Title of nobility in the Holy Roman Empire and its successor states
Typical Freiherr coronet with seven pearls, as used on a coat of arms
Freiherr (German:[ˈfʁaɪˌhɛɐ̯]; male, abbreviated as Frhr.), Freifrau ([ˈfʁaɪˌfʁaʊ]; his wife, abbreviated as Frfr., literally "free lord" or "free lady")[1] and Freiin ([ˈfʁaɪ.ɪn], his unmarried daughters and maiden aunts) are designations used as titles of nobility in the German-speaking areas of the Holy Roman Empire and in its various successor states, including Austria, Prussia, Bavaria, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, etc. Traditionally, it denotes the titled rank within the nobility above Ritter (knight) and Edler (nobility without a specific title) and below Graf (count or earl). The title superseded the earlier medieval form, Edelherr.
It corresponds approximately to the English baron in rank.[2] The Duden orthography of the German language references the French nobility title of Baron, deriving from the Latin-Germanic combination liber baro (which also means "free lord"), as corresponding to the German "Freiherr"; and that Baron is a corresponding salutation for a Freiherr.[3]
^Cite error: The named reference EBrit was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^A number of English-language historians specializing in Germany do not translate Freiherr. Agatha Ramm in Germany 1798–1919 (1967) states that she is preserving Freiherr because Baron carries a different association in English.
Freiherr (German: [ˈfʁaɪˌhɛɐ̯]; male, abbreviated as Frhr.), Freifrau ([ˈfʁaɪˌfʁaʊ]; his wife, abbreviated as Frfr., literally "free lord" or "free lady")...
Manfred Albrecht Freiherr von Richthofen (German: [ˈmanfreːt fɔn ˈʁɪçthoːfn̩]; 2 May 1892 – 21 April 1918), known in English as Baron von Richthofen or...
Wernher Magnus Maximilian Freiherr von Braun (US: /ˌvɜːrnər vɒn ˈbraʊn/ VUR-nər von BROWN, German: [ˌvɛʁnheːɐ̯ fɔn ˈbʁaʊ̯n]; 23 March 1912 – 16 June 1977)...
Freiherr von Philippsberg (German: Baron of Philippsberg) and Freiherr von Philippovich (Serbo-Croatian: Barun Filipović, lit. 'Baron Philippovich'), is...
Russia. The character is loosely based on baron Hieronymus Karl Friedrich, Freiherr von Münchhausen. Born in Bodenwerder, Hanover, the real-life Münchhausen...
Karl Freiherr von Drais (full name: Karl Friedrich Christian Ludwig Freiherr Drais von Sauerbronn; 29 April 1785 – 10 December 1851) was a noble German...
Oskar Walther Gerhard Julius Freiherr von Watter (born 2 September 1861 in Ludwigsburg; died 23 August 1939 in Berlin) was a German Generalleutnant who...
Israel Beer Josaphat; 21 July 1816 – 25 February 1899), later ennobled as Freiherr von Reuter (Baron von Reuter), was a German-born British entrepreneur who...
Sigismund Freiherr von Braun (14 April 1911 – 13 July 1998) was a German diplomat and Secretary of State in the Foreign Office (1970–1972). Sigismund von...
Baron Carl von Rokitansky (German: Carl Freiherr von Rokitansky, Czech: Karel Rokytanský; 19 February 1804 – 23 July 1878) was an Austrian physician, pathologist...
Johann Adolf, Freiherr von Thielmann (27 April 1765 – 10 October 1824) was a Saxon general who served with Saxony, Prussia and France during the Napoleonic...
Joseph Christian Freiherr von Zedlitz (Baron Joseph Christian von Zedlitz; February 28, 1790 in Jánský Vrch Castle, Javorník (today in the Czech Republic)...
Andreas Maria Maximilian Freiherr von Mauchenheim genannt Bechtolsheim (born 30 September 1955) is a German electrical engineer, entrepreneur and investor...
Baron Alexander von Bach (German: Alexander Freiherr von Bach; 4 January 1813, Loosdorf, Austria – 12 November 1893, Schöngrabern, Austria) was an Austrian...
Friedrich Wilhelm Christian Karl Ferdinand von Humboldt (/ˈhʌmboʊlt/, also US: /ˈhʊmboʊlt/, UK: /ˈhʌmbɒlt/; German: [ˈvɪlhɛlm fɔn ˈhʊmbɔlt]; 22 June 1767...
Thomas Ludwig Werner Freiherr von Fritsch (4 August 1880 – 22 September 1939) was a member of the German High Command. He was Commander-in-Chief of the...
Philipp Freiherr von Boeselager (6 September 1917 – 1 May 2008) was the second-last surviving member of the 20 July Plot, a conspiracy of Wehrmacht officers...
Walther Wolfgang Freiherr von Goethe (9 April 1818 – 15 April 1885) was a German composer and court chamberlain. He was one of the grandsons and last living...
Johann Lothar Freiherr von Faber (born 12 June 1817 in Unterspitzgarten near Stein, Bavaria – 26 July 1896 in Stein) was a German industrialist. He inherited...
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