Jesters were the medieval equivalent of comedians, and they are typically depicted wearing a cap with bells on it. But as with comedians of today, the jesters of history have always spoken their minds whether it put their life in danger or not. These days, comedians generally don't have to fear for their lives by telling jokes that may offend or insult the sensibilities of others. But back in the day, jesters could be sentenced to death for saying offensive things. Although, most of them were directed at kings and queens.
One of the earliest records of a jester challenging royalty was in 7th century BC, in China, when he said some innocuous remark about the emperor's dog, and the emperor shot an arrow at him. Thankfully, the arrow did not hit its mark, and he unapologetically doubled down on his jokes which made the emperor laugh, and he was spared. That was not the only instance of jesters literally toying with death. In this short clip from TED-Ed, we get to look at a brief history of jesters who spoke truth to power, sometimes with extreme consequences. -via Aeon
(Video credit: TED-Ed/Youtube)