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.
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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.