Carolina nobleman's seal Thu is ihc seal ol
Boron Christopher dc Grolfcnrcid, Landgraic ol
Carolino.
Hereditary Nobility
in North
Two hundred and ninety years ago,
the "true and absolute" Lords Pro¬
prietors of Carolina conceived and at¬
tempted to spawn a government of
landed aristocracy in the sparsely
populated wilderness of Carolina.
To judge fairly the grandiose plans
of those eight Haris, Lords, Dukes, and
Baronets, one must consider the politi¬
cal climate and human relations of
England at that time. After their suc¬
cess in restoring Charles II to the
throne of England, the creation of a
Palatinate of Carolina must have
seemed a relatively easy project. They
saw nothing wrong in a privileged class
of nobility, nor an underprivileged
class of leetmen and serfs, subject to
the will of their masters. Both were
accepted by all Englishmen.
Carolina
In addition to the vast area of land,
the King's charter included the "juris¬
diction and privileges of a County
Palatine of Durham." This included
the right to create an order of no¬
bility in Carolina, provided the titles
used were not those common to Eng¬
land. "Only (iod could create a King,
with divine rights, and only a King
could create a Lord."
Inspired by visions of a principality
in Carolina as great as the German
Palatinate on the Rhine, the Lords
Proprietors borrowed the title or dignity
of Palatine for the ruler of their do¬
main. Landgrave, also a German title,
borrowed from the ruler of Hesse-
Kassel, was next in dignity to the Pala¬
tine. Cacique, the Spanish equivalent
of a Count, and a title used by Span-
«•/
WINGATE l(l l l)
iards to designate a native chief or
ruler of their American possessions,
was selected as the third dignity. For
each Landgrave, there were to be two
Caciques.
The eldest member of the Lords
Proprietors was to be the Palatine of
Carolina, the pinnacle of this pyramid
of nobility. He, with the seven other
Lords Proprietors, each having a re¬
sounding. but empty title, such as Ad¬
miral. Chancellor, or Chamberlain of
Carolina, formed the Palatine Court,
which was to rule the Province or
Palatinate of Carolina. Upon his death,
the Palatine was to be succeeded by
the next older Proprietor.
Initially. Carolina was to be divided
into twelve counties of 480,000 acres
each. Each county was divided into
seignories, baronies, and colonies. A
barony consisted of 12.000 acres, "in
one single piece." A seignory was one
or more baronies. A provision was
made for “manors” of from 3.000 to
12,000 acres, so designated by grant,
for commoners.
For each county, there would be
one. and only one l.andgrave. and two
Caciques. These dignities were to be
bestowed upon "such of the inhabitants
of the said Province," as the Lords
Proprietors thought deserving of the
honor.
Within each county, each Proprietor
was to have a seignory of 1 2,000 acres.
The Landgrave was to have four
baronies, totaling 48,000 acres. Each
Cacique was to have two baronies,
totaling 24,000 acres. This accounted
for two-fifths of the land area of the
county. The remaining three-fifths, or
288.000 acres, was to be divided into
four colonies (precincts), for the use
of freeholders. The possession of land
was a legal requirement for the holder
of any dignity or office within the
Province.
Disregarding the provisions of their
"sacred and unalterable" Fundamental
Constitutions, the first Landgrave ap¬
pointed was John Locke, author of the
15
THE STATE. MAY 27. 1961
