County's ancient title for sale

The title is one of 32 to be auctioned on Thursday

Anyone who fancies themselves a"lord of the manor" has a chance to purchase an ancient Berkshire title at auction.

The lordship of the Manor of Bracknell in Wargrave is among 32 manorial lordships to be sold by property specialists Strutt and Parker.

The title, once held by Edward the Confessor's wife, Queen Edith, goes under the hammer at London's Barbican and is estimated to fetch £10,500.

Oscar Wilde immortalised the title in "The Importance of Being Earnest".

Coat of arms

Wilde created the quaint character of Lady Bracknell in his stage play.

Queen Edith held onto the lordship until the Conquest.

It was then passed between the Crown and the Church until Edward VI granted it to Sir Henry Neville in 1552.

The title then passed from Sir Henry's heirs to the Lords Braybrooke - the 9th Baron Braybrooke sold it to the current owner in 1985.

The successful bidder will buy the right to call themselves Lord of the Manor and to apply to the College of Arms for a personal coat of arms, which may be handed down to successive generations.

Other prestigious connections and ancient rights that go with the titles may include hunting and fishing rights, ownership of local fairs and markets and the freedom to take rabbits from forest and wasteland.

Manorial lordships date back some 1,200 years to Saxon times, when they formed one of the cornerstones of the feudal system.

The Law Of Property Act of 1922 allowed manorial lordships to be sold separately from the land they related to.

Five feudal baronies will also be auctioned off on Thursday.