the loans emphasised the role that the marriage, and Margaret herself, would play in seeking peace with France. This was a theme that continued throughout the preparations for her wedding. She arrived in England on 9 April 1445 and travelled to London accompanied by various lords and courtiers. She reached London on 28 May, where she was met by the mayor and aldermen of the city. The predicted turnout for her arrival and procession was so large that on 8 May, an inspection of roofs and balconies was ordered due to the expectation that spectators would use them as vantage points for her progress. Her ceremonial progress through the city lasted two days, the intervening night spent, by custom, in the Tower of London. It was accompanied by eight theatrical pageants. Five of these pageants concerned the peace with France, casting Margaret as a symbol of, or the agent of, peace. Three spoke of her spiritual role as a redeemer and intercessor. It is uncertain whether these pageants represented a propaganda effort on the part of the Crown or reflected popular sentiment. On 23 April 1445, Margaret married King Henry VI of England at Titchfield Abbey in Hampshire. She was fifteen, and he was twenty-three. She was then crowned Queen of England on 30 May 1445 at Westminster Abbey by John Stafford, Archbishop of Canterbury, at the age of fifteen. Those that anticipated the future return of English claims to French territory believed that she already understood her duty to protect the interests of the Crown fervently. The wedding and her transport were very expensive, estimated by some historians at more than £5000. Shortly after her coronation, René of Anjou entered negotiations with the English crown in an attempt to barter a lifetime's alliance and a twenty-year truce in exchange for the cession of the English-held territory of Maine to Anjou and Henry's agreement to abandon his claim to Anjou. Ultimately, the agreement ended without an alliance with Anjou and with the loss of Maine. Rumours that the concession of Maine was part of Margaret's marriage settlement, though false, circulated, and were repeated by chroniclers. Margaret, alongside Henry, corresponded closely with Charles VII regarding the agreement, attempting to act as a mediator. The loss of Maine, regarded as a betrayal, was deeply unpopular with the English public, who were already inclined to mistrust Margaret due to her French origins. Blame