New Year's Gifts at the Court of Elizabeth I
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New Year's Gifts at the Court of Elizabeth I
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Today, we think of Christmas as the season of giving—but in Shakespeare's England, it was New Year's Day that reigned supreme as the biggest gift-giving holiday of the entire year.
Shakespeare himself alludes to this entrenched tradition in The Merry Wives of Windsor, where Falstaff quips: "I'll have my brains ta'en out and buttered, and give them to a dog for a new-year's gift." It's a grotesque image—thank you, Falstaff—but it reveals just how deeply the practice of New Year's gifting permeated society, to the point where even dogs might expect a present.
Of course, no one in Elizabethan England gave and received gifts quite like the queen herself—which is why this week, we're diving into the fascinating world of New Year's gifts at the court of Elizabeth I: how these gifts were chosen, presented, and meticulously recorded—and how they served as powerful tools of politics, loyalty, and social hierarchy in Shakespeare's lifetime.
Joining us to unravel this glittering and strategic tradition is Maria Hayward, whose research on the New Year's Gift Rolls shines a light on the court culture, textiles, and customs that shaped this extraordinary annual ritual.