It was a privilege that no other advisor enjoyed, and he ended up staying at court through the rule of Edward VI and Mary I. He wasn't just a jester, he was a close companion that came and went from the king's inner chambers as he pleased. He was replaced after he made some questionable comments about Anne Boleyn and her daughter Elizabeth, but his replacement - William Somers - was much more successful. The very first fool recorded as part of Henry VIII's entourage was a man named Sexton (or Patch). Having a jester between two rulers from different cultures speaking different languages made it possible to deflect unintentional insults from things like mistranslations or social faux pas, and many were extremely good at diffusing even the tensest of situations. They were also employed as ambassadors and even translators. They needed to be intelligent and observant enough to see mistakes that were about to happen, and make fun of the situation in a way that made their ruler stop, take a step back, and fix little problems before they turned into big ones. Jesters in these ancient courts weren't just there to tell jokes, and Otto says they were just as much diplomats as comedians. Ancient Chinese texts mention the presence of jesters throughout Chinese history, and one of the most famous was Dongfang Shuo, who regaled the Han Emperor Wu Di with his antics during his reign from 140 to 87 BC. Otto says that there's striking similarities between the jesters of European courts and those that held positions in China.
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