the best-known court jester of Henry VIII of England. Born in Shropshire, Sommers came to the attention of Richard Fermor, a merchant of the Staple at Calais, who brought him to Greenwich in 1525 to present to the King. Impressed by his sense of humor, Henry promptly offered Sommers a place at court. He was soon in high favor with the King, whose generosity to him is attested by the accounts of the royal household. Sommers remained in service to the King for the rest of Henry's life. In the King's later years, when he was troubled by a painful leg condition, it was said that only Sommers could lift his spirits.
