Renaissance dance

At Court, the formal entertainment would often be followed by many hours of country dances which all present could join in.

The earliest surviving manuscripts that provide detailed dance instructions are from 15th century Italy.

The earliest dance descriptions in England come from the Gresley manuscript, c.1500, found in the Derbyshire Record Office, D77 B0x 38 pp 51–79.

These have been recently published as "Cherwell Thy Wyne (Show your joy): Dances of fifteenth-century England from the Gresley manuscript".

These are the earliest European dances to be well-documented, as we have a reasonable knowledge of the choreographies, steps and music used.

Dance at Herod's Court , an engraving by Israhel van Meckenem , c. 1490
Ambrosius Benson , Elegant couples dancing in a landscape , before 1550
French painting of the volta , from Penshurst Place , Kent, often wrongly assumed to be of Elizabeth I