BURGRAVE

burgrave, the eng. form, derived through the fr., of the ger. _burggraf_ and flem. _burg_ or _burch-graeve_ (med. lat. _burcgravius_ or _burgicomes_), _i.e._ count of a castle or fortified town. the title is equivalent to that of castellan (lat. _castellanus_) or _chatelain_ (_q.v._). in germany, owing to the peculiar conditions of the empire, though the office of burgrave had become a sinecure by the end of the 13th century, the title, as borne by feudal nobles having the status of princes of the empire, obtained a quasi-royal significance. 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.