Exploring the World of Tudor and Stuart England

24 September 2015

Exploring the World of Tudor and Stuart England

University of Waikato students will have the opportunity to delve a little deeper into the patronage and politics that defined 16th and 17th century England, through a new course being offered this November.

Taught by Dr Jemma Field from the University of Auckland, ‘HIST280: Art, History and Culture: The World of Tudor and Stuart England, 1500-1649’ will cover the reigns of successive Tudor and Stuart monarchs from Henry VIII through to Charles I.

“This paper presents an in-depth exploration of historical material culture in England during the 16th and 17th centuries. It explores a period dominated by issues of dynastic legitimacy, colonialism, and major power struggles as the monarchy sought to define its supreme position in relation to the Church, and to parliament,” says Dr Field.

Dr Field gained her PhD in Art History at the University of Auckland with a thesis on Anna of Denmark’s (1574-1619) importance as a cultural agent and political figure in the Jacobean court (1603-1619).

She has lectured and tutored at the universities of Auckland and Sydney and her research interests centre on early modern court culture, principally the politics of patronage and display in Tudor and Stuart England.

“A central aim of this new course will be to understand the role that art, architecture and material goods played in the communication of magnificence and the legitimisation of political power,” she says.

The course is being offered by the Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences as part of the University of Waikato’s Summer School T Semester which runs from Monday 9 November to Friday 18 December.

ENDS

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