Chapter 1: Introduction

The introduction of the book shall give a first initiation into the topic, demonstrating the variety of its history and its prolificacy.

It shall provide a clear outline of the “wrong” ideas hitherto received on heralds (relationship to heraldry, organisation of ceremonies, etc.) and give a short account of the previous historiography that led to this book project.

Considering the variety of the office in its history, covering more than 600 years in many different regions, the question of a clear definition of what a herald is must be raised. For this purpose, this chapter shall give a chronological and geographical collection of the different terms used to describe heralds and their office which are demonstrating the momentum of the history of this office and the changes it underwent. At the same time, asking for the connections between those different parts of the history of heralds, this introduction shall also provide a working definition of heralds, finally also pointing out the uniqueness of this office.