Henry made ample use of individual clients during his struggle to end the war of the League, but once capitulation treaties had been signed, the king was anxious to remake his formerly rebellious towns into institutional clients and re-establish a harmonious relationship between the Crown and the towns. He accomplished this task by using the royal entry to take formal possession of select cities and towns. A medieval spectacle, the royal entry developed during the Renaissance as an arena for the dramatization of political ideas and the symbolic expression of the relationship between the monarchy and the towns. French kings used entries to emphasize their roles as heads of state, guarantors of civic liberties, and protectors of the peace. Entries created opportunities for dialogue between ruler and subjects as well. Edward Muir argues that these civic ceremonies re-ordered civic space and time and allowed participants to calculate their effect. Town leaders organized the spectacles and used them to emphasize their own positions and power, and to obtain a confirmation or augmentation of municipal liberties and privileges granted by earlier kings. These welcoming ceremonies encouraged kings to take special interest in their towns and promoted good relations. Royal entries thus became self-serving. They united kings and subjects in an understanding of expectations and created a site for negotiating the meaning of kingship and royalauthority.

Henry IV's royal entries form an interesting chapter in the evolution of Renaissance rituals because they contained a unique aspect not present in the entries of other kings. Entries usually took place soon after a king had ascended the throne. Henry's kingship was disputed, however, so his entries into Catholic League towns were made in the 1590s as part of their submissions.