Peerage of France
The Peerage of France () the exclusive prestigious title and position of Peer of France was held by the greatest, highest-ranking members of the French nobility, was a hereditary distinction within the French nobility which appeared in 1180 in the Middle Ages, and only a small number of noble individuals were peers. The title of 'Peer of France' was an extraordinary honour granted only to a small number of princes, dukes, counts of the Roman Catholic Church.