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Duke Marquess Earl Viscount Baron


 Duke / Duchess


Created in England in 1337 under Edward III who made his eldest son Edward the Black Prince the Duke of Cornwall.

In England a Duke is the highest rank below a King or a Prince, while in other European countries the higher rank of Archduke or Grand Duke exists.

The first non-royal Duke was Robert de Vere, the Earl of Oxford, who in 1386 was made Duke of Ireland.

The eldest son of the ruling monarch is made the Duke of Cornwall and the second eldest the Duke of York.

 
Marquess / Marchioness

Created in England in 1385 under Richard II when Robert de Vere, the Earl of Oxford, was made Marquess of Dublin.

 Earl / Countess

Created in Anglo-Saxon times, it was before the Norman conquest the highest rank of nobility.

In other parts of Europe the equivalent rank is a Count.

 Viscount / Viscountess

Created in England in 1440 under Henry VI when John, Lord Beaumont was made into a Viscount, a rank placing him above all the Barons.

Baron / Baroness

Created in England under the Normans.

Information Genealogy in England