Marquesses in the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth
Encyclopedia
Marquess is a rank of nobility
in the peerage
s of the British Isles
.
Unlike the position on the continent of Europe, in the Kingdom of England
, and later in Great Britain
and the United Kingdom
, the monarchy is the only one capable of awarding titles of nobility
. There are currently thirty-four such marquessates (see List).
on 1 December 1385. On 13 October 1386, the patent of this marquessate was recalled, and Robert de Vere was raised to the rank of the Duke of Ireland
. John Beaufort, 1st Earl of Somerset
, the second illegitimate son of John of Gaunt, was raised to the second marquessate as the Marquess of Dorset
in September 1397. In 1399, he was disgraced, and the king revoked his marquessate. The House of Commons of England
later petitioned King Henry IV
for his restoration, but the King objected stating "the name of marquess is a strange name in this realm". From that period the title appears to have been dormant till the reign of Henry VI, when it was revived in 1442. The only woman to be appointed as a marquess in her own right was Anne Boleyn
, who was created Marchioness of Pembroke in preparation for her marriage to Henry VIII
. The investiture ceremony was held at Windsor Castle
on 1 September 1532.
The Marquessate of Winchester
(created in 1551) is the oldest surviving English
or British
marquessate still in existence, and as a result the holder of the title is considered the "Premier Marquess of England
". Since Marquessates in England created after 1707 became Marquessates of Great Britain
and, from 1801, of the United Kingdom
, he is now the only English Marquess with no higher rank; all other English Marquesses are also Dukes
and use their title of Marquess as a subsidiary title
.
s of India were appointed as marquesses after their term of office. Some of the German relations of King George V
were made marquesses in the Peerage of the United Kingdom
after renouncing their German princely titles in 1917. Prince Louis of Battenberg, the princely head of the Battenberg family
, became the first Marquess of Milford Haven
.
[X]', and his wife "Lady
[X]". As with duke
s, all sons of a marquess have the courtesy style
of "Lord Forename [Surname]" and all daughters have the courtesy style of "Lady Forename [Surname]". The style for the eldest son, however, is often trumped by a subsidiary title
of his father, such as earl
or viscount
, which is used instead. Especially for signing documents, the signature being only the name of the title, [X]). This form of signature is true for all peers, including peers by courtesy. For example, the Marquess of Salisbury
would sign his name merely "Salisbury".
A marquess by courtesy, however (who would always be the heir to a dukedom, since the courtesy title of an heir must always be at least one rank below that of the peer), does not enjoy the style of "Most Honourable", but is merely known as Marquess of [X] (the definite article is omitted because the Duke would be the Marquess of [X]). The genuine marquess as a peer, however, is always the "Most Honourable the Marquess of [X]", to differentiate a marquess by courtesy (i.e., the heir to a dukedom) from a marquess in his own right.
The spelling of the title in Scotland is very often "Marquis", particularly when the title was created prior to the formation of the Kingdom of Great Britain
in 1707.
Nobility
Nobility is a social class which possesses more acknowledged privileges or eminence than members of most other classes in a society, membership therein typically being hereditary. The privileges associated with nobility may constitute substantial advantages over or relative to non-nobles, or may be...
in the peerage
Peerage
The Peerage is a legal system of largely hereditary titles in the United Kingdom, which constitute the ranks of British nobility and is part of the British honours system...
s of the British Isles
British Isles
The British Isles are a group of islands off the northwest coast of continental Europe that include the islands of Great Britain and Ireland and over six thousand smaller isles. There are two sovereign states located on the islands: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and...
.
Unlike the position on the continent of Europe, in the Kingdom of England
Kingdom of England
The Kingdom of England was, from 927 to 1707, a sovereign state to the northwest of continental Europe. At its height, the Kingdom of England spanned the southern two-thirds of the island of Great Britain and several smaller outlying islands; what today comprises the legal jurisdiction of England...
, and later in Great Britain
Kingdom of Great Britain
The former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
and the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, the monarchy is the only one capable of awarding titles of nobility
Fount of honour
The fount of honour refers to a nation's head of state, who, by virtue of his or her official position, has the exclusive right of conferring legitimate titles of nobility and orders of chivalry to other persons.- Origin :...
. There are currently thirty-four such marquessates (see List).
