or the furniture of his palaces". Thus, under the Norman kings of England, the Curia Regis ('King's Court') was engaged in every aspect of the management of State affairs - financial, administrative, legislative, judicial, diplomatic - as well as in providing for the day-to-day needs of the monarch and his entourage.

In the twelfth century, the Curia Regis began to disintegrate. Key departments to separate themselves from the Curia Regis were the Exchequer