The Peer, the Plantsman, and the Picture-Maker: The English Embassy to the Court of Christian IV of Denmark, 1603

Abstract

This article examines Roger, Earl of Rutland’s embassy to the Danish court in 1603, the first embassy to be sent from England following the succession of James VI and I to the throne of England. This embassy, sent to invest Christian IV as a knight of the Garter and to attend the baptism of his heir, is seen in the context of fevered diplomatic activity in the summer of 1603, focused on the new Anglo-Scottish court. It also shows how, through its composition, it demonstrated the new King’s favour towards former followers of the late, rebellious Earl of Essex, and how their notoriety would have aroused Christian IV of Denmark’s interest and coloured his view of the English nobles over whom his brother-in-law now reigned. It also illuminates the presence of scholars and artists within such embassies, which facilitated cultural interchange between courts: accompanying Rutland were the botanist, Lobelius, and the budding architect, Inigo Jones.