A royal warrant of precedence is a warrant issued by the

monarch of the United Kingdom The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the form of government used by the United Kingdom by which a hereditary monarch reigns as the head of state, with their powers Constitutional monarchy, regula ...

to determine precedence amongst individuals or organisations. Most warrants of this type are issued to grant a rank to a member of the nobility or gentry that they would normally have enjoyed when their relative (usually their sibling) inherits a title, but failed to assume automatically due to such circumstances as the death of their father (see

courtesy title A courtesy title is a title that does not have legal significance but is rather used by custom or courtesy, particularly, in the context of nobility, the titles used by children of members of the nobility (cf. substantive title). In some context ...

). The warrants are usually issued to the following effect: Below is a list of such warrants in descending order of rank (note: the Orders of Precedence for males and females are separate from one another):

Younger son of a duke

Younger son of a marquess

Younger son of an earl

Younger son of a viscount

Younger son of a baron/lord of Parliament

Daughter of a duke

Daughter of a marquess

Wife of a viscount

Wife of the eldest son of an earl

Daughter of an earl

Wife of a baron

Daughter of a viscount

Wife of the eldest son of a baron

Daughter of a baron/lord of Parliament

Wife of a baronet

Wife of a knight

Notes and references

External links

Royal Warrants of Precedence
A similar, incomplete list for 20th-century warrants {{DEFAULTSORT:Royal Warrant Of Precedence Peerages in the United Kingdom