Italian nobility

The Italian nobility (Italian: Nobiltà italiana) comprised individuals and their families of the Italian Peninsula, and the islands linked with it, recognized by the sovereigns of the Italian city-states since the Middle Ages, and by the kings of Italy after the unification of the region into a single state, the Kingdom of Italy.

Nobles had a specific legal status and held most of the wealth and various privileges denied to other classes, mainly politicians. In most of the former Italian pre-unification states, it was the only class that had access to high-level government positions. They represented the most distinguished positions of the peninsular nations in addition to the Catholic Church for several centuries. There were varying forms of nobility over time in their respective regions.

From the Medieval Period until the nineteenth century in March 1861, Italy was not a single unified sovereign state. It was a peninsular consisting of several separate kingdoms, duchies, and other minor principalities, with many reigning dynasties. These were often related maritally to both the neighbouring Italian states and other major and minor European dynasties.

Recognition of Italian nobility ceased with the creation of the Italian Republic in 1946. Although many titles still exist, they are used as a matter of social courtesy and are not recognised under Italian law. A limited number of noble titles granted by the pope were formally acknowledged according to Article 42 of the Lateran Treaty until its abrogation in 1985.