Bourgeois of Brussels

In Brussels, as in most European cities, one needed the capacity of bourgeois (equivalent to German burgher or English burgess; in French bourgeois or citoyen de Bruxelles; in Dutch poorter or borger van Brussel; in Latin civis  or oppidanus  Bruxellensis) in order to not only exercise political rights, but also to practice a trade, which, in Brussels, meant to be a member of the Guilds or of the Seven Noble Houses. The charter of Brussels, as codified in 1570 in articles 206 and following, provided the conditions of admission to the bourgeoisie of the city. The Bourgeois were the patrician class of the city. This social class was abolished by Napoleon during the French occupation.

Capacity of bourgeois
The non-bourgeois inhabitants, called "inhabitants" in French and "ingesetene" in Dutch, have none of these political rights, but are not less protected by communal laws, and can appeal to urban justice, as well as buy property. The capacity of Bourgeois, which implied an oath, was seen as a pledge of loyalty to the city and the urban community.

In Brussels, the bourgeois were sometimes called "poorters" name often given to citizens of important cities called walled cities. This word derives from the Dutch word fallen into disuse poorte, city or place closed by walls, like the imposing stone houses that the rich bourgeois of the Seven Noble Houses lived in during the early days of the city, and to which was also given the name of "poorte" or "porta" in Latin, and whose synonym was "herberg" or "hostel" and which are also called steen. Each of these "poorte" had a name, for example: "Poorte van den Galoyse", "Poorte van Coeckelberg", "Gouden Poorte", "Priemspooerte", the "Raempoorte" (in Overmolen), "porta t 'Serclaes' known as 'the Palace', 'Slozenpoorte' (on the Sablon), 'Poorte van de Tafelronde' or 'Poorte van Vianen'.

The European Medieval practice of naming houses was rich and varied in Brussels.

The capacity of bourgeois, that is to say of citizen of a city having political rights in opposition to the simple inhabitants, forms the base of the urban organisation of cities. This urban system in Europe dates back for many cities still existing today to Greco-Latin antiquity, others were founded around the year one thousand. This system of urban civilization developed in parallel to the rural civilization rooted in the Neolithic era. Pierre Bonenfant, Professor at the Brussels University, "Racines préhistoriques de la Wallonie", in Histoire de la Wallonie published under the direction of Léopold Genicot, Toulouse, Privat, 1973, p.37-39: (FR) "Il n'y a pas si longtemps, tout compte fait, que notre Préhistoire est révolue. Dans l'angle nord-ouest de l'Europe, la vie, durant le haut Moyen Âge, a ressemblé de très près, matériellement et socialement, à ce qu'elle avait été à l'âge du Fer, soit que la tradition s'en fût purement et simplement maintenue, comme ce fut le cas hors des limites de l'Empire romain, soit qu'elle ait repris vigueur, ce qui advint en deçà de ces limites. Dans le domaine des techniques, l'archéologie ne cesse de multiplier les preuves de cette situation. (...) Forges, charronnages ou poteries rurales sont, au début du Moyen Âge, tout à fait dans la tradition de l'âge du Fer. Tandis que notre mode traditionnel d'agriculture, fondé à la fois sur l'élevage pour la viande et le lait et sur la culture du blé, remonte plus haut encore: à l'origine même du Néolithique européen continental (Danubien), c'est-à-dire au Ve millénaire au moins. Il n'en va pas autrement du plan dispersé de nos villages qui s'oppose à l'habitat fortement groupé que connaît l'Orient dès le Néolithique. Et la même origine vaut pour nos vieilles chaumières aux murs de colombage, hourdés de torchis et coiffés d'un toit à double pente. (...) Ajoutons que nos campagnes ont conservé parfois jusqu'à l'aube de la révolution industrielle de vieilles techniques protohistoriques. (...) Nous devons donc nous demander s'il n'existe pas quelques très vieilles continuités plongeant dans la Préhistoire qui peuvent conférer à la physionomie de la Wallonie actuelle certains traits particuliers."

Abolition by Napoléon
Under Napoleon, the Law abolished for good, in the territories that were submitted to France, the differences of status between cities and countryside and abolished the quality of bourgeois or citizen of a city. In other parts of Europe, as it is now in Switzerland (Swiss bourgeoisie), this system has endured. In Germany it was slowly abolished, and only Hamburg and Bremen retain the Hanseatic designation freie Stadt from their days as free imperial cities.

Subsisting bourgeois families of Brussels
The following is a chronological list of surviving Brussels bourgeois families with the date of admission and of which of the Seven Noble Houses (Lignages in French) they currently descend from, if any. Namely, the houses of Sweerts, Sleeus, Steenweeghs, Roodenbeke, Serroelofs, Coudenbergh, and Serhuyghs.

