The Westminster Tournament Challenge
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The Westminster Tournament Challenge was the invitation to the 1511 Westminster Tournament, the
joust Jousting is a medieval and renaissance martial game or hastilude between two combatants either on horse or on foot. The joust became an iconic characteristic of the knight in Romantic medievalism. The term is derived from Old French , ultim ...
held on 12 and 13 February 1511 in honour of the birth a son Prince Henry to
Catherine of Aragon Catherine of Aragon (also spelt as Katherine, historical Spanish: , now: ; 16 December 1485 – 7 January 1536) was List of English royal consorts, Queen of England as the Wives of Henry VIII, first wife of King Henry VIII from their marr ...
and
Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is known for his Wives of Henry VIII, six marriages and his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. ...
on New Year's Day. Written in the form of an allegory, The Challenge begins by introducing the four challengers who have come from the realm of ''Cuere Noble'' to ‘accomplish certain feates of Armes.’ in honour of the ‘byrthe of a yong prynce'. Each challenger is given an allegorical name: Sir William Courtenay as ''Bone voloyr'', Sir Edward Neville as ''Joyous panser'', Sir Thomas Knyvet as ''Vailliaunt desyre'', and
Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is known for his Wives of Henry VIII, six marriages and his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. ...
as ''Cuere loyall''. This is followed by a description of the tournament's allegorical theme along with the rules and regulations to which the challengers and answerers will adhere. It concludes with the signatures of those who took part over the two days of the joust. The Challenge, was commissioned by
Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is known for his Wives of Henry VIII, six marriages and his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. ...
and produced by the workshop of
Thomas Wriothesley Sir Thomas Wriothesley ( ; died 24 November 1534) was a long serving officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. He was the son of Garter King of Arms, John Writhe, and he succeeded his father in this office. Personal life Wriothesley ...
. It is on a single piece of parchment, measuring 460 mm x 354 mm, held in the manuscript collection of the
British Library The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom. Based in London, it is one of the largest libraries in the world, with an estimated collection of between 170 and 200 million items from multiple countries. As a legal deposit li ...
(Cart. Harl. Antiq. 83 H 1). It is written in the
chancery hand The term "chancery hand" can refer to either of two distinct styles of historical handwriting. A chancery hand was at first a form of handwriting for business transactions that developed in the Lateran chancery (the ) of the 13th century, the ...
style; Sydney Anglo has produced a complete transcription of The Challenge's text
Edward Hall Edward Hall ( – ) was an English lawyer and historian, best known for his #Chronicle, ''The Union of the Two Noble and Illustre Families of Lancastre and Yorke''—commonly known as ''Hall's Chronicle''—first published in 1548. He was ...
's ''Chronicle'' mentions the challenge as a "goodly table" displayed at the tournament on an artificial tree. Henry Ellis first published the text in 1827.


Signatures

The manuscript appears to have been displayed at the tournament and signed on two days. In the original spelling, for the first day: Henry R; Rychard de Gray;
Thomas Cheyney Sir Thomas Cheney (or Cheyne) ( – 16 December 1558) of the Blackfriars, City of London and Shurland, Isle of Sheppey, Kent, was an English administrator and diplomat, Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports in South East England, south-east Engla ...
; William Par; Robert Morton; Richard Blunt; Thomas Tyrell; Sir Rowland; Cristoffer Wyloughby (son of Christopher Willoughby, 10th Baron Willoughby de Eresby). For the second day: Thomas Howard; Charles Brandon; Henry Stafford, erll of Whyllsyre; Lord Marquis; John Grey; Sir Thomas Boleyn;
Henry Guildford Sir Henry Guildford (1489–1532) was an English courtier of the reign of King Henry VIII, master of the horse Master of the Horse is an official position in several European nations. It was more common when most countries in Europe were ...
; John Melton; Gryffyth Don; Edmund Howard; Leonard Graey; Ric. Tempest; Thomas Lucy. Fabrics and costume featured the royal initials, "H" and "K". The costumes of some of these participants were described in Hall's ''Chronicle''. The Marquess of Dorset and Sir Thomas Boleyn wore emblems of pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela. The Earl of Wiltshire wore cloth of silver and brought a tree of pomegranates, an emblem of Catherine of Aragon.


Artificial forest

The setting of a
masque The masque was a form of festive courtly entertainment that flourished in 16th- and early 17th-century Europe, though it was developed earlier in Italy, in forms including the intermedio (a public version of the masque was the pageant). A mas ...
at the tournament banquet was ''La Forrest Salvigne''. The King and his companions in disguise, six men and six ladies made their entry into
Westminster Hall Westminster Hall is a medieval great hall which is part of the Palace of Westminster in London, England. It was erected in 1097 for William II (William Rufus), at which point it was the largest hall in Europe. The building has had various functio ...
in a pageant car (previously concealed behind tapestry) drawn by wildmen decorated as an artificial forest. The women wore elaborate heedresses and white and green satin costumes embroidered with the letters "H.K", and the men were dressed in purple satin liberally embroidered with gold and spangles and their tournament ''alias'' names. The forest was "planted" with hawthorns, oaks, hazels, maple, birch, and fern, and strewn with hand-made acorns and hazelnuts. There were modelled deer and rabbits, and a golden castle inhabited by a waving maiden. The masquers descended from the car and danced. Some details were recorded in an account book made by Richard Gibson, a yeoman of the revels. It was intended that Henry and the masked dancers would exit in the pageant car at the end of the dance, but was stripped of its decoration by members of the audience. Later, only the bare timber could be salvaged for re-use.''Hall's Chronicle'' (London, 1809), pp. 518–519
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:The Westminster Tournament Challenge City of Westminster 1511 in England Harleian Collection