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All the United Kingdom England Berkeley Grave of the Last Court Jester
AO Edited

Grave of the Last Court Jester

The final resting place of Dicky Pearce, the last court jester in England.

Berkeley, England

Added By
Niki Kay
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The front of Dicky Pearce’s Grave   Niki Kay / Atlas Obscura User
The front of Dicky Pearce’s Grave   Niki Kay / Atlas Obscura User
The back of Dicky Pearce’s Grave   Niki Kay / Atlas Obscura User
Church of St Mary the Virgin, Berkeley   David Stowell / CC BY-SA 2.0
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This grave is located in the churchyard of St. Mary the Virgin in Berkeley, Gloucestershire. Dicky Pearce was the last court jester to be employed in England. Born in 1665, he was employed by the Berkeley family at Berkeley Castle, and worked directly for the Earl of Suffolk. According to the legend, Dicky had insulted one of Lord Berkeley’s guests earlier in the evening, and they were quite offended by it. While playing the hurdy gurdy, high above the hall in the Minstrel’s Gallery, he fell to his death.  There is a question there though… would such an accomplished musician and jester fall from a space he was undoubtedly familiar with, or was he pushed in retaliation for his earlier words? That’s a secret that Dicky (and anyone else up in the Minstrel’s Gallery with him that night) took to his grave.

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Local History History & Culture Gravestones Graves

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Added By

Niki Kay

Edited By

RHF, Michelle Cassidy

  • RHF
  • Michelle Cassidy

Published

October 15, 2024

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  • Fools and Jesters at the English Court, by John Southworth
  • THE HURDY GURDY FROM BERKLEY CASTLE, by By Richard Higgins
  • https://www.cotswolds.info/strange-things/last-court-jester.shtml
Grave of the Last Court Jester
Berkeley, England, GL13 9BJ
United Kingdom
51.68922, -2.45768

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