 |
| Extant | All |
|---|---|
| Dukes | Dukedoms |
| Marquesses | Marquessates |
| Earls | Earldoms |
| Viscounts | Viscountcies |
| Barons | Baronies |
| En, Sc, GB, Ir, UK (Law, Life: 1958–1979, 1979–1997, 1997–2010, 2010–2024, 2024–present) | |
| Baronets | Baronetcies |
The peerage is the collective term for all those holding titles of nobility of all degrees. The term superseded the term baronage used of the feudal era. A barony is a rank or dignity of a man or a woman who is a participant of a small rank of a British nobility.
The life baronies fall into two classes:
All life baronies are in the peerage of the United Kingdom, and rank amongst hereditary baronies in that peerage (and each other) by date of creation.
The hereditary baronies fall into five classes:
These have precedence in the order named, except that baronies of Ireland created after 1 January 1801 (the date of the Union between Great Britain and Ireland) yield to earlier-created baronies of the United Kingdom.
In contrast to the English equivalent, the dignity of baron is a non-peerage rank in the Baronage of Scotland, created in the same way as a peerage with crown charter and is protected by the Abolition of Feudal Tenure etc. (Scotland) Act 2000 recognised by the crown as a title of nobility with status of minor baron. Hence the Scottish equivalent of an English baron is Lord of Parliament. The heraldry of Scottish baronies is governed by the court of the Lord Lyon. The Scottish baronage predates the Scottish peerage and they coexist to this day. In fact, up until 1707 union of Scotland and England, the only difference was that peerage titles were personal honours with strict rules of succession, and baronage titles were free baronies attached to land, and freely assignable, with each new baron requiring a confirmation charter from the crown (up until 1874) to ensure loyalty.
These are distinct from the titles above, created by writ or patent, and were constituents of the now defunct feudal baronage and are not therefore constituents of the modern, post-feudal peerage:
Peerages in the United Kingdom form a legal system comprising both hereditary and lifetime titles, composed of various ranks, and within the framework of the Constitution of the United Kingdom form a constituent part of the legislative process and the British honours system. The British monarch is considered the fount of honour and is notionally the only person who can grant peerages, though there are many conventions about how this power is used, especially at the request of the British government. The term peerage can be used both collectively to refer to the entire body of titled nobility, and individually to refer to a specific title. British peerage title holders are termed peers of the Realm.
Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knight, but lower than a viscount or count. Often, barons hold their fief – their lands and income – directly from the monarch. Barons are less often the vassals of other nobles. In many kingdoms, they were entitled to wear a smaller form of a crown called a coronet.
The Peerage of Ireland consists of those titles of nobility created by the English monarchs in their capacity as Lord or King of Ireland, or later by monarchs of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. It is one of the five divisions of Peerages in the United Kingdom. The creation of such titles came to an end in the 19th century. The ranks of the Irish peerage are duke, marquess, earl, viscount and baron. As of 2016, there were 135 titles in the Peerage of Ireland extant: two dukedoms, ten marquessates, 43 earldoms, 28 viscountcies, and 52 baronies. However, these titles have no official recognition in Ireland, with Article 40.2 of the Constitution of Ireland forbidding the state conferring titles of nobility and stating that an Irish citizen may not accept titles of nobility or honour except with the prior approval of the Irish government.
The Peerage of Scotland is one of the five divisions of peerages in the United Kingdom and for those peers created by the King of Scots before 1707. Following that year's Treaty of Union, the Kingdom of Scots and the Kingdom of England were combined under the name of Great Britain, and a new Peerage of Great Britain was introduced in which subsequent titles were created.
A Lord of Parliament was the holder of the lowest form of peerage, entitled as of right to take part in sessions of the pre-Union Parliament of Scotland. Since that Union in 1707, it has been the lowest rank of the Peerage of Scotland, ranking below a viscount. A Lord of Parliament is said to hold a Lordship of Parliament.
The hereditary peers form part of the peerage in the United Kingdom. As of November 2024, there are 801 hereditary peers: 30 dukes, 34 marquesses, 189 earls, 109 viscounts, and 439 barons.
The history of the British peerage, a system of nobility found in the United Kingdom, stretches over the last thousand years. The current form of the British peerage has been a process of development. While the ranks of baron and earl predate the British peerage itself, the ranks of duke and marquess were introduced to England in the 14th century. The rank of viscount came later, in the mid-15th century. Peers were summoned to Parliament, forming the House of Lords.
