Did rulers ever visit other countries before the 19th century?

by pieman3141

I was thinking about the question of rulers visiting other countries during pre-modern times - something that occasionally happens in fiction - but I can't seem to recall a single instance of it ever happening. No king or queen of England had ever travelled outside their country while they were on the throne, it seems. No king of France ever did so either - nor pope, nor emperor of China or shogun of Japan. Yes, I'm aware that travel was difficult and perilous, and yes, rebellions could happen, so if rulers ever travelled outside of one's own country, it must have been either rare or there must have been a very good reason to do so. However, to not travel at all? Seems that this was the case.

In fact, I think the only exception to this seeming lack of travel would be if the ruler considered wherever they were travelling to as already part of their country, or if they were on military campaign and had brought troops with them. Aside from these exceptions, did rulers travel outside of their country?

y_sengaku

only exception to this seeming lack of travel would be if the ruler considered wherever they were travelling to as already part of their country, or if they were on military campaign and had brought troops with them.

OK, so must we exclude the ruler's crusade like Emperor Frederick I of HRE/ Germany [as well as exile] here?

Aside from the crusade [to the Holy Land], a few medieval kings of Denmark traveled out of their realm(s) not as a part of their military expedition:

  • King Cnut (Knud) the Great of Denmark and England went to Rome and attended the coronation of Emperor Conrad II of HRE in 1027 (and further, negotiated the emperor and some other rulers like the king of Burgundy there). His letter to the English people relating the negotiations is extant. It is sometimes suggested that he might followed the examples of his predecessor rulers in England, a few kings of Wessex who also conducted the pilgrimage to Rome, such as King Ine (d. 726) or King Æthelwulf, father of King Alfred the Great (he also accompanied with his father on their way to Rome, though before his ascension to the throne).
  • King Erik Ejegod of Denmark departed for the pilgrimage to the (recently conquered) Holy Land, but died on his way in Cyprus in 1103 (His wife, Queen Bodil and some of her retinue kept on the pilgrimage and arrived in the Holy Land). If he also got to the Holy Land alive, he would have been the first "king" in Latin West that traveled to the Holy Land since Pope Urban II called for the crusade in 1095. Erik had also already been in Italy (Bali) at least once in 1097 during his reign to negotiate the establishment of the archbishop in his kingdom with Pope Urban II.
  • In Later Middle Ages, King Christian I of Denmark (r. 1448-81) also went out of his kingdom in 1474 for the pilgrimage to Rome, with a few diplomatic negotiations with Pope and other rulers. This fresco in Malpaga Castle, near Bergamo, Italy depicts his visit in the castle.

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It is also worth remaking that:

  • Itinerant kingship (the king governed on constant move move without settling in the single capital) was rather commonplace among the European rulers especially in the High Middle Ages prior to about 1200.
  • In such a case, especially if the dominions of the ruler [of his personal union] was geographically dispersed, their itinerary must almost inevitably involved with a temporary "foreign" travel on their way from one dominion to another. The ruler's spouse (queen) also conducted this kind of journey sometimes together with her spouse, but sometimes separately. Emperor Charles V (d. 1558) 's travel across his dominions and sporadic visit in "foreign lands" during his itinerary would perhaps be the best example.

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(Added): I forgot to mention that (technically not a king, though), a few Russian princes (dukes) like Alexsandr Nevsky (d. 1263) and his father Yaroslav repeatedly took a visit in the court of their overlord(s), that of Saray [the capital of the Golden Horde] or of Karakorum, the early capital of Mongol Empire in Mongolia.

Another very famous example of the ruler's travel out of their realm from Eastern Europe is Emperor Manuel II's visit in different countries in Western Europe from 1400 to 1403 (including France and England) to ask help for besieged Constantinople. This blog entry by Dr. Caitlin Green introduces the passages of two contemporary English chronicles relating Manuel's visit in London, together with the illustration.

References (?):

  • Parker, Geoffrey. Emperor: A New Life of Charles V. New Haven: Yale UP, 2019.
  • Rohr, Zita. "On the Road Again: The Semi-Nomadic Career of Yolande of Aragon (1400-1439)." In: Travels and Mobilities in the Middle Ages: From the Atlantic to the Black Sea, ed. Marianne O'Doherty & Felicitas Schmieder, pp. 215-44. Turnhout: Brepols, 2015.