Baronet
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
originally a term apparently in use as early as the time of Edward III. for certain landed gentlemen not of the dignity of lords, summoned to Parliament to counterbalance the power of the clergy. Subsequently it became the name given to three titled orders. 1. Baronets of Great Britain: A titled order, the lowest that is hereditary. Speaking broadly, they rank in precedence next after the younger sons of viscounts and barons: but in reality they are inferior to the Knights of the Order of St. George or of the Garter, certain official dignitaries, and knightsbanneret created on the actual field of battle. The order was instituted by James I., on May 22, 1611, to raise money by fees paid for the dignity, and thus obtain resources for the settlement of Ulster. The badge of a baronet is sinister, a hand gules (= a bloody hand) in a field of argent. Etiquette requires that he be addressed as "Si "Sir A. B., Bart." 2. Baronets of Ireland: A titled order instituted by James I. in 1619. It is believed that this dignity has not been conferred on any one since the union of Great Britain and Ireland in 1801. 3. Baronets of Scotland: A titled order planned by James I., but actually instituted, not by him, but by Charles I. in 1625, just after the accession of the latter monarch to the throne. The object aimed at in the creation of the order was the planting of Nova Scotia (New Scotland). Since the union between England and Scotland in 1707, no baronets have been created holding rank in the latter country alone, but some titles existing previously still figure in the British baronetage.
What Has Changed in the Last Century
The order Collier's described in 1921 still exists, but it has effectively stopped growing. Successive governments after 1964 declined to recommend new hereditary honours, and the only baronetcy created since then was for Sir Denis Thatcher, husband of the prime minister, in the resignation honours of December 1990; roughly 1,200 baronetcies remain on the Official Roll, with a number of others dormant because no claimant has proved succession. The forms Collier's set out are largely intact: a baronet is still "Sir A. B., Bt." (the abbreviation "Bart." has fallen out of official use), and the red hand on a silver field is still the badge, though baronets of Nova Scotia bear that province's arms instead. What has gone is any practical consequence "baronets never sat in the Lords, and today the rank carries precedence and nothing else.
Written for this edition, 2026.