1. Origins
In general the Landrat was a mid-level government official (Kreis, “district”; Local administration; Territorial authorities [Holy Roman Empire]). From the historical perspective, in the public mind this office – besides its continuation in today’s government – is associated primarily with 18th- and 19th-century Prussia. Nevertheless there were Landräte long before this “classical” phase of early Prussian history – and not just in the territories of the Hohenzollern monarchy.
In the 16th…