Emblems of Empire - Department of History | Appalachian State

Emblems of Empire: Mapping the Growth of English Empire through Contemporary
Emblems
Valerie J. Erickson
East Tennessee State University
As England expanded their trade throughout the world, English emblems began to show
the exchange occurring between England, and such places as Africa, Egypt, India and North
America. English emblems are based on the work of the first published emblematist, the Italian
Andrea Alciato. The English took this work and made their own distinctive emblems which
reflect their culture and society during the later sixteenth century and throughout the seventeenth
century. Since the publications of Alciato‟s works, the English incorporate emblems depicting
items like apes, elephants, crocodiles, the rhinoceros and Native American headdresses as well as
emblems glorifying Sir Frances Drake and English ships. In the work of the first published
English emblematist, Thomas Palmer (1566), there is only one emblem portraying any effect of
England‟s burgeoning empire. Palmer‟s emblem displays a native Ethiopian. In the next
published work, twenty years later (1586), Geffrey Whitney includes emblems discussing apes,
crocodiles, the same Ethiopian, Sir Frances Drake and sailing the world‟s seas. Later English
emblematists include these emblems as well as others depicting the dreadnaught Argo, a
rhinoceros, the greatness of Britain and an Indian headdress (Peacham, 1612, and Wither, 1635).
This paper explores the growing interaction with foreign countries and the effects of trade on
later sixteenth century and early seventeenth century English society and culture as seen through
the use of popular contemporary emblems.
The proper emblem contains three pieces: the motto, the picture and the verse (see Figure
1). The motto generally sums up the emblem but in some cases this can be a dedication instead.
The picture, the second part, lies between the motto and the verse and contains the most
symbolic characteristic of the emblem. The viewer was intended to decipher the meaning of the
1
Motto:
Picture:
Verse:
Figure 1. Geffrey Whitney, Choice of Emblems
(Leyden: Plantin, 1586): 57, http://emblem
.libraries.psu.edu/whitn057.htm (accessed 24
Feb. 2011).
emblem from the objects placed within the picture. Everything within the image represents
something specific for a purpose. The third piece of the emblem, the verse or poem, can direct
the reader to the moral or meaning of the emblem.
Emblems have previously been studied by art historians and for their symbolism in
literature but have been overlooked by historians. The importance of emblems to historians
stands in the fact that emblems personify and conceptualize their contemporary period based on
their creation from the author‟s societal experiences. During the time that emblems were created
symbolism was prolific entering the culture from the court down through the reading laity.
Emblems were created through a process called commonplaces where daily thoughts,
quotes, anecdotes, perceptions, images and other information were written into a book much like
our scrapbooks or Facebook of today. This collection reflected their society due to the
2
perceptions and influences of the author on the contents of their commonplaces. From these
collections they created emblems. According to the literary emblem expert, Michael Bath,
“Emblems…moralise the actual properties of objects in the real world, and they thus depend, in
ways that not all metaphor does, on a belief shared by author and reader in the reality of their
symbolic object and its properties.”1
Permanent slaves from Africa were introduced into England during the 1560s, mainly
from John Hawkins‟s trading scheme. For the first time many of the mainstream public saw for
themselves people of color. Hawkins had built a syndicate in London allying himself with
several members of the Queen‟s navy. His slaving expeditions were part of the new colonial
trading organizations or joint-stock companies and investments in trade.2 Before this time there
were no emblems depicting apes or other issues of trade in England besides one Emblem of an
Ethiopian which came from the first published emblematist, Andrea Alciato. Alciato‟s work
established the base from which all consecutive emblematists created their work including the
English.
By the time of the first English emblem writer, Thomas Palmer (1566), there had been
some encounters between the English and those of different
races. Palmer includes one emblem that reflects this limited
contact, using the same image as that of Alicato. Palmer‟s image
cannot be shown but the image of Alciato‟s can be seen in
Figure 2.
Figure 2. Andrea Alciato, Emblematum Libellus (Paris, 1534): 84, http://
www.emblems.arts.gla.ac.uk/alciato/emblee.php?id=A34b084 (accessed 24
Feb. 2011).
1
Michael Bath, Speaking Pictures: English Emblem Books and Renaissance Culture (New York:
Longman, 1993):4.
