Prague, Wels, and Frankfurt, were all sites of the court,[1] but the most important seat of the Aulic Council was at the Hofburg residence of the Habsburg emperors in Vienna.

[2] Since 1960, the Aulic Council has been extensively researched in academia, with some of its former court files (of which there are more than 100,000 that still exist[1]) stored at the Austrian State Archives.

It played a major role the constitutional, legal, and political history of the Holy Roman Empire, and is considered one of the most prominent supreme courts in early modern Europe.

As historian Eva Ortlieb puts it, "Like the Rota Romana and the Parlement de Paris, [the Aulic Council] ranks among the most significant supreme courts of Europe.

Research suggests that during Charles V's reign, the Aulic Council was reformed with new councilors and presidents every time the Emperor visited the Empire.

[4] In the late 1500s and early 1600s, particularly during Emperor Rudolf II's reign, the Aulic Council was frequently tasked to deal with conflicts that could not be settled by the Imperial Diet or by arbitration.

The court would appoint Fiskal, special attorneys (see more information in Composition section), and established advocates to represent any litigants.

When Napoleon I's gains after the Battle of Austerlitz and the Peace of Pressburg culminated in the end of the Holy Roman Empire, the Aulic Council likewise ceased to exist in 1806 as an imperial institution.

Historian Siegrid Westphal demonstrated in her work that the Aulic Council played the role of a mediator in conflicts between Imperial estates.

Imperial Vice-Chancellor, Friedrich Karl von Schönborn, petitioned the case to Emperor Charles VI, seeking to limit Prussia's growing power.

The Aulic Council stated that the transfer of claims was made during a time of duress (War of the Spanish Succession).

A Kulmbach envoy is reported to have said have commented "'at least in Germany we no longer have to rely on weapons, but on due process, which gives the weaker estates cause to rejoice.

Leopold Auer writes that "the Imperial Aulic Council guaranteed the continuity and stability of the complex constitutional structure of the Old Reich by protecting the less powerful members of the Empire against the threats posed by the bigger Estates.

The Vice Chancellor, who was appointed by the Elector of Mainz in his capacity as Imperial archchancellor, held sway in the Aulic Council.

[8] Councilors often had professional experience in Habsburg governance, worked in estates closely tied to the Emperor, or served on the Reichskammergericht.

It frequently employed "commissions" to facilitate compromises between parties, and sometimes the act of filing a complaint with the Council was sufficient to encourage settlement.

Notably, both the Aulic Council and the Reichskammergericht demonstrated their moderating influence in witch trials: both courts tried to (and with some success managed to) prevent excessive cruelty in the proceedings.

[4] When required, the Aulic Council had a formalized method of issuing verdicts, mainly through use of military force, and enlisted help from "commissions" consisting of princes in Imperial Circles.

During the reigns of Charles V and Ferdinand I, the Aulic Council focused primarily on acts of grace (gratialia or Gnadensachen), which encompassed granting privileges, exercising imperial rights in both secular and religious spheres, issuing pardons, and handling intervention petitions.

This emphasis on acts of grace made the emperor an essential partner for all social groups within the Empire while providing him with diverse means of wielding influence.

[11] The court processed also imperial privileges, issuing letters of safe conduct, passage, and protection, granted legitimation of bastard children, and confirmed various contracts and wills.

[8] The Aulic Council also possessed the right to watch over finances of princes and deal with maladministration through the Debit Commission (Debitkommissionen)[4].

The court had the right to prevent princes or free cities from taking too much debt, by holding the power to authorize large loans (though this was often bypassed).

The Peace of Westphalia changed this, by making the compromises unnecessary (by establishing religious status-quo), and this led to city citizens addressing many complaints to the Aulic Council.

Examples of such include Aulic Council verdicts pertaining to constitutional conflict in Frankfurt and Augsburg, which restricted the power of city governments in favor of the citizens.

The court's power could even bypass the Privilegium de non appellando, if the litigants could credibly show that they had been denied due process.

The Emperor would generally give a formulaic response: "You shall have justice" (Euch wird Recht werden), before turning over the case to the Aulic Council.

Following William's deposition, the Aulic Council commissioned the cathedral chapter of the Electorate of Cologne to temporarily administer his lands.

The lands belonged to Hesse-Rheinfels, but the fortress was occupied by the larger Hesse-Kassel in 1692 to defend it against French attacks in the Nine Years' War.

The conclusion of the Austro-Turkish War finally led to Hesse-Kassel's surrender, as it meant Imperial armies could be diverted to deal with the issue.