The Power of Gifts: Gift Exchange in Early Modern England

273 Pages·2015·13.96 MB·English

by  Felicity Heal

THE POWER OF GIFTS

The Power of Gifts
Gift-Exchange in Early Modern England
FELICITY HEAL
1
1
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Acknowledgements
Half a lifetime ago, or so it seems, I finished a book on hospitality in early mod-
ern England. In the late stages of research and writing for that volume it became
increasingly clear that hospitality was only a limited aspect of a broader theme in
social and political relations—the role of the gift. Anthropologists, who provided
much of the theoretical stimulus for my work, certainly regarded the two as insepa-
rable, and the gift as central to understanding pre-modern societies. And so it
seemed appropriate to move forward from hospitality to study gift-exchange, after
various other research obligations had been discharged. In the long time before
I was able to begin serious work on the subject, the historiography of the gift
expanded rapidly. Most relevant for my period was Natalie Zemon Davis’s The
Gift in Sixteenth-Century France, which has already acquired the status of a clas-
sic text. In the last ten years, with many interruptions, I have kept my vow, and
have researched gift-exchange and power in English society during the sixteenth
and seventeenth centuries. It has been an intriguing quest: one which has thrown
light on socio-political behaviour, and on the use of benefits and reciprocity in the
exercise of royal power.
Retirement from the demands of an academic post has finally enabled me to
bring the project to fruition. I owe many debts for academic help, debate, and
encouragement along the way, not least to the history editors of Oxford University
Press in their patient wait for the book’s conclusion. Cathryn Steele as current edi-
tor, Angela Anstey-Holroyd, Elizabeth Stone and Deepthi Vasudevan have all been
very helpful during its final production. Aspects of my work have been presented
at numerous seminars over the years, and I am particularly grateful to discussants
in London, Oxford, and Durham. In recent times the session at the major Henry
VIII conference at Hampton Court in 2009, and the colloquium of the Society of
Court Studies at Knole in 2012, offered particular stimulus.
Ilana Ben-Amos has been an important influence on the work, both in
personal contact and through her own writing on the culture of gifts. Tracey
Sowerby has been generous in giving time for discussions, which have focused
my thoughts about diplomatic giving, and in allowing me access to her article
on art and diplomacy ahead of its publication. Chris Woolgar offered valuable
guidance on late medieval households, and I was also indebted to the commenta-
tors on my Past and Present article, who sharpened my thinking on food as gift.
The anonymous OUP reader of the book MS. has also provided me with helpful
suggestions.
The editors of the John Nichols’s Progresses of Elizabeth project generously allowed
me to see the work in proof, and Victoria Wisson sent me her Durham MA on
Henry VIII and gifts. I am grateful for references and comments to Gemma Allen,
Ian Archer, James Carley, Steven Gunn, Barbara Hanawalt, Andrew Hope, Nick
Mayhew, Guy Rowlands, Joan Thirsk, and Susan Whyman.
vi Acknowledgements
It is invidious to single out libraries and archives for acknowledgement when
so many have given support. However, I should express particular gratitude to
the Huntington Library, San Marino, and the Folger Shakespeare Library in
Washington, DC. The librarian of Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford, went far beyond
duty in providing resources, including allowing me to retain Nichols’s Progresses,
Processions and Magnificent Festivities of King James I for an inordinate length of
time. I am grateful to the archivists of Alnwick Castle, Chatsworth House, and
Longleat House for access to manuscripts. Generous financial support for the cost
of illustrations has been provided by the Scouloudi Foundation in association with
the Institute of Historical Research.
Encouragement both intellectual and personal has been provided by Patricia
Clavin, Christopher Haigh, Bridget Heal, Paulina Kewes, Alison Wall, and Jenny
Wormald. My greatest debt as ever is to Clive Holmes, constant companion in
the struggles to make sense of difficult evidence, to clarify argument, and to
enjoy the challenge of historical research even when other demands threatened
to derail the study. He read much of the manuscript and offered incisive sugges-
tions, provided some valuable references, helped with the pursuit of elusive foot-
notes, and finally made a brilliant suggestion for the cover of the book. I must,
following Seneca, return all possible thanks for so many benefits bestowed.
Felicity Heal
February, 2014
Contents
Illustrations ix
Abbreviations xi
I. Society and Its Gifts
1. What Is a Gift? 3
2. Gifts Small and Great 31
3. Occasions and Seasons 60
II. The Politics of Giving
4. The Politics of Gift-Exchange under the Tudors 87
5. The Early Stuarts and Courtly Gifting 121
6. Sovereign Gifts: The Crown and Diplomatic Exchange 149
7. Bribes and Benefits 180
8. Conclusion 207
Bibliography 219
Index 243

Illustrations
2.1. Esther Inglis Frontispiece of her transcription of the Psalms of David 47
3.1. New Year’s Gift Gloves 82
4.1. Henry VIII Gives the Great Bible. Frontispiece 90
4.2. Charles II Touches for the King’s Evil. Frontispiece, John Browne,
Adenochoiradelogia (1684) 91
4.3. Hans Holbein. Drawing of a Salt for Anthony Denny’s New Year’s Gift to
Henry VIII 98
4.4. Sir John Harington. Drawing of his Lantern Gift to James VI 114
4.5. Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn Send a Token to Wolsey 117
5.1. The Coventry Cup, 1617. John Nichols, Progresses, Processions and Magnificent
Festivities of King James the First 124
5.2. Lord Mayor of London Presents a Gift to Marie de Medici. La Serre, Histoire
de l’Entree de la Reyne Mere (1639) 130
6.1. Peter Paul Rubens, Minerva Protects Pax from Mars 161
C.1. The Stamford Punch Bowl 213