A marquess (UK: /ˈmɑː(r)kwɪs/;[1]French: marquis[maʁki])[2][a], Dutch: markies, is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman with the rank of a marquess or the wife (or widow) of a marquess is a marchioness or marquise. These titles are also used to translate equivalent Asian styles, as in Imperial China and Imperial Japan.
A 17th-century engraving of a marquis in the robe worn during his creation ceremony
The word marquess entered the English language from the Old Frenchmarchis ("ruler of a border area") in the late 13th or early 14th century. The French word was derived from marche ("frontier"), itself descended from the Middle Latinmarca ("frontier"), from which the modern English word march also descends. The distinction between governors of frontier territories and interior territories was made as early as the founding of the Roman Empire when some provinces were set aside for administration by the senate and more unpacified or vulnerable provinces were administered by the emperor. The titles "duke" and "count" were similarly distinguished as ranks in the Byzantine Empire, with dux (literally, "leader") being used for a provincial military governor and the rank of comes (literally "companion," that is, of the Emperor) given to the leader of an active army along the frontier.
In Spain, the rank of Marquess/Marchioness (Marqués/Marquesa) still exists. One hundred forty-two of them are Spanish grandees. Normally a marqués is addressed as "The Most Illustrious Lord" (Ilustrísimo Señor), or if he/she is a grandee as "The Most Excellent Lord" (Excelentísimo Señor). Examples include the Marquess of Carpio, Grandee of Spain.
In Great Britain and historically in Ireland, a marquess ranks below a duke and above an earl. A woman with the rank of a marquess, or the wife of a marquess, is a marchioness/ˌmɑːrʃəˈnɛs/.[3] The dignity, rank, or position of the title is a marquisate or marquessate.
The theoretical distinction between a marquess and other titles has, since the Middle Ages, faded into obscurity. In times past, the distinction between a count and a marquess was that the land of a marquess, called a march, was on the border of the country, while a count's land, called a county, often was not. As a result of this, a marquess was trusted to defend and fortify against potentially hostile neighbours and was thus more important and ranked higher than a count. The title is ranked below that of a duke, which was often largely restricted to the royal family.
The rank of marquess was a relatively late introduction to the British peerage: no marcher lords had the rank of marquess, though some were earls. On the evening of the Coronation of Queen Victoria in 1838, the Prime Minister Lord Melbourne explained to her why (from her journals):
I spoke to [Lord Melbourne] about the numbers of Peers present at the Coronation, & he said it was quite unprecedented. I observed that there were very few Viscounts, to which he replied "There are very few Viscounts," that they were an old sort of title & not really English; that they came from Vice-Comites; that Dukes & Barons were the only real English titles; – that Marquises were likewise not English, & that people were mere made Marquises, when it was not wished that they should be made Dukes.[5]
Like other major Western noble titles, marquess (or marquis) is sometimes used to translate certain titles from non-Western languages with their own traditions, even though they are, as a rule, historically unrelated and thus hard to compare. However, they are considered "equivalent" in relative rank.
This is the case with:
In ancient China, 侯 (hóu) was the second of five noble ranks 爵 (jué) created by King Wu of Zhou and is generally translated as marquess or marquis. In imperial China, 侯 (hóu) is generally, but not always, a middle-to-high ranking hereditary nobility title. Its exact rank varies greatly from dynasty to dynasty, and even within a dynasty. It is often created with different sub-ranks.
In Meiji Japan, 侯爵 (kōshaku), a hereditary peerage (kazoku) rank, was introduced in 1884, granting a hereditary seat in the upper house of the imperial diet just as a British peerage did (until the House of Lords Act 1999), with the ranks usually rendered as baron, viscount, count, marquis and duke/prince.[6]
In Korea, the title of 현후 (縣侯; hyeonhu), the meaning of which is "marquess of district", existed for the hereditary nobility in the Goryeo dynasty. It was equivalent to the upper fifth rank of nine bureaucratic orders, and was in the third rank of six nobility orders. The title of Buwongun, could be received only Father in law of King or The Vassals who dedicate Notably to create New kingdom is also same as Marquess. In the Joseon dynasty, there was no title equivalent to marquess.
In Maritime Southeast Asia, temenggong (or tumenggung) is a title used by Islamic dynasties such as Mataram Sultanate and Johor to designate a noble ruled over a frontier area or district, or to a chief of public security. Tumenggung ranks below Bendahara or vizier.
