In the world of Jun Mochizuki's Pandora Hearts, the society the characters find themselves in operates roughly based on the structure of British nobility, utilizing titles seen in British peerage and aristocracy.[1] The following is a list of all nobility found within the story and the hierarchy upon which they function.
Four Great Dukedoms
The Four Great Dukedoms (
The Four Great Dukedoms primarily operate by commanding over Pandora, a governmental organization dedicated to researching and handling everything that has to do with the Abyss. Their power lies in their ownership of the Doors to the Abyss and the corresponding Black Winged Chains with which each family's head has Contracted. Though it is publicly stated to be the cornerstone for the peace their country currently lives within, Pandora and the authority it boasts of is more often than not treated as a resource to gain more political power, even and especially by the Dukedoms themselves. Thus though they outwardly share the honorable title of the heroes who saved the world a century ago, the Four Great Dukedoms underneath their surfaces constantly rival one another and attempt to undermine each other's statuses. The families rarely if ever consider their peers true allies.
Many vital characters are members of one of the Four Great Dukedoms, such as Oz Vessalius, Sharon Rainsworth, Elliot Nightray, and more. The organization they operate, Pandora, is the navigational force that illuminates the direction Oz and his friends must take to forward their own goals. Oz himself goes on to be central to their operation when he is discovered to be Jack Vessalius's reincarnation, the hero's soul directly returning in the boy's body to pass on a message. And that message that Jack pleas to them becomes the primary goal of the organizations and Dukedoms alike. To stop the Baskervilles when they would appear after a century of silence and attempt to bring about the Tragedy once again.
Vessalius Dukedom
The Vessalius Dukedom (ベザリウス
The Vessaliuses' reputation is concentrated entirely around the legacy left behind by Jack Vessalius. The family is lauded as the descendants of the greatest hero their country has seen, and thus they remain the most influential and distinguished of the Dukedoms to the present day. This grants them not only a significant advantage over their peers but also the jealousy and resentment of those same peers. The rivalry between the Vessaliuses and the Nightrays is very well-known in noble circles, contrasting the former's revered status to the latter's scorned position. Thus the Vessalius Dukedom faces far more hostility than would be assumed by the public's eye, fostered in the darkest parts of the noble hierarchy.
Due to their high-profile status and the reverence their very name brings to people's minds, the Vessalius Dukedom tends to act as public figures within the ranks of Pandora. The Duke Oscar is very well known within Pandora for his very friendly, sometimes overly so, demeanor, which is received either positively or negatively depending on whose opinion is asked. But far more notably, heir to the Dukedom Oz Vessalius is eventually discovered to be the reincarnation of Jack Vessalius. Though the public do not know this information, Oz is as a result famous all around Pandora. The organization's officials and the Dukes themselves will even make use of Oz's status while sending him and his companions out on missions to more easily achieve their goals.
Nightray Dukedom
The Nightray Dukedom (ナイトレイ
The Nightrays have for a very long time, since even before the occurrence of the Tragedy, been close allies with the Baskerville Clan. It is for this reason that, after the Baskervilles and their master Glen attempted to cast the world into the Abyss, that the Nightrays were suspected of similar treachery for no reason other than their association. The Nightrays' situation regarding their Black Winged Chain exemplifies the significant disadvantage they have to their peers, with Raven unable to Contract with anyone for the entire century until Gilbert was adopted into the family. The Nightray's less-than-desired position is what fuels the rivalry between them and the Vessalius Dukedom, who is by far the most influential even among the other Great Dukedoms. The resentment runs deep and strong and generational, to the point of fostering outright hostility between the Nightray heirs and the Vessalius heirs.
As the Nightrays are less than reputable not only in the public eye but even within Pandora, they are commonly assigned with missions and duties that are equally less than honorable. In contrast to the Vessaliuses as public figures, the Nightrays operate in the underworld and take part in extralegal activities, such as being hitmen. Their partaking in these deeds only serves to worsen their reputations in the eyes of outsiders. Thus to gain any edge they can on their peers, the Nightrays secretly conduct research on Chains which even extends to using orphaned children in their experimentation. All of this stems from the same origin point from the era of the Tragedy of Sablier and the supposed "Traitor Duke" they descend from.
Rainsworth Dukedom
The Rainsworth Dukedom (レインズワース
The Rainsworth Dukedom is notable for being the only family that is matriarchal in its authority, with the female members having great significance and the male members practically never mentioned. Because of their position as an anomaly within the otherwise patriarchal nobile hierarchy, the Rainsworths place great emphasis on maintaining a prim, proper, and polite appearance to outsiders. The Duchess Sheryl constantly asserts that the women of Rainsworth never show weakness even in the most difficult of situations, and her granddaughter Sharon similarly inherits this unwillingness to submit. This facilitates a distance between the Rainsworth family and other nobles, so as to not allow anyone the chance to take advantage of their inner struggles.
The Rainsworth Dukedom's role in Pandora mainly centers around espionage. Their Black Winged Chain, Owl, has a specialized and unique ability to create a soundless, sightless shroud of pure darkness. On top of this, notable members Sharon and Break each have displayed an affinity for covert operations, the former's Chain Equus allowing her to eavesdrop on conversations with ease, and the latter's entire relationship to Gilbert being initially based on the foundation of Gilbert spying on the Nightrays for Break. This extends so far that the Rainsworths have a tendency to keep their inner workings entirely secret even to Pandora itself.
Barma Dukedom
The Barma Dukedom (バルマ
The Barma Dukedom originates from a foreign neighboring country, their ancestors having immigrated over to their current resident country after losing a political struggle well over one hundred years ago. Because of this the Barmas are treated by nearly all of their peers as outsiders, possessing a mystical and exotic air about them, despite their family having lived alongside them for many decades and generations. From the snippets of the childhood experienced by the Duke Rufus Barma, it is implied that the Barmas are common targets of xenophobia. For their part, those of the Barma family are rarely seen attempting to combat this treatment they are subjected to. In particular the Duke himself has a tendency to play into this perception of his character and exploit it for his own gain.
