Royal Journeys in Early Modern Europe: Progresses, Palaces and Panache

Authored by a unique combination of university academics and heritage professionals, this book offers new perspectives on journeys made by Henry VIII and other monarchs, their political and social impact and the logistics required in undertaking such trips. It explores the performance of kingship and queenship by itinerant monarchs, investigating how, by a variety of means, they engaged and interacted with their subjects, and the practical and symbolic functions associated with these activities. Moving beyond the purely English experience, it provides a European dimension by comparing progresses in England and France. Royal marriage and the royal progress share common features which are considered through an analysis of the trans-European journeys made by future spouses, notably Anne of Cleves. Also, the book reveals the significance of the art and architecture of houses and palaces, and how the celebrated meeting of English and French kings at the Field of Cloth of Gold in 1520 was part of a wider diplomatic performance full of symbolism including the exchange of gifts and socialising between the two royal courts.

Drawing on contemporary art, material culture and surviving buildings, the book will be of interest to all who enjoy the intrigue and splendour of sixteenth-century courts.

Anthony Musson is Head of Research at Historic Royal Palaces and currently leading an AHRC funded research project: Henry VIII on Tour: Tudor Palaces and Royal Progresses. He was previously Professor of Legal History and Director of the Bracton Centre for Legal History Research at the University of Exeter. He has published extensively in the fields of political culture in medieval and early modern England as well as legal iconography and the legal profession.

J. P. D. Cooper is Reader in Early Modern History at the University of York and Director of the Society of Antiquaries of London. He is Co-Investigator of the ’Henry VIII on Tour’ network. He has published books on Tudor royal propaganda and the Elizabethan statesman Sir Francis Walsingham, and edited volumes on Henry VIII’s arms and armour and the architectural and political culture of the Palace of Westminster. He was Principal Investigator of the ’St Stephen’s Chapel, Westminster’ and ’Listening to the Commons’ AHRC-funded projects.