previous part in the section on the appointment of the schout) Quitrent (dienstgeld): Released a tenant from services due by custom to his lord. Appointment fee (referred to by Schama as the leenrecht): "The perquisite paid on appointment to office." Marriage and death duties: Marriage required the payment of a fee, the consent of the lord, merchet, etc. In some places in later years the lord would receive gifts on St. Walpurga's Day instead. On death a tax also had to be paid. Heerlijkheden and the nobility Originally heerlijkheden were in the hands of the nobility. Much of the wealth of a noble family came from their ownership. Many members of the nobility were heavily dependent on this source of power, income and status. Because the surnames of noble families were often derived from a heerlijkheid (e.g. "van Wassenaer"), it was important for the prestige of the family to maintain ownership over it. However, the economic benefits of a heerlijkheid were not always certain, finances were not always well arranged, and some nobles were poor. In the province of Holland, possession of a heerlijkheid was a prerequisite for admission to the ridderschap (literally, the "knighthood"), the college of nobles that represented rural areas in the States of Holland. A seat in the ridderschap provided access to various financially interesting honorary positions and offices. It was not unusual for a noble to amass a number of heerlijkheden. King Willem-Alexander is a modern-day example of a nobleman who holds the titles to many heerlijkheden. In addition to his primary titles, he is the Erf- en Vrijheer van Ameland, Heer van Borculo, Bredevoort, Lichtenvoorde, Het Loo, Geertruidenberg, Clundert, Zevenbergen, Hooge en Lage Zwaluwe, Naaldwijk, Polanen, Sint-Maartensdijk, Soest, Baarn, Ter Eem, Willemstad, Steenbergen, Montfort, Sankt Vith, Burgenbach, Daasburg, Niervaart, Turnhout en Besançon. Starting around 1500, nobles began selling the rights to heerlijkheden to non-nobles; however, losing a heerlijkheid did not result in loss of noble status. The nobility were recognised by all as having a special status not attached to wealth or ownership of a heerlijkheid. Heerlijkheden and the rise of a new nobility In the southern provinces (modern-day Belgium) the financial character of a heerlijkheid was accentuated by the Royal Edict of 8 May 1664. From then on, a noble title was granted only if the following minimum payment was obtained from the income of the feudal estate. for a barony (baronie): 6,000