2
G. R. Elton, England Under the Tudors (NY: Routledge, 2006): 251.
3
The inclusion of Ethiopians in Alciato‟s work remains unsurprising considering that
during the fifteenth century Ethiopian delegates traveled to Venice. This was done in an attempt
to build a bridge between themselves and Europe.3 The last time that an Ethiopian appears in
English emblems occurs in the 1586 publication of
Geffrey Whitney‟s, A Choice of Emblemes, and Other
Devices, see Figure 3. By Whitney‟s time slaves were
more common in England, thus less of a novelty and
interest which would make the addition of an
Ethiopian in a later emblem books less interesting.
Besides slaves, the English traded in Africa for gold,
ivory, tropical hardwood, wild rubber, oil, seeds from
the palmetto palm, gum Arabic, peanuts, and spices.4
Figure 3. Geffrey Whitney, Choice of Emblems
(Leyden: Plantin, 1586): 57, http://emblem.libraries
.psu.edu/whitn057.htm (accessed 24 Feb. 2011).
Part of the new trading syndicates included conducting business in regions like Africa
and Asia where previously heard of but rarely seen animals were now encountered. One of these
was the ape which they unfortunately compared with African men. Geffrey Whitney‟s book
contains the first ape emblem to appear in English emblem books, seen in Figure 4, which was
after the slave trade had become a lucrative investment for the English. Apes are native to Africa
3
4
David Northrup, Africa’s Discovery of Europe: 1450-1850 (NY: Oxford University Press, 2009): 3.
Ralph A. Austen, Trans-Saharan Africa in World History (NY: Oxford University Press, 2010): 43.
4
Figure 4. Geffrey Whitney, Choice of Emblems (Leyden:
Plantin, 1586): 93, http://emblem.libraries.psu.edu
/whitn093.htm (accessed 24 Feb. 2011).
and Asia. Alciato nor Thomas Palmer included an ape in their works. This emblem represents
discontent and discord.
Some of the English scorned the Africans for generations to come as societal aspects
were applied to the Africans from the English perceptions of apes. According to contemporary
writer, Edward Topsell‟s, The History of the Foure-footed Beasts, “Apes are much given to
imitation and derision, and are called Cercopes, because of their wicked crafts, deceits,
impostures and flatteries.”5 Topsell stated that men with a physiognomy such as apes who had
lips like them or flatter nostrils were deemed to be fools and dishonest.6 As time progressed and
more trade occurred in Africa the ape in emblems became more humanoid. This emblem in
Figure 5, is another Whitney and shows that men should remain within their status and not try to
extend beyond their sphere.
5
6
Edward Topsell, The History of the Foure-footed Beasts (London: William Jaggard, 1607): 2.
Topsell, History of Foure-footed Beasts, 2.
5
The African implication of the ape as seen in the image
has taken on more human characteristics. The verse
implies that Africans should not be taught to do anything
beyond the mundane. The ape had attempted to learn the
skill of the English man, “playing” at an expert trade but,
“The toying ape, was tempringe with his blockes/Untill
his foote was crush‟d within the stockes.”7 The ape still
appears forty-nine years later in the work of George
Wither. During Wither‟s time capital still backed the
African slave trade to
Figure 5. Geffrey Whitney, Choice of
Emblems (Leyden: Plantin, 1586): 145,
http://emblem.libraries.psu.edu/whitn145
.htm (accessed 24 Feb. 2011).
the Caribbean, Americas
and other quarters of the world. Profits from these endeavors
brought huge fortunes to the English and more slaves to Britain
and her colonies. By this time the emblem of the ape had
evolved even more into an ape-man that was no longer
disguised. Wither compares the ape-man to those who attempt
to present themselves as something other than what they truly
are.
Figure 5. George Wither. A Collection
of Emblemes, Ancient and Moderne
(London: AM, 1635): 14, http://emblem
.libraries.psu.edu/withe014.htm
(accessed 24 Feb. 2011).
Another influence shown by trade is the elephant which displays the effects of Africa and
7
Whitney, A Choice of Emblems, and Other Devices, For the most parte Gathered Out of Sundrie Writers,
Englished and Moralized, and Divers Newly Devised (Leyden: Plantin, 1586): 145.
