The Tournament and its Role in the Court Culture of Emperor Maximilian I (1459-1519)

 
 
51 
Woman used Mary of Burgundy (1457-1482) and Maximilian I as a positive example of a good, 
healthy marriage:  
Mary the wyfe of Maximilian the emperour / whiche had by her 
father of inheritance all Flanders and Pycatdye / and the people set 
nought by the symple and softe disposition of Maximilian / and 
sewed for all theyr matters vnto Mary his wyfe / yet wolde she neuer 
determyne nothyng without her husbandes aduise / whose will she 
rekened euer for a lawe / though she myght well inough haue ruled 
and ordened all as she lyst / with his good wyll: whiche vsed to suffer 
of his mylde stomacke any thing yet she lyst / vnto his good and 
prudent wyfe / & that in her owne goodes. So Mary by obeynge her 
husbande / and regardyng hym so well / brought hym in to great 
auctorite / and made the people more obedient vnto them both / as 
though their powers were increased and ayded either by other.
8
 
 
In this picture Maximilian is once again (as seen in Chapter 1, Section 1.2a), although subtley, 
portrayed as not quite up to the task of taking on the rulership of the duchy of Burgundy. It is 
to Mary, rather, that the Burgundians look for guidance, and it is only because of her humble 
deference to her husband that he is tacitly allowed to assume authority. By working together, 
however, Maximilian and Mary strengthen each other, and the picture painted of their marriage 
is one of a bond of teamwork and mutual respect. Indeed, Maximilian owed much to Mary, as 
the wealth and land brought by her to their marriage in 1477 informed, in many ways, the ruler 
he became. 
 
The ritual of the Valois Burgundian court ‘was to be the principal legacy of Burgundy 
to early modern Europe’.
9
 And Maximilian certainly wished to uphold, among all the customs, 
the tradition of tournaments, and all the accompanying pageantry involved, during his reign. 
Although these tournaments would go on to become something quite different from what was 
                                                 
8
 Juan Luis Vives, The Education of a Christian Woman (London: 1529), Early English Books 
Online: from a copy in the Folger Shakespeare Library, Washington, DC, pp. 103-04. 
9
 Boulton, The Knights of the Crown, p. 359. 

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52 
seen in the Burgundian court, Maximilian was undoubtedly influenced by his wife’s homeland 
and would continue to manifest this influence throughout his reign. 
 
As a young man, gaining Mary’s hand was an unqualified triumph for Maximilian, for it 
meant that he was to become the next duke of Burgundy, inheriting the vast and culturally rich 
lands which Mary held. The court culture of Burgundy, in particular, was known for its 
lavishness. And a central part of that culture was tournaments. The Englishman John Paston, 
describing the Pas de l’Arbre d’Or (the ‘pas of the golden tree’), a tournament held to celebrate 
the marriage of Margaret of York, sister to King Edward IV of England, to Charles the Bold in 
1468, wrote that ‘as for the Dwkys coort, as of lords, ladys and gentylwomen, knyts, sqwyers, 
and gentylmen, I hert never of non lyek to it, save King Artourys cort.’
10
 A similar impression 
was surely made upon the young Maximilian. 
 
The medieval duchy and the free county of Burgundy – two separate entities – are 
most frequently associated with their Valois rulers of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. 
Yet these notably opulent sovereigns and their sumptuous court culture, famous both now and 
in its own time, were hardly a long-lasting dynasty. In fact, in total there were only four Valois 
dukes of Burgundy: Philip the Bold (1342-1404), John the Fearless (1371-1419), Philip the 
Good (1396-1467), and, finally, Charles the Bold (1433-1477). In just over a century, these four 
rulers helped Burgundy to become one of the most powerful European states, while striving to 
gradually sever their ties to France and become a fully independent power.  
 
The history of Valois-ruled Burgundy begins during the Hundred Years War. In 1356, 
when he was only fourteen years old, a young Philip, fourth son of King John the Good of 
France, earned a reputation for bravery at the Battle of Poitiers when he stood steadfastly 
                                                 
10
 Quoted in Alan Young, Tudor and Jacobean Tournaments (London: George Philip, 1987), p. 22. 

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53 
beside his father in the face of the enemy (it was probably on this occasion that he received the 
title ‘the Bold’). Although Philip was the youngest son of the king, for his valour he was 
granted the duchy of Burgundy. Through marriage Philip became master of Flanders, one of 
the richest and most valuable lands in Europe, as well as the county of Burgundy (distinct from 
from the duchy).
11
 However, as duke of Burgundy, powerful as he was, Philip was still under 
the rule of the French crown. Yet Philip continued to expand his power as a ruler in his own 
right. From its northernmost to its southernmost extremities, Philip’s domain was about 500 
miles; at its widest point, it was about 250 miles. Yet its north-south boundaries were never 
contiguous; over the reigns of the four dukes the gap splitting the two halves ranged from 
thirty to 185 miles. The northern group was made up of the Low Countries, while the southern 
group was concentrated in Burgundy. There were furthermore two Burgundies, the duchy, 
which was in France, and the county, which was in the Holy Roman Empire. The people in 
these principalities spoke a mix of Romance and Germanic languages.
12
 
 
It is the third Valois duke of Burgundy, Philip the Good, who is often considered the 
paradigm of the Burgundian dukes. Handsome, well-dressed, and skilled at popular chivalric 
pursuits like hunting, fencing, dancing, and jousting, Philip the Good was praised by his 
contemporaries and well-liked by his subjects. Additionally, he is perhaps most famous for 
founding the Order of the Golden Fleece. In 1435, Philip signed the Treaty of Arras with King 
Charles VII of France, which established peace between Burgundy and France while also 
essentially recognising Burgundy as an independent state. Philip was now freed from feudal 
obligation to the French king, although the dukes of Burgundy still held no crown for 
                                                 
11
 Richard Vaughan, Valois Burgundy (London: Allen Lane, 1975), pp. 14-18. 
12
 Vaughan, Valois Burgundy, pp. 22-24; D’Arcy Jonathan Dacre Boulton, ‘The Order of the 
Golden Fleece and the Creation of Burgundian National Identity’, in The Ideology of Burgundy:The 
Promotion of National Consciousness, 1364-1565, pp. 25-27. 

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