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The Management of the Viennese Court

The Austrian Science Fund (FWF) announced, today, its latest project to research and make public information about the management of the Imperial Court in Vienna. The project, entitled ‘At Your Majesty’s Service!’, is based on the study of the ‘instruction manuals’ of the Viennese court by Institute for Austrian Historical Research at the University of Vienna. The manuals notably provided the court staff with details about the manner in which specific tasks were to be carried out and by whom. They were used for over 200 years and were kept up to date by the staff of the Obersthofmeister, who held the highest administrative office at the court. The manuals constitute four volumes, with a total of 1,400 handwritten pages.

An edition of the manuscripts is currently being prepared and the study of the volumes has provided both a fascinating insight into the organisational structures of the court and a detailed picture of the way in which it operated.
Read entire article at History Today