6
India in emblems as well as reflecting other societal issues. Elephants were included in emblems
from Alciato through Wither. In emblems the elephant signifies strength, good memory, duty,
diligence and faithfulness. Topsell wrote that while
the Macedonians used them in Asia, they originated
in India and Africa.8 Whitney published two
emblems portraying elephants, both dealing with
England assisting the Netherlands to oust Spain from
their territory. The Earl of Leicester and his
campaign to the Low Countries received the
dedication of Whitney‟s book. The first emblem
shows England as the brute strength giving itself to
Figure 6. Geffrey Whitney, Choice of Emblems
(Leyden: Plantin, 1586): 150, http://emblem.libraries
.psu.edu/whitn150.htm (accessed 24 Feb. 2011).
support the Netherlands, Figure 6. The verse
discusses the power and greatness of the elephant but
Whitney warns of the possibility of enemies undermining her valor. This was left open in case
the campaign was not successful and the enemy could be implied as either the Dutch or the
Spanish. In the next emblem, Figure 7, the dead elephant represents Spain. The verse describes
how the “Olephunte”9 received a fatal sting from
a serpent. The great elephant took his foe down
with him, however, for he fell on top of the
serpent. Those who shed the least amount of
blood are the winners, inferring that English glory
Figure 7. Geffrey Whitney, Choice of Emblems
(Leyden: Plantin, 1586): 195, http://emblem
.libraries.psu.edu/whitn195.htm (accessed 24 Feb.
2011).
8
9
Topsell, 192.
Whitney, Choice of Emblems, 195.
7
would overcome the Spanish elephant and the Dutch snake. This emblem arose in response to the
Spanish Fury. In 1576 unpaid Spanish troops mutinied in the Netherlands and captured and
sacked the port of Antwerp resulting in a great loss of life and property. To further complicate
the issue, Antwerp was a southern Catholic city and this so angered the people of the southern
provinces that they joined with the rebellious north, setting aside the religious question for a
time.
England‟s shipping and prowess is another topic of emblems which extends to her
growing trade and power. Geffrey Whitney glorifies Sir Francis Drake in his circumnavigation
which reflected England‟s potential expansion and Drake‟s exploits in a special emblem. By
November 1578, Drake reached the western coast of North America raiding up and down the
coast. He claimed California for England, calling it “New Albion.”10 In March, 1579, Drake
captured a Spanish carrack carrying a large cargo of silver which secured the wealth that would
repay both Drake and England for his adventures. After having long assumed him dead, in
September, 1580, a surprised but delighted
England welcomed back their prodigal son. Drake
had accomplished the first circumnavigation of the
globe by an Englishman, as well as the first
completed by the same captain from start to finish.
Through Drake‟s privateering and
circumnavigation, England‟s wealth and position in
Europe continued to advance. Whitney shows the
Figure 8. Geffrey Whitney, Choice of Emblems
(Leyden: Plantin, 1586): 203, http://emblem.libraries
.psu.edu/whitn203.htm (accessed 24 Feb. 2011).
10
Elton, England Under the Tudors, 347.
8
pride of England in this emblem, as seen in Figure 8. Sir Walter Raleigh wrote about Drake, “„a
single purpose animates all his exploits, and the chart of his movements is like a cord laced and
knotted round the throat of the Spanish monarchy.‟”11 This exact image, of the cord being drawn
not only around Spain but the world can be seen in Whitney‟s emblem. There are two things of
interest to note in the passage which relates to English trade and their relation to others. First, is
the specific mention of the Ganges River in India: “Wherefore, yee worthie wightes, that seeke
for forreine lands/ Yf that you can, come alwaise home, by Ganges golden sandes/ And you, that
live at home, and can not brooke the flood/ Geve praise to them, that passe the waves, to doe
their countrie good.”12 Whitney would have no need to make this specific reference of the
Ganges unless India had already become an area of importance to the country and where there
were already trading forts and a colony being established. The second interest lies in the English
tradition of associating themselves closely with Jason
from the Greek epoch tale of Jason and the Argonauts.
They glorify themselves as expert seamen and superb
ship builders.
