Administering the work and affairs of the cathedral chapter fell primarily to five people, and once the chapter had been ennobled in 1777, it’s almost certain these individuals were of noble lineage.

The highest office is referred to in French as the Princerie and was technically appointed by the Pope, although in France that power had been transferred to the king. Finding a translation for this term is challenging. Obviously, you can clearly see the root of the word is prince, which refers to noble status. Cathedral chapters often have an office of Precentor, but this word has an entirely different etymology. Hence, I doubt the words are related. I’m not an expert in this area, but I’d guess that this position might have something to do with the noble nature of the chapter. Either way, the Princerie had minor duties and great benefits. This position named people to certain offices: a sub-cantor and four cloister offices. However, in addition to his prebend, the canon holding the Princerie received the following:

• a hotel in Metz

• land and lordship of Champion, which also included the surrounding woods

• lordship of Chailly

• 2/3 lordship of Ottonville and Ricrange

• a copse at Lorry-devant-le-Pont

• nine jours enclosed in Villers-l’Abbaye (a jour - the French word for day - was the amount of land that could be worked in a day)

• Right of franc-salé, which meant the Princerie didn’t have to pay tax on salt, a big deal given the importance of salt not just in seasoning food but also in preserving it

The next office was the Dean, who had spiritual jurisdiction over the chapter. The Dean was elected by the chapter. The person holding this office also named a semi-prebendary and functionaries for all chapels. If the Bishop died, the Dean gave him the last rites and officiated at his funeral. The Dean received:

• a double prebend

• 1/3 of the tithes from the provost (an administrative position similar to that of a mayor, who presumedly collected the tithes) of Courcelles-Chaussy

The Cantor watched over the lower choir, including two sub-cantors, the music teacher, fourteen musicians and lay cantors, and also supervised the teaching of children. The Cantor received a prebend.

The Chancellor composed documents for the chapter, kept and affixed seals, and inventoried and disposed of the belongings of canons and cathedral officers after their deaths. The Chancellor also had responsibility over the library and the manuscripts it contained. When a canon needed a manuscript, the Chancellor retrieved it for them, although the manuscripts had to be perused in the library and could not be checked out and returned later. The person holding this office received a prebend.

The Treasurer wasn’t a treasurer in the sense we know today. He didn’t control funds. Instead, the Treasurer kept the cathedral treasury, which contained relics, jewels, precious books, silver, various ornaments, and sacred vessels. The person holding this office had some jurisdiction over the three cathedral churchwardens and received a prebend.

In addition to the above, the chapter had officers with other responsibilities and benefits. These included a Schoolmaster, who supervised all schools in Metz. He received a prebend and the lordships of Han and Flocourt. The Almoner distributed certain alms during Lent and Holy Week and named the prebendaries attached to the chapel of Sainte-Reignette, which happened to be attached to the Almoner’s house. In addition to the house, the Almoner received a prebend, the lordship of Libaville, and half the tithes of Hayes.

To round out the officers, four Archdeacons were named by the Bishop.