Spaces for Diplomacy. Prague, the Court of Emperor Rudolf II (1576–1612) and Diplomats

For most of Rudolf II's reign (1576–1612), Prague was the permanent seat of the imperial court. The personal presence of the Emperor, his court, and the imperial and Czech provincial offices prompted extensive reconstruction of Prague Castle and the urban agglomeration below the castle. Prague's transformation into a European center of power attracted not only aristocrats, skilled craftsmen, and merchants. The imperial court also attracted a wide variety of diplomatic actors. These included diplomats at the level of ambassadors, who permanently represented leading European monarchs, large or small foreign delegations that came to the Emperor with specific temporary tasks, and numerous agents and secretaries who represented small states or the interests of various individuals, as well as family members of diplomats and artists entrusted with diplomatic tasks. Their activities, which we know about mainly from collections of diplomatic correspondence, always took place in connection with a specific space. The term "space" can be understood in two ways in this context: firstly, as a topographically defined place, and secondly, as a space for action, which is shaped and influenced by the people who act and communicate within it.