Seigneur

Seigneur (English: Lord, German: Herr) was used during medieval times. It was the name formerly given in France to someone who had been granted a fief by the ruling king or queen, with all its associated rights over people and property. This form of lordship was called seigneurie. The rights that the seigneur had were also called seigneurie, and the seigneur himself was the seigneur justice because he exercised jurisdiction over his fief. France repealed its feudal system August 4, 1789 in the wake of the French Revolution. Since then, the office of seigneur ceased to exist, and the title has only been used for sovereign princes and only by their families.

The part of Canada that was once called New France also used a seigneurial system from 1627 to 1854.