Favourite

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A favourite was the intimate companion of a ruler or other important person. In post-classical and early-modern Europe, among other times and places, the term was used of individuals delegated significant political power by a ruler. It was especially a phenomenon of the 16th and 17th centuries, when government had become too complex for many hereditary rulers with no great interest in or talent for it, and formal executive offices separate from the monarch (particularly that of the head of government) had yet to develop. From 1600 to 1660 there were particular successions of minister-favourites who enjoyed expansive powers in much of Europe, particularly in France, Spain, Sweden, and England; some ruled their states in all but name.^[1]

By the late 17th century, the royal favourite as quasi-Prime Minister declined; in France, the King resolved to rule directly; this remained the mode of governance until the monarchy’s precipitous fall a century later. In Britain, as the power of the monarch relative to Parliament declined precipitously (especially after 1688), executive power passed over time to the new office of Prime Minister; by the 1780s, the monarch could go mad with minimal impact on government or policy.

The term was later applied to others who were seen to unduly influence a monarch, such as Grigori Rasputin, but these “favourites” did not command the administrative apparatus, this role having passed, by the 19th century, to formal heads of government.

The term is also sometimes employed by writers who want to avoid terms such as "royal mistress", "friend", "companion", or "lover" (of either sex). Some favourites had sexual relations with their monarch (or the monarch's spouse), but this was far from universal. Many were favoured for their skill as administrators, while others were close friends of the monarch.

The term has an inbuilt element of disapproval and is defined by the Oxford English Dictionary as "One who stands unduly high in the favour of a prince",^[2] citing Shakespeare: "Like favourites/ Made proud by Princes" (Much Ado about Nothing, 3.1.9^[3]).