Duke

The term duke is a title of nobility which refers to the sovereign male ruler of a Continental European duchy, to a nobleman of the highest grade of the British peerage, or to the highest rank of nobility in various other European countries, including Portugal, Spain and France (in Italy, principe is held to be the highest grade). The wife of a duke, or a woman who rules a duchy, is known as a duchess.

Territory of today's France

• Duke of Angouleme
• Duke of Anjou
• Duke of Aquitaine
• Duke of Auvergne
• Duke of Bourbon
• Duke of Brittany (considered a sovereign state until personal union with France, by the marriage of Anne of Brittany with French King Francis I)
• Duke of Broglie
• Duke of Burgundy (known as Grand duc; not a separate title at that time; just a description of the wealth and real clout of the 15th century Dukes, cousins of the Kings of France.)
• Duke of Guise
• Duke of Lorraine
• Duke of Montpensier
• Duke of Normandy
• Duke of Savoy (although Haute Savoie is now part of France, the Dukes of Savoy were Princes of the Holy Roman Empire, not peers of France.)
• Special ecclesiastic cases : Prince-Bishops of ducal rank - styled * evêque-duc pair de France

See also List of French dukedoms

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