|
King Henry VI 1422-1471; reigned 1422-1461 and 1470-71 "O pity, God, this miserable age! |
| |||
|
Lydgate's Lives | Bedford Hours | Gold Cup | Statues | College Charter | Shrewsbury Book | Fishpool Jewelry | Middleham Jewel | Tewkesbury Ceiling | Saint Henry |
||||
|
Henry was only nine months old when his father died of illness in the battlefields of France, making him king of England. He became king of France a few months later when his grandfather died in Paris. He attended his first Parliament seated on his mother's knee. Henry's uncles John, Duke of Bedford and Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester, along with his great-uncle Henry Beaufort, Bishop of Winchester, led the country during his infancy. Though he was crowned in Paris in 1431, England had already begun to lose ground in France, and was completely pushed out at the Battle of Castillon in 1453. Henry, ill-equipped to rule and lacking the example of his father, never did learn to lead, and during his long reign he was merely pushed around by stronger (though not strong enough) personalities. History has shown Henry to be a terrible king. He valued the church and learning over law and leading. He was unable to resist his most powerful courtiers; under his and their mismanagement the war in France was finally lost and the country plunged into the civil conflict known as the Wars of the Roses. For much of his 30 year reign (which spanned 40 years) he was no more than a pawn shunted between different political personalities as they rose and fell from power. He finally died (most likely murdered in the Tower) after being thrice crowned, twice deposed, and often imprisoned and exiled. Shakespeare gave Henry VI three plays because, between 1422-1471, he had to include Joan of Arc, the end of the Hundred Years' War, the Wars of the Roses, and the first half of the reign of Edward IV, Henry's usurper. Events and personalities fly by in a bewildering succession of battles, arguments, murders, imprisonments, and coups. These were Shakespeare's first history plays and among the first he wrote in any genre.
| ||||
|
John Lydgate's Metrical Lives of Saints Edmund and Fremund, in the presentation copy for Henry VI, 1433-39
Popular 15th century poet John Lydgate was also a monk at the Abbey of Bury St. Edmunds, and demand for his works led to the development of a school of illuminators there. Lydgate translated a Latin history of the East Anglian martyr king Edmund and his cousin Fremund into verse for Henry VI on the occasion of the 12-year-old king's sojourn at the Abbey from Christmas 1433 through Easter 1434. King Edmund was beheaded by Danish conquerors in 869; his shrine was located at the Abbey at Bury, and Henry venerated this before he left the Abbey that spring. Lydgate retells the legend of the king as popularized in the 12th century, including the account of Fremund's fight to avenge his cousin's death. The manuscript was probably produced under Lydgate's own supervision, with his input on the subjects for the illustrations. It was likely begun shortly before the king's visit, presented to him, then finished during the next few years, possibly by 1439, which was when Lydgate was awarded a royal pension. Sources
|
|||
|
The Bedford Hours f. 288V, ca. 1423
John, Duke of Bedford, was Henry V's oldest surviving brother. He served as Protector of the realm during Agincourt and Henry V's other French campaigns, and became Regent of France after his brother's death. He remained the head of English government in France until his own death in 1435 and was, along with his younger brother Humphrey (Duke of Gloucester), one of the foremost patrons of art in the 15th century - the inheritor of Jean, Duc de Berry's legacy as an important commissioner and collector of artwork in all media. The Bedford Hours was illuminated chiefly by an artist known as the Bedford Master (he also contributed to the most famous and magnificent 15th century manuscript, the Tres Riches Heures, commissioned by the Duc de Berry around 1412). Recent research suggests the Bedford Hours was not originally commissioned by the Duke, though portraits of him and his wife and images of the couple's arms and badges were added by the artist after Bedford acquired it. Scholars have suggested that the manuscript was begun for Louis de Guyenne, the Dauphin in Shakespeare's Henry V and the Bedford Master's original patron, or Anne of Burgundy, Louis's cousin, who married Bedford in 1423. The couple gave the manuscript to Henry VI in 1430, when the 8-year-old king stayed at their residence in Rouen for several months on his way to his Paris coronation. F. 288v, shown here, depicts the legend of the fleur-de-lys, the symbol of France. The illumination shows God the Father handing a banner with three gold lilies to an angel, who gives it to a hermit, who then passes it on to Queen Clothilda (herself a daughter of the house of Burgundy) who gives it to her fully armed husband, King Clovis, on a shield. Sources
|
|||
|
The Royal Gold Cup, 1380
Another item that entered the Duke of Bedford's collection while he was Regent of France was this cup, over nine inches tall and made of solid gold decorated with enamel and pearls. It features scenes from the life of St. Agnes. The cup was originally commissioned by Jean, Duc de Berry, possibly for his brother, Charles V of France (who was born on St. Agnes' Day), but was given to the Duke's nephew, Charles VI, in 1391. It was Charles VI who would agree, in 1420, at the Treaty of Troyes, to cede his kingdom to the conquering English. Thus, when he died in 1422, shortly after Henry V, the king's plate, like his country, became the property of the English, and the cup became part of Bedford's collection. The cup was pawned in 1449 and 1451 to pay for the French wars, but survived. Henry VIII added a band of red and white Tudor roses to its stem in the 16th century. Sources
|
|||
|
Statues of Henry VI and Archbishop Chichele, 1438-42
