C
OURT
L
IFE
It was essential that differences in rank were observed, and that everyone abided by the sumptuary laws, which dictated one’s life, from what one could wear and eat to what one could own. At court you were usually served two meals a day, dinner, served mid-morning after Mass, and supper, late in the afternoon. Your rank dictated how many dishes you could be served, and where you could be seated. In the Great Hall there were strict rules of dining etiquette. Each courtier provided his own utensils – a knife and spoon – with courtiers of higher rank also having a linen napkin, which they draped over their left shoulder. Courtiers could not blow their noses at the table, scratch themselves, break wind, spit or put bones back on a plate.
The Tudor diet was almost 80 per cent protein, but they also ate salads, cooked and raw vegetables, custards and fruit. Meals were divided into two courses, with the first offering a selection of boiled meats, and the second offering roasted or baked meats. During formal feasts or celebrations, each course was preceded by the entrance of a ‘subtlety’: artworks made from sugar or marzipan, depicting anything from castles, ships and cathedrals to entire battles or hunting scenes.
There were many religious feast days at court. On these occasions, the outer rooms were set up and feasting would carry on well into the night. But during Lent, the 40 days which preceded Easter, it was a different story. Meat was forbidden, with only fish allowed. We follow Cromwell in Wolf Hall as he enjoys, or perhaps endures, a Lenten supper at the house of his old friend, Antonio Bonvisi:
It will be the usual tense gathering, everyone cross and hungry: for even a rich Italian with an ingenious kitchen cannot find a hundred ways with smoked eel or salt cod.
After the first meal, Henry often liked to ride out into the royal parklands in search of game, and there are many instances in the series of Cromwell waiting for the king to return from a day in the royal parks or accompanying him on a hunt.
Summer: the king is hunting. If he wants him, he has to chase him, and if he is sent for, he goes.
(Wolf Hall)
Despite the luxuries and proximity to the king, and thus to favour, life at court was expensive. An air of success was crucial to maintain, from a courtier’s attire, how much they were willing to lose at the gambling tables, to their retinue and the breed of their horses. The higher you climbed, the more embellished your life became, and for many courtiers, the more debt you accrued. It was also important for young courtiers to be able to demonstrate their prowess: on the tennis court, at the tiltyard and on the hunt. It was Henry VII who revived the cult of chivalry, borrowing from the Burgundian tradition, and was determined to be seen by the rest of Europe as ruling over an opulent, flourishing court. Such themes were at odds with Henry’s thrifty nature, but a reputation for magnificence and wealth was equally important to project throughout the new Tudor reign, and he drew from old English myths and legends for inspiration. The royal residences boasted dancing chambers and halls where musicians played while king and court played chess, dice and cards. Archery, tennis and lawn bowls in the expansive gardens were also popular, and both Tudor kings invested in the royal parks, maintaining them and ensuring they were filled with game. Henry VIII was a keen hawker and jouster, holding elaborate tournaments, which were expensive thematic spectacles.
THE ROYAL PALACES
The Tudors were prolific builders, and their numerous estates, from the Tower of London to Nonsuch Palace, served as Tudor fortresses, royal nurseries, royal menageries and symbols of England’s wealth. They dominated the Tudor landscape, and even today as we walk the halls of what remains we can catch a glimpse of their lives.
T
HE
T
OWER OF
L
ONDON
The Tower of London casts a long shadow over Mantel’s series. The huge stone White Tower or castle in the centre of the precinct was built by William of Normandy as a fortress after his invasion in 1066. It was already over 400 years old by the Tudor reign. It was not designed to be a beautiful ornament for the capital, but rather a symbol of Norman might and power. It became a grand royal palace to which various monarchs added surrounding apartments and a defensive wall with watchtowers, and it was used as a royal armoury, treasury, menagerie, and the home of the Royal Mint and the Crown Jewels of England. From the 15th century onwards its chief role was that of a royal prison although, traditionally, monarchs spent the night in royal lodgings at the Tower prior to their coronation. The Tower would witness countless deaths throughout the centuries, right up until 1941.
N
ONSUCH
P
ALACE
Nonsuch Palace, so called as it was believed no such place could ever exist, was by far the largest of Henry VIII’s building projects. It was commissioned in 1538 to mark the birth of his only son and heir, Edward VI, though he also secretly wanted a palace to rival Francis I’s much admired Château de Chambord in the Loire Valley. The reputedly magnificent Nonsuch Palace was unique in that it was an entirely new project, and was built from the ground up to showcase Henry’s love of lavish Renaissance architecture. While it remained unfinished even at the time of Henry’s death, it was one of the finest buildings of the century, but would unfortunately be dismantled during the reign of Charles II.
H
AMPTON
C
OURT
It was Cardinal Wolsey who in 1515 purchased Hampton Court, transforming it from a country estate to a magnificent palace where he could entertain the king and his court. It was the very symbol of Wolsey’s artistic tastes and of his
