Croatian nobility ( hr, plemstvo, lit=vlastelin; french: la noblesse) was a privileged
social class
A social class is a grouping of people into a set of Dominance hierarchy, hierarchical social categories, the most common being the Upper class, upper, Middle class, middle and Working class, lower classes. Membership in a social class can for ...
in Croatia during the
Antiquity and
Medieval
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...
periods of the country's history. Noble families in the
Kingdom of Croatia Kingdom of Croatia may refer to:
* Kingdom of Croatia (925–1102), an independent medieval kingdom
* Croatia in personal union with Hungary (1102–1526), a kingdom in personal union with the Kingdom of Hungary
* Kingdom of Croatia (Habsburg) (152 ...
included high ranking populates from
Slavonia
Slavonia (; hr, Slavonija) is, with Dalmatia, Croatia proper, and Istria, one of the four historical regions of Croatia. Taking up the east of the country, it roughly corresponds with five Croatian counties: Brod-Posavina, Osijek-Baranja ...
,
Dalmatia
Dalmatia (; hr, Dalmacija ; it, Dalmazia; see #Name, names in other languages) is one of the four historical region, historical regions of Croatia, alongside Croatia proper, Slavonia, and Istria. Dalmatia is a narrow belt of the east shore of ...
,
Istria
Istria ( ; Croatian language, Croatian and Slovene language, Slovene: ; ist, Eîstria; Istro-Romanian language, Istro-Romanian, Italian language, Italian and Venetian language, Venetian: ; formerly in Latin and in Ancient Greek) is the larges ...
, and
Republic of Ragusa
hr, Sloboda se ne prodaje za sve zlato svijeta it, La libertà non si vende nemmeno per tutto l'oro del mondo"Liberty is not sold for all the gold in the world"
, population_estimate = 90 000 in the XVI Century
, currency = ...
. Members belonged to an elite
social hierarchy
Social stratification refers to a society's categorization of its people into groups based on socioeconomic factors like wealth, income, race, education, ethnicity, gender, occupation, social status, or derived power (social and political). As su ...
, normally placed immediately behind
blood royalty, that possessed considerably more
privileges or
eminence than most other classes in a society. Membership thereof typically was often
hereditary
Heredity, also called inheritance or biological inheritance, is the passing on of traits from parents to their offspring; either through asexual reproduction or sexual reproduction, the offspring cells or organisms acquire the genetic inform ...
. Historically, membership in the nobility and the prerogatives thereof have been regulated or acknowledged by the
monarch
A monarch is a head of stateWebster's II New College DictionarMonarch Houghton Mifflin. Boston. 2001. p. 707. Life tenure, for life or until abdication, and therefore the head of state of a monarchy. A monarch may exercise the highest authority ...
. Acquisition of sufficient power, wealth, military prowess or
royal favour enabled commoners to ascend into the nobility. The country's royalty was heavily influenced by
France's nobility resulting members of the Royal Courts to assume French titles and practices during
French occupation. The controversial assumption of French practices contributed to wide spread political and
social elitism among the nobles and monarch. The nobility regarded the peasant class as an unseen and irrelevant substrata of people which lead to high causality
revolts and
beheadings
Decapitation or beheading is the total separation of the head from the body. Such an injury is invariably fatal to humans and most other animals, since it deprives the brain of oxygenated blood, while all other organs are deprived of the au ...
as well as sporadic periods of intense domestic violence.
Croatian Kings and Queen consorts often established
duchies
A duchy, also called a dukedom, is a medieval country, territory, fief, or domain ruled by a duke or duchess, a ruler hierarchically second to the king or queen in Western European tradition.
There once existed an important difference between " ...
culminating in the
Duchy of Croatia.
Duke
Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...
s or
Duchess
Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ranked ...
es were to rule a large territories within the Kingdom. Under the rule of the country's first King, Croatia became one of the most powerful kingdoms in the
Balkans
The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...
. Nobles possessed unprecedented power over the governed, and were one of the first members of royalty to advocate for
monarchical absolutism
Absolute monarchy (or Absolutism as a doctrine) is a form of monarchy in which the monarch rules in their own right or power. In an absolute monarchy, the king or queen is by no means limited and has absolute power, though a limited constituti ...
