John Horace Round

“ Abolished at the Revolution, the title of marquess was not restored by Napoleon, but it was again revived by Louis XVIII., who created many of Napoleon’s counts marquesses. This again tended to cheapen the title, a process hastened under the republic by its frequent assumption on very slender grounds in the absence of any authority to prevent its abuse. In Italy too the title of marchese, once borne only by the powerful margraves of Verona, has shared the fate of most other titles of nobility in becoming common and of no great social significance. ”

“ In course of time the title was recognized as ranking between those of duke and count; but with the decay of feudalism it lost much of its dignity, and by the 17th century the savour of pretentiousness attached to it had made it a favourite subject of satire for Molière and other dramatists of the classical comedy. ”