noblesse

from WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006)

noblesse
    n 1: the state of being of noble birth [syn: {nobility},
         {noblesse}]
    2: members of the nobility (especially of the French nobility)

from The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Nobless \No*bless"\, Noblesse \No*blesse"\ (?; 277), n. [F.
   noblesse. See {Noble}.]
   1. Dignity; greatness; noble birth or condition. [Obs.]
      --Chaucer. --Spenser. --B. Jonson.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. The nobility; persons of noble rank collectively,
      including males and females. --Dryden.
      [1913 Webster]