All the unmarried Sisters in any family have the same Degree, which is the Degree that their eldest Brother holds (or would hold) amongst men. Thus:--Of the Sons of an Earl the _eldest_ alone has an honorary Title of Nobility and is styled “My Lord,” while _all_ the Daughters of an Earl have a similar honorary Title, and are styled “My Lady.” By Marriage Women share the Dignities and Precedence of their Husbands: but, the strictly Official Dignity of a Husband is not imparted to a wife (except in India), in the case of the Archbishops and Bishops or holders of other offices. The Dignities which Ladies have by Birth or by right of Inheritance, are not imparted by Marriage to their Husbands: nor does Marriage with an inferior in Dignity in any way affect the Precedence that a Lady may enjoy by Birth, Inheritance, or Creation--both her own Precedence and that of her Husband remain as before their Marriage, unless the Husband be a Peer. In the ROYAL FAMILY the following Precedence takes effect:-- The Queen. The Queen Dowager. The Princess of Wales. The Daughters of the Sovereign. The Wives of the Younger Sons of the Sovereign. The Granddaughters of the Sovereign. The Wives of the Grandsons of the Sovereign. The Sovereign’s Sisters. Wives of the Sovereign’s Brothers. The Sovereign’s Aunts. Wives of the Sovereign’s Uncles. The Sovereign’s Nieces. Wives of the Sovereign’s Nephews (Brothers’ and Sisters’ Daughters). Granddaughters of the Sovereign not bearing the style of Royal Highness. To whatever Precedence she may be entitled by Birth, the Wife of a Peer always takes her rank, and therefore takes her actual Precedence, from her Husband. The Widow of a Peer, so long as she remains a Widow, retains the rank she enjoyed whilst married: but, should she contract a second Marriage, her Precedence then is determined either by the rank of her second Husband, or by the rank that was her own by Birth and which she enjoyed before her first Marriage. The Wife of the Eldest Son of any degree precedes all her Husband’s Sisters, and also all other Ladies having the same degree of rank with them. Thus:--the Wife of the Eldest Son of an Earl takes Precedence of _all_ Daughters of Earls. In actual practice, however, by a principle of Precedence that is accepted and adopted in all families of the same degree amongst themselves, the Sisters in every case have their place immediately after the Wife of their own Eldest Brother. GENEALOGIES.