.
Many nobles were charged with the administration of numerous territories and at the height of the Kingdom's power royals ruled nearly eleven separate countries and dozens of extended domains.
History of Croatian nobility
![Povelja kneza Muncimira](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/Povelja_kneza_Muncimira.jpg)
Croatia was elevated to the status of Kingdom around 925, and the notions of nobility quickly followed. The nobility of the continental and island states of Croatia played a major role in shaping the history of the country, although in the present day even hereditary peers have no special rights, privileges or responsibilities, except for special designations who are accorded limited rights. Select members of select noble families are given the right to an audience with the
prime minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
.
Tomislav
Tomislav (, ) is a masculine given name of Slavic origin, that is widespread amongst the South Slavs.
The meaning of the name ''Tomislav'' is thought to have derived from the Old Slavonic verb "'' tomiti''" or "'' tomit" meaning to "''languish ...
was the first Croatian ruler whom the
Papal chancellery
The Apostolic ChanceryCanon 260, ''Code of Canon Law'' of 1917, translated by Edward N. Peters, Ignatius Press, 2001. ( la, Cancellaria Apostolica; also known as the "Papal" or "Roman Chanc(ell)ery") was a dicastery of the Roman Curia at the ser ...
honored with the title "king".
The king was granted the right to award titles to high-ranking members of society and direct blood descendants.
![Stjepan Patačić](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1f/Stjepan_Pata%C4%8Di%C4%87.jpg)
Sometime between 923 and 928, Tomislav succeeded in uniting the Croats of
Pannonia
Pannonia (, ) was a province of the Roman Empire bounded on the north and east by the Danube, coterminous westward with Noricum and upper Italy, and southward with Dalmatia and upper Moesia. Pannonia was located in the territory that is now wes ...
and
Dalmatia
Dalmatia (; hr, Dalmacija ; it, Dalmazia; see #Name, names in other languages) is one of the four historical region, historical regions of Croatia, alongside Croatia proper, Slavonia, and Istria. Dalmatia is a narrow belt of the east shore of ...
, each of which had been ruled separately by dukes, thus furthering the Croatian nobility and its primary interests. The nobles of Croatia, at the time, administered a group of eleven counties (''
župa
A župa (or zhupa, županija) is a historical type of administrative division in Southeast Europe and Central Europe, that originated in medieval South Slavic culture, commonly translated as "parish", later synonymous "kotar", commonly transl ...
nije'') and one
banate
Ban () was a noble title used in several states in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe between the 7th century and the 20th century. The most common examples have been found in Croatia.
Sources
The first known mentio ...
. Each of these regions had a fortified royal town administered by a member of the royal court charged by a noble.
Croatian society underwent major changes in the 10th century. Local leaders, the ''
župan
Župan is a noble and administrative title used in several states in Central and Southeastern Europe between the 7th century and the 21st century. It was (and in Croatia still is) the leader of the administrative unit župa (or zhupa, županij ...
i'', were replaced by the retainers of the king, who took land from the previous landowners, essentially creating a
feudal system
Feudalism, also known as the feudal system, was the combination of the legal, economic, military, cultural and political customs that flourished in medieval Europe between the 9th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structur ...
. The previously free peasants became
serf
Serfdom was the status of many peasants under feudalism, specifically relating to manorialism, and similar systems. It was a condition of debt bondage and indentured servitude with similarities to and differences from slavery, which developed ...
s and ceased being soldiers, causing the military power of Croatia to fade and the noble class to assume more wealth. The rule of Krešimir's son
Miroslav was marked by a gradual weakening of Croatia, and thus the powers of the nobility. Nobility marked their
divine right to rule through intense violence that included setting entire villages on fire to reinforce fighting "fire with fire."
![Josip Kazimir Drašković](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b7/Josip_Kazimir_Dra%C5%A1kovi%C4%87.jpg)
As soon as Stjepan Držislav had died in 997, his three sons,
Svetoslav (997–1000),
Krešimir III (1000–1030), and
Gojslav (1000–1020), opened a violent contest for the throne, weakening the state dramatically. Each of the three brothers already firmly placed in the upper tier of the country's nobility required more power than was allocated to them. All three of them took hold of the armies under their jurisdiction and began to fight the armies of one another until
Gojslav and
Krešimir III decided to rule concurrently, with the third taking control of the Duchy of Croatia.
