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Titles / Nobility   Written by Thérèse (3/19/2013 2:14 p.m.) in consequence of the missive, Wealth and nobiltiy, penned by bridget D
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It is a bit difficult for me, with my French and a bit of Spanish culture, to see "noble" associated with titles...


In France, only a noble person could wear a title; therefore, when the king would create a title for a commoner, this commoner had to be anoblished before.
But being noble didn't mean holding a title : the vas majority of noblemen did not. Being noble was, descending in male line from a noble, and having not derogated (and rules were very tough). That is, what I call here "noble kindred". You needed to prove at least a hundred years of noble life.
In Spain, as titles could be transmitted by female line, and there was no process of anoblishment, while nobility (hidalguía/infanzona/fidalguía) was by male line (with two exceptions, the best known being the Solar of Tejada), titles and nobility were even more disconnected, and Philip V could not do much : thus the well known reply from one of his courtiers "Majestad, podéis hacer nobles, pero hidalgos no los hace más que Dios y el tiempo" — "Majesty, you can make nobles (in the English meaning there, resulting from the confrontation betwin French and Spanish ways), but hidalgos nobody can but God and time."
A very well known recent example is with the Koplowitz sisters (link below to the eldest's Wikipedia page) whose father was of Polish commoner origin, who married a Spanish woman holding several titles.
Or the future duchess of Montoro, whose mother is the only daughter of the duchess of Alba who gave her her maiden title, and her father (Francisco Rivera Ordóñez) a very well known bullfighter, of the highest bullfighters aristocracy but a commoner, just retired to keep her ward.

Back to England, I think that a gentleman could claim a title which a female ancestor of his was heiress, or co-heiress of, of course subject to royal approval?


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