Poland, Russia and Hungary, and remain partly to this day. The Buttlar and Treusch von Buttlar families of Hessen has since 1660 belonged to the Old Hessian Knighthood, the oldest foundation in Hessen.
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