Class structures have been part of human society for as long as we can trace History. People of power, wealth and social importance were organized into social castes and elites, and if these classes found legitimacy in various sources, from military might, popular respect, or birthright, to merit and business acumen, they always made great efforts to distinguish themselves from the masses.

Nobility as a concept predates the Middle Ages by a long shot, but the medieval noble, the feudal landowning class, is probably the most iconic historical version of nobility, coming to most people’s minds first, way before the Roman patricians or any other type of aristocracy. Closely tied with monarchic systems, nobility involves an elevated status and privileges gained by birthright. Medieval noble lines were at first established by warlords that secured land for themselves by pledging allegiance to a sovereign or serving as knights in the monarch’s direct entourage.

Nobles were a military caste with wide social and economic privileges. Over time, more people were invited as part of the nobility through influence, prestige, or as a reward for service. While nobility often came with great wealth, noble status could be held by destitute families. Still, they would keep their privilege under the law, placing them above wealthy commoners in medieval Europe.

From petty nobles or mere gentry owning small estates, to mighty dukes, counts, and kings ruling over millions, the nobility included a large spectrum of aristocrats with widely different levels of power and prestige. Yet, all of them found pride in their elevated status.

By the end of the Middle Ages, a new social elite was emerging, not that it would rise to prominence until much later. The bourgeois, or the mercantile class composed of traders, managers, and financiers, would come to hold extensive power and influence in the cities. While the land made the nobles rich, the bourgeoisie was made prosperous by trade and early industry. Eventually, some of these merchants and bankers would literally buy their way into nobility, shaking the aristocratic system to its core by buying status with wealth. They were the challengers of the medieval class system, aspiring to the power held by the nobles above them, and often imitating them and their fashion.