Sir is used to address a man who has the rank of baronet or knight; the higher nobles are referred to as Lord. Lady is used when referring to women who hold certain titles: marchioness, countess, viscountess, or baroness.
Sir is a word used for respect. If you call someone sir, it means you respect them. Most people find it respectful to call someone sir or madam. It is necessary for specific people in your society to address them with sir or madam.
The women who are given knighthood by the queen of England are called Dames. Dame is a noble title and the female equivalent of the honour of knighthood in the British honours system and several other countries such as Australia and among European orders of chivalry.
The wife of a knight may use the courtesy title of “Lady” before her surname, provided she uses her husband's surname. For example, the wife of Sir John Smith is: Lady Smith.
'This is not the same as a Lordship of a Manor, enshrined in English law as incorporeal hereditament - property without body. You can call yourself whatever you want as long as you are not defrauding people through its use. If you want to change your title to lord, it is perfectly legal.
Knighted doctors are addressed as knights, though they may still use any post-nominal letters associated with their degrees. Peers who have been knighted are not addressed as 'Sir' in the formal sense of the style, as their titles of nobility take precedence.
Sir: A title of honour for a knight that originates from the Old French word "sieur". Dame or Lady: The female equivalent of the title "sir" that can be used by a woman in her own right. In the UK, the titles "sir" and "dame" are closely associated with the New Year's Honours and the Queen's Birthday Honours lists.
Knighthood is not inherited; it must be earned. But knighthood grants nobility and at the instant of his dubbing the new knight goes from being a commoner to being noble. And, because of the conventions of Hârnic feudal society, the knight's nobility is inherited by the first generation of his or her offspring.
British titles
Aside from the queen, women of royal and noble status simply carried the title of "Lady". The title "Lady" is also used for a woman who is the wife of a Scottish feudal baron or laird, the title "Lady" preceding the name of the barony or lairdship.Wife of a knight (courtesy titles)
The wife of a knight may use the courtesy title of “Lady” before her surname, provided she uses her husband's surname. For example, the wife of Sir John Smith is: Lady Smith.The courtesy prefix of "Maid" is granted to the eldest daughter of a Laird (Lord). If the eldest daughter is also the heir presumptive she may either hold the title "Younger" or the title "Maid".
Style of address
In direct address, barons and baronesses can also be referred to as My Lord, Your Lordship, or Your Ladyship or My Lady. The husband of a baroness in her own right gains no title or style from his wife.Sir: A title of honour for a knight that originates from the Old French word "sieur". Dame or Lady: The female equivalent of the title "sir" that can be used by a woman in her own right.
'Your Grace' is a form of address for various high-ranking personage and is used when addressing non-royal dukes and duchesses, and archbishops, in the United Kingdom. To-day, 'Your Majesty' is used when addressing the King or Queen, and 'Your Royal Highness' when addressing members of the Royal family.
To address the envelope on a letter to the Lord Speaker, you also need to include “The Right Honorable the,” followed by “Lord,” their surname, and “Lord Speaker.” For example, the current Lord Speaker is Normal Fowler, so the envelope would say: “The Right Honorable the Lord Fowler, Lord Speaker.”
Dame, properly a name of respect or a title equivalent to lady, surviving in English as the legal designation for the wife or widow of a baronet or knight or for a dame of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire; it is prefixed to the given name and surname.
Men who receive this honour are given the title Sir, while women receiving the honour are called Dame. The award is given for an exceptional achievement in any activity. Like a CBE, an OBE is an order of the British Empire award.
An American can be knighted by the Queen of England. When a person is knighted, he has basically received a knighthood from the Queen and adds the title 'Sir' before his name. Over the years many people from outside Great Britain have been knighted. An American can receive a knighthood.
You don't get any money or a medal. There are six orders of knighthood and the monarch decides which you are knighted into. But some orders you'll get one, eg if you were knighted by being made a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire, or a Knight Companion of the Garter.
Knights Templars-Ranks and Organization
- Knights Templar Ranks.
- Templar Marshal.
- Templar Banner bearer.
- Templar Knight.
- Knights Templar Sergeant.
Theoretically, it would be possible for a peasant to be knighted for bravery or some great service (knighthood is not technically hereditary). As feudalism spread, it might be possible for a household knight to be granted a land fief to become a landed knight expected to provide his own horse and armour.
Knights didn't marry commoners but couldn't generally marry up either unless they were particularly important to their lord, in which case the lord might arrange for one of his own daughters to "marry down" to cement the alliance. Widowed wives might have it better than they did when married.
Stephen Hawking CH CBE, physicist, reportedly turned down a knighthood because he "does not like titles." Keith Hill, Labour MP; declined knighthood in 2010 Dissolution Honours, stating: "My fundamental reason is that I have never had the least desire to have a title.
Several orders of knights from medieval times still exist today as service orders (like the Knights Hospitallers and Teutonic Knights). But most of us know knighthood as an honor bestowed in the United Kingdom by the queen or members of the royal family in recognition for some great social contribution.
Dame is an honorific title and the feminine form of address for the honour of damehood in many Christian chivalric orders, as well as the British honours system and those of several other Commonwealth countries, such as Australia and New Zealand, with the masculine form of address being sir.
In general the practice of knights fighting dismounted was learned during the Scottish wars of independence. The dismounted knights formed a tight packed front line that could hold against a mounted charge. Horses will not try to gallop into a tight packed bunch of men standing their ground.
Proclaiming himself "humbled and delighted," Microsoft founder Bill Gates received an honorary knighthood Wednesday from Queen Elizabeth II — an accolade that allows the recipient to use "KBE" after his name, but not to put "Sir" in front of it.
In other cases, a person can become a knight without being knighted. In other words, a person can receive a different kind of award without having the whole sword on the shoulder thing. This means being awarded membership into the higher ranks of an order of chivalry.
Since recipients are not knights of an order of chivalry there are no post-nominal letters associated with the honour, however when the style "Sir" is awkward or incomplete due to a subsequent appointment, recipients may use the letters "Kt" after their name (note the lowercase "t" which distinguishes it from "KT").
The honours are published in the official Crown newspaper, the London Gazette. The Central Chancery of the Orders of Knighthood at St James's Palace then arranges investitures for the recipients to be presented with their medals by the Queen or other members of the Royal Family.
The Order is limited to 300 Knights and Dames Grand Cross, 845 Knights and Dames Commander, and 8,960 Commanders. There are no limits applied to the total number of members of the fourth and fifth classes, but no more than 858 Officers and 1,464 Members may be appointed per year.
Star Trek star Patrick Stewart knighted at Palace. Actor Sir Patrick Stewart paid tribute to a former teacher as he was knighted by the Queen at Buckingham Palace. The 69-year-old said he owed "literally everything" to the English teacher who first encouraged him to perform.
Knight Commander or Dame Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (KBE or DBE) Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE) Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE)
Australia will no longer appoint knights and dames under its honours system, PM Malcolm Turnbull has said. Mr Turnbull said the titles were "not appropriate" in modern Australia, and that Queen Elizabeth had accepted the cabinet's recommendation to drop them.
In the United Kingdom, a Knight Bachelor is a man who is a knight, (has the title Sir) but who is neither a: senior member of one of the orders of chivalry, sometimes called orders of knighthood, nor. a baronet.
