Former dicasteries The Secretariate of Briefs to Princes and of Latin Letters, or simply the Secretariate of Briefs, was one of the offices of the Roman Curia abrogated in 1967 during Pope Paul VI's reform of the Pontifical court.
The Secretary was a prelate responsible for writing the papal briefs addressed to emperors, kings, princes, and other dignitaries.
He also prepared the allocutions that the Pope pronounced at consistories, as well as encyclicals and apostolic letters addressed to bishops and the faithful.
The Secretary for Latin Letters was also a prelate or private papal chamberlain ("cameriere segreto" in Italian) and was responsible for writing letters in Latin of lesser importance on behalf of the Pope.
The Latin Secretaries also played a significant part in the proceedings surrounding the death and election of the Pope; one of the two Secretaries usually pronounced the funeral oration, in Latin, for the deceased Pope, while another held an oration after the mass Pro eligendo Pontifice ('For the election of the Pope') at the beginning of the conclave.