Marzipan Moon
Week 21 of WolfCrawl
On the table week 21
International News
This house always smells of apples
It's the time around Christmas and New Year, so we are having raisins, almonds, nutmegs, mace, cloves, liquorice, figs and ginger. Warming, fragrant ingredients to keep us warm and cozy. And on the twelfth night the last Marzipan moon is eaten up. Winter Landscape by Lucas I. van Valckenborch, 1586
But as is often the case at this time of year, it's not as idyllic as you might have imagined. Latley, the King prefers to dine alone. If not, Cromwell must be happy on his table for the lowborn if no one spits in his diner. And rumor has it that he poisoned Catherine with almonds.
No wonder he responds to Vaughan's remark about his household 'One might as well eat supper in a field': ‘You are in a field.’
My favorite culinary quote so far in ‘Bring Up The Bodies’
‘Said dragon is going to waggle waggle to the Queen´s apartment to beg for sweetmeats.’ I imagine it so figuratively.
International News
Naples
‘The Emperor is at Naples.’ After his victory in Tunis, Emperor Charles V travels to Rome via Naples, where he visits the Charterhouse San Lorenzo di Padula. Charles V. announcing the capture of Tunis to the Pope, unkown artist, 16th century
Constantinople
‘Barbarossa is in Constantinople.’ Here we are talking about Khair ad-Din Barbarossa, whom Emperor Charles V has just expelled from Tunis. Contrary to expectations, he has not sailed to Constantinople to his ally Suleiman, the Magnificent, Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, but is heading west to Menorca to continue to annoy Charles V.
Khair ad-Din Barbarossa by unkknown artist, around 1580
Milan
‘And now he has enough to do with Milan.’ (referring to Emperor Charles V.) On October 24, 1535, the Duke of Milan Francesco II Sforza dies childless. This will be the next conflict between the French king Francis I and Emperor Charles V, whose relations had already reached an all-time low after Francis I had concluded an alliance with the Ottoman Empire. Francesco Sforza´s widow was the thirteen-year old Christina of Denmark. After Jane Seymour's death, Christina is considered a possible marriage candidate for Henry and Holbein paints this portrait of Christina for Henry. Christina of Denmark, Duchess of Milan by Hans Holbein, 1538
Rom
‘Farnese as wolf.’ Alessandro Farnese/Pope Paul III, a WolfCrawler? This cannot be confirmed on the basis of these paintings by two of the very greatest artists of the era. Alessandro Farnese is not one of us. Alessandro Farnese as Cardinal by Raffael, 1509 and as Pope Paul III. by Titian, 1543
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