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I want to say that when the Frederick II with his court, was in the city of Pisa, some person got a chance to see him.

Can I say "stationed with his court in", like so?

Approximately in 1225 when Frederick II was stationed with his court in Pisa, Milo was granted an audience.

Or does stationed only apply to military units?

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4 Answers

up vote 4 down vote accepted

How about "held his court at" or "held his court in":

Approximately in 1225 when Frederick II held his court at Pisa, Milo was granted an audience.

(not sure if it's at or in)

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2  
+1 This sounds most idiomatic. I think in and at are both possible. Note that it does sound more permanent then a mere audience with a travelling Emperor: if there was some permanence in his stay in Pisa, use "held court"; otherwise, simply say "when Fredrick II was in Pisa". I am too lazy to look up whether he was actually holding his court there at the time or was just travelling. It is probably also a legal/judicial definition, as holding court implies hearing supplicants/cases. – Cerberus Apr 26 '11 at 2:43
I agree, this is the way to say it. +1 And the OP should remember that a king or, in this case, an emperor, especially one so brilliant he was called stupor mundi (wonder of the world), is never "stationed" like a common trooper. – Robusto Apr 26 '11 at 2:43
up vote 3 down vote

The term you want is seat,

a place in which administrative power or the like is centered: the seat of the government.

Here is an example of the use of seat from Wikipedia,

In 1309 the city, still part of the Kingdom of Arles, was chosen by Pope Clement V as his residence, and from 9 March 1309 until 13 January 1377 was the seat of the Papacy instead of Rome.

I would suggest modifying the sentence to something like,

Around 1225, Milo was granted an audience with Fredrick II. At the time, the seat of Fredrick's court was in Pisa.

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up vote 0 down vote

A court "sits" or "is seated", but that term may apply best to a more permanent location. You could always fall back on "his court, located in Pisa".

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So... "... Approximately in 1225 Frederick II with his court, located in Pisa, granted Milo an audience"? Sounds wierd to me... Or "court which sat in Pisa"? – drozzy Apr 26 '11 at 1:29
1  
The problem may be that, because medieval courts traveled constantly, saying a court was "located" somewhere gives an incorrect impression of permanence. Even "which sat" sounds a bit permanent. "Was sitting" somehow sounds better to me, since it speaks only of a specific moment in time rather than generally. – Kelly C Hess Apr 26 '11 at 1:38
It may be that your sentence makes it a bit awkward since it implies that the court somehow participated in granting the audience, while I think you meant to say that Frederick granted the audience, which was with him and the court: "...in 1225 Frederick II granted Milo an audience with his court, seated in Pisa." Or, simpler still, "...with his court in Pisa", though that could imply that he had a separate court in Pisa. – JeffSahol Apr 26 '11 at 1:40
up vote 0 down vote

How about lodged or quartered? The latter may sound a bit too military, though....

ALSO: While the court was resident at ....

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Yep, it does. I think there must be something simpler - that I am missing. This can't be so "rare" of an expression, after all! – drozzy Apr 26 '11 at 1:42
@drozzy: I added another suggestion. Or you could just rephrase to avoid the need to describe the situation of the court. Just say: "In approximately 1225, Milo obtained an audience with the court of Frederick II at Pisa." – Kelly C Hess Apr 26 '11 at 1:58

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