Description
Book SynopsisExploiting the turbulence and strife of sixteenth-century France, the House of Guise arose from a provincial power base to establish themselves as dominant political players in France and indeed Europe, marrying within royal and princely circles and occupying the most important ecclesiastical and military positions. Propelled by ambitions derived from their position as cadets of a minor sovereign house, they represent a cadre of early modern elites who are difficult to categorise neatly: neither fully sovereign princes nor fully subject nobility. They might have spent most of their time in one state, France, but their interests were always 'trans-national'; contested spaces far from the major centres of monarchical power - from the Ardennes to the Italian peninsula - were frequent theatres of activity for semi-sovereign border families such as the Lorraine-Guise. This nexus of activity, and the interplay between princely status and representation, is the subject of this book. The essa
Trade Review"There is much to learn from these essays about an influential princely dynasty close to the heart of political power across generations and international contexts." - Susan Broomhall,The University of Western Australia
Table of ContentsContents: Introduction: The context of a dream, Jonathan Spangler, Penny Richards and Jessica Munns; The Guise and the two Jerusalems: Joinville's Vie de saint Louis and an early modern family's medievalism, Robert S. Sturges; The Guise 'Italianised'? The role of Italian merchants, intermediaries and experts in ducal consumption in the 16th century, Marjorie Meiss-Even; Political uses of reputation and celebrity in the 17th century: the case of Henri de Lorraine, fifth Duke of Guise, Michele Benaiteau; 'Magnificence reigned': Anthony Van Dyck's portrait of Henri II de Lorraine, Duke of Guise, David A.H.B. Taylor; Dreaming of the crown: political discourses and other sources relating to the Duke of Guise in Naples (1647-48 and 1654), Silvana D'Alessio; Mother knows best: the Dowager Duchess of Guise, a son's ambitions, and the regencies of Marie de Medici and Anne of Austria, Jonathan Spangler; Parthenope's call: the Duke of Guise's return to Naples in 1654, Charles Gregory; Warriors of God: history, heritage and the reputation of the Guise, Penny Richards; Channel crossing: the Guise in British drama, Jessica Munns; Index.