During the reign of
Peter Krešimir IV (1058–1074), the medieval Croatian kingdom reached its territorial peak and more land then ever was disseminated to the noble families. However, Krešimir managed to get the Byzantine Empire to confirm him as the supreme ruler of the
Theme of Dalmatia
The Theme of Dalmatia ( el, θέμα Δαλματίας/Δελματίας, ''thema Dalmatias/Delmatias'') was a Byzantine theme (a military-civilian province) on the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea in Southeastern Europe, headquartered at Jade ...
; this further restricted the powers of the dukes and duchesses. During this time nobles advocated for the
Roman curia to become more involved in the religious affairs of Croatia, which consolidated the monarchical power but disrupted his rule over the
Glagolitic
The Glagolitic script (, , ''glagolitsa'') is the oldest known Slavic alphabet. It is generally agreed to have been created in the 9th century by Saint Cyril, a monk from Thessalonica. He and his brother Saint Methodius were sent by the Byzan ...
clergy in parts of
Istria
Istria ( ; Croatian language, Croatian and Slovene language, Slovene: ; ist, Eîstria; Istro-Romanian language, Istro-Romanian, Italian language, Italian and Venetian language, Venetian: ; formerly in Latin and in Ancient Greek) is the larges ...
after 1060. Croatia under the at-the-time set up was composed of twelve counties and was slightly larger than in the previous kingdom. It included the closest southern Dalmatian duchy of Pagania, and its influence extended over
Zahumlje
Zachlumia or Zachumlia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Zahumlje, Захумље, ), also Hum, was a medieval principality located in the modern-day regions of Herzegovina and southern Dalmatia (today parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia ...
,
Travunia
Travunia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Travunija, Травунија; el, Τερβουνία, Tervounía; grc, Τερβουνία, Terbounía; la, Tribunia) was a South Slavic medieval principality that was part of Medieval Serbia (850–1 ...
, and
Duklja
Duklja ( sh-Cyrl, Дукља; el, Διόκλεια, Diokleia; la, Dioclea) was a medieval South Slavic state which roughly encompassed the territories of modern-day southeastern Montenegro, from the Bay of Kotor in the west to the Bojana Ri ...
. As a result of this
Duke
Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...
dom was an increasingly popular designation by the monarch.
After the 1089 revolt there was no permanent
state capital
Below is an index of pages containing lists of capital cities.
National capitals
*List of national capitals
* List of national capitals by latitude
*List of national capitals by population
* List of national capitals by area
* List of capital c ...
, as the royal residence varied was partially destroyed and now varied from one ruler to another; five cities in total reportedly obtained the title of a royal seat: Nin (Krešimir IV), Biograd (Stephen Držislav, Krešimir IV),
Knin
Knin (, sr, link=no, Книн, it, link=no, Tenin) is a city in the Šibenik-Knin County of Croatia, located in the Dalmatian hinterland near the source of the river Krka, an important traffic junction on the rail and road routes between Zagr ...
(Zvonimir, Petar Svačić),
Šibenik
Šibenik () is a historic city in Croatia, located in central Dalmatia, where the river Krka flows into the Adriatic Sea. Šibenik is a political, educational, transport, industrial and tourist center of Šibenik-Knin County, and is also the ...
(Krešimir IV), and
Solin
Solin (Latin and it, Salona; grc, Σαλώνα ) is a town in Dalmatia, Croatia. It is situated right northeast of Split, on the Adriatic Sea and the river Jadro.
Solin developed on the location of ancient city of ''Salona'', which was the ...
(Krešimir II).
According to the
Supetar Cartulary, a new king was elected by select members of the nobility which included seven bans:
ban of Croatia
Ban of Croatia ( hr, Hrvatski ban) was the title of local rulers or office holders and after 1102, viceroys of Croatia. From the earliest periods of the Croatian state, some provinces were ruled by bans as a ruler's representative (viceroy) an ...
