Borough

Borough, unit of local government. Among the early Anglo-Saxons, the borough was a fort or fortified place. As law and order developed, it became a group of fortified houses and finally a town having special duties and privileges. Boroughs existed in England from the earliest times. According to the Domesday Book, the record of a survey of England made in 1085-1086 by order of William the Conqueror, 82 boroughs existed at that time. Each was ruled by an elected officer, usually called the portreeve, and each had a special borough court. The Normans used these units of government, replacing the portreeves with officers appointed by the Crown. By the 15th century, most of the boroughs had become municipalities, with governmental power vested in the members of the principal guilds. The boroughs were granted representation in Parliament during this period. In time many of the boroughs decreased in population and became little more than names; however, their representatives continued to sit in Parliament. Others came entirely under the control of political machines or of members of the nobility. These two types of controlled boroughs received, respectively, the names rotten boroughs and pocket boroughs. During the 18th century, the borough-governing bodies became increasingly corrupt. A reform movement forced passage of parliamentary legislation in 1832, curbing the worst abuses, and in 1835 further legislation destroyed the remnants of the old borough system.

Boroughs in present-day Britain are either incorporated municipalities, known as municipal boroughs, or districts that send members to Parliament, known as parliamentary boroughs. Two kinds of municipal boroughs exist: The county borough has a population of 75,000 or more and is exempt from the jurisdiction of the administrative county; the noncounty borough is generally a small borough of special or ancient jurisdiction. Greater London includes 32 metropolitan boroughs, each with a mayor, alderman, and councillors. These Greater London boroughs exercise most of the powers of county boroughs.

In the U.S. the term borough is applied only to certain incorporated villages in the states of Connecticut, Minnesota, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania; to the five political subdivisions coextensive with the counties of New York City; and to divisions in Alaska that are comparable to counties.