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Who were the burghers of Calais during the English siege of 1347?
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Auguste Rodin
French sculptor Auguste Rodin.
During the Siege of Calais in 1347, the burghers were six prominent leaders of the city who offered themselves as hostages to King Edward III of England.12
Following a yearlong siege that left the city’s 8,000 citizens starving, Edward III agreed to spare the population on the condition that these six men sacrifice themselves. As depicted in Auguste Rodin’s famous sculpture, The Burghers of Calais, the men appeared before the king with bare heads and feet, wearing ropes around their necks and carrying the keys to the town and castle.12
Their lives were ultimately spared due to the intervention of Edward’s pregnant queen, Philippa of Hainaut, who pleaded with her husband to show mercy to these heroes.12