Bibliography: p. 187-189. - Includes index.

The Renaissance court -- Art and princely "magnificence" / The court artist -- Piety and propaganda: Naples under Alfonso of Aragon -- Arms and letters: Urbino under Federico da Montefeltro -- Local tradition and imported expertise: Milan and Pavia under Ludovico "Il Moro" -- Varieties of pleasure: Este Ferrara -- The art of diplomacy: Mantua and the Gonzaga -- Andrea Mantegna: court painter and painter-courtier -- Isabella d'Este: collecting for pleasure and prestige -- Continuity and adaptation.

"With their love of magnificant display thirst for international recognition, the Italian princely courts played a central part in the dvelopment of Renaissance art and culture. In the kingdom of Naples and the powerful duchy of Milan - as well as the smaller courts of Ferrara, Mantua and Urbino - art was used not only as a manifestation of wealth and prestige but as an expression of religious, ideological and cultural apirations, and even as a tool of everyday government and diplomacy. Piero della Francesca, Francesca, Cosimo Tura, Pisanello, Ercole de' Roberti, Andrrea Mantegna and Leonardo da Vinci were among the great painters who helped realise the multifarious needs of kings, princes and their spouses. Cole considers the role of artists and brings out the distinctive uses to which art was put in the various centres. The social, intellectual and artistic millieu of each court is brought to light, along with the complex personalties of rulers and artists. Cole paints a rich picture of the cultural spendour of the Italian Renaissance courts." -- Inside cover.