Henry VIII’s Fool, Will Somer

Not Just the Tudors

History Hit

History

4.8 • 3K Ratings

🗓️ 18 September 2023

⏱️ 50 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In some portraits of Henry VIII there appears another, striking figure. This is Will Somer, the king’s fool, a celebrated wit who could raise Henry’s spirits and spent many hours alone with him. But was Somer an “artificial fool” - a comedian who spoke truth to power - or a “natural fool,” someone with intellectual disabilities?

In this episode of Not Just the Tudors, Professor Suzannah Lipscomb talks to Swedish historian Peter K. Andersson, whose new biography of Somer - Fool: In Search of Henry VIII’s Closest Man - reveals a little-known world where comedy could be something cruel and unpleasant.

This episode was produced by Rob Weinberg.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	If you're a fan of this podcast, I've got some exciting news for you.
0:03.5	We're publishing a book, an actual book.
0:06.2	Have you ever wondered who the third man on the moon was?
0:10.2	Why a pigeon is a hero of the American army, and whether Napoleon was actually as small
0:16.3	as people say he was?
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0:20.8	It's available to pre-order now and will be published on the 28th of September, pre-order
0:25.8	from your favourite bookshop, or visit historyhit.com slash book.
0:37.2	At Hampton Court Palace, there is a beautiful, though rather fictionalised painting of Henry
0:42.4	Dath and his family dating from around 1545.
0:46.4	The king is shown in Whitehall Palace with his now long dead wife, Jane Seymour, his
0:51.6	son Edward and his daughters Mary and Elizabeth.
0:55.4	The flanking of the family, and strikingly framed by two archways, the two other figures
1:01.3	in the gardens.
1:02.8	On the right, there is a man in a green doublet and red hose, with closely cropped ginger
1:08.5	hair and a monkey on his shoulder.
1:11.0	And this can be identified as William Summer, the king's fool.
1:15.9	On the left, an apparently bored woman dressed in a tight-fitting red and white cap, a red
1:21.2	patented gown, and an unusual pleated curtail, whose attention has been gripped by something
1:26.5	in the distance, is probably Jane the fool.
1:29.7	Fall in turn to Ambulin, Jane Seymour, Princess Mary, and Henry VIII's sixth and actual wife
1:36.2	in 1545, Catherine Par.
	...

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