McGowan, Margaret M. "Marguerite de Valois, Reine de Navarre (1553-1615): Patroness and Performer."

McGowan, Margaret M. "Marguerite de Valois, Reine de Navarre (1553-1615): Patroness and Performer." Early Music History 34 (2015): 191-206.


Abstract:
This essay studies the role played by Marguerite de Valois in the cultural life of the French court from early childhood until her death in 1615. Trained to perform in public, Marguerite acquired languages and diplomatic skills, and cultivated music and dancing in particular. Her passion for dancing and the energy and mastery she displayed in performance is traced through the testimony of contemporary records (French, Italian and English), through her own recollections, and through a discussion of her patronage of musicians, poets and dancers.