News | February 6, 2025

Tudor Books of Arms and Court Playbooks at Folger's New Tudor Exhibition

Folger Shakespeare Library

Books of arms gifted by Gilbert Dethick to Elizabeth I on New Year's Day

How to Be a Power Player: Tudor Edition opens at the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington D. C. on February 21, examining how literary figures ranging from royal advisors to household staff used cunning and creative means to acquire power and curry favor with the Tudor monarchs. 

The exhibition will feature more than 60 objects from the Folger’s collection including playbooks for how would-be advisors in a royal court should behave. These include a copy of Niccolo Machiavelli’s The Prince printed in 1584 in London, and The Book of the Courtier by Baldassare Castiglione dating to 1561, the definitive 16th century book of manners, advising society’s elite how to dress, behave, and dance. 

Elsewhere there will be letters, engravings, prints, caricatures, execution records, and illustrated funeral processions. The objects are organized into a presentation that offers “rules” for how to be a successful courtier.

The nine books of arms
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Folger Shakespeare Library

The nine books of arms

The institution, laws & ceremonies of the most noble Order of the Garter... London: Printed by J. Macock, for Nathanael Brooke at the Angel in Cornhill, near the Royal Exchange, MDCLXXII. [1672] 
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Folger Shakespeare Library

The institution, laws & ceremonies of the most noble Order of the Garter... London: Printed by J. Macock, for Nathanael Brooke at the Angel in Cornhill, near the Royal Exchange, MDCLXXII. [1672] 

Knight of the Order of the Garter: Royal, military and court costumes of the time of James I, probably by an Italian artist, early 17th century
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Folger Shakespeare Library

Knight of the Order of the Garter: Royal, military and court costumes of the time of James I, probably by an Italian artist, early 17th century

Additional highlights include:

  • an early 'ruff commandment', a proclamation prohibiting excessive fashion choices
  • miniature portraits of King James I’s family
  • a 1579 gift roll listing the gifts given to Queen Elizabeth I with items such as jewelry, clothing, books, gloves, and candied treats that extends to almost 12ft long when unfurled
  • a series of nine illuminated manuscript books bound in crimson velvet with gold braided borders depicting the coats of arms of the Knights of the Garter (c. 1569–1580), a recent acquisition in the Folger’s collection and on exhibit for the first time in the United States

“I hope visitors see the parallels between Tudor England and today. Cancel culture, brand management, nepotism, power dressing, and the idea of ‘fake it 'til you make it’ were all a part of life for people seeking a position in the queen’s inner circle,” said Heather Wolfe, the Folger’s Curator of Manuscripts. “When I was selecting items for the exhibition, I was continually struck by the similarities between the self-help books for managers and leaders today and the how-to books for aspiring power players from the 16th century.”

How to Be a Power Player: Tudor Edition runs through July 2025.

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