False titles of nobility or royal title scams are claimed titles of social rank that have been fabricated or assumed by an individual or family without recognition by the authorities of a country in which titles of nobility exist or once existed. They have received an increasing amount of press attention, as more schemes that purport to confer or sell such honorifics are promoted on the internet. Concern about the use of titles which lack legal standing or a basis in tradition has prompted increased vigilance and denunciation, although under English common law a person may choose to be known by any name they see fit as long as it is not done to "commit fraud or evade an obligation".
In Scotland, "baron" or "baroness" is a rank of the ancient nobility of the Baronage of Scotland, a hereditary title of honour, and refers to the holder of a barony, formerly a feudal superiority attached to land erected into a free barony by Crown Charter, this being the status of a minor baron, recognised by the crown as noble, but not a peer.
A feudal baron is a vassal holding a heritable fief called a barony, comprising a specific portion of land, granted by an overlord in return for allegiance and service. Following the end of European feudalism, feudal baronies have largely been superseded by baronies held as a rank of nobility, without any attachment to a fief.
The British nobility is made up of the peerage and the (landed) gentry. The nobility of its four constituent home nations has played a major role in shaping the history of the country, although the hereditary peerage now retain only the rights to stand for election to the House of Lords, dining rights there, position in the formal order of precedence, the right to certain titles, and the right to an audience with the monarch.
A Lord in the Baronage of Scotland is an ancient title of nobility, held in baroneum, which Latin term means that its holder, who is a lord, is also always a baron. The holder may or may not be a Lord of Regality, which meant that the holder was appointed by the Crown and had the power of "pit and gallows", meaning the power to authorise the death sentence.
In England, the baronage was the collectively inclusive term denoting all members of the feudal nobility, as observed by the constitutional authority Edward Coke. It was replaced eventually by the term peerage.
The Barony of Polop and Benidorm is an ancient Spanish hereditary lordship in the Kingdom of Valencia under the Crown of Aragon. The barony, including the castles of Polop and Benidorm and extensive land, is located in the province of Alicante, Valencia, Spain, only a few miles from the Mediterranean Sea.
An Earl/Marquis/Duke in the Baronage of Scotland is an ancient title of nobility that is held en baroneum, which means that its holder, who is a earl/marquis/duke in the Baronage of Scotland, is also always a baron. The holder may or may not be a Lord of Regality, which meant that the holder was appointed by the Crown and had the power of "pit and gallows", meaning the power to authorise the death sentence.
In the Baronage of Scotland, a Lord of Regality is an ancient noble title. Lords of regality were said to hold a regality - a type of territorial jurisdiction under old Scots law. This jurisdiction was created by erecting lands in liberam regalitatem, and the area over which this right extended became the regality.
Baron of Renfrew is a dignity in the Baronage of Scotland held by the heir apparent to the British throne, currently Prince William, Duke of Rothesay. It has been held by the Scottish heir apparent since 1404. It is closely associated with the title Duke of Rothesay. An act of the Scottish Parliament passed in 1469 confirmed the pattern of succession. Renfrew, a town near Glasgow, is sometimes called the "cradle of the royal Stewarts".
A peerage is a legal system historically comprising various hereditary titles in a number of countries, and composed of assorted noble ranks.
Baron of Arbroath or Lord Arbroath is a hereditary title of nobility, originally in the Scottish peerage, that was raised to a free lordship, barony, regality and lord of parliament by royal charter back in the 17th century, historically associated with the town of Arbroath in Angus, Scotland.
Sorted by granting monarch | ||
| King Henry III |  | |
| King Edward I | ||
| King Edward II | ||
| King Edward III | ||
| King Richard II | ||
| King Henry V | ||
| King Henry VI | ||
| King Edward IV | ||
| King Henry VII | ||
| King Henry VIII | ||
| Queen Elizabeth I | ||
| King James I | ||
| King Charles I | ||
| King Charles II | ||
| King William III | ||
Italics in entries mean the titleholder also holds a previously listed barony of greater precedence ^* Also a Lord of Parliament in the Peerage of Scotland | ||
Sorted by granting monarch | ||
| King James II | | |
| King James III | ||
| King James IV | ||
| Queen Mary I | ||
| King James VI | ||
| King Charles I | ||
| King Charles II | ||
| King William II & Queen Mary II | ||
Italics in entries mean the titleholder also holds a previously listed lordship of greater precedence ^* Also a Baron in the Peerage of England ^• Also a Baron in the Peerage of the United Kingdom | ||
