The European Commission of the Nobility () is an organisation for cooperation of European nobility associations, established in 1959. Its seat is in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Functioning

The CILANE has no

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

but rather a "Coordinator", elected for three years. The coordinator's role is to prepare and conduct the spring and autumn sessions of the CILANE and to carry out its decisions, enabling each national association to carry out projects together. It holds an international

congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

every three years. National associations recognised by CILANE are hereditary societies which must only grant full membership to persons who are legally noble under the current or former laws of their countries. There is no personal membership; instead, members of associations recognised by CILANE participate in its activities through their associations. The spring session takes place traditionally in Paris, the seat of the CILANE. In autumn the sessions are held in one of the other member countries. Significantly, most of the organisations represented in CILANE are private initiatives, particularly in nations where

titles of nobility Traditional rank amongst European imperiality, royalty, peers, and nobility is rooted in Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages. Although they vary over time and among geographic regions (for example, one region's prince might be equal to anothe ...

are no longer recognised by their respective states and therefore unregulated by

law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a science and as the ar ...

. Due to the position of the Permanent Deputation and Council of the Greatness and Titles of the Kingdom of only recognizing foreign titles as such if «...the succession in these titles should only be reflected when they have been possessed by people who have recognized the succession of kings effectively reigning, but not claimants or holders in exile of disappeared kingdoms", particularly in "...in the case of titles of the extinct Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, such a kingdom no longer exists and the claimants to it are not effectively reigning monarchs", and the consequent internal divisions within it,

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

does not have official representation in the coordinating organization of the European nobility CILANE.

Member associations

As of March 2025, CILANE includes the following associations: *

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

: Association de la Noblesse du Royaume de Belgique (ANRB-VAKB) *

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

: Croatian Nobility Association *

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

: Danish Nobility Association ( Danish: ''Dansk Adels Forening, DAF'') *

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

: Vereinigung der Deutschen Adelsverbände (VdDA),The Austrian and Czech nobilities is represented by the VdDA. There is currently no Austrian nobility association. itself consisting of 22 regional and confessional associations. ** The Baltic Knighthoods are represented by the VdDA, even though their members generally (also) belong to the Russian and often also to the Swedish nobility. *

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

: Finnish House of Nobility (Riddarhuset - Ritarihuone) *

: Association d'entraide de la Noblesse Française (ANF) *

Holy See The Holy See (, ; ), also called the See of Rome, the Petrine See or the Apostolic See, is the central governing body of the Catholic Church and Vatican City. It encompasses the office of the pope as the Bishops in the Catholic Church, bishop ...

: Réunion de la Noblesse Pontificale (RNP) *

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

: Magyar Történelmi Családok Egyesülete (MTCSE) *

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

: Commission and Association for the Armigerous Families of Great Britain (AFGB)AFGB recognises all persons with a right to arms granted by the College of Arms or Lord Lyon as belonging to the British nobility. Therefore, Irish historically noble families are eligible to join AFGB, as long as their arms were registered with the British authorities prior to independence. *

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

Corpo della Nobiltà Italiana The ''Corpo della nobiltà italiana'' (Italian, 'Body of the Italian Nobility'), sometimes referred to as CNI, is a private association established in 1957 to protect heraldic and nobility rights of Italian nobles after the republican constitu ...

(CNI) *

Malta Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, is an island country in Southern Europe located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Sicily and North Africa. It consists of an archipelago south of Italy, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The two ...

: Committee of Privileges of the Maltese Nobility *

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

: Nederlands Adelvereniging (NAV) *

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

: Associação da Nobreza Histórica Portugal (ANHP) *

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

: Союз Дворян - Union de la Noblesse Russe (UNR) *

: Jóvenes de la Nobleza Española (JNE) *

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

: Swedish House of Nobility (Riddarhuset) *

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

: Association de Familles Suisses (AFS)

Great Britain

The Commission and Association for the Armigerous Families of Great Britain (AFGB) is the sole

British nobility The British nobility is made up of the peerage and the gentry of the British Isles. Though the UK is today a constitutional monarchy with strong democratic elements, historically the British Isles were more predisposed towards aristocratic gove ...

association recognised by CILANE. It was founded in 1996. AFGB was founded in 1996 under the auspices of the 17th Duke of Norfolk. Throughout its existence, it has cooperated with the English and Scottish heraldic authorities, and some of their representatives, such as Sir Henry Paston-Bedingfield, have joined the organisation. AFGB admits members of the

peerage A peerage is a legal system historically comprising various hereditary titles (and sometimes Life peer, non-hereditary titles) in a number of countries, and composed of assorted Imperial, royal and noble ranks, noble ranks. Peerages include: A ...

and the

gentry Gentry (from Old French , from ) are "well-born, genteel and well-bred people" of high social class, especially in the past. ''Gentry'', in its widest connotation, refers to people of good social position connected to Landed property, landed es ...

, using the right to heraldic arms as the main criterion for determining membership in the British nobility. All persons who have been granted arms by the

College of Arms The College of Arms, or Heralds' College, is a royal corporation consisting of professional Officer of Arms, officers of arms, with jurisdiction over England, Wales, Northern Ireland and some Commonwealth realms. The heralds are appointed by the ...

Lord Lyon The Right Honourable the Lord Lyon King of Arms, the head of Lyon Court, is the most junior of the Great Officers of State in Scotland and is the Scottish official with responsibility for regulating heraldry in that country, issuing new gran ...

, as well as their male-line descendants entitled to the arms (or, in Scotland, entitled to matriculate a differenced version thereof) according to the

Law of Arms The law of heraldic arms, sometimes simply laws of heraldry governs the possession, use or display of arms, called ''bearing of arms''. That use includes the coats of arms, coat armour or armorial bearings. Originally with the sole function of en ...

may be admitted to the organisation. The AFGB utilises the same test of nobility as the Order of Malta, which equates the right to arms and the status of

gentleman ''Gentleman'' (Old French: ''gentilz hom'', gentle + man; abbreviated ''gent.'') is a term for a chivalrous, courteous, or honorable man. Originally, ''gentleman'' was the lowest rank of the landed gentry of England, ranking below an esquire ...

confirmed by it with untitled nobility in its British association. Feudal barons, esquires or gentlemen by prescription or office who are not also armigerous cannot be admitted to AFGB, but knights, baronets and peers can theoretically, even though a knighthood or hereditary title normally qualifies one for a grant of arms. AFGB only recognises a grant of arms as a nobiliary act if the recipient is a British citizen or is naturalised later. Apart from being an ''association'' which admits persons who belong to the British nobility, AFGB also operates a ''commission'', which seeks to coordinate the activities of more narrow organisations such as the Hereditary Peerage Association and facilitate their communication with CILANE and foreign nobility associations. The

Duke of Norfolk Duke of Norfolk is a title in the peerage of England. The premier non-royal peer, the Duke of Norfolk is additionally the premier duke and earl in the English peerage. The seat of the Duke of Norfolk is Arundel Castle in Sussex, although the t ...

presides over it. Current officers are: * Coordinator of AFGB: Sir Henry Paston-Bedingfield, Bt, former

Norroy and Ulster King of Arms Norroy and Ulster King of Arms is the provincial King of Arms at the College of Arms with jurisdiction over England north of the River Trent, Trent and Northern Ireland. The two offices of Norroy and Ulster were formerly separate. Norroy King of ...

* Delegate to CILANE: Michael Sayer, Esq. * Vice-Delegates to CILANE: Lord Abinger and Sir Richard Rowley, Bt * Youth Organiser for CILANE: Viscount Jocelyn

Notes

References

External links