Dr Oscar Patton

oscar.patton@history.ox.ac.uk

My research to date has focussed on the English Chapel Royal (the institution responsible for the monarch’s spiritual wellbeing and religious services at court) between 1558 and 1625. I am interested in how this ancient institution (and its members) changed the way that English kingship was performed in response to the Protestant Reformation. I am currently working on a book on the subject, which will cover the period 1558 to 1642. 

I am currently a Stipendiary Researcher in History at Jesus College. I am also a Research Fellow at the University of Buckingham and have taught across various Oxford colleges. I completed my DPhil in History at Merton College, Oxford (2021-25), following a Master’s in Early Modern History at Jesus, Oxford (2020-21), and a BA in History at the University of York (2017-20).

I am a historian of society, religion, and politics in the early modern British Isles. I am especially interested in the way that early modern people engaged with ecclesiastical institutions (especially those best known for their elaborate musical or liturgical performance), and the role that these institutions played in post-Reformation political, civic, and cultural life. 

I have explored some of these themes in my work on the Chapel Royal, and am beginning a study of the political, religious, and social influence of the residentiary canons and prebendaries of cathedrals and collegiate churches across England and Wales between c.1558 and c.1642.

Twitter: @OscarPatton