,
ban of Bosnia
This is a list of rulers of Bosnia, containing bans and kings of Medieval Bosnia.
Duke (1082–1136)
Bans (1136–1377)
Kings and queen (1377–1463)
All Bosnian kings added the honorific Stephen to their baptismal name upon accession.
, ...
,
ban of Slavonia
Ban of Slavonia ( hr, Slavonski ban; hu, szlavón bán; la, Sclavoniæ banus) or the Ban of "Whole Slavonia" ( hr, ban cijele Slavonije; hu, egész Szlavónia bánja; la, totius Sclavoniæ banus) was the title of the governor of a territor ...
etc. The bans were elected by the first six Croatian tribes, while the other six were responsible for choosing
župan
Župan is a noble and administrative title used in several states in Central and Southeastern Europe between the 7th century and the 21st century. It was (and in Croatia still is) the leader of the administrative unit župa (or zhupa, županij ...
s (see
Twelve noble tribes of Croatia The twelve noble tribes of Croatia ( la, nobiles duodecim generationum regni Croatie), also known as twelve noble families of Croatia, was a medieval institution of nobility, alliance, or narrow noble community in the Kingdom of Croatia, which can ...
). In this time the noble titles in Croatia were made analogous to those used in other parts of Europe at the time, with ''comes'' and ''baron'' used for the župani and the royal court nobles, and ''vlastelin'' for the noblemen.
Lifestyle
Privileges
Usually the
nobility
Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy (class), aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below Royal family, royalty. Nobility has often been an Estates of the realm, estate of the realm with many e ...
's privileges were granted or recognized by the monarch in association with possession of a specific title, office or estate. Most nobles' wealth derived from one or more estates, large or small, that might include fields, pasture, orchards, timberland, hunting grounds, streams, etc. It also included infrastructure such as castle, well and mill to which local peasants were allowed some access, although often at a price. The nobility held many political positions, such as a
Banship, and received many career promotions, especially in the military, at court and often in the higher functions in the government and judiciary.
Economic status
![Franjo Ksaver Tomašić](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e8/Franjo_Ksaver_Toma%C5%A1i%C4%87.jpg)
Economic analysis of nobility in Croatian realms showcase various financial statuses that were almost always dramatically bigger than the governed populate. The upper tiers of nobility controlled over 90% of wealth in the country which often caused riots and tensions between the peasant class and elite class.
Characteristics
Divine justification
The noble and wealthy classes of the Croatian aristocracy had certain characteristics both directly and indirectly tied with their station in society. Many of the lavish practices of the nobility was influenced by the
Roman noble practices. Its practices were not seen as vain or pretentious, but as a divine imperative to the aristocratic strata. Nobles were required to be "generous" and "
magnanimous", to perform great deeds with a certain level of disinterest.
Etiquette
A noble's status in the royal court required appropriate and
conspicuous consumption
In sociology and in economics, the term conspicuous consumption describes and explains the consumer practice of buying and using goods of a higher quality, price, or in greater quantity than practical. In 1899, the sociologist Thorstein Veblen co ...
; a strict
etiquette
Etiquette () is the set of norms of personal behaviour in polite society, usually occurring in the form of an ethical code of the expected and accepted social behaviours that accord with the conventions and norms observed and practised by a ...
was required by: a word or glance from the king could make or destroy a career. Nobles often went into debt themselves to build prestigious urban mansions and to buy clothes, paintings, silverware, dishes, and other furnishings befitting their rank. They were also required to show liberality by hosting sumptuous parties and by funding the arts. Nobles were expected to live "nobly", that is, from the proceeds of these possessions. Any work that involved manual labor was avoided and prohibited.
Views toward the poor
![Kaiserin Maria Theresia (HRR)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3e/Kaiserin_Maria_Theresia_%28HRR%29.jpg)
The nobles classes originally started asserting their divine right to rule by assuming a
saviors complex and spent much time guiding the poor and underprivileged "into the light" of their societal beckoning. However, over time and with the introduction of the French and their occupancy of Croatian high court, nobles began to view the poor as an inferior subset of people that were to remain voiceless and devout to their King. It was through this mechanism, the nobility, that the wealthier caste of people advocated for one of the first iterations of
monarchical absolutism
Absolute monarchy (or Absolutism as a doctrine) is a form of monarchy in which the monarch rules in their own right or power. In an absolute monarchy, the king or queen is by no means limited and has absolute power, though a limited constituti ...
