Suo jure

Suo jure is a Latin phrase used, in English, to mean "in her own right".

It is commonly encountered in the context of titles of nobility or honorary titles, e.g. Lady Mayoress, and especially in cases where a woman holds a title in her own right rather than through her marriage.

An empress or queen who reigns suo jure is referred to as an "empress regnant" or queen regnant, those terms often being contrasted with empress/queen consort: "empress" and "queen" are, however, often used alone to refer to either a regnant or consort, the distinction being indicated by context.

Examples of suo jure titles

• Eleanor, Duchess of the Aquitaine, French, then English queen consort, duchess suo jure
• Mary, Duchess of Burgundy, Queen consort of the Romans, duchess suo jure
• Anne Marie Louise d'Orléans, Duchess of Montpensier, French princess, peeress suo jure
• Hawise, Duchess of Brittany, duchess "suo jure"
• Henrietta Godolphin, 2nd Duchess of Marlborough, English peeress suo jure^[1]
• Maria Theresa of Austria, Austrian archduchess, Hungarian and Bohemian queen regnant
• Elizabeth of Russia, Russian empress regnant
• Princess Wilhelmine, Duchess of Sagan, Princess of Courland, duchess suo jure
• Princess Alexandra, 2nd Duchess of Fife, British princess, duchess suo jure
• Cayetana Fitz-James Stuart, 18th Duchess of Alba, Spanish grandee suo jure
• Patricia Mountbatten, 2nd Countess Mountbatten of Burma, British countess suo jure
• Jane Heathcote-Drummond-Willoughby, 28th Baroness Willoughby de Eresby, British baroness suo jure
• Rosalinda Álvares Pereira de Melo, 1st Duchess of Cadaval-Hermès, Portuguese duchess suo jure
• Diana Álvares Pereira de Melo, 11th Duchess of Cadaval, half-sister of the above, Portuguese duchess ad personam and suo jure
• Margaret of Mar, 31st Countess of Mar, Scottish peeress suo jure
• Catherine Willoughby, 12th Baroness Willoughby de Eresby, English baroness suo jure
• Joan of Kent, suo jure 4th Countess of Kent and 5th Baroness Wake of Liddell.
• Queen Anne Boleyn, of England, Marquess of Pembroke suo jure
• Catharina-Amalia, Princess of Orange became, in 2013, the first suo jure Hereditary Princess of Orange since Mary of Baux in 1417
• Princess Elisabeth, Duchess of Brabant became, in 2013, the first suo jure Hereditary Duchess of Brabant ever.
• Infanta Leonor of Spain, Prince of Asturias suo jure
• Claude, Queen Consort of France, French princess, Hereditary Duchess of Brittany suo jure

See also

• List of peerages created for women in the peerages of the British Isles
• List of peerages inherited by women in the peerages of the British Isles
• Jure uxoris
• List of Latin phrases

References

1. Sambrook, James (January 2008). "Godolphin, Henrietta, suo jure duchess of Marlborough (1681–1733)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/92329. Retrieved 2012-05-18.