Family seat

A family home (or: Clan seat ) is the principal residence of an aristocratic family. This mostly reflects the social, economic, political or historical connection of the family with her ​​(land ) ownership. Some families took the name of its registered office ( eg Habsburg, Hohenzollern, Windsor ), or named their family home after their family name. This tradition was first mentioned in the 11th century in the Domesday Book as caput writing. This term is still used today in the British Isles.

The family seat must not be confused with the headquarters of a family, as it only describes their origin. Today, only a few noble houses inhabit their former ancestral seats. For example, the Hohenzollern family originally came from the Hohenzollern Castle (so-called ancestral castle ), but which is now only used today for their family reunion. The House of Habsburg, for example, has its roots in his ancestral castle of Habsburg in the Aargau canton ( Switzerland ), later they declared the Vienna Hofburg as a family residence. After the First World War Otto von Habsburg moved to Pöcking am Starnberger See, what had since the new seat of the Habsburgs.

The term clan seat ( Scottish Gaelic: Clann, " children, descendants " or "family" ) is widely used, especially in Scotland. The local clans are deeply rooted in Scottish history and politics, many Clan members also lead still prestigious title of nobility, which are passed on within a clan. Here, too, the clan seat of the principal residence of the respective clans represent (eg: seat of the Clan Keith in Keith Hall Estate, Aberdeenshire ).