,
and required unquestioning loyalty and understanding from their subjects. With a tightened grip on the commoners, many nobles' personal agendas were issued through the people with land, statues, and buildings being commissioned under their name. The poor were via High Order, not allowed to look or speak to any member of the nobility and could be put to death or beheaded if one were to speak during a ceremony or formal occasion.
The controversial assumption of French practices contributed to wide spread political and
social elitism among the nobles and monarch. The nobility regarded the peasant class as an unseen and irrelevant substrata of people which lead to high causality
revolts and
beheadings
Decapitation or beheading is the total separation of the head from the body. Such an injury is invariably fatal to humans and most other animals, since it deprives the brain of oxygenated blood, while all other organs are deprived of the au ...
as well as sporadic periods of intense domestic violence. For example, during King Demetrius Zvonimir reign, he was murdered after guards over took him during the 1089 revolts and threw him off his balcony into a "bed of fire". The death was especially symbolic as the nobility of the kingdom often burned revolutionaries alive to assert their divine supremacy.
However, the country's nobles were so infuriated by such an act of defiance and commanded the Royal Croatian Forces to spear to death hundreds of peasants who participated in the raiding of the King's Palace and their bodies were hung on the houses of their families.
Forms of address
Noble origins
Croatian nobility, similar to
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
and
French nobility
The French nobility (french: la noblesse française) was a privileged social class in France from the Middle Ages until its abolition on June 23, 1790 during the French Revolution.
From 1808 to 1815 during the First Empire the Emperor Napoléo ...
, originated from
feudalism
Feudalism, also known as the feudal system, was the combination of the legal, economic, military, cultural and political customs that flourished in medieval Europe between the 9th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structur ...
. The relationships between monarchs and their warriors produced nobility because the rulers would promise the warriors land in exchange for protection of the country. From this derived the (Croatian Nobility Assembly) which is the only association of living descendants from Croatian nobility.
Between 1941 and 1943, King
Tomislav II
Prince Aimone, 4th Duke of Aosta (''Aimone Roberto Margherita Maria Giuseppe Torino''; 9 March 1900 – 29 January 1948) was a prince of Italy's reigning House of Savoy and an officer of the Royal Italian Navy. The second son of Prince Emanuel ...
of the
Independent State of Croatia
The Independent State of Croatia ( sh, Nezavisna Država Hrvatska, NDH; german: Unabhängiger Staat Kroatien; it, Stato indipendente di Croazia) was a World War II-era puppet state of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy (1922–1943), Fascist It ...
granted about 60 titles of
duke
Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...
,
marquess
A marquess (; french: marquis ), es, marqués, pt, marquês. 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 wi ...
,
count
Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...
,
viscount
A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status.
In many countries a viscount, and its historical equivalents, was a non-hereditary, administrative or judicial ...
and
baron
Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knig ...
but mostly to non-citizens. Due to the fact that the Croatian nobility was unable to secure an heir, in 1102 the Hungarian king was granted the throne of Croatia
by treaty. Thus Croatia entered in union with Hungary, until 1918 kings of Hungary were also kings of Croatia, represented by a governor (ban), but Croatia kept its own parliament (Sabor) and considerable autonomy. Throughout this time period Croatian nobles kept the various titles described above.
Titles
Croatian nobility titles mostly were granted by the kings of
Croatia
, image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg
, anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capit ...
, later kings of
Hungary-Croatia. In Dalmatia and Istria several
Venetian titles were granted and during the
French occupation, French titles were granted and practices were assumed. Following the collapse of
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...
following
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, the
Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes
The Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kraljevina Jugoslavija, Краљевина Југославија; sl, Kraljevina Jugoslavija) was a state in Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 ...
(later
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
) stopped giving hereditary titles.