Peerage of England
The first marquess in England was Robert de Vere, 9th Earl of Oxford, who was appointed the Marquess of Dublin by King Richard II of EnglandRichard II of England
Richard II was King of England, a member of the House of Plantagenet and the last of its main-line kings. He ruled from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399. Richard was a son of Edward, the Black Prince, and was born during the reign of his grandfather, Edward III...
on 1 December 1385. On 13 October 1386, the patent of this marquessate was recalled, and Robert de Vere was raised to the rank of the Duke of Ireland
Duke of Ireland
The title of Duke of Ireland was created in 1386 for Robert de Vere, 9th Earl of Oxford, the favourite of King Richard II of England, who had previously been created Marquess of Dublin. Both titles were Life peerages. At this time, only the Pale of Ireland was under English rule...
. John Beaufort, 1st Earl of Somerset
John Beaufort, 1st Earl of Somerset
John Beaufort, 1st Marquess of Somerset and 1st Marquess of Dorset, later only 1st Earl of Somerset, KG was the first of the four illegitimate children of John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster, and his mistress Katherine Swynford, later his wife...
, the second illegitimate son of John of Gaunt, was raised to the second marquessate as the Marquess of Dorset
Marquess of Dorset
The title Marquess of Dorset has been created three times in the Peerage of England. It was first created in 1397 for John Beaufort, 1st Earl of Somerset, but he lost the title two years later. It was then created in 1442 for Edmund Beaufort, 1st Earl of Dorset, who was created Duke of Somerset...
in September 1397. In 1399, he was disgraced, and the king revoked his marquessate. The House of Commons of England
House of Commons of England
The House of Commons of England was the lower house of the Parliament of England from its development in the 14th century to the union of England and Scotland in 1707, when it was replaced by the House of Commons of Great Britain...
later petitioned King Henry IV
Henry IV of England
Henry IV was King of England and Lord of Ireland . He was the ninth King of England of the House of Plantagenet and also asserted his grandfather's claim to the title King of France. He was born at Bolingbroke Castle in Lincolnshire, hence his other name, Henry Bolingbroke...
for his restoration, but the King objected stating "the name of marquess is a strange name in this realm". From that period the title appears to have been dormant till the reign of Henry VI, when it was revived in 1442. The only woman to be appointed as a marquess in her own right was Anne Boleyn
Anne Boleyn
Anne Boleyn ;c.1501/1507 – 19 May 1536) was Queen of England from 1533 to 1536 as the second wife of Henry VIII of England and Marquess of Pembroke in her own right. Henry's marriage to Anne, and her subsequent execution, made her a key figure in the political and religious upheaval that was the...
, who was created Marchioness of Pembroke in preparation for her marriage to Henry VIII
Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
. The investiture ceremony was held at Windsor Castle
Windsor Castle
Windsor Castle is a medieval castle and royal residence in Windsor in the English county of Berkshire, notable for its long association with the British royal family and its architecture. The original castle was built after the Norman invasion by William the Conqueror. Since the time of Henry I it...
on 1 September 1532.
The Marquessate of Winchester
Winchester
Winchester is a historic cathedral city and former capital city of England. It is the county town of Hampshire, in South East England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government district, and is located at the western end of the South Downs, along the course of...
(created in 1551) is the oldest surviving English
Peerage of England
The Peerage of England comprises all peerages created in the Kingdom of England before the Act of Union in 1707. In that year, the Peerages of England and Scotland were replaced by one Peerage of Great Britain....
or British
Peerage of the United Kingdom
The Peerage of the United Kingdom comprises most peerages created in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland after the Act of Union in 1801, when it replaced the Peerage of Great Britain...
marquessate still in existence, and as a result the holder of the title is considered the "Premier Marquess of England
Marquess of Winchester
Marquess of Winchester is a title in the Peerage of England. It was created in 1551 for the prominent statesman William Paulet, 1st Earl of Wiltshire. He had already been created Baron St John in 1539 and Earl of Wiltshire in 1550, also in the Peerage of England...
". Since Marquessates in England created after 1707 became Marquessates of Great Britain
Peerage of Great Britain
The Peerage of Great Britain comprises all extant peerages created in the Kingdom of Great Britain after the Act of Union 1707 but before the Act of Union 1800...
and, from 1801, of the United Kingdom
Peerage of the United Kingdom
The Peerage of the United Kingdom comprises most peerages created in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland after the Act of Union in 1801, when it replaced the Peerage of Great Britain...
, he is now the only English Marquess with no higher rank; all other English Marquesses are also Dukes
Dukes
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and use their title of Marquess as a subsidiary title
Subsidiary title
A subsidiary title is an hereditary title held by a royal or a noble but which is not regularly used to identify that person.For example, the Duke of Norfolk is also the Earl of Arundel, the Earl of Surrey, the Earl of Norfolk, the Baron Beaumont, the Baron Maltravers, the Baron FitzAlan, the Baron...
