Footballer’s Wives
‘WHOS the fat bloke in the number eight shirt? asks the Guardian cheekily.
|
| ‘But ref, I never touched ‘er!!!’ |
And the answer is Henry. Or Henry VIII as you probably know him.
The paper says that clothes historian Maria Hayward has discovered that Englands most-married monarch ordered a pair of football boots in 1526, and played the game with the young nobles of his royal court.
The handmade boots cost four shillings, and were ordered for Shrove Tuesday the one day of the year when the game was traditionally played.
One day a year might sound a bit easy-going by the standards of todays punishing fixture lists, but it should be remembered that it was a mans game in those days, and the physical aspect tended to result in multiple injuries, often of a very serious nature.
Not that Henry was a hatchet man. Despite his reputation, the handmade boots show his sensitive side. One is customised with the word Edward, the other, Romeo suggesting that other areas of history might be in need of a rewrite.’
Posted: 18th, February 2004 | In: Broadsheets Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
