Majorat facts for kids

A Majorat (pronounced mah-zho-RAH) is a special rule for inheriting property, usually a large estate or land, that is connected to a noble title. Imagine a big family estate that has been passed down for generations. The majorat system made sure that this entire estate, along with the noble title, went to just one person, usually the oldest son. This was done to keep the family's wealth and power strong, preventing it from being split up among many children.

This system was common in some European countries. For example, in France, Napoleon I created majorats, but they were later stopped in 1848. The idea was to make sure that noble families kept their wealth and influence over time.

Sometimes, if the property didn't go to the right person, the noble title couldn't be inherited either. This kind of inheritance rule often made for interesting stories in books, as writers like Honoré de Balzac used them to create complex plots.

Majorat in Different Countries

The idea of a majorat wasn't just in France; other countries had similar systems, sometimes with different names.

Poland: The Ordynacja

In the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, a majorat was called an ordynacja. This system was introduced in the late 1500s by King Stephen Báthory. Some of the wealthiest Polish noble families, like the Radziwiłłs, Zamoyskis, and Wielopolskis, built their fortunes using the ordynacja system. This system was eventually ended in Poland during a big land reform after World War II.

Portugal: The Morgadio

In Portugal, a similar arrangement was known as a morgadio. The person who held the morgadio was called a morgado (if male) or morgada (if female). Each morgadio was set up with its own specific rules about who would inherit it. Often, a rule was that the person inheriting had to keep the family name of the person who first created the morgadio. Both men and women could create and inherit morgadios, but usually, the oldest son was the first choice. Over time, families would collect many morgadios through marriages, which led to some Portuguese noble families having very long names! The morgadio system was abolished in Portugal in 1863.

Spain: The Mayorazgo

In Spain, this system was called a mayorazgo. It became part of the law in the Crown of Castile in 1505 and lasted until 1820. Interestingly, in the Basque region of Spain, a mayorazgo could be inherited by the oldest child, whether it was a boy or a girl.

See also

In Spanish: Mayorazgo para niños

• Minorat – This is the opposite of a majorat, where the inheritance goes to the youngest child instead of the oldest.
• Fee tail - A similar, but different, concept of inheritance in English law.