Imperial Envoys at the English and British Court (1660–1740): Reception Ceremonies and Disputes over Titles

Abstract

In this article the author first analyses the development of the first audiences attended by Imperial envoys at the court of St James’s between 1660 and 1750. It focuses on the types of these audiences, their venues, and in particular on the ceremonial rules and the role of the Master of the Ceremonies. A key focus is on the crucial changes that were introduced by James II in the 1680s when the English king declined to acknowledge the privileged position of the Holy Roman Emperor in the royal hierarchy of Europe and attempted to unify ceremonial rules for the reception of all envoys. Second, this article outlines the periods of long-lasting conflict between English kings and Habsburg emperors regarding the appropriate title that should be given to the English king by the emperor and his Imperial Court Chancellery (Reichskanzlei); the former was given the ‘Serenitas’ title by Vienna but desired instead to be addressed as ‘Majestas’. To analyse both of these phenomena, this article employs a sample of approximately twenty diplomats in service of the Austrian Habsburgs who reached the shores of England during this period, based on the written instructions given to, and subsequent reports written by, these diplomats, as well as reports in the English daily press. Only two of the diplomats sent as ‘envoys’ later gained the higher rank of ‘ambassador’ during their stay in Great Britain, suggesting the Habsburg emperors held their ground in these ceremonial debates. However, this article demonstrates that although successive British and Austrian rulers did find ways to navigate the rules in order to communicate diplomatically, nevertheless, the previously unchallenged Imperial primacy amongst Christian sovereigns was gradually lost.