margrave
- (formerly) the hereditary title of the rulers of certain European states.
- History/Historical. a hereditary German title, equivalent to marquis.
- (originally) a military governor of a German mark, or border province.
Origin of margrave
Examples from the Web for margrave
Historical Examples of margrave
The Margrave of Rudesheimer was a slender man of elegant appearance.
Vivian GreyEarl of Beaconsfield, Benjamin Disraeli
The Margrave was astounded, the people in raptures, and the cousins in despair.
Vivian GreyEarl of Beaconsfield, Benjamin Disraeli
She had gone to Bayreuth, where she had been the margrave's mistress.
The Memoires of Casanova, CompleteJacques Casanova de Seingalt
In accents broken by grief, the Margrave explained what had occurred.
BurlesquesWilliam Makepeace Thackeray
"'Tis clear as the staff of a pike," said the poor Margrave, mournfully.
BurlesquesWilliam Makepeace Thackeray
margrave
- a German nobleman ranking above a count. Margraves were originally counts appointed to govern frontier provinces, but all had become princes of the Holy Roman Empire by the 12th century
Word Origin for margrave
Word Origin and History for margrave
military governor of a German border province, 1550s, from Middle Dutch markgrave (Dutch markgraaf), literally "count of the border," from Old High German marcgravo; second element from graf "count, earl" (Old High German gravo, gravjo), from West Germanic *grafa "a designation of rank, possibly borrowed from Greek grapheus "scribe." For first element see mark (n.1). Later a hereditary title under the Holy Roman Empire. His wife was a margravine.