The Council of Heraldry and Vexillology is in charge of supervising the granting and recording of non-noble arms in the French Community of Belgium.
Burgher arms or bourgeois arms are coats of arms borne by persons of the burgher social class of Europe since the Middle Ages (usually called bourgeois in English). By definition, however, the term is alien to British heraldry, which follows other rules.
In some European countries, certain armorial bearings have traditionally been restricted to a particular social class (usually the nobility), e.g. the use of supporters in Great Britain, tinctures in Portugal or coronets in Sweden. Notwithstanding, in most countries outside the United Kingdom, any individual, family and community has usually been free to adopt arms and use them as they please, provided they refrain from wrongfully assuming the preexisting arms of another.[1] In addition to the bourgeoisie, peasants sometimes made use of this tradition.[citation needed] Arms of the clergy are classified as ecclesiastical heraldry.
Use of coats of arms by burghers and artisans began during the 13th century and in the 14th century some peasants took to using arms.[2] The arms of burghers bore a far wider variety of charges than the arms of nobility like everyday objects, and particularly tools. House marks are another type charges usually only used in burgher arms. Most widespread burgher heraldry was and still is found in Belgium, Germany, Switzerland and in the Netherlands. In the latter only a small percentage of the existing arms belong to the nobility.[3]
Crest-coronets in burgher arms are correct only if the arms were granted by a sovereign and the coronet is explicitly mentioned in the grant.[4]
^Pastoureau, Michel (1997). Heraldry: Its Origins and Meaning. 'New Horizons' series. Translated by Garvie, Francisca. London: Thames & Hudson. p. 14. ISBN 0-500-30074-7.
^Carl-Alexander von Volborth. Heraldry: Customs, Rules, and Styles. (Blandford Press, Dorset: 1981), p. 96
^Carl-Alexander von Volborth. Heraldry: Customs, Rules, and Styles. (Blandford Press, Dorset: 1981), p. 106
^Carl-Alexander von Volborth. The Art of Heraldry. Tiger Books International, London. 1991, p. 59 ISBN 1-85501-154-9
Burgherarms or bourgeois arms are coats of arms borne by persons of the burgher social class of Europe since the Middle Ages (usually called bourgeois...
Germany and the Holy Roman Empire, including national and civic arms, noble and burgherarms, ecclesiastical heraldry, heraldic displays and heraldic descriptions...
Heraldic Board of the National Archives of Sweden. Heraldic arms of common citizens (burgherarms), however, are less strictly controlled. These are recognised...
time). Arms become hereditary by the end of the 12th century, in England by King Richard I during the Third Crusade (1189–1192). Burgherarms were used...
use of burgherarms in Portugal. The first restriction appeared in this reign, with the ban of the use of the or tincture in these type of arms. During...
coats of arms even though they were not members of the nobility. These are sometimes referred to as burgherarms, and it is thought that most arms of this...
Late Middle Ages (Burgherarms). Specific traditions of Ecclesiastical heraldry also develop in the late medieval period. Coats of arms of noble families...
use open helmets while burgher families used closed ones. Burgherarms follow the same rules as noble arms. Canting coats of arms have been popular in Danish...
history) abroad. Included are the national and civic arms of the State of Israel, noble and burgherarms, synagogal heraldry, heraldic displays and heraldic...
heraldry. After the renaissance of municipal heraldry, burgherarms also became popular. Burgherarms were used in Finland in the 17th and 18th centuries...
included in new grants of arms. On the European continent, there is a clear difference between noble arms and burgherarms. In most countries, scholars...
the nobility of the Holy Roman Empire, as well as coats of arms of city-states and some burgher families. Founded and compiled by Johann Ambrosius Siebmacher...
right to keep and bear arms (often referred to as the right to bear arms) is a legal right for people to possess weapons (arms) for the preservation of...
coats of arms even though they were not members of the nobility. These are sometimes referred to as burgherarms, and it is thought that most arms of this...
recorded the arms of persons and families. Example of bourgeois (or burgher) arms: the coat of arms of the de Muyser Lantwyck family. Coat of arms of the de...
Notably, lions that would subsequently appear in 12th-century coats of arms of European nobility have pre-figurations in the animal style of ancient...
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(i.e. noble arms and burgherarms). No other northern European country has a comparable heraldic authority, although the College of Arms in Britain and...
Belgian Genealogical and Heraldic Office Burgherarms Council of Nobility Flemish Heraldic Council College of Arms (England, Wales, Northern Ireland) Lord...
ancient city-states, giving rise to a civitas and the social class of the burgher or bourgeoisie. Since then states have expanded the status of citizenship...
through the generations. On 29 June 1571, Andreas Grill, burgher in Augsburg received burgherarms in letters patent from a count palatine of the Holy Roman...
to take the oath as a Hamburg burgher in 1684; the family thus became part of Hamburg's ruling class of Grand Burghers. Cornelius Berenberg's son, Rudolf...
Community of Belgium Genealogical and Heraldic Office of Belgium Heraldry Burgherarms Lieve Viaene-Awouters and Ernest Warlop (2002) p.33. Lieve Viaene-Awouters...
President of the Republic of Swellendam. The burghers of Swellendam started to call themselves "national burghers", after the style of the French Revolution...
possessing a six months' residential qualification were to be granted full burgher rights. The sole legislative authority was vested in a single popularly...
burghers, except leaders, who took an oath of neutrality and returned quietly to their homes. It is estimated that between 12,000 and 14,000 burghers...
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