Territorial rights in the Dolomites were divided between the Bishop of Brixen/Bressanone, the Tyrolean territorial prince, the Sonnenburg/Castelbadia convent, and other clerical and civil powers. Their subjects had to swear an oath of fealty, thereby earning the right to be protected.

By the 13th Century at the latest, judges and stewards represented not only the interests of the rulers and the supreme judicial authorities, but also of their subjects. They guaranteed law and order, made legal decisions and put their superiors’ decisions into practice.