Definitions for "Baronet"
Keywords:  knight, hereditary, sir, bart, nobility
A dignity or degree of honor next below a baron and above a knight, having precedency of all orders of knights except those of the Garter. It is the lowest degree of honor that is hereditary. The baronets are commoners.
The title of the first rank below the peerage. A baronet ranked just below a baron and just above a knight and was considered a member of the gentry, not the nobility.
A post-medieval title created by James I on May 22, 1611, ranking below a peer and above a knight.
Originally English Barons who had lost the right of their individual summons to Parliament. Often these titles were sold to gentlemen willing to set up plantations in Ireland or Nova Scotia.