Barons, and other things

Upstart Joined: 06 Jun 2011 Posts: 7

Bear with me as a ramble a bit,

So, I know a baron is the lowest rank in the peerage and you don't hear much about them when reading romance novels. I need to know a little bit more about where they stand in terms of... respect amongst the families of other peers. I've made my heroine the daughter of a baron. I wanted her to belong in the company of my hero, a Marquis, but not be the top candidate in terms of rank, I suppose.

I'm beginning to worry she shouldn't be the daughter of a peer because I need her to be low enough for a bitter mama to feel she shouldn't be marrying a Marquis.

What I need is for her to have grown up on a small estate. Her father is well off enough that she lives a life of leisure. Her chaperone/guardian is a nearby dowager countess with whom she visits frequently. She is to have a season in London.

I'm not married to the idea of her being the daughter of a peer. I want her to only just belong, but to belong nonetheless. Should she be a country gentleman's daughter?

Oh and, she (her father) needs to be wealthy enough that someone wants to marry her for her money. My idea there, was that after the death of her mother, her father has thrown himself into the running of the estate, or some other such thing and has quietly amassed a modest fortune that she is unaware of. It is not enough to merit mentioning, but enough to tempt a man in debt.

What do you all think?

Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2011 8:03 am Post subject:

Lots of possibilities there Wink

You could make the father a baronet or a knight, if you want him to have some sort of title, but as either he is not a peer, so rather low on the totem pole of society.

You heroine could for example also have a grandfather who was in trade, made a fortune, bought an estate, which was left to his son - your heroine's father - who is now a landed gentleman (and could be quite rich), but still has the "stigma" of trade attached to his name as he probably would not be considered "old money". Plenty of bitter mamas might object to a marquis marrying a girl with such a pedigree, I suppose.
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Viscountess of the Manor Joined: 20 Sep 2006 Posts: 1100

Lord Byron was a baron. Most Baronies are ancient and the title was very well respected. If you want people to be snooty about it though, make her father’s peerage a new one (just a couple generations old) and make the marquis’s titles go back to some ancient start (e.g. their original barony was conferred by Henry Tudor himself! The earldom was conferred by James I and the Marquisate was bestowed by Charles II).

Daughters of gentlemen could have very large dowries, though. Look at Georgiana Darcy in PRIDE AND PREJUDICE. She has 30K pounds and Austen didn’t find this ridiculous. The real 5th Duke of Devonshire only gave his legitimate daughters 10K pounds each (though his favorite by-blow got 30K pounds).
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