A master or chief official in charge of a bar, pub, or the bars within a courthouse or legal establishment.
From 'bar' plus 'master' (a chief or expert). In legal contexts, this referred to senior barristers; in taverns, it referred to the owner or head server managing the establishment.
In medieval and Renaissance bars, the barmaster was the boss—responsible for quality control of drinks, mediating disputes, and sometimes enforcing the law within his establishment, making him a powerful local figure.
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