Since the era surrounding the Tragedy's occurrence, the Barmas have specialized in everything to do with alchemy, mysticism, even magic. This is primarily seen in their extensive research done on the powers of the Abyss, vast and unfathomable as they are. The Barmas' ancestor and the first to be named Duke Barma, Arthur, was the one whom Jack Vessalius asked personally to create the Stone Seals, which suppress all Abyssal power and protect against the return of Glen Baskerville. In addition, his sister Miranda from even before the Tragedy possessed extensive knowledge of the workings of the Abyss and many things occultic. This has been passed down onto the present day, with Duke Rufus Barma constantly working to decipher the hidden knowledge his ancestor possessed.
Baskerville Clan
The Baskerville Clan (バスカヴィルの
Before the occurrance of the Tragedy, the Baskervilles were by far the most powerful family in the country, possible the world—solely due to their inherent ties to the Abyss. That unfathomable power is deeply saturated with everything the Baskervilles do and are, defining their very purpose for existence. Their master Glen had the most Abyssal power concentrated into his singular being, having possessed all Doors to the Abyss and being Contracted to all five Black Winged Chains. Upon the Tragedy however, the Baskervilles lost every part of this structure of their existences. The Doors and their corresponding Chains were taken and divided among their enemies in Pandora, and they retained only a fraction of their former glory, one single Door and its Chain Jabberwock. Most devastatingly, their master Glen's soul was gone after he had been killed by Jack. As a result the people the Tragedy was arguably the most ruinous for were the Baskervilles.
The true nature of the Baskervilles are shrouded in mystery for much of the story, similar to that of the Abyss they faithfully serve. For the longest time outsiders were completely unknowing and ignorant of the Baskervilles' power, creating a natural and nearly enforced divide between them and those of the material world. This is what has granted the Baskervilles their many monikers, such as the Crimson Reapers (
West Family
The West Family (ウエスト
Sinclair Family
The Sinclair Family (シンクレア
Royal Family
The King is mentioned by Reim Lunettes in Retrace XXXIV: Noise of Echo, and exists as an absolute power within the universe of Pandora Hearts; being the only one outside of The Four Great Dukedoms permitted to allow anyone to approach the Hole in Sablier. Presumably, the King thereby has an understanding of the powers of the Abyss and was the one to bestow political power upon The Four Great Dukedoms. Despite this, the King remained an unseen character within the series. The Rainsworths have some relation to the royal family via bloodline, though this is never expanded upon.
Garland Family
The Garland Family is a noble family from ~Caucus Race~ by Shinobu Wakamiya, a spin-off light novel series based off Jun Mochizuki's Pandora Hearts.
Previously lead by Dansen Garland, the Garland family was a nobility shrouded in mystery to most. After Mrs. Garland died during childbirth, Dansen formed a very close relationship with his daughter, Dahlia Garland, and the two were not known to leave the Garland estate very often. Eventually, Dansen died in his sleep, leaving Dahlia distraught - though she had the Garland Butler for support, all the other valets left the estate soon thereafter. Seeing Dahlia in a vulnerable state, the Great Mother, leader of a cult, tempted Dahlia with promises of their god being able to resurrect her father. Accepting The Great Mother's proposal, Dahlia became "Black Widow" - luring men into becoming sacrifices to the cult's god. This eventually lead Dahlia to make a proposal to the Nightray Dukedom to become a suitor for Gilbert Nightray. Unbeknownst to Gilbert - he was intended to be a sacrifice to their god in order to appease him in return for the resurrection of Dansen Garland. When the plan backfired, Gilbert severed his ties to Dahlia, not condemning her, but never wanting to see her again. As a result, the Garland lineage lives on through Dahlia.
Basil Family
The Basil Family is a noble family from ~Caucus Race~ by Shinobu Wakamiya, a spin-off light novel series based off Jun Mochizuki's Pandora Hearts.
A noble family seeking to usurp the Nightray Dukedom, believing that that it would be easily deposed. The Basils fell captive of their own ambitions and had been sniffing around the Nightray estate. Initially, Vincent Nightray wasn't bothered by the fact that The Basils internal affairs were under investigation at the time, but if they interfered in any way with Vincent's plan to use of Ada Vessalius, it would be troublesome. While Vincent had attempted to trip up The Basils after their actions were reported, it proved ineffective, as The Basils were used to acting craftily. The Head of the Basil Family, identified merely as "Basil", was an associate of the crime syndicate - Gray Snake, worked alongside them in order to kidnap the commercial association president's son, Ojji. Having mistakenly identified Ojji as Oz, Gilbert infiltrated the Gray Snake's headquarters, only to realize his mistake too late. Gilbert then proceeded to kill each member of Gray Snake, as well as mortally wounding Basil and leading him into a hasty escape in his carriage - although his body was found soon afterwards.
Minor Nobility
In Oz Vessalius's second Coming-of-Age Ceremony, a large number of nobility is invited to attend. These minor noble appearances include Duchess Manibel, Count Rafton, and Count Tees. In addition, a Count Airy is mentioned to be in possession of one of the Stone Seals. Hans was Vanessa Nightray's valet, and Vanessa was against the idea of having a commoner as a valet, as her brother did. Which noble family Hans would have came from as well as the family's noble rank were never revealed before Hans' death. As students of Lutwidge Academy, Turner, Gerald, Marcel, Josephine and Mia would all have had to belong to nobility - however which noble families they belong to was never revealed.