burgrave

American  

[bur-greyv] / ˈbɜr greɪv /

noun

German History.

1. the appointed head of a fortress.

2. the hereditary governor of a castle or town.

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burgrave British  

/ ˈbɜːɡreɪv /

noun

1. the military governor of a German town or castle, esp in the 12th and 13th centuries

2. a nobleman ruling a German town or castle by hereditary right

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Etymology

Origin of burgrave

1540–50; < German Burggraf, equivalent to Burg castle, town + Graf count

Example Sentences

The Franconian branch of the Hohenzollerns was represented in 1227 by Conrad, burgrave of Nuremberg, whom the emperor Frederick II. appointed guardian of his son Henry, and administrator of Austria.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 13, Slice 5 "Hinduism" to "Home, Earls of" by Various

This count married Sophia, daughter and heiress of Conrad, burgrave of Nuremberg, and about 1192 he succeeded his father-in-law as burgrave, obtaining also some lands in Austria and Franconia.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 13, Slice 5 "Hinduism" to "Home, Earls of" by Various

The origin of the word is obscure, but it is probably connected with the German graf, count, and thus appears as the second part of many Teutonic titles, such as landgrave, burgrave and margrave.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 12, Slice 4 "Grasshopper" to "Greek Language" by Various

They then requested that the prince of Orange, who held the office of burgrave of Antwerp, and whose influence with the people was unbounded, might be sent to them.

From History of the Reign of Philip the Second, King of Spain, Vols. 1 and 2 by Prescott, William Hickling

And in this fort, on piles of lava built, A burgrave dwells, among all burgraves famed?

From Poems by Hugo, Victor