ABSTRACT
At the waning of the fifteenth century, England received a new monarch—a usurper, a warrior who came to power through the military defeat of the previous head of state. Courtiers, servants, and foreign rulers augmented the king's library with new illuminated manuscripts and printed books fit to match any of those abroad, while simultaneously some of the finest examples of Renaissance painting and sculpture found a home in England's ruling circles. Henry VII's courtly policies, however, were only an early stage in a process of internationalization which progressed to further extremes under his son. The environment of the court at the turn of the century, in which foreign intellectuals, courtiers, and artisans found respected positions and held influence with the king, proved to be crucial in Henry VIII's formation. The story of England's musical interactions with continental Europe has been told from several angles, in a series of studies intended to illuminate links of a historical, social, and intellectual nature.