In Vietnam, hầu (侯) was a senior title of hereditary nobility, equivalent to marquis, for male members of the imperial clan, ranking under hoàng đế (皇帝)(emperor), vương (王)(king/prince), quốc công (國公)(grand duke/duke of the nation), quận công (郡公)(provincial duke) and công (公)(duke, rather like a German Fürst), and above bá (伯)(count), tử (子)(viscount) and nam (男)(baron).
^. Debrett's. n.d. Archived from the original on 10 November 2014. Retrieved 22 September 2014.
^Queen Victoria's Journals, Thursday 28th June 1838, Buckingham Palace, Princess Beatrice's copies, Volume:4 (1st June 1838–1st October 1838) p. 84, online, accessed May 25, 2013
^Lebra, Takie Sugiyama (1993). Above the Clouds: Status Culture of the Modern Japanese Nobility. CA, USA: University of California Press. p. 51. ISBN9780520911796.
The Chronological Peerage of England, hereditarytitles.com as of 2 March 2003; ; omits Normanby, misspells Hartington as Martington, places Marquess of Lorn and Kintyre in the peerage of England (Scotland is more probable).
EtymologyOnLine
Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Buckingham and Normanby, John Sheffield, 1st Duke of" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 4 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 727–728. — "and in 1694 was made marquess of Normanby"
marquess, this, article, about, hereditary, title, nobility, other, uses, disambiguation, marquis, redirects, here, confused, with, maquis, marchesa, marchese, marchioness, marquis, marquise, marquesa, redirect, here, other, uses, marchesa, disambiguation, mar. This article is about the hereditary title of nobility For other uses see Marquess disambiguation Marquis redirects here Not to be confused with Maquis Marchesa Marchese Marchioness Marquis Marquise and Marquesa redirect here For other uses see Marchesa disambiguation Marchese disambiguation Marchioness disambiguation Marquis disambiguation Marquise disambiguation and Marquesa disambiguation A marquess UK ˈ m ɑː r k w ɪ s 1 French marquis maʁki 2 a Dutch markies is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies The German language equivalent is Markgraf margrave A woman with the rank of a marquess or the wife or widow of a marquess is a marchioness or marquise These titles are also used to translate equivalent Asian styles as in Imperial China and Imperial Japan Contents 1 Etymology 2 Belgium 3 Spain 4 United Kingdom 5 Equivalent non Western titles 6 In fiction 7 See also 8 Notes 9 References 10 External linksEtymology Edit A 17th century engraving of a marquis in the robe worn during his creation ceremony The word marquess entered the English language from the Old French marchis ruler of a border area in the late 13th or early 14th century The French word was derived from marche frontier itself descended from the Middle Latin marca frontier from which the modern English word march also descends The distinction between governors of frontier territories and interior territories was made as early as the founding of the Roman Empire when some provinces were set aside for administration by the senate and more unpacified or vulnerable provinces were administered by the emperor The titles duke and count were similarly distinguished as ranks in the Byzantine Empire with dux literally leader being used for a provincial military governor and the rank of comes literally companion that is of the Emperor given to the leader of an active army along the frontier Belgium EditThe title of marquess in Belgium predates the French Revolution and still exists today See Belgian nobility Marquesses in the Belgian nobility and List of noble families in Belgium Marquesses Spain EditIn Spain the rank of Marquess Marchioness Marques Marquesa still exists One hundred forty two of them are Spanish grandees Normally a marques is addressed as The Most Illustrious Lord Ilustrisimo Senor or if he she is a grandee as The Most Excellent Lord Excelentisimo Senor Examples include the Marquess of Carpio Grandee of Spain United Kingdom EditMain article Marquesses in the United Kingdom In Great Britain and historically in Ireland a marquess ranks below a duke and above an earl A woman with the rank of a marquess or the wife of a marquess is a marchioness ˌ m ɑː r ʃ e ˈ n ɛ s 3 The dignity rank or position of the title is a marquisate or marquessate The honorific prefix The Most Honourable precedes the name of a marquess or marchioness of the United Kingdom 4 In Great Britain and historically in Ireland the spelling of this title is marquess In Scotland the French spelling marquis is sometimes used The coronet for a marquess in the British realms The theoretical distinction between a marquess and other titles has since the Middle Ages faded into obscurity In times past the distinction between a count and a marquess was that the land of a marquess called a march was on the border of the country while a count s land called a county often was not As