Encyclopedia of Early Modern History Online

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Chamberlain
(1,005 words)

The office of chamberlain (Lat. camerarius or cubicularius) was one of the most important court officials of the European princely courts from the early Middle Ages onward. It is attested already among the Visigoths and the Merovingians and has even older precursors in the royal household of the East Roman imperial court [8. 496 f.]. It was originally in the hands of the chamberlain that responsibility lay for the running of the household of the prince . In the course of the Middle Ages this narrowed down - partly because of the increasing significance of the maste…

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Pečar, Andreas, “Chamberlain”, in: Encyclopedia of Early Modern History Online, Editors of the English edition: Graeme Dunphy, Andrew Gow. Original German Edition: Enzyklopädie der Neuzeit. Im Auftrag des Kulturwissenschaftlichen Instituts (Essen) und in Verbindung mit den Fachherausgebern herausgegeben von Friedrich Jaeger. Copyright © J.B. Metzlersche Verlagsbuchhandlung und Carl Ernst Poeschel Verlag GmbH 2005–2012. Consulted online on 19 March 2024 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/2352-0272_emho_SIM_021871>
First published online: 2015
First print edition: 20160907



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