Imperial Public Banquet
Imperial Public Banquets are held annually at the Imperial Court of Diadochia for the benefit of the people of the Diadochia. To mark the emperor’s birthday, high religious feast days, the festivities of imperial Orders, coronations and homage ceremonies, public banquets take place at which the monarch dines in public. This special event and tradition gives his subjects the rare opportunity of observing their emperor at close quarters. For the nobility it is also a great honour to manifest their proximity to the emperor by serving at the imperial table.
During these events the Emperor often dines in full view of the public as the Diadochian monarch must be born, live, and die in the eyes of the public. Grand Public Banquets are open to all persons, as long as they are decently dressed, this special privilege allows the Emperor's subjects the rare opportunity of observing their emperor at close quarters. During public banquets members of the nobility serve the emperor.
The public banquets are intended to display to observers the splendour and power of the imperial Court of Diadochia and followed a clear ceremonial procedure. The emperor and his retinue entered the dining room, announced by a fanfare. The individual courses are announced with a drumbeat, and the company dine to the accompaniment of table music.
Most of the dishes served are for display only, their elaborate decoration intended solely to enhance the imperial splendour of the emperor, the imperial family, the imperial court, and the empire as a whole. The dining services are made of precious materials, while allegorical centerpieces allude to the glory of the imperial majesty of the emperor.
The emperor sits beneath a canopy of state (usually of imperial purple or red), while the other participants are all placed according to a meticulously worked out seating order based on rank and precedence.
At public banquets the food is served by by the aristocratic nobles present at court. They are organized by the Domestikos trapezēs (Grand Master of the Table), who oversees the course of events according to the strict rules of ceremonial. He his assisted by the Atriklines who is responsible for making sure court dignitaries, officials and ministers of state are received in order of strict precedence and rank during the event.
Certain aristocrats called Oikonómos (seneschals/stewards) are responsible for the ceremonial presentation of the dishes. The Mégas Trochistí̱s (Grand Carver) assisted by the trochistí̱s (lesser carvers) celebrated the elaborate carving of the meat, while the Megas Pinkernes (Chief cupbearer) assisted by the oinochóos (lesser cupbearers) attend to the serving of the drinks. The imperial Koubikoularios or chamberlains, a rank which allows special proximity to the emperor, tests the quality of the dishes and serves the emperor at his table. In addition, between each course, the chamberlains hold a basin of water and towel for the emperor to wash his hands.
In recent years the Emperor has traditionally held twelve public banquets a year, one for each month or more.
