" TWO SICILIES LAWS ON NOBILITY"
A summary of the nobiliary laws and decisions of the Crown regarding noble titles, from the compilations of 1756 until the end of the Monarchy in 1860.
(1) The Law of 25 January 1756, which declared the various grades of nobility. These were as follows:
(a) The first class is nobiltà generosa, nobility proven by the continual recognition of noble status coupled with possession of a noble feudatory over centuries. This can also be proved by a number of other considerations, notably inclusion among the noble families of a città regia, or by having descended from someone who had a glorious career and held the highest positions in the military, in the administration, in the church or court, and whose descendants have for the longest time been maintained as nobles, without holding low civil or popular offices, or practicing the vile or mechanical arts.
(b) The second class of nobility is that of privilege, achieved through merit or personal services to the crown, by services in the military, the administration or court, and which includes all military offices, or other royal or ecclesiastical appointees of a certain rank.
(c) The third class are those of reputed nobility, or who have been called to office and whose father and grandfather can demonstrate that they did not hold low charges and were of honorable estate and (by the royal dispatch of 16 Oct 1743) had not occupied low positions or practiced the vile arts.
(2) By royal dispatch of 19 January 1751 it was decreed that the governors of cities would only be aggregated to the nobiltà generosa by royal grace.
(3) A royal dispatch of 19 Feb 1757 prescribed that additions to the local nobility could not be achieved without princely confirmation, and that by a royal dispatch of 28 Oct 1758 such nobility could not be confirmed in this way without a royal cedula.
(4) By royal dispatch of 24 July 1758, the honor of the 1st class of nobiltà generosa di privilegio was extended to the sons of the officials of the Secretariat of State of the Azienda.[1]
(5) By royal dispatch of 20 June 1763 proofs of nobiltà generosa had to be submitted to the Royal Chamber of Santa Chiara.
(4) A further royal dispatch of 2 Dec 1770 declared that nobiltà generosa derived from long possession of a feudatory or of title conceded by the Crown, or could be based on tenure of the highest office of the Military, the Magistrature or the Church.
(5) A royal dispatch of 25 April 1778 declared that the issue of foreign nobles long established in the Kingdom could be accorded the privilege of nobility with sovereign permission.
(6) A royal dispatch of 27 June 1780 prescribed that being from a feudatory city did not forfeit nobility, which would be treated as if from other non-feudal cities.
(7) By royal dispatch of 7 May 1795 it was provided that the officials of the royal secretariats of state and their sons would enjoy the honors of the first class of nobiltà generosa di privilegio.
(8) A royal dispatch of 27 Oct 1798 prescribed that those aggregated to the Decurionato in the noble class by supplication to the administration with approval of the Royal Chamber, cannot acquire nobility without the consent of the Sovereign.
(9) The law of 25 April 1800 abolished feudalism in the Kingdom of Naples and the sedili (the nobiliary bench), and established a register, Libro d’Oro della nobiltà napolitana, of the all the families inscribed in the sedili; it also established a register of those families not included in the sedili, but which had owned feudal fiefs for more than 200 years, all those families which had made proofs for the category of Justice in the Order of Malta, and all the nobles which were listed in the closed sedili of the other royal cities. This also named the Marchese di Pescara e del Vasto and his primogeniture heirs in perpetuity to be the first Baron of the Kingdom and President of the Conservatory Tribunal.[2]
(10) A royal dispatch of 12 Sep 1800 directed that each family first added to the Libro d’Oro della nobiltà napolitana must pay 10,000 ducats. The sum of 4000 ducats was required of all those recorded in other classes of nobility. Reintegrations into the Libro d’Oro would cost 1000 ducats and 400 ducats for the other classes of nobility.
(8) A royal dispatch of 13 Oct 1801 ordained that inscription among the feudatory families required possession of the feudatory for at least 200 years, or for those not in possession it was required that since alienation they had continued to live continually as nobles.
(9) A royal dispatch of 29 November 1804 prescribed that all those who had been received into the Constantinian Order as Knights of Justice before April 1800 could be inscribed into the register of the nobility of the Kingdom; those who were admitted to the Order as knights of Justice after that date could be so inscribed following payment of 4000 ducats.[3]
(11) Law abolishing feudalism and fideicommis’, but conserving the hereditary nobility, of 9 Aug 1806. This stated explicitly “the hereditary nobility is conserved. The titles of prince, duke, count, and marquess legitimately conceded remain with the actual possessors transmissible to their descendants in perpetuity by order of primogeniture, and in the collateral lines to the fourth degree.”
(12) Law abolishing feudalism in Sicily but conserving hereditary nobility, of 10 Aug 1812. This confirmed that with the abolition of feudalism all baronial jurisdictions ceased, notwithstanding whatever privileges were claimed by the possessors of these feudatories. Titles of honor annexed to the feudatories would pass to their successors.
(13) Proclamation of 10 May 1815, by Ferdinand I preserving the ancient and the new nobility in their rank and titles.
(14) By the law of 11 Dec 1816, the feudal system was abolished, and the legitimate possessors of noble feudatories converted them to titles of nobility.
(15) By a royal prescript of 24 April 1828 the husbands of ladies who were decorated with titles could no longer use them jure uxoris in any public acts.
(16) The royal decree of 9 Sep 1832 suppressed the ministry and royal secretariat of state of the royal household and of orders of chivalry, and required that titles of nobility and everything concerning them would be under the jurisdiction of the ministry and secretariat of state of grace and justice.
(17) By royal decree of 23 March 1833 the royal commission for titles of nobility was established.