a result of this a marquess was trusted to defend and fortify against potentially hostile neighbours and was thus more important and ranked higher than a count The title is ranked below that of a duke which was often largely restricted to the royal family The rank of marquess was a relatively late introduction to the British peerage no marcher lords had the rank of marquess though some were earls On the evening of the Coronation of Queen Victoria in 1838 the Prime Minister Lord Melbourne explained to her why from her journals I spoke to Lord Melbourne about the numbers of Peers present at the Coronation amp he said it was quite unprecedented I observed that there were very few Viscounts to which he replied There are very few Viscounts that they were an old sort of title amp not really English that they came from Vice Comites that Dukes amp Barons were the only real English titles that Marquises were likewise not English amp that people were mere made Marquises when it was not wished that they should be made Dukes 5 Equivalent non Western titles Edit The Marquess of Trazegnies Like other major Western noble titles marquess or marquis is sometimes used to translate certain titles from non Western languages with their own traditions even though they are as a rule historically unrelated and thus hard to compare However they are considered equivalent in relative rank This is the case with In ancient China 侯 hou was the second of five noble ranks 爵 jue created by King Wu of Zhou and is generally translated as marquess or marquis In imperial China 侯 hou is generally but not always a middle to high ranking hereditary nobility title Its exact rank varies greatly from dynasty to dynasty and even within a dynasty It is often created with different sub ranks In Meiji Japan 侯爵 kōshaku a hereditary peerage kazoku rank was introduced in 1884 granting a hereditary seat in the upper house of the imperial diet just as a British peerage did until the House of Lords Act 1999 with the ranks usually rendered as baron viscount count marquis and duke prince 6 In Korea the title of 현후 縣侯 hyeonhu the meaning of which is marquess of district existed for the hereditary nobility in the Goryeo dynasty It was equivalent to the upper fifth rank of nine bureaucratic orders and was in the third rank of six nobility orders The title of Buwongun could be received only Father in law of King or The Vassals who dedicate Notably to create New kingdom is also same as Marquess In the Joseon dynasty there was no title equivalent to marquess In Maritime Southeast Asia temenggong or tumenggung is a title used by Islamic dynasties such as Mataram Sultanate and Johor to designate a noble ruled over a frontier area or district or to a chief of public security Tumenggung ranks below Bendahara or vizier In Vietnam hầu 侯 was a senior title of hereditary nobility equivalent to marquis for male members of the imperial clan ranking under hoang đế 皇帝 emperor vương 王 king prince quốc cong 國公 grand duke duke of the nation quận cong 郡公 provincial duke and cong 公 duke rather like a German Furst and above ba 伯 count tử 子 viscount and nam 男 baron In fiction EditSee also List of fictional nobility Marquesses and marchionesses Marquesses and marchionesses have occasionally appeared in works of fiction See also EditMark county Marquesses in the United Kingdom List of marquesses in the peerages of Britain and Ireland List of marquessates in the peerages of Britain and Ireland List of marquesses in Italy List of marquises in Norway List of marquises in Portugal ExarchNotes Edit Italian marchese Spanish marques Portuguese marques References Edit English Marquis Collins Dictionary n d Retrieved 22 September 2014 French Marquis Collins Dictionary n d Retrieved 22 September 2014 Marchioness Collins Dictionary n d Retrieved 22 September 2014 Marquess and Marchioness Debrett s n d Archived from the original on 10 November 2014 Retrieved 22 September 2014 Queen Victoria s Journals Thursday 28th June 1838 Buckingham Palace Princess Beatrice s copies Volume 4 1st June 1838 1st October 1838 p 84 online accessed May 25 2013 Lebra Takie Sugiyama 1993 Above the Clouds Status Culture of the Modern Japanese Nobility CA USA University of California Press p 51 ISBN 9780520911796 The Chronological Peerage of England hereditarytitles com as of 2 March 2003 1 omits Normanby misspells Hartington as Martington places Marquess of Lorn and Kintyre in the peerage of England Scotland is more probable EtymologyOnLine Chisholm Hugh ed 1911 Buckingham and Normanby John Sheffield 1st Duke of Encyclopaedia Britannica Vol 4 11th ed Cambridge University Press pp 727 728 and in 1694 was made marquess of Normanby External links Edit Media related to Marquesses at Wikimedia Commons Marquess Encyclopaedia Britannica Vol 17 11th ed 1911 p 751 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Marquess amp oldid 1153054967, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
