Lipscomb, S: Henry VIII and the Court Art, Politics and Performance

'... not a single essay falls flat. All contain fresh, compelling research and challenge readers to think again about elements of this subject that we thought we understood. ... Henry VIII and the Court challenges readers to assess more thoroughly the precedents, good and bad, used by contemporaries to understand Henry's rule.' Renaissance Quarterly 'My book of the year was Henry VIII and the Court... The 17 historians involved in the project are all working at the coalface of history, collaboratively changing our perception of the king and his world. This will be the stuff of popular history in the future: read it here first'. Lucy Worsley, The Daily Telegraph: Best books of 2013 'The collection as a whole gives an extremely entertaining, interdisciplinary overview of the wide-ranging debates and issues surrounding the arts, politics and performances at the Henrician court... The volume extends the range of sources and paradigms through which the King and his Court should be considered. No less significant, it also appears to have fully mastered the all-important and oft-forgotten notion, to delight and instruct.' Journal of the Northern Renaissance 'The volume is genuinely interdisciplinary, drawing on literature, art history, architecture and drama to illuminate various aspects of the court ... a rich collection, and one which adds depth and context to our otherwise somewhat over- politicised vision of Henry VIII's court. The plates are carefully selected and beautifully reproduced. The presentation generally is excellent and the publishers, no less than the editors, are to be congratulated upon this admirable collection.' Archiv fur Reformationsgeschichte 'By challenging canonical views of Henry, tapping new sources, and approaching familiar texts from new perspectives, these insightful and readable essays ask us to reevaluate a king we thought we already knew.' Recusant History