ABSTRACT
In 1665, when Aemilia Juliana, Countess of Barby, married her cousin, Albert Anton, ruling Count of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt, she assumed the role of ruler’s consort, a position she was to hold for over 40 years. As her activities are exceptionally well documented, examination of them can help to elucidate the dimensions of the role for other consorts of the period. But the case of Aemilia Juliana is also an extraordinary one, for her activities often appear to have exceeded the norm. This study will thus provide, in a detailed account of the activities of one exemplary consort, conclusions about the possibilities for action by noblewomen of the early modern period in Germany, in spite of all the restrictions imposed on women by their strongly patriarchal culture.
