Disguise, in romance literature, is a paradoxical motif: a character's behavior whilst in disguise often reveals more about his or her true nature than the behavior he exhibits openly. Kings in medieval romances are in a unique position because the strict pervasive ideology surrounding their political role shapes their public personas and actions. To be a good king is to place the interests of the realm ahead of one's own desires. Thus it is through depicting kings in non-kingly disguise that authors are able to highlight their individual personalities and private desires – and the problems that can arise when a king's public and private identities are discordant (though, of course, kings can and do adopt disguises for other reasons, such as personal safety). Moreover, an effective king must be shrewd and powerful, able to “prevent sedition amongst his magnates” as well as among “royal officials whose interests were pitted against the interests of the great landholders.” It was imperative to the safety and well-being of the realm that a king be impervious to flattery and not be duped by false friends. He needed to be able to see beyond the metaphorical masks that self-serving counselors, subjects, and seeming allies could present to him.

However, while the ideology of kingship provided a model of ethical behavior for English kings that, in theory, should result in a peaceful and politically stable realm, in practice their subjects frequently found themselves faced with absent, incompetent, unpopular, or self- serving leaders. Concerns about the king's public and private behavior, his perspicacity, and his whereabouts were at stake for the people commissioning, writing, and consuming romances. Disguise narratives – both of the king incognito and of kings duped by disguised individuals – grappled with these concerns.

The fifteenth century was a time of great political upheaval in England. The reign of Henry VI provoked anxieties that the king was heavily influenced by shrewd, dominating magnates who induced violent power struggles within his court. Moreover, the mental health issues and general incompetency of Henry VI and the late fourteenthcentury tyrannical grip of Richard II raised questions about what authority a bad king should wield and whether or not deposition was, in extreme circumstances, a moral action.