Rites of Reversion: Ceremonial Memory and Community in the Funeral Services for Philip II in the Netherlands (1598)

Abstract

Philip II’s death in September 1598 coincided with the restoration of Habsburg authority in the southern Low Countries after decades of revolt. Local obsequies for the deceased ruler therefore reclaimed ecclesiastical infrastructure and revived urban cohesion. In contrast to previous funerals, the Brussels service did not significantly stage a transfer of power. Instead, by selectively drawing on traces of former ceremonies, particularly Charles V’s 1558 funeral, the ritual overcame the recent upheavals and soothed the anxieties surrounding the cession of sovereignty to the archdukes. Simultaneously, each important urban center also staged its own ceremonial, thereby stressing local privilege.