.
Peerage of the United Kingdom
The title Marquess was always higher than that of an Earl. In the late 19th and the 20th century many ViceroyViceroy
A viceroy is a royal official who runs a country, colony, or province in the name of and as representative of the monarch. The term derives from the Latin prefix vice-, meaning "in the place of" and the French word roi, meaning king. A viceroy's province or larger territory is called a viceroyalty...
s of India were appointed as marquesses after their term of office. Some of the German relations of King George V
George V of the United Kingdom
George V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 through the First World War until his death in 1936....
were made marquesses in the Peerage of the United Kingdom
Peerage of the United Kingdom
The Peerage of the United Kingdom comprises most peerages created in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland after the Act of Union in 1801, when it replaced the Peerage of Great Britain...
after renouncing their German princely titles in 1917. Prince Louis of Battenberg, the princely head of the Battenberg family
Battenberg family
The Battenberg family was a morganatic branch of the House of Hesse-Darmstadt, rulers of the Grand Duchy of Hesse in Germany. The first member was Julia Hauke, whose brother-in-law Grand Duke Louis III of Hesse created her Countess of Battenberg with the style Illustrious Highness in 1851, at her...
, became the first Marquess of Milford Haven
Marquess of Milford Haven
Marquess of Milford Haven is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1917 for Prince Louis of Battenberg, the former First Sea Lord, and a relation to the British Royal family, who amidst the anti-German sentiments of the First World War abandoned the use of his German...
.
Forms of address
An English, British or UK marquess is formally styled "The Most Honourable The Marquess of [X]" and informally styled "LordLord
Lord is a title with various meanings. It can denote a prince or a feudal superior . The title today is mostly used in connection with the peerage of the United Kingdom or its predecessor countries, although some users of the title do not themselves hold peerages, and use it 'by courtesy'...
[X]', and his wife "Lady
Lady
The word lady is a polite term for a woman, specifically the female equivalent to, or spouse of, a lord or gentleman, and in many contexts a term for any adult woman...
[X]". As with duke
Duke
A duke or duchess is a member of the nobility, historically of highest rank below the monarch, and historically controlling a duchy...
s, all sons of a marquess have the courtesy style
Courtesy title
A courtesy title is a form of address in systems of nobility used for children, former wives and other close relatives of a peer. These styles are used 'by courtesy' in the sense that the relatives do not themselves hold substantive titles...
of "Lord Forename [Surname]" and all daughters have the courtesy style of "Lady Forename [Surname]". The style for the eldest son, however, is often trumped by a subsidiary title
Courtesy title
A courtesy title is a form of address in systems of nobility used for children, former wives and other close relatives of a peer. These styles are used 'by courtesy' in the sense that the relatives do not themselves hold substantive titles...
of his father, such as earl
Earl
An earl is a member of the nobility. The title is Anglo-Saxon, akin to the Scandinavian form jarl, and meant "chieftain", particularly a chieftain set to rule a territory in a king's stead. In Scandinavia, it became obsolete in the Middle Ages and was replaced with duke...
or viscount
Viscount
A viscount or viscountess is a member of the European nobility whose comital title ranks usually, as in the British peerage, above a baron, below an earl or a count .-Etymology:...
, which is used instead. Especially for signing documents, the signature being only the name of the title, [X]). This form of signature is true for all peers, including peers by courtesy. For example, the Marquess of Salisbury
Marquess of Salisbury
Marquess of Salisbury is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1789 for the 7th Earl of Salisbury. Most of the holders of the title have been prominent in British political life over the last two centuries, particularly the 3rd Marquess, who served three times as Prime Minister...
would sign his name merely "Salisbury".
A marquess by courtesy, however (who would always be the heir to a dukedom, since the courtesy title of an heir must always be at least one rank below that of the peer), does not enjoy the style of "Most Honourable", but is merely known as Marquess of [X] (the definite article is omitted because the Duke would be the Marquess of [X]). The genuine marquess as a peer, however, is always the "Most Honourable the Marquess of [X]", to differentiate a marquess by courtesy (i.e., the heir to a dukedom) from a marquess in his own right.
The spelling of the title in Scotland is very often "Marquis", particularly when the title was created prior to the formation of the Kingdom of Great Britain
Kingdom of Great Britain
The former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
in 1707.