In 1185, the conflict, previously mentioned, led to the Burgesses of Shrewsbury petitioning King Richard and eventually obtaining Charter to collect their own taxes to pay the King and effectively self-govern the town.

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This was the start of autonomy for our town and also, as Arthur Daley would put it, an opportunity to make a 'nice little earner'. Why? Because an increase in the local population did not necessarily equate to an increase in the tax paid to the King thus giving the Burgesses surplus revenue.

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With further Charters from successive Kings, the Burgesses gained control of trade in the town and in 1200 they secured the right to govern the town and its Courts, effectively creating a 'Free Borough' detached from the control of the Crown, but still paying taxes.

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The phrase 'control for trade' is significant. To trade in the town you needed to be a Burgess, but not all town residents could become a Burgess even if they did own a Burgage plot. The Burgesses had effectively gained control through the Trade Gilds of all the town business. To become a Burgess you had either to prove direct descent from an original sworn Burgess, complete a trade apprenticeship or, if you could afford it, purchase a title.

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So the situation evolved that the Burgesses controlled the Town for over 600 years up to 1835, during which time, through effective stewardship, Shrewsbury became one on the most prominent and prosperous towns in the country. The Burgesses arranged for the streets to be paved, for bridges to be built, taxes collected and basically oversaw the development and maintenance of its infrastructure. In effect complete civic administration. There was however, shall we say a 'dark side' to their activities, which eventually led to their downfall. During the 18th Century and into the 19th Century it was commonplace across England for Burgesses to use the privileges of their incorporation to, so to speak 'keep it in the family', ensuring a virtual closed shop on trade and ensuring members of the family got the 'plum jobs'. The 19th Century reformers deemed them corrupt and this eventually led to an Act of Parliament doing away with so called 'Rotten Boroughs'.

 

So in 1835 an Act of Parliament gave any rate paying citizen the right to vote for elected Councils and the traditional rights and privileges of the Burgesses were withdrawn. Significantly, as a result of this act the Burgesses became known as Freemen. You may ask why? Because the rate paying male citizens of the Town were now called Burgesses and the title Freemen was introduced to differentiate between them and the pre- 1835 Burgesses.

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