English glory of ship and sea, vital to their
expansion and trade networks, can be seen in an
emblem from Henry Peacham‟s 1612, Minerva
Britanna (see figure 9). The English still saw
themselves as the captors of the Golden Fleece,
Figure 9. Geffrey Whitney, Choice of Emblems (Leyden: Plantin,
1586): 54, http://emblem.libraries.psu.edu/whitn054.htm
(accessed 24 Feb. 2011).
11
John Merriman, A History of Modern Europe: From the Renaissance to the Age of Napoleon (NY: WW
Norton and Company, 2004): 203.
12
Whitney, 203.
9
descendants of Jason, rulers over seas, oceans and vast territories. This emblem of Peacham‟s
emphasizes the dangers of oceans and how by necessity cowardice has to be set aside to gain the
important prize, “The Dreadnought Argo, cuts the foaming surge…We should avoide ignoble
Cowardize/ And undertake with pleasure, any paine/ Whereby we might our wealth, or honour
gaine.”13 One of the ships that Drake took to raid the Spanish coast in delaying the Armada was
called the Dreadnought.14 This remained such an important aspect of British society that when
they created new warships in the early twentieth century they named their new battleships
“dreadnoughts.”
England benefited from trade agreements with Egypt, the Turks and the Middle East
where camels impressed the merchants, as seen in Figure 10. While the Mediterranean reduced
in importance as a trade route, the land route still provided some means of transportation as
indicated by the creation of the Levant Company and
inclusion of these emblems. During the seventeenth
century the English brought peppers, spices and other
wares from around Africa to sell to the Turks in the
Levant.15 The camel made a great impression on the
trade and minds of the English people. Even after the
sea route was well established the way over land was
still shorter and camels were the main means for
Figure 10. Geffrey Whitney, Choice of Emblems (Leyden:
Plantin, 1586): 125, http://emblem.libraries.psu.edu
/whitn125.htm (accessed 24 Feb. 2011).
13
Henry Peacham, Minerva Britanna, or a Garden of Heroical Devices, Furnished, and Adorned with
Emblems and Impresa’s of Sundry Natures, Newly Devised, Moralized, and Published (London: Shoe-Lane at the
Sign of the Falcon, 1612): 54.
14
Garret Mattingly, The Armada (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1959): 94.
15
A. H. Lybyer, “The Ottoman Turks and the Routes of Oriental Trade,” The English Historical Review 30,
no. 120 (Oct. 1915), http://www.jstor.org/stable/551296 (accessed Jan. 12, 2011).
10
transportation. The English were impressed with the camel‟s ability to go without water for such
a long time and for its ability to carry such heavy burdens. A camel in emblems came to signify
strength and endurance and does not appear in emblems until trade had increased between these
countries. There are limits to its strength, however, as this emblem indicates. Peacham had
dedicated the emblem to the Treasurer of War who presided over Ireland and England. Peacham
advised him to be careful in how much he took on and to not become overburdened. Give out
only what was earned and due.
The English encountered the rhinoceros as they traveled further into the interior of Africa
and India in their later trading expeditions as they searched for more raw materials and other
goods. They sought these products to import to England
and her colonies. The rhinoceros was a curiosity to the
English. This is the only English emblem, seen in Figure
11, which shows a rhinoceros, no previous rhino emblems
exist even in any of Alciato‟s works. As the verse states,
“This Indian beast, by Nature armed so…Assaulteth oft the
Elephant his foe.” It is obvious that the author, Henry
Peacham, had never seen an actual rhinoceros but had
either seen someone else‟s drawing of one or had read a
detailed description of one. Edward Topsell wrote that the
rhino signified “a beast every way admirable, both for the
outward shape, quantity, and greatness, and also for the
Figure 11. Henry Peacham, Minerva Britanna,
(London: Shoe-Lane at the Sign of the Falcon,
1612):106, http://f01.middlebury.edu/FS010A
/students/Minerva/106.JPG (accessed 24 Feb.
2011).
inward courage, disposition, and mildness.”16 Topsell also had to admit that he was basing his
16
Topsell, 594.
11
interpretation of the beast on second-hand accounts because he did not know of anyone in
England who had ever seen one for themselves. He had known that the Portuguese had taken one
to Lisbon, which they had obtained from their trading in India. There were also accounts of one
being taken to Rome by Caesar Augusts when he returned with Cleopatra.17 The rhinoceros was
greatly esteemed for their “armour” plating which does not allow any piercings.