Between 925 and 1102, the
Kingdom of Croatia Kingdom of Croatia may refer to:
* Kingdom of Croatia (925–1102), an independent medieval kingdom
* Croatia in personal union with Hungary (1102–1526), a kingdom in personal union with the Kingdom of Hungary
* Kingdom of Croatia (Habsburg) (152 ...
's nobility had various titles and forms of address that varied from region to region and position to position. The King of Croatia was afforded the right of choosing his royal handle, for example in 1941,
Prince Adimone, Duke of Aosta, took the name of
King Tomislav II upon his succession to the Croatian throne. Titles were exclusive to members of the King's High Court and included the Queen consort and the following:
#Duke (the highest ranking a noble could receive in his majesty's court)
#Marquess (a lineage rank through European peerage)
#Count (a successive rank to the Marquess)
#Baron (title of honor bestowed to a civilian whose actions warranted the title)
The titles were usually followed by the full name or more commonly by their surname. The title of a
duke
Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...
is the highest of the nobility. A
marquess
A marquess (; french: marquis ), es, marqués, pt, marquês. 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 wi ...
is a nobleman of hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. A
count
Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...
is a title in European countries for a noble of varying status, but historically deemed to convey an approximate rank intermediate between the highest and lowest titles of nobility. A
baron
Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knig ...
is a title of honour, often hereditary, and ranked as one of the lowest titles in the nobility system. A
viscount
A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status.
In many countries a viscount, and its historical equivalents, was a non-hereditary, administrative or judicial ...
is a member of the nobility whose comital title ranks usually, as in the British peerage, below an earl or a count (the earl's continental equivalent) and above a baron.
![Adam Franjo Burić](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/32/Adam_Franjo_Buri%C4%87.jpg)
There were multiple types of titles used by Croatian nobles that stemmed from France: some were personal ranks and others were linked to the
fief
A fief (; la, feudum) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an Lord, overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a for ...
s owned, called ''fiefs de dignité'' or ''kraljevski posjed''.
#
Duc: possessor of a duchy (''duché''—a feudal property, not an independent principality) and recognition as duke by the king.
#
Prince
A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. Th ...
: possessor of a lordship styled a principality (''principauté''); most such titles were held by family tradition and were treated by the court as ''titres de courtoisie''—often borne by the eldest sons of the more important duke-peers. This ''title'' of prince is not to be confused with the ''rank'' of prince, borne by the ''
princes du sang'', the ''
princes légitimés'' or the ''
princes étrangers'' whose high precedence derived from their kinship to actual
rulers
A ruler, sometimes called a rule, line gauge, or scale, is a device used in geometry and technical drawing, as well as the engineering and construction industries, to measure distances or draw straight lines.
Variants
Rulers have long ...
.
#
Marquis
A marquess (; french: marquis ), es, marqués, pt, marquês. 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 wi ...
: possessor of a marquessate (''marquisat''), but often assumed by a noble family as a ''
titre de courtoisie''
#
Comte
''Comte'' is the French, Catalan and Occitan form of the word 'count' (Latin: ''comes''); ''comté'' is the Gallo-Romance form of the word 'county' (Latin: ''comitatus'').
Comte or Comté may refer to:
* A count in French, from Latin ''comes''
* A ...
: possessor of a county (''comté'') or self-assumed.
#
Vicomte
A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status.
In many countries a viscount, and its historical equivalents, was a non-hereditary, administrative or judicial ...
: possessor of a viscounty (''vicomté'') or self-assumed.
#
Baron
Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knig ...
: possessor of a barony (''baronnie'') or self-assumed.
Symbols
The
Kingdom of Croatia Kingdom of Croatia may refer to:
* Kingdom of Croatia (925–1102), an independent medieval kingdom
* Croatia in personal union with Hungary (1102–1526), a kingdom in personal union with the Kingdom of Hungary
* Kingdom of Croatia (Habsburg) (152 ...
and its nobles had many symbols, emblems and
coat of arms
A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central ele ...
. The seals and coats were often used as parts of clothing, shields, castles, and other objects associated with noble families.