These life-sized statues of Henry VI and Archbishop Chichele once stood in niches in the front of the tower at the original entrance gate of All Souls College at Oxford. Chichele, who had risen in prominence during the reign of Henry V, founded the college in 1438 for the education of priests (all of its fellows, over half of whom would study the Arts, Philosophy and Theology, would take holy orders). He used William Wykeham's New School at Oxford (founded in 1379) as a model. Seventeen-year-old Henry VI, as king, was honorary co-founder. These statues were most likely created by the sculptor hired for the building project, a nationally known London craftsman named John Massyngham, who, records show, was paid more for his contributions to the site than either the master mason or the chief carpenter. He created over thirty similarly-sized statues of saints that stood in niches in the east wall of the chapel, over the altar, all of which were destroyed during the Reformation (19th century replicas now stand there). Sources
|
|||
|
Charter for King's College, Cambridge, 1446
Perhaps inspired by All Souls, Henry VI founded King's College at Cambridge in 1441, one year after he founded Eton (also at Cambridge), a public secondary school for the poor. The double presence of a college and a school increased the scale of this university, probably chosen as their location because of Oxford's association with heretical ideas. Henry re-founded the college in 1443 and increased its endowment and its size - initially planned to have 12 scholars, King's College was now going planned to have 70. Sixty-two of these were to study the Arts, Philosophy or Theology, reflecting the king's value for the spiritual and ecclesiastical over the secular and occupational (law, medicine, and the sciences). Though Henry himself had laid a foundation stone for the college in 1441, a larger site was now created by acquiring parcels of land over a period of several years. Its new site became one of the choicest pieces of land in Cambridge and gave great visibility to both the college and its founder. The foundation stone for the new, larger college's chapel was laid by the king on July 25, 1446. This charter reflects the college's second, more ambitious incarnation. It is dated March 10, 1446 and records the Acts of Parliament ratified for its foundation. Henry is shown at the center of this detail, holding a sealed charter and praying to the Virgin, who is held aloft by angels beneath the Trinity. St. Nicholas, the college's patron saint, also venerates her. The Houses of Parliament kneel behind the king. Sources
|
|||
|
Shrewsbury Book, or Book of Romances, 1445
In 1445, at the age of 23, Henry VI married Margaret of Anjou, the 16-year-old daughter of the French Duke of Anjou, who was also the titular King of Naples. (She was actually first married in France with the Duke of Suffolk standing proxy for the King; he then accompanied her to England, and the two remained close allies until his death.) England gained no political or economic advantage in this match, which makes it a baffling choice for a young king leading a country which was steadily losing a foreign war. He should have married to secure an alliance with a powerful foreign lord, not a king with no land and no money. In fact, upon their marriage, Henry ceded the lands of Anjou and Maine, then in English hands, to Margaret's father. These lands had been hard won by the English through decades of fighting, and this act led to public mistrust of the King and his advisors and resentment of the new Queen. The Shrewsbury Book was made in Rouen and given to Margaret as a wedding gift by John Talbot, Earl of Shrewsbury, a national hero of the war with France who would die in its last battle, at Castillon, in 1453. The book's opening miniature shows Talbot (identifiable by the dog that was his badge) offering the book to the Queen, while the King sits enthroned beside her. It was illuminated chiefly in Rouen by an artist known as the Talbot Master, with contributions by some of his contemporaries. The book contains 15 romances in French about French and English heroes, as well as statutes for the Order of the Garter and instructional texts. All were probably copied from books owned by Talbot. The book is decorated with Margaret's arms and her new husband's ancestry, showing his right to the French crown. Sources
|
|||
|
Gold, enamel and precious stones British Museum, London The Fishpool hoard, found in Nottinghamshire in 1966, contains over 1,200 gold coins (mostly English, but also Burgundian), the eight pieces of jewelry shown here (stylistically Flemish or Burgundian, though possibly made in England), and two gold chains. The dates of its coins show that it must have been buried between late 1463 and mid 1464. Historians have wondered if the objects formed part of the Lancastrian treasury, and were buried by a retainer fleeing south after being on the losing side of the Battle of Hexham (west of Newcastle), which ended the Lancastrian resistance in the North. Whoever buried the treasure was likely killed before the Wars of the Roses ended, in 1471, as he never returned to collect it. The jewelry is of high quality and consists of four rings (one set with a turquoise and one a signet ring, the others plain gold; the signet suggests the owner of the group was a man), a small engraved padlock locket, a sapphire surrounded by enamel beads (most missing), a cross set with a ruby and four amethysts, and a gold and enamel heart-shaped brooch. The pieces share a certain sweet romance - many are engraved with French or English phrases referencing love. The padlock reads "de tout / mon cuer" on its two sides ("of all my heart") and the brooch is engraved with "Je suys vostre sans de partier" - "I am yours wholly." The treasure was worth £400 in 1464 - over half a million dollars in today's money. Sources
|
|||
|
Middleham Jewel
