Our program begins with a wedding. A very solemn marriage, celebrated with great pomp on June 15, 1328 between Philippa, daughter of the Count of Hainaut and Holland and the very young Edward III, 15 years old, King of England for a few months. Among the many gifts that the spouses offer each other is the magnificent manuscript BN fr.571 which includes the motet Servant regem/Ludowice/Rex regum in honor of Saint Louis, the illustrious common ancestor of Edward, Philippa and Philip VI , King of France for a few weeks.

The historical period concerning our program therefore opens with the exceptionally long reign of this great sovereign, the most prestigious of the English Middle Ages. He will found in 1348, in imitation of King Arthur, with the aim of gathering and unifying under his banner the English nobility, an order of chivalry which he wants similar to that of the Knights of the Round Table: the Order de la Garretière, whose motto "Honi be who thinks badly!"' has remained famous. Within the orders of chivalry, sacred and profane spheres are intimately intertwined: the royal chapel of Windsor is founded as much for the private liturgy of the king as for the solemn ceremonies of the meetings of the Order of the Garter. Edward thus has three royal chapels that can celebrate the liturgies with the greatest magnificence, each being provided with chaplains, clerics, cantors!

The first great manuscript in the history of English polyphonic music determines the end point of our program: the Old Hall manuscript was written around 1410 for the "royal household chapel" of Henry IV, then of Henry V who succeeded him in 1413 and under whose reign the fame of the royal chapels reached its peak.