Count
Count (male) or Countess (female) is a high noble title, typically sitting beneath prince and duke. In almost all cases it grants control over an estate called a county or countship. A count's heir is normally granted the Courtesy Title of baron, though traditions across the grand provinces differ.
Although many counts rule an Imperial Estate, and certainly all counties began as such, because of the vagaries of politics, war, and local tradition, a great many counties are now only fiefs of other Imperial Estates. Because of this, counts of Imperial Estates are sometimes styled as counts palatine, showing their power and authority comes directly from an elector count, 'the palace', and not from another feudal lord.
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Historical Use
Count as a title is sourced from the Classical word comes, meaning ‘companion’, and scholars believe it was first used by Sigmar to describe the tribal chiefs who supported him during his wars against the Greenskins. After Sigmar’s abdication, his counts selected a new emperor from amongst their own number, and announced they would repeat this tradition as each emperor passed away. Thus, the counts became ‘elector counts’, and each swore to be a companion and protector of their new elected emperor.
As the centuries passed, many of the elector counts selected their own groups of companions, their own 'counts', to militarily and civically lead portions of their domains, areas that came to be known as counties. Many of these positions became hereditary, and some of the oldest titles in the Empire are drawn from this time. During these formative centuries of the Empire, many dukes, another ancient title, were re-titled as counts by their elector counts, marking them as favoured subjects. Because of this, some grand provinces of the Empire, such as Reikland, Stirland, and Averland, place count ahead of duke in the formal order of ranks, even though the duke title is older and often more influential.
Other Comital Titles in the Empire
Graf
Graf (male) or grafina/gravin (female) is an older term for 'count'. According to ancient tradition ratified by Magnus the Pious, old-blooded uradel counts and countesses can use the title if they prefer.
Margrave
A margrave (male) or margravina (female) is a count responsible for guarding an important border.
Other Comital Titles of the Old World
Across the Old World, the title count is used in different ways, and in some cases to mark different ranks. Here are some primary examples.
Border Princes
Comital titles are used in many different ways by the rulers of the Border Princes. Some are claimed by strongarms who take whatever title their whim dictates, where others are long established, claimed by hoary bloodlines as old as the Empire itself. As old claims are often associated with older versions of the word count, it is common to find different versions of the count title used in the region, with the most common being kont, konte, kmet, or komes. In most cases, the would-be counts claim to rule a kometat or county, and are not recognised formally by the Empire as anything more than the petty warlords they most commonly are.
Bretonnia
In Bretonnia, a count is called a comte (male) or comtesse (female). The title was originally imported to what would become the duchies of Parravon, Monfort, Gisoreux, and Couronne in ages past, either by inter-marriage or by early invasions into the region by the Empire, and spread slowly from there. Comte is recognised by the Empire to have the same rank as count in all ways.
A comte usually rules a comté, and is typically beholden to a duc (duke).
Estalia
Estalia has its own traditions for why its counts, that they call condes (male) or condessas (female), are named so, and it involves Myrmidia taking Estalian companions to her side when she walked as a mortal. The Cult of Sigmar does not formally recognise this version of events, thus the Empire claims Estalian condes have a lesser rank to their counts, one broadly equivalent to a baron. This is a constant source of contention with Estalian nobles.
Condes normally rule over a condado on behalf of their rey (king).Tilea
Tilea names its counts as contes (male) and countessa (female), and claims Sigmar originally took the idea for naming his companions as counts from its people. In turn, the Empire claims Sigmar was the inspiration for the Tilean conte, not the other way around. Whatever the truth, the Empire accepts a conte as equal to a count in all ways.
In Tilea, contes are answerable to their príncipe (prince) and typically rule either a contea, contado, or comitato, depending from where in Tilea they hail.
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