A drost or drossaard was a sheriff, someone who governed a region or town on behalf of the landlord.
Some drosten required their subjects to provide special services to him, like feed his horse or do chores twice a year. These were sometimes called drostendiensten (sheriff’s services). These services were a relict of feudal regulation in the Middle Ages and were abolished after the French occupation in 1795.
Portrait of Gerard Andriesz Bicker, later drost of Muiden, about 1642. Credits: Bartholomeus van der Helst, collection Rijksmuseum (Public Domain)
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