This 2 1/2 inch tall gold pendant found near Middleham Castle in northern England is set with a sapphire and engraved with the Trinity on the front and the Nativity on the back, on a panel that slides out to reveal a small receptacle (the catch that holds the jewel together can be seen protruding from its upper right). When it was opened in 1985, it contained silk thread wound with gold foil, but it may have originally contained an Agnus Dei or other devotional object. The inscription around the front perimeter of the jewel contains a fragment of scripture in Latin and two magical words, one representing the unwritable name of God and the other used as an incantation against epilepsy. John Cherry has suggested the jewel was owned by a pious lady who was concerned about her health, but the jewel's owner may or may not have been associated with the 15th century tenants of Middleham, originally the seat of the Nevilles, and later a favorite residence of Richard III. Rich, showy devotional objects increased in popularity in the 15th century. Owned by the gentry, they could visibly advertise the wearer's wealth and piety when worn or carried in public spaces. The Middleham Jewel is much larger than some other contemporary English reliquary pendants like the Clare Cross (Royal family) and the Tau Cross (Cloisters Collection, Metropolitan Museum of Art), both of which are just over one inch tall. Sources
|
|||
|
Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire, England The institutional consequences of Henry's weak leadership begin to show themselves by 1450. At that time, Henry's uncles were both dead (Bedford in 1435 and Gloucester in 1447) as well as his great-uncle Winchester (1447) and the royal couple's close ally the Duke of Suffolk (1450). Their strongest remaining courtier was the Duke of Somerset, but the greatest peer in England was Richard Plantagenet, Duke of York, also a member of the royal family. As the war in France continued to show losses and these began to be felt socially and economically at home, some began to rally around him to change the country's direction. In 1453, Henry fell ill and became incapacitated, the final battle of the Hundred Years' War was fought (and lost) at Castillon, and Margaret of Anjou gave birth to a son, Edward, Prince of Wales. During Henry's illness, a battle for the regency developed which erupted later into a full-blown struggle for the crown, with Margaret fighting for her son's inheritance on one side and Richard Duke of York (now supported by the northern lord Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick) advancing his own claim on the other. Armed conflict throughout the 1450s ended in Henry being unseated in 1461, not by Richard, Duke of York, who was killed in battle in 1460, but by his eldest son, who became, at the age of 18, Edward IV. The conflict was renewed later in the 1460s when Warwick withdrew his support from the Yorks and briefly returned Henry (who had been imprisoned in the Tower) to the throne (all this activity earned Warwick the moniker "the kingmaker"). The final battle between the two sides was fought near Tewkesbury Abbey in 1471. Here, Edward IV and his brother Richard of Gloucester met Margaret's French forces two weeks after defeating Warwick and his army at Barnet. Margaret's son Edward, Prince of Wales, died in this battle, and Henry himself died soon after (the official story was that he died of grief upon being told the shocking news of the defeat, but he was doubtlessly murdered). Edward IV reclaimed the throne and went on to reign for another 12 years. The sun badge of the Yorks decorates the Abbey's choir ceiling, redecorated by Edward IV after his victory here. This symbol was adopted by the dynasty when, according to legend, Edward saw three suns in the sky before the Battle of Mortimer's Cross in 1461 (Shakespeare dramatizes this event in II.i of Henry VI, part 3). The three suns represented him and his two surviving brothers, George and Richard, who would become Richard III. The Abbey contains another, more somber, memorial to this battle. After the battle, Lancastrian soldiers sought shelter in the Abbey but were found and killed by the Yorkist army. Armor from these murdered soldiers plates the back of the sacristy door. Sources
|
|||
|
Rood screen at Saint Helen, Gateley Gateley, Norfolk, England After Henry VI's death in 1471, he was widely venerated as a saint and martyr. Though Edward IV, the Yorkist who replaced Henry, tried to quash this growing cult, his brother Richard III encouraged it after his own disputed accession in 1483, hoping it would cast a shadow of illegitimacy on his brother's reign. This patronage was continued by the Tudors for similar reasons. The king's remains were buried at Chertsey Abbey, and soon miracles began to be reported, drawing pilgrims to his grave. Richard III moved his body to St. George's Chapel at Windsor in 1484, and by 1500 a book had been collected of his miracles. The cult continued to grow, with Henry advancing towards canonization, until the Reformation of the 1530s snuffed it out. Images of Henry as a saint and martyr appeared on rood screens in parish churches alongside the saints favored by local popular culture. At St. Helen, Gateley, he stands on the right side of the altar with another monarch-saint, St. Louis of France, as well as St. Augustine and Sir John Schorne. Female saints St. Audrey (Etheldreda), St. Elizabeth, the Virgin, and a local saint, the Mistress of Ridibowne, are painted on the left. As in most of these images, Henry is clothed like a king, bearing an orb and scepter and wearing a crown. This image from the Fitzwilliam manuscript provides another example of this royal iconography. Henry's devotees revered him for his piety and modesty and virtuous example of patience in times of trial. The stories of his miracles often have him rescuing the protagonist from grave illness, immediate danger, or even death. Sources
|
|||
