medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
At the beginning of Henry VIII's sixth year the king, already
famous for love of fancy dress and colorful occasions, held a
tilt with his good friend and future brother-in-law Charles
Brandon. Hall's Chronicle (1550) describes it thus:
"IN the moneth of Maye [1514] the kyng and the newe Duke of
Suffolke wer defenders at the Tilt against al commers the kynge
was in a scopelary mantel* and hat of clothe of siluer & like a
whit hermite**, and the duke appareled like a black hermite al
of black veluet, both their berdes*** wer of Damaske siluer, &
whe they had ridden about the Tilt & shewed them
sel[f]es to the quene, then they threw of[f] their apparel &
sent it to the ladies for a larges, then was the king in black,
and the Duke in whit..." (Henry VIII chapter, folio 46v;
facsimile online at
http://dewey.library.upenn.edu/sceti/printedbooksNew/index.cfm?T
extID=halle&PagePosition=876)
*A scapulary mantle covers the shoulders, though mantles more
typically are short and sleeveless. The king in white quickly
becomes a black knight, the duke in black transforms into a
white knight. Interesting symbolism here, and it must have been
very dramatic.
**The 1809 Ellis edition (p.568 has "whyte armite...black
armite."
***A bard was a covering in armor or ornamental cloth for a
horse's breast and flanks.
Would anyone care to comment or speculate on what religious garb
the royal couturiers based their designs? Did early Christian
recluses have any kind of traditional cloak or habit in black
and white?
Or, specifically for the king in white mantle, were the
costumers perhaps thinking of the habits of the Eremites
(Hermits) of St. Augustine, a branchof the Augustinian Friars?
If so, that habit was most likely black, not white, if the
Eremites matched the color of England's Austin or Black Canons.
Any views--black, white, or gray?
Al Magary
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