Titles and Precedence
For commonly used names for specific monarchs, see List of monarchs by nickname.The normal monarch title in Europe — i.e., the one used if the monarch has no higher title — is prince or princess, by convention. As an absolute ruler, a monarch can choose a title. However, titles are usually defined by tradition and diplomatic considerations.
Note that some of these titles have several meanings and do not necessarily designate a monarch. A Prince may be a person of royal blood (some languages uphold this distinction, see Fürst). A Duke may be a British peer. In Imperial Russia, a Grand Duke was a son or grandson of the Tsar or Tsarina. Holders of titles in these alternative meanings did not enjoy the same status as the monarchs of the same title.
Within the Holy Roman Empire, there were even more titles that were used occasionally for monarchs although they were normally noble; Margrave, Count Palatine, and Landgrave. A monarch with such a low title was still regarded as more important than a noble Duke.
The table below lists titles in order of precedence. According to protocol any holder of a title of monarchy took precedence over all holders of a lower title. Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom was arguably the most powerful monarch of her time, but at banquets was seated below all the Emperors until she took the title of Empress of India.
| Male version | Female version | Realm | Adjective | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Emperor | Empress | Empire | Imperial | Roman Empire, Byzantine Empire, Ottoman Empire, Holy Roman Empire, Russia, Korean Empire, Mongol Empire, Imperial China, First and Second French Empire, Austria, Mexico, Brazil, German Empire (none left in Europe after 1918), Empress of India (ceased to be used after 1947 when India was granted independence from the British Empire), Japan (the only remaining enthroned emperor in the world). |
| King | Queen | Kingdom | Royal | Common in larger sovereign states |
| Viceroy | Vicereine | Viceroyalty | Viceregal | Historical: Spanish Empire (Peru, New Spain, Rio de la Plata, New Granada), Portuguese Empire, (India, Brazil), British Empire |
| Grand Duke | Grand Duchess | Grand Duchy | Grand Ducal | Today: Luxembourg; historical: Lithuania, Baden, Finland, Tuscany et al. |
| Archduke | Archduchess | Archduchy | Archducal | Historical: Unique only in Austria, Archduchy of Austria; title used for member of the Habsburg dynasty |
| Prince | Princess | Principality, Princely state | Princely | Today: Monaco, Liechtenstein; Andorra (Co-Princes). Historical: Principality of Albania, Serbia |
| Duke | Duchess | Duchy, Dukedom | Ducal | There are none left currently. Though historical examples include Normandy. |
| Count | Countess | County | Countly, comital | Most common in the Holy Roman Empire, translated in German as Graf; historical: Barcelona, Brandenburg, Baden, numerous others |
| Lord | Lady | Lordship | Lordly | Today: Isle of Mann; historical: Lordship of Ireland |
| Baron | Baroness | Barony | Baronial | There are normal baronies and sovereign baronies, a sovereign barony can be compared with a principality, however, this is an historical exception; sovereign barons no longer have a sovereign barony, but only the title and style |
| Pope | Females cannot hold the office of Pope | Papacy | Papal | Monarch of the Papal States and later Sovereign of the State of Vatican City |
The pope is the Bishop of Rome (a celibate office always forbidden to women), in English however, reports of female popes such as (Pope Joan) refer to them as pope and Popess is used, among other things, for the second trump in the Tarot deck; some European languages also have a feminine form of the word pope, such as the Italian papessa, the French papesse, and the German Päpstin.
Read more about this topic: Monarch
Famous quotes containing the words titles and, titles and/or precedence:
“We have to be despised by somebody whom we regard as above us, or we are not happy; we have to have somebody to worship and envy, or we cannot be content. In America we manifest this in all the ancient and customary ways. In public we scoff at titles and hereditary privilege, but privately we hanker after them, and when we get a chance we buy them for cash and a daughter.”
—Mark Twain [Samuel Langhorne Clemens] (1835–1910)
“Lear. Dost thou call me fool, boy?
Fool. All thy other titles thou hast given away; that thou wast born with.”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)
“What is line? It is life. A line must live at each point along its course in such a way that the artist’s presence makes itself felt above that of the model.... With the writer, line takes precedence over form and content. It runs through the words he assembles. It strikes a continuous note unperceived by ear or eye. It is, in a way, the soul’s style, and if the line ceases to have a life of its own, if it only describes an arabesque, the soul is missing and the writing dies.”
—Jean Cocteau (1889–1963)