''The Boke named the Governour'', sometimes referred to in modern English as ''The Book of the Governor'', is a book written by

Thomas Elyot Sir Thomas Elyot (c. 149626 March 1546) was an English diplomat and scholar. He is best known as one of the first proponents of the use of the English language for literary purposes. Early life Thomas was the child of Sir Richard Elyot's firs ...

and published in 1531. It was dedicated to Henry VIII and is largely a treatise on how to properly train statesmen. It also discusses ethical dilemmas in the education system of the time. ''The Book of the Governor'' is evidence of the impact that

Renaissance humanism Renaissance humanism was a revival in the study of classical antiquity, at first in Italy and then spreading across Western Europe in the 14th, 15th, and 16th centuries. During the period, the term ''humanist'' ( it, umanista) referred to teache ...

had on prose writing.

Thomas Elyot

Thomas Elyot was born before 1490 and died in 1546. He was the son of Sir Richard Elyot and Alice Fynderne. His father was a prominent lawyer, so Thomas received a quality education. Both

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a College town, university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cam ...

and

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

claim him as an alumnus, but there is no sufficient evidence either way. He studied mostly liberal arts and philosophy, but also some medicine. In 1510 he married Margaret Aborough. In 1530 he was

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...

ed. In 1531, he was made ambassador to the Emperor,

Charles V Charles V may refer to: * Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (1500–1558) * Charles V of Naples (1661–1700), better known as Charles II of Spain * Charles V of France (1338–1380), called the Wise * Charles V, Duke of Lorraine (1643–1690) * Infa ...

. In 1538 he published the first Latin-English dictionary. As a writer, he is clear, precise, measured, and practically monotonous. His major works include: *''The Boke named the Governour'' (1531) *''Of the Knowledge which maketh a Wise Man'' (1533) *''The Education of Children, translated out of Plutarch'' (1535) *''Dictionary'' (1538) *''The Castle of Helth'' (1539) *''The Defence of Good Women'' (1540) ''The Boke named the Governour'' is considered to be the first educational treatise in English. It sets out the way of life for member of the English governing class. Between 1531 and 1580, the book went through seven different editions. According to Biblio.com, the Book of the Governor "went through edition after edition all through the sixteenth century. It achieved this fame for many reasons. It is the first work in recognizably modern English

prose Prose is a form of written or spoken language that follows the natural flow of speech, uses a language's ordinary grammatical structures, or follows the conventions of formal academic writing. It differs from most traditional poetry, where the ...

, to which Elyot added many new words. It provided influential advocacy for the study of the classics, from which he quotes extensively. the principal cause of its popularity was the current vogue for its subject – it is a treatise on moral philosophy, laying down the lines on which the education of those destined to govern should be directed, and inculcating the high moral principles which should rule them in the performance of their duties. There was nothing very original or revolutionary in the thoughts expressed: Elyot acknowledges his debt to the ''Institutio Principis Christiani'' of Erasmus and Castiglione’s ''Il Cortegiano'', though not that to Francesco Patrizzi, Bishop of Gaeta at the end of the fifteenth century, whose ''De Rego et Regis Institutione'' was certainly the model for ''The Governour''. Nevertheless it remained a textbook for behaviour for generations and had a lasting effect on the writing of English."

Humanism

Elyot wrote his book at the beginning of English Renaissance humanism. During this time, "humanists were distinguished from other scholars not by exclusive focus on human or secular texts, but rather by their focus on secular writings, particularly classical ones, ''as well as'' on religious texts and thoughts".Black, Joseph. The Renaissance and the Early Seventeenth Century. 2nd ed. Vol. 2. Peterborough, Ont.: Broadview, 2010. It was during this time that the

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

and

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

classics were finally coming back. This is the time when

Plato Plato ( ; grc-gre, Πλάτων ; 428/427 or 424/423 – 348/347 BC) was a Greek philosopher born in Athens during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. He founded the Platonist school of thought and the Academy, the first institution ...

played a significant role in philosophical history. Renaissance humanism also introduced a new richness in the English language – writers began to use rhetoric, and language was viewed as a worthy subject to study. This is why Elyot's book became so popular not only with the people, but also the King.

References

External links

*https://web.archive.org/web/20131024010330/http://www.classiclanguagearts.net/Projects/WritingLessonsFromTheRenaissance/bookofthegovernor.htm *http://www.luminarium.org/renascence-editions/gov/gov1.htm *Black, Joseph. ''The Renaissance and the Early Seventeenth Century''. 2nd ed. Vol. 2. Peterborough, Ont.: Broadview, 2010. Print. {{DEFAULTSORT:Book of the Governor, The 1531 books Etiquette Early Modern English literature Books about education