Sunday, January 22, 2006

Question from Sarah - Clothing of a priest at execution

I am costume manager for a local amateur drama group...what would a priest wear at an execution? the period is towards the end of Henry v111 the character the only pictures I can find are of arch bishops/high ranking types

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I have seen several movies about the Tudor Monarchs, (The Virgin Queen and Henry VIII), and they showed the executions of Mary Queen of Scots, Anne Boleyn, and Catherine Howard. The priests in the movies wore traditional clothing similar to the attire worn by monks in movies such as Robin Hood. I do not know if these depictions are historically accurate, but that's the best that I can offer.

Stephanie Cook said...

The thing is, monks would be very likely, in those days to wear the same attire no matter what the event. During that age of Catholicism, it was very important that monks presented a simple and humble lifestyle as a way of displaying their devotion to God and church.

Anonymous said...

I am using images of the young Archbishop Cranmer, without the fur stole, as my model for a priest at an execution at the Tower in Tudor times. Google 'Cranmer' to see his pic. Also rent The Six Wives of Henry VIII, PBS TV series from the 70's or 80's with Keith Mitchell - lots of great costumes to check out. Remember they weren't Catholic later in Henry's reign - and monks were out.