Honorific

An honorific is a form of address used to people of high rank.

Usage

An honorific is something that is attached to the name but is not normally used elsewhere, e.g Mr, Sir, Mrs, Dr, Master. Contrast this with a title or position can appear without the person's name (e.g. the President, the Earl), and may be asssociated with a particular role or area (e.g. the US President, Financial Director, Earl of Cornwall).

Period usage

Note also that medieval English kings were addressed as "Your Grace". "Your Majesty" is found in letters to King Henry VIII after about the time he broke with the Church of Rome (watch the gradual transition from "your grace" to "your highness" and "your majesty" in the letters addressed to Henry by his wives and daughters at http://englishhistory.net/tudor/letters.html). If you have examples of the use of "Your Majesty" before this time, please cite them here.

Honorifics in the SCA

The following honorifics are generally accepted throughout the SCA, though there may be some regional variations. They are sometimes abbreviated and used as part of an individual's alphabet soup.

RANK	HONORIFIC
King or Queen	Your Majesty Your [description] Majesty My Liege (if you've sworn fealty)
Crown Prince or Princess	Your Royal Highness
Prince or Princess	Your Highness
Duke or Duchess	Your Grace
Count or Countess	Your Excellency
Viscount or Viscountess	Your Excellency
Baron or Baroness	Your Excellency
Anybody else	My Lord/My Lady