The ~ are people of high social status or high birth. (mainly BRIT OLD-FASHIONED)
Most of the country estates were built by the landed ~ during the late 19th century.
N-PLURAL
GENTRY
Meaning of GENTRY in English
Collins COBUILD. Толковый словарь английского языка для изучающих язык Коллинз COBUILD (международная база данных языков Бирмингемского университета) . 2012