Mistresses at the early modern court have only recently been discovered as subjects of political history. They are now increasingly discussed alongside male favourites, and while this essay welcomes this development, it also argues that this should not result in the degendering of the practice of concubinage. The upkeep of extramarital relationships was not a viable option for ruling women, and if they transgressed this cultural norm, they were sanctioned severely, as is illustrated by case of Sophie Dorothea of Celle. Such a clear gendering of a specific practice indicates that there was power at stake. Here it is argued that we can only fully appreciate the political dimension of concubinage if we broaden our perspective beyond the mistress-ruler relationship to include the political configuration of the ruling ‘working couple’, which was of crucial importance specifically at Protestant German-speaking courts. The comparison of a male favourite and a female favourite in the duchy of Wurttemberg exemplifies how both these actors could recalibrate specific configurations of power in ways that departed from the God-given order of governance and thus induce anxiety in contemporaries. Female favourite Magdalena Moringer took on functions of the local duchess and thus helped the duke concentrate power in his person by breaking up the deeply rooted assumptions about the collaborative labour of ruling couples that were influential in early modern Germany.

中文翻译：

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公爵的最爱：近代早期宫廷纳妾政治的性别观点*

现代早期宫廷中的情妇直到最近才被发现为政治史的主题。他们现在越来越多地与男性最爱一起讨论，虽然本文欢迎这种发展，但它也认为这不应导致纳妾做法的退化。维持婚外关系对于统治女性来说不是一个可行的选择，如果她们违反了这一文化规范，她们将受到严厉制裁，正如策勒的索菲·多萝西娅 (Sophie Dorothea) 的案例所说明的那样。对特定实践进行如此明确的性别划分表明，权力处于危险之中。这里有人认为，如果我们将视野从情妇-统治者关系扩展到包括统治“工作夫妇”的政治配置，我们才能充分理解纳妾的政治维度，这在讲新教的德语法庭中尤其重要。符腾堡公国的男性宠儿和女性宠儿的比较说明了这两个演员如何以背离上帝赋予的治理秩序的方式重新调整特定的权力配置，从而引起同时代人的焦虑。深受女性喜爱的玛格达莱娜·莫林格 (Magdalena Moringer) 承担了当地公爵夫人的职责，从而帮助公爵将权力集中在他的个人身上，打破了对现代早期德国有影响力的统治夫妇合作劳动的根深蒂固的假设。符腾堡公国的男性宠儿和女性宠儿的比较说明了这两个演员如何以背离上帝赋予的治理秩序的方式重新调整特定的权力配置，从而引起同时代人的焦虑。深受女性喜爱的玛格达莱娜·莫林格 (Magdalena Moringer) 承担了当地公爵夫人的职责，从而通过打破有关在近代早期具有影响力的统治夫妇的合作劳动的根深蒂固的假设，帮助公爵将权力集中在他的个人身上。符腾堡公国的男性宠儿和女性宠儿的比较说明了这两个演员如何以背离上帝赋予的治理秩序的方式重新调整特定的权力配置，从而引起同时代人的焦虑。深受女性喜爱的玛格达莱娜·莫林格 (Magdalena Moringer) 承担了当地公爵夫人的职责，从而通过打破有关在近代早期具有影响力的统治夫妇的合作劳动的根深蒂固的假设，帮助公爵将权力集中在他的个人身上。