In some portraits of Henry VIII there appears another, striking figure鈥攁 gaunt and morose-looking man with a shaved head and, in one case, a monkey on his shoulder. This is William or 鈥淲ill鈥� Somer, the king鈥檚 fool, a celebrated wit who reportedly could raise Henry鈥檚 spirits and spent many hours with him, often alone. Was Somer an 鈥渁rtificial fool,鈥� a cunning comic who could speak freely in front of the king, or a 鈥渘atural fool,鈥� someone with intellectual disabilities, like many other members of the profession? And what role did he play in the tumultuous and violent Tudor era? Fool is the first biography of Somer鈥攁nd perhaps the first of a Renaissance fool.
av福利社 the Author
Peter K. Andersson is senior lecturer in history at 脰rebro University in Sweden. He is the author of Streetlife in Late Victorian London and Silent History.