Board Thread:Rewatching "Merlin" - Season One/@comment-5102537-20130214143847/@comment-5674726-20130228000905

''He was actually very quick in making Merlin Arthur's manservant without knowing anything about Merlin. I think it demonstrated Uther's emotionality and that a lot of things and decisions were based on his emotions.''

Especially when you consider what a position of trust it was. As Arthur's manservant, Merlin was the only servant to have access to his chambers, where he kept his keys. We also see him preparing and serving Arthur's meals without any food taster around. If somebody wanted to do some damage to Camelot or Arthur, being Arthur's manservant would give them plenty of opportunities to do so.