Families
![Middle Coat of Arms of Maria Theresa, Holy Roman Empress](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/54/Middle_Coat_of_Arms_of_Maria_Theresa%2C_Holy_Roman_Empress.svg)
Dukes/Princes
*
Domagojević
*
Feštetić
*
Gorjanski Garai or Garay ( hr, Gorjanski) were a Hungarian-Croatian noble family, a branch of the Dorozsma (Durusma) clan, with notable members in the 14th and 15th centuries. They were lords of Csesznek.
Origin
The family was descended from the Dorozs ...
*
Kačić Kȁčić () is a Croatian surname. It is chiefly distributed in the city of Split, and the area of southern and central Dalmatia. Etymologically it derives from the word ''kača'' "snake".
It may refer to:
* Kačić noble family, which includes m ...
*
Karlović
*
Lacković
The Lackfi, Laczkfi or Laczkfy ( hr, Lacković / ''Laczkovich'') was a noble family from Kingdom of Hungary and Croatia, which governed parts of Transylvania (as Count of the Székelys) and held the title of Voivode of Transylvania in the 14th cent ...
*
Novosel
*
Mlinarić
*
Odescalchi
The House of Erba-Odescalchi () and the House of Odescalchi are branches of an Italian noble family formed by the union of the Erba and Odescalchi families. The Odescalchi family was, since the election of Benedetto Odescalchi as Pope Innocen ...
*
Bešlagić
* Radić
*
Šubić
*
Zrinski
Zrinski () was a Croatian- Hungarian noble family, a cadet branch of the Croatian noble tribe of Šubić, influential during the period in history marked by the Ottoman wars in Europe in the Kingdom of Croatia's union with the Kingdom of Hungar ...
Marquesses
![Rukavine (Croatia)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0a/Rukavine_%28Croatia%29.jpg)
*
Frankopan
The House of Frankopan ( hr, Frankopani, Frankapani, it, Frangipani, hu, Frangepán, la, Frangepanus, Francopanus), was a Croatian noble family, whose members were among the great landowner magnates and high officers of the Kingdom of Croati ...
(Frankapan)
*
Bombelles
Bombelles is the name of an old French aristocratic family which originated from Lorraine. Members of the family later settled in Austria and Portugal. They held the title of Marquis in France and Count in Austria.
Notable members
* Jeanne Renee ...
*
Bunić
*
Sponheim
Sponheim is a municipality in the district of Bad Kreuznach in Rhineland-Palatinate in western Germany.
History
Sponheim was the capital of the County of Sponheim.
Sponheim Abbey
There was a Benedictine abbey which was founded in 1101 by Step ...
*
Andechs
Andechs is a municipality in the district of Starnberg in Bavaria in Germany. It is renowned in Germany and beyond for Andechs Abbey, a Benedictine monastery that has brewed beer since 1455. The monastery brewery offers tours to visitors.
The 2 ...
Counts
The seal of the Kingdom of Croatia and Dalmatia was affixed in 1527 to the
Cetin Charter
The 1527 election in Cetin ( hr, Cetinski / Cetingradski sabor, meaning Parliament on Cetin(grad) or Parliament of Cetin(grad), or ) was an assembly of the Croatian Parliament in the Cetin Castle in 1527. It followed a succession crisis in the Kin ...
that confirmed the Habsburg to be the rulers of Croatia
![Bratislava Kapitulská erb2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/40/Bratislava_Kapitulsk%C3%A1_erb2.jpg)
*
Bondić
*
Crnković
*
Delišimunović
*
Drašković
Drašković (meaning "''son of Draško''") is a surname used in Croatia, Montenegro and Serbia, and may refer to:
* Drašković family, Croatian noble family
** Juraj Drašković (1525–1587), Croatian cardinal and ban (viceroy)
** Ivan II D ...
*
Erdődy
The House of Erdődy de Monyorókerék et Monoszló (also House of Erdödy) is the name of an old Hungarian- Croatian noble family with possessions in Hungary and Croatia. Elevated to the Hungarian nobility in 1459, the family was subsequently r ...
*
Franceschi
*
Gundulić
*
Gučetić
*
Gradić
*
Janković
*
Jelačić
*
Kabužić
*
Keglević
*
Pejačević
*
Pucić (''de Zagorie'')
*
Sorkočević
Barons
*
Banffy
*
Cseszneky Cseszneky is a surname of Hungarian origin.