(18) By ministerial decree the succession of baronial titles following the abolition of feudalism was suspended to collaterals of the fourth degree, pending a decision by the royal commission appointed by the Sovereign.
(19) By the law of 10 Jan 1836 titles not attached to the feudal territory before the publication of the law of 1816, could not be attached to the land because the title would be added to the family name of the last legitimate owners of these feudatories.
(20) By Ministerial decree in the name of HM of 3 June 1837 it was determined that the transmission of titles formerly attached to the land could not be the subject of sale or contract.
(21) By Ministerial decrees in the name of HM of 7 Oct 1837 and 26 January 1839 it was determined that there could be no commercial transactions involving titles of nobility or titles formerly attached to feudal territories.
(22) By Ministerial decree of 10 Apr 1839 it was determined that since the denomination of baron was not a title, but a simple quality that defined the possession of feudatory, they remained extinct by the abolition of feudalism.
(23) By royal prescript of 7 Sep 1839 inclusion in the Libro d’Oro della nobiltà Napolitano was suspended until the publication of a new law on the nobility.
(24) By royal prescript of 7 Dec 1839 it was determined that the acquirer of a feudal territory could not acquire any title of nobility formerly annexed thereto.
(25) By royal prescript of 6 March 1841, it was declared that the proper system of succession must be respected even within a family, and that a title could not be diverted to another family member.
(26) By royal prescript of 23 March 1842 it was determined that a grantee of foreign nobility could not present inclusion in such foreign nobility as proof of nobility in the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies.
(27) By royal prescript of 8 June 1842 it was determined that no title could be resigned to any family member among those eligible for succession without the consent of all those who could succeed under the terms of the original investiture. [4]
(28) By royal prescript of 4 March 1843 any Neapolitan who wished to accept or use a foreign title must have the consent of the Sovereign.
(29) By law of 26 April 1848 responsibility for the royal commission for titles of nobility was attributed to the ministry of the presidency of the royal council.
(30) By royal prescript issued by the Minister and royal secretary of state of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers of 2 Dec 1848 it was determined that the succession to new[5] titles was limited to the descendants of the family of the grantee and that concession to a person and his descendants excluded collaterals of the grantee.
(31) By royal prescript issued by the Minister and royal secretary of state of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers of 9 Feb 1849, rejecting a contrary recommendation of the royal commission for titles of nobility, it was determined that submission of a diploma of the Constantinian Order or of the Order of Malta was sufficient proof of nobiltà generosa of the family.
(32) By royal prescript issued by the Minister and royal secretary of state of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers of 20 May 1851, it was determined that any family which pertained to the nobility of a city, and which was truly separated from the civil population and even more from the populace without being required to prove possession of a feudatory for 200 years but which pertained to the sedili of a city closed by the law of 25 April 1800, would be included among the nobiltà generosa.
(33) By royal prescript issued by the Minister and royal secretary of state of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers of 22 May 1851, the tariffs for succession to noble titles were set as follows:
Principe duc. 2000
Duca duc.1000
Marchese duc. 800
Conte[6] duc. 600.
Applications were processed by the royal commission for titles of nobility.
(34) By royal prescript issued by the Minister and royal secretary of state of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers of 17 Aug 1851, the requirement that the possessors of feudatories had enjoyed them for more than 200 years in order to be inscribed in the second registry of the nobility following the abolition of the feudal system was not applicable to those who were inscribed in the abolished sedili, who were invested of nobiltà generosa and did not need to make further proof of nobility.
(35) By royal prescript issued by the Minister and royal secretary of state of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers of 22 Sep 1852, it was determined that according to the ancient laws of Sicily, titles of nobility could not pass to the collaterals of the original investee or grantee.
(36) By royal prescript issued by the Minister and royal secretary of state of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers of 29 July 1853 it was determined that:
(a) The royal commission for titles of nobility was competent to determine, so as to remove all doubt, who among the nearest relatives was eligible to aspire to the succession to a noble title.
(b) That in the succession of maternal titles in event of the failure of male progeny, the senior heir by age would succeed.
(c) That since the abolition of feudalism in 1800 and of the fideicommis in 1806, the sole consideration for succession was legitimate descent from the grantee, by order of primogeniture.
[1] Finance Ministry, in modern parlance.
[2] This body was replaced by the Royal Commission for titles of nobility by decree of 9 Sep 1832.
[3] “29 novembre 1804. Eccelenza: Essendo stato informato il Re di quanto ha V.E. proposto con sua rappresentanza de’ 3 del passato mese di ottobre relativamente alla domanda avanzata dai cavalieri di giustizia del real Ordine Costantiniano di essere ascritti al registro della nobiltà, egualmente che si è praticato pei cavalieri di giustizia dell’Ordine Gerosolimitano; si è la M. S. degnata di dichiarare, che cotesto supreme tirbunale conservatore ascriva al registro della nobiltà I cavalieri di giustizia Costantiniani anteriori al mese di aprile 1800; otterrano la croce di giustizia posteriormente alla detta epoca, siano i medesimi ammessi in termini di aggregazione, e coi pagamento di duc. 4000.”
[4] This law was further amended by royal prescript of 5 Aug 1843 so that any minor with right of succession could not consent until reaching his majority, at which time he could then give consent.
[5] New titles refers to those titles created after the abolition of feudalism.
[6] It must be remembered that the denomination of “Barone” pertained to all holders of feudal lordships and that as it was abolished by the abolition of feudalism, it could not be subject to succession fees.
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