This book offers for the first time a ‘biography’ of the pivotal year, 1613. London, including the Jacobean court and the city, witnessed an exceptional outpouring of cultural experiences and transformative political events. The political and personal dynamic of the royal family changed forever. The sudden death of the eighteen-year-old Prince Henry, heir apparent to the throne, and the marriage of the only royal daughter, Princess Elizabeth to a German prince, disrupted the anticipated line of succession. This book examines the death of Henry and the unparalleled outpouring of grief for him. ... More

This book offers for the first time a ‘biography’ of the pivotal year, 1613. London, including the Jacobean court and the city, witnessed an exceptional outpouring of cultural experiences and transformative political events. The political and personal dynamic of the royal family changed forever. The sudden death of the eighteen-year-old Prince Henry, heir apparent to the throne, and the marriage of the only royal daughter, Princess Elizabeth to a German prince, disrupted the anticipated line of succession. This book examines the death of Henry and the unparalleled outpouring of grief for him. Subsequently, the unprecedented number of plays performed at court from Christmas to February 1613 helped provide an antidote to suffering, leading to Elizabeth’s wedding on 14 February. The year closed with an aristocratic wedding at court, which generated spectacle and drama, offsetting the messy divorce and murder that preceded it.Shakespeare’s plays dominated London’s cultural landscape, but his acting company faced the Globe Theatre’s destruction in June. Other playwrights, writers, and printers in the City produced an extraordinary array and number of books. Shakespeare for the first time purchased property in London in March, the Blackfriars Gatehouse, situating him amidst the city’s vibrant culture. The Duke of Lennox, King James’s cousin and confidant, occupying the Holbein Gatehouse in the palace, embodies court culture. The narrative arc of 1613 oscillates metaphorically between these two gatehouses, linking city and court, as they complement and complete each other.