Marquess (title of nobility)
Marquess is a British title of nobility that corresponds to the German margrave . Margraves outside the British Isles are called "Marquis" or "Margrave" in English.
The title is the second highest nobility rank within the peerage and ranks after the Duke and before the Earl .
Up until the 14th century there was no comparable title of nobility in the British Isles, even if lords were sometimes referred to as Marchio in the Welsh and Scottish border brands . For the first time on December 1, 1385, King Richard II created the title of Marquess of Dublin for his favorite Robert de Vere, 9th Earl of Oxford . The title was only granted to him for life and on October 13, 1386 the title was withdrawn and he was given that of Duke of Ireland instead . On September 29, 1397 Richard II created two more marquess titles, namely those of Marquess of Dorset and Marquess of Somerset , both to his cousin John Beaufort, 1st Earl of Somerset . After Richard II was overthrown by Henry IV , this Beaufort recognized the marquess title on October 6, 1399 again. Although the House of Commons requested the restoration of the titles in 1402, Beaufort himself contradicted the fact that the term marquess was foreign in the Kingdom of England. The title was not used again until 1442 when Heinrich VI. Edmund Beaufort, 1st Earl of Dorset, Marquess of Dorset. From then on, the marquess had its place in the Peerage of England . In 1488 the first a marquess was created in the Peerage of Scotland ( Marquess of Ormond ), in 1642 the first in the Peerage of Ireland ( Marquess of Ormonde ). Marques titles were also awarded in the Peerage of Great Britain and the Peerage of the United Kingdom after their establishment.
The only women to date to have been granted a marquess title in their own right were Anne Boleyn as Marchioness of Pembroke in 1532 and Melusine von der Schulenburg as Marchioness of Dungannon in 1716 . Marques titles are inherited only in male descendants. The only exception so far was the title of Marquess Gray , which was bestowed with the special addition that it was exceptionally inheritable in 1740 to the granddaughter of the 1st Marquess, Jemima Yorke, as 2nd Marchioness Gray, and their male descendants.
A total of 135 Marques titles have been created in the history of the British Isles, 33 of them in the Peerage of England, 23 in the Peerage of Scotland, 24 in the Peerage of Ireland, 22 in the Peerage of Great Britain and 33 in the Peerage of the United Kingdom . The last award of a marquess title so far was that of Marquess of Willingdon in 1936 (expired in 1979).
A total of 55 awards still exist today, of which six are in the Peerage of England, 13 in the Peerage of Scotland, ten in the Peerage of Ireland, eight in the Peerage of Great Britain and 18 in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. The oldest remaining Marquess title is that of Marquess of Winchester (Peerage of England, 1585), the youngest is that of Marquess of Reading (Peerage of the United Kingdom, 1926).
Today, the Marques title is a purely professional distinction without any relation to territorial violence. The Marquess is followed by "The Most Honorable" written ( styled ) and is called "My Lord Marquess" addressed ( adressed ). The crown of rank of a marquess consists of a golden circlet with four prongs with golden strawberry leaves and four prongs with large silver pearls alternating, all connected and of the same height. The hat and lining, when worn, are the same as those of the other peers. The parliamentary cloak is scarlet and has three and a half ermine trimmings.
Individual evidence
- ^ The London Gazette : 7914, p. 1 , May 27, 1740.
- ↑ Burke's genealogical and heraldic history of the peerage, baronetage, and knightage, Privy Council, and order of preference . Burke's Peerage Ltd., London 1949, p. Xlii.
literature
- John Horace Round: Marquess. In: Encyclopædia Britannica . Volume 17, London 1911, p. 751 ( Wikisource ).
