A Noble Residence for a Female Regent: Margaret of Austria and the 'Court of Savoy' in Mechelen
Year: 2018
Type: book-chapter
Abstract: This chapter investigates the principal residence, the 'Court of Savoy', of Archduchess Margaret of Austria, governor-general and regent of the Burgundian-Habsburgian Netherlands. It examines the ways in which Margaret of Austria's social rank and gender had a particular impact on the edifice itself or on the interior decoration of her residence. Margaret of Austria is the first of a series of female regents who resided and ruled in the economically important part of the Holy Roman Empire. The chapter looks closely at the architectural structure of the so-called 'Court of Savoy' and the built environment surrounding the residence. It analyses how Margaret of Austria organized and interpreted these spaces by carefully furnishing her rooms with a large variety of objects and artefacts. The chapter argues that her identity as a female regent is clearly reflected in the way in which she decorated her residence.
Source: Routledge eBooks
Author: Dagmar Eichberger
Language: English
Subfield: Visual Arts and Performing Arts
Field: Arts and Humanities
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2596622786