How to Become a Noble

Perhaps you always have dreamed of putting "Sir" or "Lady" in front of your name. You may have dallied with the thought of accepting a knighthood, but perhaps you wanted a title that came with land or a seat in parliament. With the number of monarchies in the world dwindling, you will probably need to move and change your citizenship, if you are not already living under a monarchy.

Things You'll Need

• Plane ticket to Europe Language instruction Government contacts

Instructions

1. 

   Learn Spanish and move to Madrid. King Juan Carlos of Spain still has the power to grant titles of nobility, and historically, he has chosen prominent politicians and artists. Become a citizen of Spain and excel in the arts or work your way up through regional parliaments to the federal senate. If you make it to Prime Minister and the king likes you, you are likely to get a title like baron or higher. Don Adolfo Suárez y González was granted the title of First Duke of Suarez in recognition of his service as prime minister.

2. 

   Go to London next, if your political and/or artistic efforts in Spain are not going well.. You will have to become a British subject, but at least you don't need to learn a whole new language. What makes becoming a noble in the United Kingdom tricky is that Queen Elizabeth II is only in the habit of granting new knighthoods lately, and technically, that's not a title of nobility. The only British citizens to have been offered new titles of nobility in the past few decades were all prime ministers, and that's a longer, harder road with less likelihood of becoming a noble than in Spain. Margaret Thatcher became a baroness, but Tony Blair was not offered a title. You might have a better chance of getting yourself adopted by a childless noble family.

3. 

   Try Belgium next. You will need to move to Brussels and learn French. You may eventually have to learn Dutch/Flemish as well because it is spoken by most Northern Belgians. Once you have the languages mastered, you will need to become a Belgian citizen. King Albert II gives out noble titles on an annual basis. He is very wide ranging in whom he picks for noble titles, including businesspeople, politicians, artists, athletes and scientists, so just pick a field and gain national recognition for it. You are bound to get your title eventually.

4. 

   Attempt to attain a title of nobility in the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden or Norway. You will need to learn the language where you are, which could be Dutch or several others, and become a citizen first. Then you need to establish yourself in high society and marry someone who already has a title. These Northern European countries don't grant any new titles anymore.

5. 

   Start your own monarchy. You may not have the clout available to nobles from established monarchies, but at least you get to start at the top. In order to be a viable monarchy, you will have to purchase a significant amount of land and convince the populace to secede from whatever country currently claims possession of or protection over it. Try to find an area that has a preference for monarchy over democracy, so that your rise to power will not be too heavily contested.

Tips & Warnings

• If you are short on time, but have significant cash, you may want to start with step 5.

• In modern times, the odds of becoming a noble without inheriting the title are very slim, and even if you pick a country with a liberal policy about naming new nobles, you may not know if your investment was worth it until late in your life.

References

• Peerage and knighthood in Great Britain