Nobility
A nobleman is any person entitled to Armorial Bearings. The Fons Honorum or the supreme authority with the power to ennoble is the Sovereign and each kingdom has its own rules of precedence and entitlement. Generally speaking the order of precedence in most European countries is
Prince, Archduke or Grand Duke, Duke, Marquess, Count or Earl, Viscount, Baron, Hereditary Knight or Baronet, Knight, and Squire*
There are exceptions however. In Malta, for instance, precedence of the nobility is governed by the antiquity of the title rather than its degree. Thus the Barony of Djar il-Bniet, created in 1350, takes precedence over the Marquisate of Fiddien, created in 1785
For German titles, see German Titles
For United Kingdom titles, see Peer
A translation of titles into various European languages
*In France, Squire or Ecuyer had a special and important significance. It was not a title but ranked within the nobility. A nobleman was automatically an ecuyer and only a nobleman could be so styled. On the other hand, Seigneur (Lord) was not a title and indeed even a commoner could be the owner of a lordship. The term Seigneur only meant "the possessor of a certain kind of property" in the feudal system.