Ritual and ceremony in the Spanish royal chapel,c.1559–c.1561

Abstract

On the abdication of his father Charles V from the Spanish throne in 1556, Philip II was to inherit probably the most important and prestigious court chapel in Europe. Its history, structure and musical eminence were well established during the time of the Burgundian dukes in the fifteenth century, under whose patronage some of the most prominent musicians and composers found their livelihood; as an institution, it was also partly indebted to traditions and an infrastructure inherited from the Castilian court of Ferdinand and Isabella which was passed on to Charles V following the death of Ferdinand in 1516. When Philip II came to power, the amalgamation of his own court and chapel with that of the Emperor resulted in an organisation of unheard proportions, even though many officers of the Imperial court were to accompany Charles V on his retirement to the monastery in Yuste, in Spain, and others of Philip's own train were to return independently to their homeland on periods of extended leave. This was evidently a time of considerable upheaval, during which membership fluctuated and the structural organisation necessarily underwent a period of some adjustment.