Duke's Chair
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The Duke's Chair (also Duke's Seat, German: Herzogstuhl, Slovenian: Vojvodski prestol) is a medieval stone seat dating from the ninth century and located at the Zollfeld plain near Maria Saal (slo.: Gospa Sveta). Together with the Prince's Stone it played an important role during the installation of the Dukes of Carinthia. As sedes Karinthani ducatus it was first mentioned in records on the occasion of the installation of Duke Hermann in 1161.
The Duke's Chair actually consists of two stone seats, whose backrests are attached to each other. The larger seat, facing to the east, was reserved for the Duke, the other one, slightly older and facing to the west, for the count palatine.
During the ceremony at the Duke's Chair the new Duke had to swear an oath in German and received the homage of the estates. It was the last part of a series of rituals which consisted of the ducal installation on the Prince's Stone (performed in Slovene) and of a mass, which was held at the cathedral of Maria Saal.
The last installation took place in 1651, though the Duke, Ferdinand, the son of the Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand III, did not take part in person, but was represented by a personal deputy.
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