peerage

n. aristocracy, noble class

For other uses, see Peerage (disambiguation). The Peerage is a system of titles of nobility in the United Kingdom, part of the British honours system. The term is used both collectively to refer to the entire body of titles, and individually to refer to a specific title.All British honours, including peerage dignities, spring from the Sovereign, who is considered the fount of honour. The Sovereign, as "the fountain and source of all dignities cannot hold a dignity from himself" (opinion of the House of Lords in the Buckhurst Peerage Case), cannot belong to the Peerage. If an individual is neither the Sovereign nor a peer, he or she is a commoner. Members of a peer's family who are not themselves peers (including such members of the Royal Family) are also commoners; the British system thus differs fundamentally from continental European ones, where entire families, rather than individuals, were ennobled.
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Noun
1. the peers of a kingdom considered as a group
(synonym) baronage
(hypernym) nobility, aristocracy
(hyponym) peer
(member-meronym) Lady, noblewoman, peeress

(n.)
The rank or dignity of a peer.
  

(n.)
The body of peers; the nobility, collectively.
  

The group of nobles , barons and above, considered to be peers. In an SCA context, the peers are comprised of the three equal branches, the Laurel , Pelican and Knight . The three orders are in taken to be equal, though not the same--companions of the order of the Laurel are known for their excellence in the arts, the Pelican for their service to the kingdom, and the knights for their prowess on the field. All SCA peers are expected to possess the qualities that the peers share; especially courtesy and the willingness to teach what they have learned to others.