Introduction
Erin Griffey
Part I: People and political structures: Connecting power
1. Monarchs: Kings and queens regnant, sovereign princes and popes
Ronald G. Asch
2. Consorts and court ladies
Helen Watanabe-O’Kelly
3. Wider kinship networks
Jonathan Spangler
4. Courtiers, ministers and favourites
R. Malcolm Smuts
5. Confessors
Nicole Reinhardt
6. Aristocrats and nobles
Hamish Scott
7. Diplomats
Tracey A. Sowerby
Part II: Place and space: Negotiating the court
8. Access
Dries Raeymaekers
9. Princely residences
Elisabeth Narkin
10. Gardens
Paula Henderson
Part III: Ceremonial and ritual: Observing tradition
11. Religious rituals and the liturgical calendar
Paolo Cozzo
12. Childbirth
Erin Griffey
13. Marriages
Joan-Lluís Palos
14. Coronations
Paul Monod
15. Receptions: Triumphal entries, ambassadorial receptions and banquets
R.L.M. Morris
16. Funerals
Jill Bepler
Part IV: Visual and material culture: Furnishing the palace
17. Metalwork
Sean Roberts
18. Tapestries
Guy Delmarcel
19. Upholstered furnishings, cabinet work and gilt furniture
Olivia Fryman
20. Portraiture
Lisa Mansfield
21. Display
Andrea Bubenik
22. Porcelain rooms
Meredith Martin
Part 5: Material culture: Dressing the body
23. Jewellery
Natasha Awais-Dean
24. Male dress
Timothy McCall
25. Female dress
Jemma Field
26. Beauty
Erin Griffey
27. Scent
Holly Dugan
Part VI: Entertainment and knowledge: Performing authority
28. Science
Alisha Rankin
29. Theatre and opera
Sophie Tomlinson
30. Dance
Jennifer Nevile
31. Literature
Tom Bishop
32. Music
Andrew H. Weaver
33. Tournaments and hunting
Glenn Richardson
34. Food and dining
Ken Albala
35. Games and jokes
Johan Verberckmoes
Biography
Erin Griffey is Associate Professor of Art History at the University of Auckland and a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries. She is a specialist in early modern visual and material culture and has published widely on the Stuart court, including On Display: Henrietta Maria and the Materials of Magnificence at the Stuart Court (2016). Her other books include the edited collection Sartorial Politics in Early Modern Europe: Fashioning Women (2019). She is writing a monograph entitled Facing Decay: Beauty, Wrinkles and Anti-Aging in Early Modern Europe.
'A welcome and thorough comparative exploration of early modern court culture, this volume steers the reader expertly through the power structures, spaces, and cultures of European courts. With an emphasis on the material, the sensory, and the spatial, the essays bring the field of court history up to date and showcase it as a vibrant field of study. A must for every early modern reading list.'Nicola Clark, University of Chichester, UK
