2020-02-10 Bloomberg Businessweek

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BornintotherubbleanddeprivationofpostwarGermany,

HorstKochwantedoutofhissmall-towncocoon,andatage 21

foundhiswaytoa pokertable,wherehelearnedtoemptythe

pocketsoflessexperiencedplayers.Fordecades,Kochsays,

heearneda handsomelivingplayingcardsinBaden-Baden,

Aruba,andLasVegas.Yethealwayslustedafterthekindof

esteemthat’shardforevena championfive-card-studplayer

toearnatthetable.

SowhenKochin 2013 heardhemightbeabletobuyan

aristocratictitle,heconsideredit a pathtonewfoundrespect

andadmiration.Thesedays,humbleHorstKochis known—

legallyandineveryotherway—asHorstWalterCountvon

Hessen-Homburg.Hehashisowncoatofarmsanda gilded

familyhistorystretchingbackcenturies.

Andif youcanstumpupenoughcash,he’dbehappyto

dothesameforyou.“Doorsthatwereshutsuddenlyswing

open,youmeetdifferentpeople,everythingbecomeseasier,”

saysvonHessen-Homburg.“Yougetputthrough,anda no

becomesa yes.” ILLUSTRATION

BY

JACI

KESSLER

LUBLINER

BONUS GUIDE BloombergPursuits February 10, 2020

ThelegalprivilegesofnobilitywereabolishedinGermany

a centuryago,whenKaiserWilhelmII’smonarchycollapsed

afterWorldWarI. Butformermembersoftheupperclasswere

permittedtocarrya nobletitleaspartoftheirname.Even

today,thearistocracybenefitsfromtheauraofitsseparate

socialstrata—atleastinthepagesofglossymagazinesandthe

imaginationofmanycommoners.

Thevalueofa titleliesinpartinitsscarcity.About0.1%of

Germansareofnobledescent,roughly80,000outofa popu-

lationofalmost 84 million.IntheU.K.thenumberis closerto

0.01%.Thereareclearrulesaboutwho’sintheclub:Typically

youwerebornormarriedintogentility,andonlymencan

legitimately pass their title on to spouses and offspring.

But there’s a loophole: adoption. Usually by a noble who

can’t afford the upkeep on his or her crumbling country

estate or the staff to polish the family silver. Acquiring a title

this way is a simple transaction between a noble seller and a

social-climbing buyer, often involving a go-between such as

von Hessen-Homburg.

For €80,000 and up, you too can be a lord or lady

By Benedikt Kammel

Buy Your Way Into the Aristocracy

A Coat of Arms for

Former Commoners

If you stump up

enoughcash,you

canbeadopted

andcompletea

metamorphosis

into nobility