Learning to be a Tudor

Melvin Tucker’s essay on life at the court of Henry VII (r. 1485-1509), written more than 40 years ago, opens with a weary lament. He notes how the court of the founder of the Tudor dynasty is invariably seen as medieval, drab and miserly when set against the Renaissance sunshine of his son, Henry VIII (r. 1509-47). Writing at a time when Henry VII’s court and its culture was – with a handful of honourable exceptions – dealt with in a perfunctory way by historians, if not ignored altogether, Tucker sets out to offer a wide-ranging corrective.