The crocodile in emblems usually represents Egypt. The English conducted a profitable
trade in the Eastern Mediterranean, including Egypt. The main product that England exported to
this, or any other area was cloth.18 From the Levant they imported sugar cane and cotton. In
“1515 the Turks fell on Egypt and blocked the only remaining land route to the East,” this only
served to stimulate more searches for sea routes to trading partners.19 The verse of this emblem
in Figure 12, discusses how Caesar Augustus had taken control over Egypt. Egypt was again
Figure 12. PS, The
Heroicall Devises of
M. Claudius ParadinTranslated into
English by PS
(London: William
Kearney, 1591): 81-2,
http://emblem.libraries
.psu.edu/parad081.
htm (accessed 24 Feb.
2011).
17
Topsell, 595.
Merriman, A History of Modern Europe, 179.
19
Charles Zueblin, “England‟s Dominant Industrial Revolution,” The Journal of Political Economy 5, no.2
(March 1897), http://www.jstor.org/stable/181778 (accessed Dec. 18, 2010).
18
12
under the chain of a foreign power, the Ottoman Empire. According to A.H. Lybyer, about the
same time that the Turks gained complete control over the Mediterranean, the Portuguese had
found another way around Africa to obtain a trading route without having to pass through the
Levant. The Turks had taken control of the entire area including Egypt.20 Sugar cane had been
originally available around the Mediterranean which was a main product imported to England.
When explorers found the West Indies, Brazil and the Caribbean, the cane was exported to these
areas to be grown for Britain reducing the importance of the Levant.21 Maintaining her colonies
and establishing more were of infinite importance to British trade, economy and power.
Since the time that Columbus set foot in the “New World,” Native Americans had been
viewed through the lens of curiosity to the English. Throughout the 1500s, “Indians” were
brought back to England for various reasons. Some were used for display as oddities and
souvenirs of the Americas while others went to work as translators for the English. In 1616
Pocahontas immigrated to England with her English
husband, John Rolfe. Tobacco had already become a
major import from the colonies. It was so important to the
English that King James I, who absolutely despised
tobacco, felt compelled to write a book about it trying to
dissuade its use.22 This emblem of an Indian headdress,
seen in Figure 13, is the only one ever seen in any English
Figure 13. Henry Peacham, Minerva Britanna, (London:
Shoe-Lane at the Sign of the Falcon, 1612): 199, http://
f01.middlebury.edu/FS010A/students/Minerva/199.JPG
(accessed 24 Feb. 2011).
20
21
Lybyer, “The Ottoman Turks and the Routes of the Oriental Trade,” 577.
H.G. Koenigsberger, Early Modern Europe 1500-1789: A History of Europe (NY: Longman, 1987): 174-
5.
22
King James Stuart I, A Counterblaste to Tobacco (London:
13
emblem books. Peacham drew it himself from what had to have been something he read or heard
from someone that had either seen a Native American or seen a headdress. Peacham relates how
people often seek and choose praise from people like an “Indian Diadem.”23 They insert folly
and vain glory into themselves like Indians insert feathers into a band to show their worth and
accomplishments.
Throughout the sixteenth century English trade and influence continued to grow,
engulfing vast amounts of territory and peoples of various races, cultures and backgrounds. The
English realm with its vast expanse lies outlined within the verse of this emblem by George
Wither, 1635. Wither states, “A Kingdome, is not alwaies eminent, By having Confines of a
large extent; For, Povertie and Barbarousnesse, are
found Ev‟n in some large Dominians, to abound.”24 Its
implications are beyond the boundaries of just
Scotland, Ireland and England. Overseas colonies are
acknowledged by the ship sailing away into the
horizon. More exemplary are Wither‟s sentiments,
“From whence we fetch the Gold and Silver-ore; And,
where we gather Pearles upon the shore.”25 Wither
refers here to the former exploits of privateering such
as Drake as well as what was acquired by British
colonists in North America.
Figure 14. George Wither, A Collection of Emblemes, Ancient
and Moderne (London: AM, 1635): 78, http://emblem
.libraries.psu.edu/withe078.htm (accessed 24 Feb. 2011).
