   "freiherr"  (male, abbreviated as frhr.), "freifrau"  (his wife, abbreviated as frfr.) (literally "free lord" or "free lady") and "freiin"  (his unmarried daughters and maiden aunts) are designations used as titles of nobility in the german-speaking areas of the holy roman empire, and in its various successor states, including austria, prussia, bavaria, liechtenstein, luxembourg, etc. traditionally it denotes the second lowest rank within the nobility, standing above ritter (knight), edler and nobility without specific title and below graf (count, earl). it corresponds to baron in rank; a freiherr is sometimes also referred to as "baron" ; he is always addressed as "herr baron" or (more familiarly) "baron". if he belongs to the uradel, he enjoys the predicate high born; otherwise, he is high-well born together with all proper nobility. ==freiherr in the feudal system== the title freiherr derives from the historical geo-political situation in which an owner held free (allodial) title to his land, unlike the ordinary baron, who was originally a knight (ritter) in vassalage to a higher lord or sovereign, and unlike medieval german ministerials who were bound to provide administrative services for a lord. a freiherr sometimes exercised hereditary administrative and judicial prerogatives over those resident in his barony instead of the liege lord, who might be the duke (herzog) or count (graf). ==freiherr vs. baron== the german-language title of freiherr is rendered in english as "baron", although the title was derived separately in the two languages."freiherr -- britannica online encyclopedia", britannica online encyclopedia, 2008, webpage: eb-freiherr even in german, a freiherr is often styled and addressed as "baron" in social circumstances, although not the official title. in northern germany, there was also an official but foreign rank of "baron" (not "freiherr"), mostly used for baltic barons, created by the tsar of russia, but recognized in germany. in austria-hungary and in the baltic and nordic countries, "freiherr" officially came to be considered of legally equal rank to the title of "[[b
Austrian_noble_titles Barons Barons_of_the_Holy_Roman_Empire German_noble_titles