Peter K Andersson's Fool attempts a recovery of the shadowy, elusive figure of William Somer. There he is, staring out at us in a series of portraits of Henry VIII and his family, and yet little is known about him.
Andersson's book is written as a detective story, peeling back the layers of legend and theory, to help us get at the man standing beside the most powerful monarchs of the age. For Somer was not just close to the mighty Henry VIII, he was also prominent in the courts of his three children: perhaps the only man so close to the throne to serve successfully in all four reigns. Andersson suggests that Somer functions as a sort of Tudor mascot, a sign of dynastic stability as recognisable as the Tudor rose itself.
This story is from the November 2023 edition of BBC History UK.
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This story is from the November 2023 edition of BBC History UK.
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