Special Forms of Address

[Lady Rosalind Avalle]

Gentry and Gentiles

Singular (Polite): Good sir / Good wife
Singular (Informal): Sir / Mistress / Christian Name*
Singular (Impolite): Man / Miss
Plural: Good folk

Notes: Gentry are untitled landholders from noble families, usually the descendants of younger sons of nobility. "Good sir" and "my lord" are both appropriate forms of address. Serfs would, of course, address him/her as "my liege"/"my lady." Informally, the wife may also be called "Mistress Joan" or "Lady Heath," but never "Joan Smith."

Gentility refers not to manners but land ownership and nobility. Gentiles are addressed as "master" or "mistress." Only prostitutes, harlots, and girls under the age of fourteen are referred to as "miss."



The Middling Classes (Yeomans, Tradesmen, Craftsmen, etc)

Singular (Polite): Goodman / Goodwife
Singular (Informal): Sir / Mistress
Singular (Impolite): Peasant
Plural: Good folk

Notes: As there is no true middle class at this point in history, let's look instead to the yeoman. The yeoman was in service to his landlord, usually gentry, but higher than a serf in that he is not bound to the lord he serves. When he saved money, it was used to purchase land, in which case he becomes a landholder, but not gentry. Landholders must hold land for at least three generations before they can apply to be counted among the gentry. The urban equivalent of a yeoman is a burgess or citizen.

Tradesmen and craftsmen are one step above serfs on the social ladder if they are retained among a household as liveried servants. Otherwise, these workingmen are called husbandmen or cottars, and less formally, serfs. It is insulting to call a workingman a peasant. There will be fisticuffs.



Shire Viceroys ("In Absence of the King")

Singular (Polite): Your Excellency
Singular (Informal): My Lord**

Notes: This position is similar to the Catholic station of bishop, and higher than that of sheriff, in that viceroys may govern large tracts of land. They are, in effect, the king of that province. This is a position usually reserved for relatives of the monarch or favored courtiers. The viceroy, like others of high rank, are usually not addressed by their landed titles. For example, you would not call the Viceroy of Ireland "My Lord Ireland" in conversation, but simply, "My Lord."



Palatinate of Durham

Singular (Polite): Your Excellency
Singular (Informal): Your lordship, milord

Notes: The Prince-Bishop of Durham held courts, appointed sheriffs and ran a chancery just as the king did in the realm of England and acted with similar authority to shire viceroys but on a far larger scale. He even had his own army. The Palatinate was given such extensive powers because of its role in protecting England from the dangerous raiders of the Scottish borders. This borderland between England and Scotland remained dangerously anarchic long after the rest of the country became basically peaceful.

Anthony Bek, Bishop of Durham under Edward I, for example, conducted military campaigns against the Scots despite being a cleric. He seized the Balliol lands in the Borders when the opportunity presented itself, but was deprived by Edward I in 1302 when he became too greedy of power. (Control of the Palatinate was then temporarily taken over by royal officials.)

The special powers of the Bishop of Durham were not abolished until 1536.







* Only address someone by their Christian name if A) You are socially superior, B) You have been given leave, C) You are on friendly terms. Very rarely will a peer appreciate being called "Lady Jane" or "Lord Michael."

** For anyone above the rank of peasant and below the rank of duke, "My Lord" and "My Lady" will suffice. It is best not to call someone a lord when they are not a lord, however. Reserve the title for peers alone.