Queens consort, gender and diplomacy : Catherine of Aragon, Claude of France and the Field of Cloth of Gold

Journal article


Fisher, Sally. (2023). Queens consort, gender and diplomacy : Catherine of Aragon, Claude of France and the Field of Cloth of Gold. Gender and History. 35(2), pp. 387-407. https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-0424.12610
AuthorsFisher, Sally
Abstract

In 1520, two queens consort, Catherine of Aragon and Claude of France, attended the event now known as the Field of Cloth of Gold. This article analyses representations of their involvement across three sources; contemporary diplomatic correspondence and two later sources, Edward Hall's Chronicle (1548 and 1550) and the Hampton Court Palace painting of the Field (c. 1545). It examines how the producers of these sources shaped the function of the consort according to their own motivations, genre and the context of their own time. It argues that each source acknowledges the consorts as important to the event's success, but that while contemporary letters represent Catherine and Claude as individuals, the later sources exhibit shifting narratives to focus on the trope of ideal queenship. A similar shift was not apparent for kingship. This comparison of contemporary and later depictions of the consorts reveals a gendered reshaping of their role at the Field across time according to the needs of the creators which, in turn, sheds light on understandings of queenship and diplomatic engagement in early modern England.

Year2023
JournalGender and History
Journal citation35 (2), pp. 387-407
PublisherJohn Wiley & Sons Ltd
ISSN0953-5233
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-0424.12610
Scopus EID2-s2.0-85130548430
Open accessPublished as ‘gold’ (paid) open access
Page range387-407
FunderAustralian Research Council (ARC)
Publisher's version
License
File Access Level
Open
Output statusPublished
Publication dates
Online18 May 2022
Publication process dates
Accepted02 Apr 2022
Deposited11 Jul 2023
ARC Funded ResearchThis output has been funded, wholly or partially, under the Australian Research Council Act 2001
Grant IDDP180102412
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https://acuresearchbank.acu.edu.au/item/8z44z/queens-consort-gender-and-diplomacy-catherine-of-aragon-claude-of-france-and-the-field-of-cloth-of-gold

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