23
Peacham, Minerva Britanna, 199.
George Wither, A Collection of Emblemes, Ancient and Moderne, Quickened with Metricall Illustrations,
both Moral and Divine: and Disposes Lotteries, That Instruction, and good Counsell, may bee Furtered by an
Honest and Pleasant Recreation (London: AM, 1635): 78.
25
Wither, A Collection of Emblems, 78.
24
14
From about 1566 until about 1635, the expansion of trade in England and factors related
to the national economy showed up in emblems being produced by English emblematists. There
are emblems influenced by treaties made, shipping endeavors, trading partners, foreign animals
and foods, societal concerns, territories and other commodities. By the end of 1635 the
emblematic fashion was declining and emblems were becoming less secular in nature and much
more religious. By studying the images and verses of emblems, it is possible to learn more about
the concerns, issues and influences that affected England during the late Renaissance, Early
Modern era. In England, emblem books reflected the increasing trade of the state as it grew in
prominence on the world stage. Emblems were ubiquitous; by studying emblems we can gain a
better understanding and appreciation for the society, thoughts and culture of the sixteenth and
seventeenth centuries.
15
Bibliography
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Glasgow University Library Emblems Website): http://www.emblems.arts.gla.ac.uk
/alciato/index.php (accessed 24 Feb. 2011).
Austen, Ralph A. Trans-Saharan Africa in World History. NY: Oxford University Press, 2010.
Bath,Michael. Speaking Pictures: English Emblem Books and Renaissance Culture. NY:
Longman,1994.
Elton, G.R. England Under the Tudors. NY: Routledge, 2006.
Koenigsberger, H.G. Early Modern Europe 1500-1789: A History of Europe. NY: Longman,
1987.
Lybyer, A.H. “The Ottoman Turks and the Routes of Oriental Trade.” The English Historical
Review 30, no.120 (Oct, 1915). http://www.jstor.org/stable/ 551296 (accessed 12 Jan.
2011).
Mattingly, Garet. The Armada. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1959.
Merriman, John. A History of Modern Europe: From the Renaissance to the Age of Napoleon.
NY: WW Norton and Company, 2004.
Northrup, David. Africa’s Discovery of Europe: 1450-1850. NY: Oxford University Press,
2009.
P.S. (Full name Unknown)The heroicall devises of M. Claudius Paradin, Whereunto are added
the Lord Gabriel Symeons and others. Translated out of our Latin into English by P.S. London:
William Kearney,1591. (Accessed and used by Permission of Penn-State Univeristy Library,
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Feb. 2011).
Palmer, Thomas. Two Hundred Poosees. London, 1566.
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with Emblems and Impresa’s of Sundry Natures, Newly Devised, Moralized, and Published.
London: Shoe-Lane at the Sign of the Falcon, 1612. (Accessed and used by Permission of the
British Library, http://f01.middlebury.edu/FS010A/students/Minerva/.JPG (accessed 24 Feb.
2011).
Stuart, King James I. A Counterblaste to Tobacco. London:1604.
Topsell, Edward. The History of the Foure-footed Beasts. London: William Jaggard, 1607.
16
Whitney, Geffrey. A Choice of Emblemes, and Other Devices, For the Most Parte Gathered Out
of Sundrie Writers, Englished and Moralized, and Divers Newly Devised. Leyden: Plantin,
1586. (Accessed and used by Permission of Penn-State University Library, Online English
Emblem Books: http://emblem.libraries.psu.edu/home.htm (accessed 24 Feb. 2011).
Wither,George. A Collection of Emblemes, Ancient and Moderne, Quickened with Metricall
Illustrations, both Morall and Divine: and Disposed into Lotteries, That Instruction, and good
Counsell, may bee Furthered by an Honest and Pleasant Recreation. London: AM, 1635.
(Accessed and used by Permission of Penn-State Library, Online English Emblem Books):
http://emblem.libraries.psu.edu/home.htm (accessed 24 Feb. 2011).
Zueblin, Charles. “England‟s Dominant Industrial Position,” The Journal of Political Economy
5, no.2 (March 1897). http://www.jstor.org/stable/181778 (accessed 18 Dec. 2010).
17