Middle Ages

 * 1150, approximately, Armes_de_la_Maison_van_der_Noot.svg van der Noot Family, (Houses of Sweerts, Steenweeghs and Roodenbeke)

15th century

 * 1447, approximately, Blason famille be Leyniers (Ancien).svg Leyniers family (Houses of Coudenbergh, Sweerts and Sleeus).
 * 1452, approximately, Armes de la famille d'Arschot Schoonhoven.svg d'Arschot family, then van Schoonhoven, then d'Arschot-Schoonhoven (House of t'Serroelofs)
 * 1458, 11 January, Blason famille be van Droogenbroeck.svg van Droogenbroeck family (House of Sweerts)
 * 1458, 9 August, van Cotthem family (House of Sweerts)
 * 1460, approximately, Armes_des_comtes_de_Meeûs_d'Argenteuil.svg Meeûs family, (Houses of Sweerts and Sleeus)
 * 1461, approximately, Devadder ou de Vaddere family.
 * 1487, 9 July, Aelbrechts said de Borsere family (House of Roodenbeke)
 * 1488, 9 May, van Droogenbroeck family (House of Roodenbeke)
 * 1489, approximately, Blason_Famille_T'Kint.svg t'Kint, then t'Kint de Roodenbeke family (House of Roodenbeke)
 * 1490, Blason famille van der Meulen.svg Van der Meulen family
 * 1490, approximately, Jambers family
 * 1490, 4 December Ranspoet family (House of Roodenbeke):
 * 1492, 27 June, O(l)brechts dit de Vos family (House ofRoodenbeke):
 * 1498, 6 April Moyensoen family (House of Roodenbeke):

16th century

 * 1501, approximately, Blason famille de Lens.svg de Lens family (Also bourgeois of Paris, established there under Louis XIV as goldsmith of Philippe I, Duke of Orléans.).
 * 1543, van Volxem family (House of Serhuyghs) (established in Trier in Germany at the end of the XVIII Century)
 * 1590, approximately Damiens family(House of Sweerts).
 * 1590, approximately, de Walsche family (House of Coudenberg).
 * 1591, approximately, Robyns, then Robyns de Schneidauer family (House of Sleeus).Charles Picqué.jpg, a Belgian politician and former Minister-President of the Brussels Capital-Region, is a member of a Bourgeois family of the city. ]]

17th century

 * 1601, approximately, Vander Borcht arms.svg van der Borcht family (Houses of Sweerts and Sleeus).
 * 1608-1609, van Berchem family.
 * 1611-1612, Roberti family.
 * 1617-1618, Van Dievoet arms.svg van Dievoet family (Houses of Sweerts, Sleeus, Serhuyghs, t'Serroelofs, Coudenbergh, Roodenbeke and Steenweeghs) (also bourgeois of Paris until 1802, where the family was called Vandive).
 * 1619-1620, van der Belen family (House of Sweerts).
 * 1623-1624, Maskens family (House of Serhuygs).
 * 1626-1627, Armes de Viron.svg de Viron family (House of Sweerts).
 * 1633-1634, Blason famille Dansaert.svg Dansaert family.
 * 1637 and 1655, Blondeau family.
 * 1649, 3 July, Blason famille Orts.svg Orts family (House of Sweerts).
 * 1655, 12 January, Blondeau.
 * 1668, de Burbure family.
 * 1683, 20 January, Deudon family.
 * 1696, 22 March, Poot family or Poot-Baudier family (House of Sweerts).
 * 1698, approximately, Heyvaert family.



18th century

 * 1707, 12 October, Drugman family.
 * 1711, 7 January, de Meurs family.
 * 1712, 14 June, Demeure family.
 * 1711, 3 June, Brinck family (the family moved to Canada) (House of Serhuyghs).
 * 1729, 29 January, Fanuel family (currently House of Sweerts).
 * 1733, 22 September, Cattoir family.
 * 1741, 21 June, de Reus family (House of Serhuyghs).
 * 1745, 10 February, Picqué family.
 * 1752, 24 February, Triest family (House of Sleeus).
 * 1752, 29 May, and 1755, 18 February, Armes_de_la_famille_Allard.svg Allard family.
 * 1753, 10 March, Stinglhamber family (of Bavarian origins).
 * 1764, 16 June, van Cutsem family.
 * 1766, 19 September, Walckiers family (House of Coudenbergh).
 * 1767, 3 August, Marousé family.
 * 1768, 17 June, Hap family (House of Serhuyghs).
 * 1769, 14 July, Lequime family.
 * 1776, 8 February, Héger family.
 * 1782, 8 April, Blason_de_la_famille_Poelaert_(Bruxelles).svg Poelaert family.
 * 1783, 12 February, de Voghel family (House of Serhuyghs).
 * 1785, 14 January, van Hoegaerden family.
 * 1786, 11 December, Blason famille be Van Hoorde.svg van Hoorde family.
 * 1794, 27 May, Armes de la famille Wittouck.svg Wittouck family.
 * 1794, 10 September, D'Ieteren family.
 * 1794, 16 December, Pitseys (Putseys) family.
 * 1795, 7 January, Becquet family.
 * 1795, 29 January, Janlet family.
 * 1795, 9 March, Van Nuffel family.
 * 1795, 20 May, Wielemans family (House of Coudenbergh).