Elizabeth’s summer progresses were an essential
aspect of the Propaganda which allowed
her to be seen and hosted by her subjects on
many public occasions.
The Kenilworth and the Elvetham pageants are two examples of entertainments held to praise the queen in two different moments of her reign. The Kenilworth one was held in 1575 when Elizabeth visited the Earl of Leicester and was celebrated for her Arthurian ancestry and her imperial ambitions.
Held in 1591, the Elvetham entertainment turned out to be further evidence of Elizabeth’s greatness and divine nature as a Moon goddess. Her host, the unfortunate Earl of Hertford enlarged his house and transformed his garden to welcome the queen who would restore him back to her favours.
This book contains the texts of the Kenilworth and Elvetham entertainments as reported in John Nichols’ The Progresses and Public Processions of Queen Elizabeth I (1823).
The Kenilworth and the Elvetham pageants are two examples of entertainments held to praise the queen in two different moments of her reign. The Kenilworth one was held in 1575 when Elizabeth visited the Earl of Leicester and was celebrated for her Arthurian ancestry and her imperial ambitions.
Held in 1591, the Elvetham entertainment turned out to be further evidence of Elizabeth’s greatness and divine nature as a Moon goddess. Her host, the unfortunate Earl of Hertford enlarged his house and transformed his garden to welcome the queen who would restore him back to her favours.
This book contains the texts of the Kenilworth and Elvetham entertainments as reported in John Nichols’ The Progresses and Public Processions of Queen Elizabeth I (1823).
Biografia dell'autore
Cristina Vallaro is Researcher in English Literature
at the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart,
Milan. She has already published works on
Elizabethan poetry (La simbologia lunare nei
canzonieri elisabettiani, Milan 2004) and on
Shakespeare’s Roman plays (‘Julius Caesar’ e
‘Antony and Cleopatra’: momenti di storia romana
in William Shakespeare, Milan 2010).


