The Drama of Coronation

The coronation was, and perhaps still is, one of the most important ceremonies of a monarch's reign. This book examines the five coronations that took place in England between 1509 and 1559. It considers how the sacred rite and its related ceremonies and pageants responded to monarchical and religious change, and charts how they were interpreted by contemporary observers. Hunt challenges the popular position that has conflated royal ceremony with political propaganda and argues for a deeper understanding of the symbolic complexity of ceremony. At the heart of the study is an investigation into the vexed issues of legitimacy and representation which leads Hunt to identify the emergence of an important and fruitful exchange between ceremony and drama. This exchange will have significant implications for our understanding both of the period's theatre and of the cultural effects of the Protestant Reformation.

Author: Alice Hunt
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Published: 09/25/2008
Pages: 254
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.20lbs
Size: 9.00h x 6.20w x 0.90d
ISBN: 9780521885393

Review Citation(s):
Chronicle of Higher Education 12/12/2008 pg. 24