Shakespeare's Afterlife in the Royal Collection: Dynasty, Ideology, and National Culture

This unique collection of essays and images explores a series of objects in the Royal Collection as a means of assessing the interrelated histories of the British royal family and the Shakespearean afterlife across four centuries.Between the beginning of the eighteenth century and the late twentieth, Shakespeare became entrenched as the English national poet.Over the same period, the monarchy sought repeatedly to demonstrate its centrality to British nationhood.By way of close analysis of a selection of objects from the Royal Collection, this volume argues that the royal family and the Shakespearean afterlife were far more closely interwoven than has previously been realized.The chapters map the mutual development over time of the relationship between members of the British royal family and Shakespeare, demonstrating the extent to which each has gained sustained value from association with the other and showing how members of the royal family have individually and collectively construc