Many people think of Henry VII as a penny-pinching miser – I know I did when I was studying him at school – but we might need to think again because the first Tudor monarch knew how to party!
Dive into the hidden world of this Tudor monarch’s extravagant celebrations, complete with castles on wheels, knights, dragons, and pageantry fit for royalty. From dazzling Christmas revels to the legendary wedding of Prince Arthur and Catherine of Aragon, discover a side of Henry VII you’ve never seen before.
Link for primary source account – https://archive.org/details/englishpageantry01…
Transcript:
Henry VII—a boring miser? Think again! The first Tudor monarch often gets a bad rap as a penny-pinching Scrooge, but there’s so much more to this king than meets the eye. Did you know that he threw extravagant parties complete with dazzling pageantry, knights, dragons, and even castles on wheels? Join me as I uncover the hidden world of revels, masques, and celebrations during Henry VII’s reign. This is one story that will change how you see him forever!
When I was studying Henry VII and his reign at A Level History, rather a long time ago, I dismissed him as a boring miser, and couldn’t wait to move on to Henry VIII, who seemed far more interesting. But, there’s a difference between being frugal and wise, and being a miser, a scrooge, isn’t there?
And let me tell you, Henry VII knew how to put on a good party. When I was researching pageantry, masques and revels in the Tudor period a few years ago, I expected to find nothing interesting in Henry VII’s reign, so I was very surprised to find a number of lavish celebrations. Although these tend not to be described in detail in chronicles, like those of other monarchs like Henry VIII and Elizabeth I, the financial accounts show that they must have been sumptuous and spectacular. There were revels during the Twelve Days of Christmas during his reign, and there were great celebrations and festivities for the coronation of his queen consort, Elizabeth of York, in November 1487.
Sadly we don’t have all the details of them, but two occasions we do have a few details for are the Christmas season of 1493-4, and the celebrations of the marriage of Henry’s eldest son, Arthur, Prince of Wales, and the Spanish princess, Catherine of Aragon, in November 1501.
In his book “Court Revels 1485-1559”, W. R. Streitberger writes that “the revels at Westminster for Christmas 1493-4 were elaborate”. There were performances by the players of Essex and Wimborne Minster, there was a morris dance, French players performed on Twelfth Night and then there was a disguising produced by Walter Alwyn with William Cornysh in a leading role.
Streitberger quotes from the primary sources to tell us what this disguising entailed, explaining that William Cornysh came riding into the hall on horseback dressed as St George and leading “a fair virgin attired like unto a king’s daughter”. She led a “terrible and huge red dragon” which “spit fire at his mouth”. Cornish led the girl and the dragon before the king and recited a ballad, and then the king’s chapel sang, While they were singing, Cornish left with the dragon, and the virgin was led to the queen. When the choir had finished, twelve disguised men led disguised ladies into the hall. The men were described as leaping and dancing the length of the hall. They then unmasked before dancing for an hour. Then, the men went and fetched the dishes for the banquet. Another source simply says:
“In Westminster Halle was a greate bankett… where theyre was a playe, with a pageant of St george with a castle, and also xii lordes knights and Esquyers with xii dysguysed which dyd daunce.”
In 1501, there was what is described as a masque or disguising for the wedding of Arthur and Catherine. In his book, “English pageantry : an historical outline”, Robert Withington describes it, quoting from the manuscript records. I’ll summarise it for you, but I’ll also share a link for you to read the primary source account of it.
This grand Tudor celebration unfolded in a hall filled with royal splendour and began as soon as the king and queen took their seats. It opened with a pageant featuring a magnificent castle on wheels, drawn with gold chains by four “beasts” (men in costume). The castle housed eight disguised ladies peeking from its windows and turrets, accompanied by a child dressed as a maiden, with children singing as the castle moved.
Next came a fully rigged ship, with maskers disguised and acting as mariners. Onboard was a lady dressed as a Spanish princess. Ambassadors representing “Hope” and “Desire” left the ship and approached the castle to request the ladies’ favour on behalf of the “Knights of the Mount of Love.” Rejected, they threatened an attack.
The third act featured a mountain from which eight knights emerged, joining the fray. After the knights “conquered” the castle, the ladies surrendered and joined them in a series of elaborate dances—half dressed in English fashion, the other half in Spanish style. As the performances concluded, the castle, ship, and mountain rolled away, leaving the royal party to continue dancing before enjoying a banquet.
This intricate display of pageantry highlighted Tudor creativity, blending storytelling, costume, and performance into a regal spectacle. It obviously represented the alliance of Spain and England through the marriage of Prince Arthur and Princess Catherine.
It sounds wonderful, doesn’t it? I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall.
Those are just two examples of pageantry in Henry VII’s reign, the only ones that we have complete details of, but they show just how spectacular the pageantry could be.
Henry VII wasn’t just the shrewd, frugal ruler history paints him as—he had a flair for the extravagant, too! From St. George battling a fire-breathing dragon to lavish banquets and ships, knights vying for love, these spectacles reveal a king who knew how to celebrate in style. So next time you think of Henry VII, don’t picture the miser—picture the party-planner extraordinaire! What do you think of this unexpected side of Henry VII? Let me know in the comments!
Well that really does surprise me as I always thought he was a bit of a Scrooge and maybe his reputation came about because of the treatment of his daughter in law Katherine, during the years of her widowhood, it is true though that many who are more generous tend to think of those who are more careful with their finances, as being somewhat miserly, Henry V11 did indeed know how to act like the monarch when occasion demanded, this was also to impress foreign visitors as he wished them to know what a splendid court he held, he was the head of a new dynasty and therefore under careful scrutiny.