how quickly the wrong side might be turned outward!"
Twelfth Night (III, i)
One of the more well-established details of William Shakespeare's early years in Stratford-upon-Avon involves his father: John Shakespeare was, among other things, a glover. Fine gloves were highly
regarded among the more affluent and status-conscious denizens of Tudor England, and sumptuary
laws even forbade the common knuckle-draggers of the lower classes from wearing anything so lavish. How's that for class consciousness?
In a roundabout way, that law actually proved beneficial to the theatre of Shakespeare's day: when a member of the nobility died, that person sometimes left articles of clothing to servants and various "go-fers" of the household. Since the recipients generally couldn't wear the clothes themselves, they would on occasion sell the upper-crust duds to theatre companies like Shakespeare's Chamberlain's Men, who became the King's Men at the ascension of James I to the English throne.
But back to Shakespeare's father. Historical research in recent years involving previously overlooked court records has made it apparent that John Shakespeare had income from more than just glove-making. He was a brogger, that is, an illegal wool dealer in a land where the wool industry was of paramount importance and in the best of times quite lucrative. Evidently, the income from the two sources helped propel the elder Shakespeare to a position of prominence in Stratford, where he eventually became a member of the town council and held a post equivalent to what we would call a mayor.
Shortly thereafter, a gradual but noticeable decline in John Shakespeare's fortunes began, for reasons not entirely understood. Historical speculation points to the possibility of brogging deals gone bad or perhaps his apparent crypto-Catholic leanings catching up with him in the Protestant realm of Elizabeth. Debts accumulated, he lost his council seat due to non-attendance, perhaps to avoid creditors. In any event, he fell from prominence in the little town.
Another point of speculation is whether William Shakespeare, as a boy, helped his father in his glover's workshop. It is evident that Shakespeare did, at the very least, become familiar with many of the terms of the glover's trade. A "cheveril glove" is made from the soft, supple skin of a young goat, and can be stretched easily. Readers of Shakespeare might as well laugh if they happen to notice the playwright's (suspicious?) knowledge of terms used in sheepshearing.
Pictured above, from the collection of Agecroft Hall, is a pair of 17th century gloves; whether they were made on the European continent or in England is uncertain. Prior to about 1580, the English were importing gloves from France and Spain; their own glove-making reputation was becoming more firmly established at about that time. These gloves of leather have two bands of silver lace applied to the cuff, along with a rose-colored silk lining. Gloves of this style were worn by both men and women.
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