Everything about Magnates totally explained
Magnate, from the
Late Latin magnas, a great man, itself from
Latin magnus 'great', designates a noble or other man in a high social position, by birth, wealth or other qualities. In reference to the
Middle Ages, the term is often used to distinguish higher territorial landowners and warlords such as
counts,
earls,
dukes and territorial-
princes, from the
baronage.
The term was specifically applied to the members (equivalent to British Peers) of the Upper House in the
Apostolic Kingdom of Hungary, the
Főrendiház or
House of Magnates.
Magnates were a
social class of wealthy and influential
nobility in the
Kingdom of Poland (and later the
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth), and some other
medieval realms. In Spain, since late Middle Ages there's the highest class of nobility who hold appellation of
Grandee of Spain. In Sweden, wealthiest medieval lords were known as
storman (plural
stormän), "great men", a similar description as magnate, and same meaning. In England, the term magnate has often been applied to the extremely powerful nobles that Edward III created when he split his kingdom amongst his sons rather than choosing one son to inherit the entire kingdom. The ensuing conflict between these powerful nobles (and their successors) and whomever was king led to the aristocratic wars known as the
War of the Roses.
In the
Middle Ages a
bishop sometimes held territory as a magnate, collecting the revenue of the
manors and the associated
knights' fees.
Magnates in Poland and Lithuania
In Poland all members of the nobility (
szlachta) were equal under the law. "Magnate" was thus not an official title but rather a position of
social class, based on
wealth. Magnates (or higher nobility) vied for political power with the lesser and middle nobility (see
Ruch egzekucyjny) and the Król (Monarch). From the second half of the
17th century, the magnates emerged as the victors in the struggle for power in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, as they were able to concentrate most of the land in their own hands and bribe smaller nobles to preserve the appearance of democracy: "
Golden Liberty" in the parliaments, not only the local
Sejmiks but also in the national
Sejm.
There were several other terms for "magnate" in Poland and Lithuania:
- Możny - "powerful one"; used up to the 15th century, later replaced by Magnat;
- królik, plural królewięta - "petty kings", used especially of magnates with large fiefdoms in Lithuania or Ukraine; rather negative (król in Polish means "king", but the diminutive królik also means "rabbit");
- pan - lord (much later, by title devaluation, Mister); this could also apply to members of the common szlachta and was often used by people from other social classes;
- starsi bracia - "older brothers"; all members of the szlachta referred to each other as Pan brat, but Magnates who were appointed to the Senate of Poland often styled themselves senior brothers, referring to the nobles from the Sejm ("parliament") as młodsi bracia ("junior brothers");
- karmazyn - "the crimson one", from their expensive crimson-coloured clothing (especially the boots).
Several Magnates held high feudal titles or peerage ranks such as
prince or
count. With few exceptions, mostly dating from the
Union of Lublin, and special privileges permitting some
Lithuanian magnates to use them, such titles were forbidden by law. Titles from offices however were very popular: see
Offices in Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.
Magnates in England
The large number of extremely powerful nobles, many of whom had claims to the throne, led to over 100 years of aristocratic
civil war, in the form of the
War of the Roses.
Left with some problematic choices for his heir,
Edward III decided to make some of his illegitimate children legitimate by an
Act of Parliament and include them in the succession. This created what Allison Weir refers to as a "race of magnates."
Eventually this led to large numbers of claimants to the throne, most of whom tried to attain the throne by usurping their predecessors. In this period, despite laws governing succession, most of the succession was determined not as much by
primogeniture as by military victory.
In the Tudor period, after
Henry VII defeated
Richard III at
Bosworth Field, Henry made a point of executing or neutralizing as many magnates as possible. Henry VII would make parliament
attaint undesirable nobles and magnates, thereby stripping them of their wealth, protection from torture, and power. Henry VII also used the
Court of the Star Chamber to have powerful nobles executed.
Henry VIII would continue this approach in his reign; he inherited a survivalistic mistrust of nobles from his father. Henry VIII ennobled very few men and the ones he did were all "new men," greatly indebted to him and having very limited power.
See also
Aristocracy
Leidang
List of szlachta (this article lists the families of the magnate class, or higher nobility).
Swedish nobility
Sources
(External Link
)
Allison Weir, Princes in the Tower.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Magnates'.
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