Female Representation and Violence in the Ceremonial Entries of the Italian Wars

Abstract

Between 1494 and 1559 the French Valois and the Austro-Spanish Habsburgs fought a series of wars in a competitive bid to expand their territory into the Italian Peninsula. 1 The movement of rulers, their armies, and ambassadors across the peninsula created opportunities for ceremonial entries. City-states and their entrants offset the underlying tension of martial influx through these regimented processions, exhibiting a myriad of martial masculinities and strategically utilising performance, attire and decorations to negotiate their political relationships. 2 Cities created an all-encompassing sensory experience using metaphor-laden apparati and performances on the ground level whilst tapestries and flags drew the eye up to windows inhabited by female spectators, all of which guided the procession to key political and religious sites. Although the events and decorations were ephemeral, accounts of entries circulated, sharing iconography and practices. 3 Scholarship concerning ceremonial entries of the Italian Wars has largely focused on their innovative spectacle which influenced the aesthetic of pan-European royal entries. 4 However, unlike the entry of a sovereign to their own state, the entry of foreign royals and mercenaries into Italian city-states presented a higher risk, necessitating more careful political messaging.In this article, I examine female representation, both living and rendered, to uncover the ever-present specter of gendered violence that was not only a true and present danger during entries but also a baked-in cultural reference