Glory and Honour: The Renaissance in Scotland

by Andrea Thomas

Taking on the preeminent cultural and intellectual movement of 15th- and 16th-century European Renaissance, this work discusses the Scottish version of renaissance culture as a hybrid, with multiple antecedents, adapted to suit the needs of Scottish patrons. Arguing that the Stewart monarchs and Scottish aristocracy sought to fully participate in the European mainstream and saw their cultural patronage as a powerful way to facilitate that aim, this history examines the buildings, books, and artifacts of the period to tell the story of a vibrant and cosmopolitan society that was innovative and confident as well assimilative and inspirational.

256 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 2012

Reviews

[Graeme · Rating 4 out of 5]

Andrea Thomas refutes the view that Europe's Renaissance had little impact on Scotland, citing evidence from architecture, fine art, arms, music, letters and pageantry to show that the Scotland of the 15th and 16th Centuries was very outward-looking and open to influences from the Low Countries, France, England, Germany, Scandinavia and Italy, and fully engaged with the cultural and intellectual currents of the time.

More might have been made of the intellectual and political significance of Sir David Lindsay's great Renaissance play, 'Ane Satyre of the Thrie Estaitis', in the context of the unfolding Reformation.