"This wide-ranging interdisciplinary collection illuminates the people, theatre, masquing, poetry and patronage of the courts of Anna of Denmark (1603-19) and Henrietta Maria (1625-42). Unearthing the neglected history of the Stuart queen consort, these essays look afresh at the status and self-representation of the elite women of early modern Europe. The contributors investigate the influence of the queen's court on women's cultural expression, and offer new readings of early modern women's poetry and drama, Stuart court theatricals and women's patronage and commissioning. Revitalised through innovative studies of the women of the European courts, these essays write a new chapter in early modern cultural history for scholars and students alike."--BOOK JACKET.