I have seen multiple references to a heroic person or great leader getting a “key to the city”, usually from the mayor. Can someone explain the historical significance of this? Did cities used to have locks? Who else had a copy of the key? Could your keyholder status be revoked? Or is this entirely a fictional scenario? Any insight would be appreciated here.
I don’t think it’s fictional. I believe it’s symbolic; if you’re a “friend of the city”, you have the key to the city gates. In Europe, particularly, cities would have had walls and gates to repel invaders.