In medieval times, most Europeans adopted the Roman taste for a good time by electing a Lord of Misrule, or King of Fools. This harlequin king went by many names: King of the Bean in England, the Abbot of Unreason in Scotland, the Abbe de la Malgouveme in France. All had the power to call people to disorder.
Cross dressing, bawdy songs, drinking to excess, and gambling on the church altar were only a few of the wanton acts reported.
During the mock services, prayer responses that would have normally included an ‘amen’ were substituted by a hearty ‘hee-haw’.
image: Bruegel, Based on Feast of Fools, an engraving with motive by Pieter Bruegel the Elder after 1570
