Burgher (social class)

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A burgher was a rank or title of a privileged citizen of medieval towns in early modern Europe. Burghers formed the pool from which city officials could be drawn,^{[citation needed]} and their immediate families that formed the social class of the medieval bourgeoisie.

Admission

Entry into burgher status varied from country to country and city to city.^[1] In Hungary proof of ownership of property in a town was a condition for acceptance as a burgher.^[2]

Privileges

Any crime against a burgher was taken as a crime against the city community.^{[citation needed]} In Switzerland if a burgher was assassinated, the other burghers had the right to bring the supposed murderer to trial by judicial combat.^[3]

In the Netherlands burghers were often exempted from corvee or forced labor, a privilege which later extended to the Dutch East Indies.^[4] Only burghers could join the city guard in Amsterdam because in order to join, guardsmen had to purchase their own equipment. Membership in the guard was often a stepping stone to political positions.

Britain

Germany

Low Countries

Switzerland

South Africa

Specific cities

• Bourgeois of Brussels
• Bourgeois of Paris
• Bourgeoisie of Geneva
• Hanseaten

References