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

 
 
57 
musicians seated in a giant pasty, or a magpie seated upon a windmill while people fired arrows 
at it. Also on display was a barrel containing good and bad wine, which people could try at 
their discretion, and a fabulous fountain of lead and glass which flowed with rosewater and in 
the centre of which stood Saint Andrew, the patron saint of Burgundy. Litters bearing the food 
were let down from the roof of the hall by cranes, and the feasting was interrupted by 
numerous interludes during which musicians played, short plays were performed, and 
increasingly elaborate vignettes acted out. The main entertainment of the evening involved a 
fearsome giant, representing a Saracen, and female figure, representing the Church, in a tower 
on the back of an elephant, lamenting her state. The feast culminated with Philip being 
presented with a live pheasant, and he and those other nobles present promising oaths to take 
up the call to crusade.
21
 
 
More similarities to Maximilian’s own rule may be found in these ostentatious displays. 
In the view of that eminent historian Johan Huizinga, the Feast of the Pheasant was no more 
than an out-of-touch, nostalgic revival of a dying medieval tradition. It should be seen as no 
more than an extravagant indulgence in an old form of ritual not to be taken seriously, even by 
those involved; the superficial pomp was simply a way for the aristocracy to play-act and laugh 
at themselves.
22
 Yet the reasons behind Philip the Good’s famous feast are likely far more 
canny and rational. The purpose of this feast was publicity, pure and simple. It was a way for 
Philip to promote the desired crusade to the nobles present and, critically, to the public who 
witnessed it from a viewing gallery. These observers could then spread tales of what they saw 
to others and circulate the much-desired crusader message. The pageantry involved was not 
                                                 
21
 Cartellieri, The Court of Burgundy, pp. 140-50; Miller, Olivier de la Marche and the Court of Burgundy, 
c.1425-1502, pp. 76-78. 
22
 Johan Huizinga, The Waning of the Middle Ages (London: Edward Arnold & Co., 1924), pp. 80-
81. 

---

 
 
58 
just for the amusement of the participants, or a chance to show off Burgundian wealth, but 
was serving a carefully calculated purpose. It was a means of conveying a message, for Philip 
did not have the resources to launch such a campaign on his own.
23
 Thus, as they did with 
many other things, the Valois dukes used their extravagant courtly displays as a tool to serve a 
specific purpose, whether it was political manoeuvring or encouraging unification or 
promoting a crusade. This was a method which, in later years, Maximilian himself would take 
up. 
 
The dukes’ propagandistic efforts and their generations-long development of courtly 
ritual and cultural extravagance culminated under Charles the Bold. For ducal festivities, 
numerous short-term works were commissioned by Charles; entremets continued to enjoy 
popularity, and one could also find fountains which flowed with wine, architecture constructed 
temporarily for certain events, and decorations and costumes which were made to be used only 
once. Yet Charles patronised numerous long-term projects as well. Court artists were 
commissioned to produce paintings and portraits, tapestries were designed, as well as gold and 
silverware objects. Items like clocks, automata, chandeliers, and mirrors were also 
commissioned by Charles for the benefit of the Burgundian dynasty. As duke, he strove to 
foster an image of both artistic and literary patron. The epics and romances which he had 
translated and with which he filled the ducal library were often ones which provided ideal 
chivalric models and inspiration to members of the court. Upon his marriage Maximilian 
inherited the library of the Burgundian dukes, which contained not only histories of the house 
of Valois but chivalric tales as well, like the legends of Arthur, popular mythology, and stories 
of Alexander, Hannibal, and Caesar, as well as books on hunting.
24
 This collection may have 
                                                 
23
 Miller, Olivier de la Marche and the Court of Burgundy, c.1425-1502, pp. 65-70. 
24
 Fichtenau, Der Junge Maximilian (1459-1482), pp. 44-45. 

---

 
 
59 
had an influence on the sorts of works Maximilian was later interested in producing to 
commemorate his own reign – yet another way Burgundy influenced the ruler. Each of these 
elements was part of a careful choreography of power executed by Charles. There was 
deliberate reasoning behind each one. Objects such as paintings and tapestries often 
commemorated Valois ancestors, both real and legendary.
25
 Again, this was a technique which 
Maximilian would later adopt enthusiastically in commissioning his own geneology. 
 
The Burgundian court became an example for other rulers and was either directly 
copied by other European princes or at least influenced them in some way. It was an archetype 
for King Edward IV of England, for one, who requested a treatise from Burgundian chronicler 
Olivier de la Marche on the running of the court. This manuscript, titled État de la maison du duc 
Charles de Bourgogne, details the structure and organisation of the ducal household, as well as its 
ceremonial functions. Essentially, it was a guidebook for a king who wished to raise the profile 
of his court. And Edward IV was not the only one to make use of this treatise.
26
 Significantly, 
Maximilian also possessed a copy, which served as a manual for both him and his son, Philip 
the Fair. In this way, ‘[t]he Burgundian princely court thus became something of a model for 
rituals of the representation of political power and for cultural tastes’.
27
 Critically, the court 
managed to combine both the impression of strong rulership with the distinctions of 
refinement and good taste.  
 
Finally, one further crucial element of Burgundian courtly culture was the Order of the 
Golden Fleece.
28
 Monarchical orders, made up of knights and nobles and dedicated to 
                                                 
25
 Charles the Bold: Splendour of Burgundy, pp. 51-61. 
26
 Miller, Olivier de la Marche and the Court of Burgundy, c.1425-1502, pp. 59-63 
27
 Vanderjagt, ‘The Princely Culture of the Valois Dukes of Burgundy’, p. 64. 
28
 A collection of the heraldry associated with members of the Order has been preserved in the 
lavishly illustrated manuscript in Paris, Bibliothèque National, Ms. Arsenal 479, Le Grand Armorial de la 
Toison d’Or. 

---