What Makes the Nobility Noble?

Book excerpt: In this volume on the history of the European nobility in the modern era, the boundary between the early modern and 'real' modern periods around 1800 is deliberately crossed. By centring on the nobility, the authors undertake a new exploration of the continuities and ruptures in European history. In the three thematic areas of law, politics and aesthetics, the noble knights' utilisation of the early modern courts in the Holy Roman Empire is considered, along with the social and political identity of the English nobility in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The contributions make clear the virtuosity with which the nobility met the challenges of their time, and how they managed to be simultaneously 'contemporary' and retain a specific aristocratic character.