One-time superior European city with lake by old road (5,4)

I believe the answer is:

liege lord

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'one-time superior' is the definition.

'european city with lake by old road' is the wordplay.
'european city' becomes 'liege' (Belgian city).
'with' says to put letters next to each other.
'lake' becomes 'l'.
'by old' becomes 'o' (common abbreviation eg in OE for Old English. I am not sure about the 'by' bit.**).
'road' becomes 'rd' (abbreviation).
'liege'+'l'+'o'+'rd'='LIEGE-LORD'

Can you help me to learn more?

(Another definition for liege lord that I've seen is " Oil ledger (anag) - feudal superior".)

I've seen this clue in The Guardian.

Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.