Charles V, Prince Philip and the Politics of Succession : Festivities in Mons and Hainault 1549

This book is based on the international conference (2015) held in the capital of Hainault to celebrate the city of Mons as European capital of Culture. For the first time, through a range of interdisciplinary studies, the magnificent festivals created to honour Prince Philip of Spain as he journeyed across Europe to receive his sovereignty of the Low Countries are brought to life. The splendour of entries in the cities of Northern Italy (such as Genoa and Milan) was challenged by the civic allegories of triumph displayed throughout the Low Countries in Ghent, Antwerp and Amsterdam. Outpacing all that magnificence were the entertainments prepared by Mary of Hungary at Binche: triumphal arches, martial feats of arms, balls, masquerades and castle-stormings entertained Emperor Charles V and his son Prince Philip. The essays in this volume reconstitute the political and social context of these extraordinary celebrations; they focus on the purpose and role of festival in the changing political strategies of Charles V; analyse artistic endeavour, the nature and quantity of decorative elements, the addiction to ephemera; and, above all, lay bare the complex character of traditional chivalric displays and the armour required for them, revealing the importance of presence and theatricality.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 2503586155
• ISBN13: 9782503586151
• Release Date: February 2021
• Publisher: Brepols Publishers
• Length: 400 Pages
• Weight: 2.90 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 7.2" x 10.2"