Title: Social class in the United Kingdom - Wikipedia
Headings: Social class in the United Kingdom
Social class in the United Kingdom
Contents
History
Formal classifications
Early modern
20th century
21st century
Great British Class Survey
Results
Elite
Established middle class
Technical middle class
New affluent workers
Traditional working class
Emergent service sector
Precariat
Informal classifications and stereotypes
Underclass
Working class
Unskilled and semi-skilled working class
Skilled working class
Middle class
Lower middle class
Middle class
Upper middle class
Upper class
Accent and language and social class
Received Pronunciation
U and non-U
English regional dialect
Heraldry and social class
Criticisms
See also
UK social stereotypes
References
Bibliography
Further reading
External links

Content: If they worked it was in law, as priests, in politics, or in other educated pursuits without manual labour. The term Esquire was used for landowners who were not knighted, a term which later became Squire and referred to as the Squirarchy. They typically possessed estates worked by tenants and laborers. It was prestigious to purchase a military or naval commission for a likely son. Professional and businessman
Urban professionals included lawyers, with the highest status going to the London barristers and the Inns of Court. Physicians were rising in status as professionalisation and education built upon rapidly increasing knowledge bases. Merchants and businessmen could range in status from middle to high, depending on their wealth and importance. For higher social prestige, they would buy a landed estate or negotiate for a knighthood or a baronetcy. Knight
The role of knighthood was very important in the medieval period, with the role of organising local military forces on behalf of a senior noble. However, by 1600 the title was an honorific one, often granted to outstanding combat soldiers in the king's army.