Today there are nearly 4,000 noble families in France. What if you too could claim a bit of nobility?
Become a baron or baroness without inheritance or family castle? It’s possible! Imagine, a glass in hand, welcomed by a “monseigneur” or a “Madame la Baronne”. The dream is not inaccessible … provided you put the price. Because yes, this little piece of nobility is bought. For a few tens to several hundred euros, we can obtain an honorary title, often delivered with an official certificate and a lot of plume. Without legal value, of course, but perfect for affecting a touch of prestige.
But for some, it’s not just a coquetry. Buying a title can also be a way to do a good deed. Certain offers are accompanied by an environmental dimension: by becoming “Duke” or “Duchess”, the buyer participates, for example, in the protection of a forest, in reforestation programs or in the safeguard of the oceans. In these cases, the symbolic title is accompanied by a concrete gesture, between ethics and fantasy assumed.
In Switzerland, Pierre Bertherin claims to have realized the dream of hundreds of people. He is at the origin of the Swiss Foundation of the Order of Knights of Rondmons. “”We are a chivalry of the third millennium. It is not folk at all, it is real titles emanating from a real order of chivalry which is controlled by a real foundation“He had explained to the microphone of France TV. But in fact, this approach is more similar to a form of patronage than to grant a title officially recognized by the State. The objective? Financing heritage renovation projects, while providing its contributors with a bit of symbolic nobility.
On the people side, the title is also dreaming. If some stars have received a real honorary title, like Elton John, who had been knight by the deceased queen Élisabeth II, others preferred to buy their title. Singer Ed Sheeran, for example, became Baron de Sealand in 2012, after buying this original title linked to a self-proclaimed micronation off the United Kingdom. What add a touch of eccentricity to his already royal career.
