aristocracies
Hereditary ruling classes
Aristocracies is the plural of aristocracy—systems of government by a privileged hereditary class, or the classes themselves.
A country may have had multiple aristocracies across its history, or different regions may develop distinct ones: The aristocracies of Europe intermarried for centuries.
The term can also refer to elite groups in any domain: the aristocracies of finance and industry.
System of noble ranks
- dukeHighest-ranking nobleman
- duchessWoman of ducal rank
- countessFeminine noble rank
- baronLow-ranking peer
viscount · marquess · earl · lord · lady · knight · dame · noblesse
Rule by few
- monarchyRule by crowned sovereign
- sovereigntySupreme independent authority
- parliamentNational legislative assembly
- legislatureLawmaking governmental branch
ruling class · statecraft · feudalism · ancien régime · House of Lords · noblesse oblige · patronage · court
Superior select group
- exclusiveLimited to one group
- privilegedHaving special advantages
- upper-crustSocial elite class
- blue-bloodedOf noble ancestry
patrician · genteel · refined · cultivated · socialites · old money · landed gentry · country estate
Successive family rulers
- pedigreeRecord of descent
- bloodlineAncestry through generations
- ancestryFamily line of descent
- lineageDescent from progenitors
genealogy · inheritance · primogeniture · birthright · descent · forebears · progenitors · legacy
Large property holdings
- mansionsLarge, stately houses
- manor housesGrand rural aristocratic residences
- inheritanceProperty received from ancestors
- endowmentPermanent donated fund
holdings · patrimony · entail · trust funds · heirlooms · ancestral seat · châteaux · stately homes
peerage
System of noble ranks
baron · viscount · marquess · earl · lord · lady · knight · dame · noblesse · heraldry
oligarchy
Rule by few
- monarchyRule by crowned sovereign
- sovereigntySupreme independent authority
- parliamentNational legislative assembly
legislature · ruling class · statecraft · feudalism · ancien régime · House of Lords · noblesse oblige · patronage · court · constitutional
elite
Superior select group
- exclusiveLimited to one group
- privilegedHaving special advantages
- upper-crustSocial elite class
blue-blooded · patrician · genteel · refined · cultivated · socialites · old money · landed gentry · country estate · finishing school
dynasty
Successive family rulers
lineage · genealogy · inheritance · primogeniture · birthright · descent · forebears · progenitors · legacy · patrimony
estates
Large property holdings
- mansionsLarge, stately houses
- manor housesGrand rural aristocratic residences
- inheritanceProperty received from ancestors
endowment · holdings · patrimony · entail · trust funds · heirlooms · ancestral seat · châteaux · stately homes · demesne
aristocraciesdemocracies
Governments elected by people
meritocracies · direct democracies · republics · representative democracies · popular sovereignty
aristocraciesproletariats
Wage-earning laboring classes
the masses · the common people · commoners · peasantries · working classes
aristocracy, aristocrat, aristocratic, aristocrats, aristo, aristocratically