Other Definitions
count (dict)
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Count - This page is about the European nobility; for the baseball term, see count (baseball).
A count is a nobleman in most European countries, equivalent in rank to a British earl, whose wife is still a "countess". Originally the title comes denoted the rank of a high official in the late Roman Empire: before Anthemius was made emperor in the West in 467, he was military comes strengthening defenses on the Danube frontier http://www.roman-emperors.org/anthemiu.htm. Military counts in the Late Empire and the Germanic successor kingdoms were often appointed by a dux and later by a king. From the start the count was in military charge of a locality, a county, his main rival for power being the bishop, whose diocese was often coterminous. In many Germanic and Frankish kingdoms in the early Middle Ages, the count might also be a count palatine, whose authority derived directly from the royal household, the "palace". The position of comes was not originally a hereditary one, but by developing a local power base, a count was often able to make it a hereditary title. The title was was often conferred by the monarch as an honorific title for special services rendered. A count or earl is often a courtesy title for the eldest son of a duke. In Italy, all the sons of a count are counts (contini); in the United Kingdom stringent rules apply. Title Language> | ale Title | Female Title | | a href="/encyclopedia/English-language" title="English language">English | Earl/Count | Countess | | a href="/encyclopedia/Latin-language" title="Latin language">Latin | Comes | Comitessa | | a href="/encyclopedia/French-language" title="French language">French | Comte | Comtesse | | a href="/encyclopedia/German-language" title="German language">German | Graf | Grfin | | a href="/encyclopedia/Hungarian-language" title="Hungarian language">Hungarian | grf | grfnő | | a href="/encyclopedia/Italian-language" title="Italian language">Italian | Conte | Contessa | | a href="/encyclopedia/Spanish-language" title="Spanish language">Spanish | Conde | Condesa | | a href="/encyclopedia/Swedish-language" title="Swedish language">Swedish | Greve | |Grevinna | | a href="/encyclopedia/Portuguese-language" title="Portuguese language">Portuguese | Conde | Condessa | In German kingdoms the title was combined with the word for the jurisdiction or domain the nobleman was responsible for, such as "Landgraf" - landgrave, "Burggraf" - burgrave (burg = castle). List of counts Territory of today's France In other continental European countries See also
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