DUKE

feminine duchess a European title of nobility, having ordinarily the highest rank below a prince or king (except in countries having such mediant titles as archduke or grand duke). The title of dux, given by the Romans to high military commanders with territorial responsibilities, was taken over by the barbarian invaders of the Roman Empire and was used in their kingdoms and also in France and Germany for rulers of very large areas. The early Carolingian sovereigns in France and in Germany continued to appoint dukes, but their weaker successors found themselves constrained to free the dukes more and more from royal control in the areas that they had to defend.