Establishment of the Principality of St. Michel de Clermont and
Elevation of the Barons of Clermont
to the Dignity of Prince

A Proclamation of His Beatitude,
The Patriarch of Antioch

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Shortly after the successful conclusion of the Fourth Crusade (ca. 1204 A.D.) Frankish Knights from Champagne, under the leadership of the Noble Knight, GEOFFREY de Villehardouin, offered their swords in service to vassal Princes in the Peloponnese, in Greece. This led to the establishment of the Barony of Clermont along with other small enclaves in the region, in which the values of Chivalry of Western Europe were placed at the disposal of the Latin Emperors of Constantinople. After the Turkish conquests of the area in 1453-55, these fiefs, including Clermont, were abated.

The early Barons of Clermont established their seat of sovereignty at the Castle of Clermont (also called Chloumoutsi, and known for a time as Castel Tornese) which appears on the Front Page of this Site. The Castle, now a historic ruin, is located in the Morea, in Greece, approximately 6 km from Killini, on the coast of the Peloponnese.

The current Baron, DOUGLAS, was elevated to the Rank and Dignity of Prince, in 1991, by the Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch (Jacobite Rite) Lord ALEXANDER II, in recognition of his diplomatic services on behalf of this most Ancient Christian See. The Prince still retains his Title of Baron of Clermont, along with the new Title of Prince, St. Michel de Clermont. With the fall of the Levantine Empire to the Turks in the mid 1400’s, the Patriarchate had eventually become the Custodian of many Imperial Titles.

	Latin Greece, during the hegemony of the Latin Emperors of Constantinople in the first half of the 13th Century. Castle Tornese, the seat of the Barons of Clermont, is located on the western coast near the island of Zante.
	The Latin Empire of Constantinople (1204-1261). It was during this dynasty that the Barony of Clermont was established.
	This is the Holy Land as it existed during the Crusades - the world in which the Order of St. Andrew of Jerusalem was born in 1232.

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The Jacobite Rite of the Orthodox Church

The Jacobite Rite of the Orthodox Church derives its origin from a sixth century Bishop, James (Jacobus in Latin). It is one of the very numerous branches of Orthodoxy today. The Patriarch, His Beatitude, ALEXANDER II, is the head of a division thereof based on his See of Antioch, one of the original leading centres of the Christian Faith.

 

Letters Patent of the Principality (Click to View)

 

His Excellency, The Prince DOUGLAS

The Prince DOUGLAS, St. Michel de Clermont, was born in 1944, and is of Noble and Royal ancestry. He has spent his life in diplomacy, charitable work, as a museums officer and an antiques and fine art dealer. His Excellency divides his time between Canada, Britain and Italy, having various interests in each locale. The Prince is descended literally and collaterally from the ancient Sacred Kings (so-called 'High Kings') of Scotland, Ireland, the Isle of Man, and of Scandinavia. He is directly descended (father to son) from Nechtan, King of the Picts (circa 720 A.D.) the first in that lineage to convert to the Christian faith. This lineage can itself be traced completely and directly to 320 A.D.

In 1991, the Patriarchate of Antioch (Jacobite Rite) of the Orthodox Church, custodian of Byzantine Titles since the fall of Constantinople to the Turks in 1453, raised the Barony of Clermont to the status of a Principality, with the new name of St. Michel de Clermont, in recognition of diplomatic services performed by the Prince DOUGLAS.

Therefore, in addition to his position as The Prince, St. Michel de Clermont, and a Prince Grand Master of three Orders of Chivalry (the Order of St. Victor, the Order of St. Andrew of Jerusalem and the Order of the Commonwealth) His Excellency is related by blood to many of the Thrones of modern Europe and to their previous occupants.

His Excellency, The Prince, also holds numerous other Noble Titles, which are shown below.

Prince, Saint Michel de Clermont, Most Orthodox Prince and Defender of the Faith, Duque de La Vecilla de León, Marqués de Vitoria, Baron de Clermont, Laird of Camster, Grand Master and Principal Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Commonwealth, the Order of Saint Andrew of Jerusalem and of the Order of Saint Victor, Gran Cruz de Justicia Orden San Jorge y Santa Bárbara en América, Gran Cruz Orden Imperial O Des Castro Leones Del Anahuac, Gran Cruz de Justicia y Baili Par El Canada, Ordinis Supremi Militaris I El Mérito, Grand Cross of Justice of the Royal House of Cantabria, Knight Grand Cross with High Collar of the Venerable Sovereign Religious Order of the Ambrosinis, Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Saint Randolf the Bishop, Chevalier of the Royal Crown of Boheme, Knight's Cross of the Order of the Silver Crossbow & Consul General Delegado en Canadá de la Confederación del Anahuac.

 

As a vassal Prince of the Byzantine Empire, His Excellency, The Prince DOUGLAS, has also received recognition from the current direct Heir of the last reigning Byzantine Emperor, confirming the authenticity of his status as a fons honorum.

Residing now in Spain - were he actually reigning today in Constantinople, this Byzantine Prince of the Paleologos dynasty would be the Emperor SERGIUS.

Copies of the documents confirming the legitimacy of Prince DOUGLAS may be viewed on this Site, together with his Appointment by the current reigning Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch (Jacobite Rite) His Beatitude, ALEXANDER II, as well as recognition by the Russian College of Heralds, in the person of the Chief Herald, Baron VALERY Yegerov.

Please see the two Grants of the Byzantine House of Paleologos, shown below.

Click Here to view a larger image.	Click Here to view a larger image.