Notable people
* Benedek Cseszneky, office holder, diplomat
* György Cseszneky, castellan of Tata and Győr
* Gyula Cseszneky (1914-ca 1970) poet, translator, Macedonian Voivode
* Imre Cseszneky, ...
*
Gutmann
*
Knežević
*
Majstorović
*
Mandić
*
Nikolić
*Rubido
*
Ružić
*
Turković
*
Vranyczany-Dobrinović
See also
![CoA of Croatia (Habsburg Monarchy)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/11/CoA_of_Croatia_%28Habsburg_Monarchy%29.png)
*
List of noble families of Croatia
List of noble families of Croatia includes the old, original, ethnically Croatian noble families; families whose titles were granted by the kings of the medieval Kingdom of Croatia and its successors; foreign noble families which were granted Croa ...
in alphabetical order
*
Twelve noble tribes of Croatia The twelve noble tribes of Croatia ( la, nobiles duodecim generationum regni Croatie), also known as twelve noble families of Croatia, was a medieval institution of nobility, alliance, or narrow noble community in the Kingdom of Croatia, which can ...
*
Kingdom of Croatia (Habsburg)
The Kingdom of Croatia ( hr, Kraljevina Hrvatska; la, Regnum Croatiae; hu, Horvát Királyság, german: Königreich Kroatien) was part of the lands of the Habsburg monarchy from 1527, following the Election in Cetin, and the Austrian Empire fro ...
*
Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia
The Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia ( hr, Kraljevina Hrvatska i Slavonija; hu, Horvát-Szlavónország or ; de-AT, Königreich Kroatien und Slawonien) was a nominally autonomous kingdom and constitutionally defined separate political nation with ...
*
History of Croatia
At the time of the Roman Empire, the area of modern Croatia comprised two Roman provinces, Pannonia and Dalmatia (Roman province), Dalmatia. After the Fall of the Western Roman Empire, collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century, the ...
*
Pacta conventa (Croatia)
Pacta conventa (Latin for "agreed accords") was an agreement concluded between King Coloman of Hungary and the Croatian nobility in 1102 or afterwards, defining the status of Croatia in the union with Hungary. The earliest manuscript of the docume ...
*
Crown of Zvonimir
The Crown of Zvonimir was bestowed on King Dmitar Zvonimir of Croatia in 1076 by the papal legate. Zvonimir ruled Croatia until 1089 after which the crown was used in the coronation of his successor Stjepan II and presumably by the numerous H ...
*
Bans of Croatia
Ban of Croatia ( hr, Hrvatski ban) was the title of local rulers or office holders and after 1102, viceroys of Croatia. From the earliest periods of the Croatian state, some provinces were ruled by bans as a ruler's representative (viceroy) an ...
*
Timeline of Croatian history
References
Works cited
* Buric, Bozidar Domagoj (2011) ''Croatian Kings: a film documentary''
* Rudolf Horvat, ''Povijest Hrvatske I. (od najstarijeg doba do g. 1657.)'', Zagreb 1924.
*
Nada Klaić
Nada Klaić (21 July 1920 – 2 August 1988) was a Croatian historian. She was a Croatian medievalist of the 20th century. A substantial part of the work was devoted to criticism of medieval sources.
Academic career
Nada Klaić was born in Zagre ...
, ''Povijest Hrvata u ranom srednjem vijeku'', Zagreb 1975.
*
*
*
*
*
*
Further reading
*
*
*
*
*
* Durst, Robertson (2000). ''Croatian Royalty: the Essentials.'' Pike Peaks Library District – East Library: Ricker Publishing.
*
*
*
External links
Hrvatski plemićki zborCroatian Nobility Association, member of CILANE The European Commission of the Nobility
Plemenita općina TuropoljeNoble Municipality of Turopolje (Universitas nobilium campi Turopolje)
Index of Siebmacher's Armorials– The database contains the family names and titles (more than 137,000 entries) of the ''General-Index zu den Siebmacherschen Wappenbüchern 1605–1967'' (''General Index of Siebmacher’s Armorials 1605–1967'').
Croatian aristocracyKingdoms of Eastern Europe – Croatia
{{Nobility by nation