Ritual, Law, and Faction at the Early Stuart Court: Chapman’s Memorable Maske and the Palatine Wedding

Abstract

The court wedding festivities for the marriage of Frederick, the Elector Palatine, and Princess Elizabeth Stuart in 1613 included the performance of ‘Memorable Masque’ by George Chapman. Chapman’s masque provides a window into the factional ideological conflicts of the early Jacobean court and particularly the contested nature of James’s ‘absolute’ authority in relation to the law. While Chapman’s presentation superficially appeared to support the King’s assertion that royal authority is above the law, the pliability of the masque form allowed for him to endorse a militant foreign policy position at odds with the King’s and even more subtly critique James’s absolutist view of royal authority. More broadly, this performance demonstrates some of the ways court ceremonial and festive occasions could be manipulated for political and ideological purposes.