burgrave

American  

[bur-grayv] / 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

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

burgrave

It is still included among the subsidiary titles of several sovereign princes; and the king of Prussia, whose ancestors were burgraves of Nuremberg for over 200 years, is still styled burgrave of Nuremberg.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Part 4 "Bulgaria" to "Calgary" by Various

In 1443 he formed a league directed mainly against Nuremberg, over which town members of his family had formerly exercised the rights of burgrave.

From The Project Gutenberg Encyclopedia Volume 1 of 28 by Project Gutenberg

When they returned to Prague, Adam of Sternberg, the burgrave, again informed Budova that the king would grant no concessions in ecclesiastical matters.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Slice 2 "Bohemia" to "Borgia, Francis" 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 William Hickling Prescott

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

From Poems by Victor Hugo

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