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Amarquess (UK:/ˈmɑːrkwɪs/;[1]French:marquis[maʁki])[2][a] is anobleman of high hereditary rank in various Europeanpeerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German-language equivalent isMarkgraf (margrave). A woman with the rank of a marquess or thewife (or widow) of a marquess is amarchioness (/mɑːrˈʃənɛs/[3]) ormarquise (French:[maʁkiz]ⓘ). These titles are also used to translate equivalent Asian styles, as inImperial China andImperial Japan.
The wordmarquess entered the English language from theOld Frenchmarchis ("ruler of a border area") in the late 13th or early 14th century. The French word was derived frommarche ("frontier"), itself descended from theMiddle Latinmarca ("frontier"), from which the modern English wordmarch also descends. The distinction between governors of frontier territories and interior territories was made as early as the founding of theRoman 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 theByzantine Empire, withdux (literally, "leader") being used for a provincial military governor and the rank ofcomes (literally "companion", that is, of the Emperor) given to the leader of an active army along the frontier.
The title of marquess in Belgium predates the French Revolution and still exists today. SeeBelgian nobility § Marquesses in the Belgian nobility andList of noble families in Belgium § Marquesses.
In Spain, the rank of Marquess/Marchioness (Marqués/Marquesa) still exists. One hundred forty-two of them are Spanishgrandees. Normally amarqués 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 theMarquess of Carpio,Grandee of Spain.
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In Great Britain and historically in Ireland, a marquess ranks below aduke and above anearl. A woman with the rank of a marquess, or the wife of a marquess, is amarchioness/ˌmɑːrʃəˈnɛs/.[4] The dignity, rank, or position of the title is a marquisate or marquessate.
Thehonorific prefix "The Most Honourable" precedes the name of a marquess or marchioness of theUnited Kingdom.[5]
InGreat Britain, and historically inIreland, the spelling of this title ismarquess. In Scotland, the French spellingmarquis is sometimes used.
The theoretical distinction between a marquess and other titles has, since theMiddle Ages, faded into obscurity. In times past, the distinction between acount and a marquess was that the land of a marquess, called amarch, was on the border of the country, while a count's land, called acounty, 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 aduke, which was often largely restricted to the royal family.
The rank of marquess was a relatively late introduction to the British peerage: nomarcher lords had the rank of marquess, though some wereearls. On the evening of theCoronation of Queen Victoria in 1838, the Prime MinisterLord 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 fewViscounts," 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.[6]
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:
Marquesses and marchionesses have occasionally appeared in works of fiction.
Media related toMarquesses at Wikimedia Commons
