Great Britain is a country with a special culture that has developed over many centuries. A characteristic feature of British society is social stratification, which is expressed in the presence of a variety of titles. The main category of British society is peers, the hereditary nobility of British society.
Definition of a concept
According to the dictionary of the Russian language, peer is a person who represents the upper class in England and in France. The appearance of the peer title dates back to the distant Middle Ages, but exists in British society today. In France, the represented estate was abolished in 1848.
To date, peers are representatives of the British House of Lords, the upper house of parliament. According to the legislation of the country, the exact number of peers represented in the chamber is not fixed. Peer titles are hereditary, but they have the right to participate in meetings of the House of Lords only after reaching the age of 21. Only males can inherit the title. For women, there are certain legislative rules, according to which they have the right to receive lifetime peer.
History of occurrence
The emergence of such a representative of society as peer is a period in the history of England, when the famous William the Conqueror united the country. He divided the territory into administrative units. Those who owned large lands were called barons. They were also divided into “large” and “smaller”. The English king consulted with the "great barons." It was from this category that the House of Lords was later formed, in which the honorary peers of England sit to this day. To date, peers have lost their extended privileges in society, which historically were assigned to them. However, the existence of this category of population is a tribute to British history, veneration of the country's cultural heritage.
Variety of titles in England
In modern England, peer is the Englishman who has the title. The rest of the population is considered commoners. The presence of a title in English society gives this category of the population a number of serious privileges, which vary depending on the rank of the title.
Titles in England have their own hierarchy. Obviously, at the head of this hierarchy are royal titles, which are one of a kind. The next significant titles are the Duke and Duchess. They are close relatives of the royal family. Also in English society there are such titles as the Marquis, Count, Viscount, Baron.