The petty nobility is the lower
nobility classes.
Finland
Petty nobility in Finland is dated at least back to 13th century and was formed by
nobles
Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. The characteristi ...
around their strategic interests. The idea was more capable
peasants with leader roles in local community that were given
tax exemption for taking care of services like guard duties of local strongholds. Cavalry service was not required from these petty noble families. Later on many of these petty noble families gained full nobility ranking.
Finnish ''
Vehkalahti'' is particularly noted in literature for as having been an example of such petty nobility (Finnish: ''knaappiaateli'').
Germany
The
Niederer Adel
The German nobility (german: deutscher Adel) and royalty were status groups of the medieval society in Central Europe, which enjoyed certain privileges relative to other people under the laws and customs in the German-speaking area, until the begi ...
that held legal privileges until 1918 greater than those enjoyed by commoners, but less than those enjoyed by the ''Hochadel,'' were considered part of the lower nobility or ''Niederer Adel''. Most were untitled, only making use of the particle ''
von
The term ''von'' () is used in German language surnames either as a nobiliary particle indicating a noble patrilineality, or as a simple preposition used by commoners that means ''of'' or ''from''.
Nobility directories like the ''Almanach de Go ...
'' in their surnames.
Poland
The nobility (''
szlachta
The ''szlachta'' (Polish: endonym, Lithuanian: šlėkta) were the noble estate of the realm in the Kingdom of Poland, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth who, as a class, had the dominating position in the ...
'') of Poland included petty nobility known as ''drobna szlachta''. These were owners of a part of a village or owning no land at all, often referred to by a variety of colourful Polish terms such as:
*''szaraczkowa'' – ''grey nobility'', from their grey,
woollen, uncoloured
żupans
*''okoliczna'' – ''local nobility'', similar to ''zaściankowa''
*''zagrodowa'' – from ''zagroda'', a farm, often little different from a peasant's dwelling
*''zagonowa'' – from ''zagon'', a small unit of land measure, ''hide nobility''
*''cząstkowa'' – ''partial'', owners of only part of a single village
*''panek'' – little ''pan'' (i.e., lordling), term used in
Kaszuby Kaszuby may refer to:
*Kashubia pl, Kaszuby
, native_name_lang = csb, de, csb
, settlement_type = Historical region
, anthem = Zemia Rodnô
, image_map = Kashubians ...
, the Kashubian region, also one of the legal terms for legally separated lower nobility in late medieval and early modern Poland
*''hreczkosiej'' – ''
buckwheat sowers'' – those who had to work their fields themselves.
*''zaściankowa'' – from ''zaścianek'', a name for plural nobility settlement, ''neighbourhood nobility''. Just like ''hreczkosiej'', ''zaściankowa'' nobility would have no peasants.
*''brukowa'' – ''
cobble
Cobble may refer to:
* Cobble (geology), a designation of particle size for sediment or clastic rock
* Cobblestone, partially rounded rocks used for road paving
* Hammerstone, a prehistoric stone tool
* Tyringham Cobble, a nature reserve in Tyr ...
nobility'', for those living in towns like townsfolk
*''gołota'' – ''naked nobility'', i.e., the landless. ''Gołota'' szlachta would be considered the 'lowest of the high'.
*''półpanek'' ("half-lord"); also podpanek/pidpanek ("sub-lord") in
Podolia and Ukrainian accent – a petty ''szlachcic'' pretending to be wealthy.
Serbia
The nobility (''vlastela'') of Serbia in the Middle Ages is roughly divided into magnates (''
velikaši''), nobility (''vlastela'') and petty noblemen (''vlasteličići''). Sometimes, the division is made between ''vlastela'' (including "great" and "small" ones) and ''vlasteličići''.
The ''vlasteličići'' (властеличићи) were the lower nobility class of Serbia.
It was a relatively numerous class of the small, warrior nobility, originating from the ''vojnici'' (warriors) from sources from the end of the 12th- and beginning of 13th century. They held villages, with full rights,
[ and in socioeconomic and legal terms stood below the ''vlastela''. They had military obligations, such as joining the army individually or with a group his men (soldiers), dependent on his wealth.]
See also
*Landed gentry
The landed gentry, or the ''gentry'', is a largely historical British social class of landowners who could live entirely from rental income, or at least had a country estate. While distinct from, and socially below, the British peerage, th ...
* Polish landed gentry
* Yeoman
References
{{reflist
*