In the 8th and 9th centuries, civil service constituted the clearest path to aristocratic status, but, starting in the 9th century, the civil aristocracy was rivalled by an aristocracy of nobility.
8 ve 9. yüzyılda kamu hizmeti, aristoktratik statüye en engelsiz yolu oluşturmuştu ancak 9. yüzyıldan sonra kamu aristokrasisi soyluluk aristokrasisi ile rekabete girdi.