Ennoblement is elevation to the ranks of the nobility by a prince. In a wider sense, it can also refer to ascent through the estates of the realm, that is, elevation of a noble (or noble family) to a higher noble rank. In most European countries, ascent to the lesser nobility at least, at the beginning of the early modern period, was not yet by an explicit act of ennoblement, but was generally implicit, for instance by acquiring a suitable noble residence (e.g. a manor[6], or a castle)…