The administrative, judicial, and political body of authority for a
feudal body. Adopted from the Roman conception of the curia, the concept was modified by the Germanic tribes, who attached both military and political elements to the leader's responsibilities. This is, in part, how feudal lords came to have such great powers over their
vassals . Gradually, the concept of the court came to encompass not only the
noble in charge of a body, but the chief officers and vassals who served him, since they would in many cases play some role in the dispensing of justice. The four principal officers of the court, the
constable (military officer),
chamberlain (treasurer),
seneschal (administrator of justice in the absence of the lord), and
steward (who administered to the estates).
