# Field of the Cloth of Gold (1520)

URL: https://history-france.com/timeline/1520-field-of-the-cloth-of-gold
Location: Near Calais

Francis I and Henry VIII staged a spectacular meeting intended to display wealth and friendship. Within the broader Renaissance & Wars of Religion period, Renaissance monarchy brought Italian wars, humanist culture and overseas exploration. The Reformation then fractured the kingdom, producing decades of civil war between Catholic and Protestant factions. At this point in the timeline, the relevant governing authority is Francis I (King of France). Field of the Cloth of Gold mattered because it reshaped France’s external relationships, territory or place in wider international systems. The event is positioned here so visitors can read it alongside changes in government, warfare, society, religion, culture and France’s wider international setting.

## Why it matters
Field of the Cloth of Gold mattered because it reshaped France’s external relationships, territory or place in wider international systems.

Ruler at the time: [Francis I](https://history-france.com/rulers/francis-i)

## Sources
- [Wikipedia topic lookup — Field of the Cloth of Gold](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Search?search=Field+of+the+Cloth+of+Gold&go=Go)
- [Encyclopaedia Britannica topic lookup — Field of the Cloth of Gold](https://www.britannica.com/search?query=Field+of+the+Cloth+of+Gold)
- [Wikipedia — Timeline of French history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_French_history)