Boye (dog)
Encyclopedia
The dog
Boye (died 2 July 1644 at the battle of Marston Moor), also Boy, was a celebrated and iconic white hunting
poodle
belonging to Prince Rupert of the Rhine
in the 17th century. Puritan
or Roundhead
propagandists alleged that the dog was "endowed" with magical
powers.
Boye was first given to Prince Rupert when he was imprisoned in the fortress
of Linz
during the Thirty Years War. The Earl of Arundel
, an Englishman who had grown concerned about Rupert's plight, gave him the animal to keep him company during his confinement. The dog was a rare breed of white hunting
poodle
; Boye was sufficiently impressive and famous across Europe that the Ottoman Sultan
of the day, Murad IV
, requested that his ambassador attempt to find him a similar animal. Boye accompanied Rupert during his travels until 1644.
. Rupert was the iconic Royalist cavalier
of the conflict and was frequently the subject of Parliamentarian
propaganda
. Boye, who often accompanied Rupert into battle, featured heavily in this, and was widely suspected of being a witch's familiar
. There were numerous accounts of Boye's abilities; some suggested that he was the Devil
in disguise.
John Cleveland
and other Royalist satirists and parodists mocked these Parliamentarian attitudes and produced lampoons that satirised the alleged "superstition" and "credulity" of their opponents; Cleveland claimed that Boy was Prince Rupert's shapeshifting familiar, and or demonic origins. Other satirists suggested that Boye was a "Lapland
Lady" who had been transformed into a white dog. Boye was also "able" to find hidden treasure
, was invulnerable to attack, could catch bullet
s fired at Rupert in his mouth, and prophesy as well as the 16th century soothsayer
, Mother Shipton. Royalist soldiers also promoted Boye, as their adopted mascot
, to the rank of Sergeant-Major-General
.
Reportedly, Boye had other endearing attributes, such as cocking his leg when he heard the name of John Pym
, leader of the Parliamentarian forces He was also alleged to have performed for Charles I, slept in Prince Rupert's bed, played with Princes Charles, James and Harry and Princess Henrietta and was often fed roast beef and capon breast by Charles I himself.
in 1644. He had been left safely tied up in the Royalist camp, but escaped and chased after Rupert. The battle went badly for the Royalists, and Rupert was forced to flee the field; Boye was killed during the ensuing fighting. He was prominently depicted in woodcut
scenes drawn of the battle at the time, lying upside down, dead; Simon Ash, a contemporary historian of the event, drew specific attention to the death of this 'much spoken of' dog.
Dog
The domestic dog is a domesticated form of the gray wolf, a member of the Canidae family of the order Carnivora. The term is used for both feral and pet varieties. The dog may have been the first animal to be domesticated, and has been the most widely kept working, hunting, and companion animal in...
Boye (died 2 July 1644 at the battle of Marston Moor), also Boy, was a celebrated and iconic white hunting
Hunting
Hunting is the practice of pursuing any living thing, usually wildlife, for food, recreation, or trade. In present-day use, the term refers to lawful hunting, as distinguished from poaching, which is the killing, trapping or capture of the hunted species contrary to applicable law...
poodle
Poodle
The Poodle is a breed of dog. The poodle breed is found officially in toy, miniature, and standard sizes, with many coat colors. Originally bred as a type of water dog, the poodle is highly intelligent and skillful in many dog sports, including agility, obedience, tracking, and even herding...
belonging to Prince Rupert of the Rhine
Prince Rupert of the Rhine
Rupert, Count Palatine of the Rhine, Duke of Bavaria, 1st Duke of Cumberland, 1st Earl of Holderness , commonly called Prince Rupert of the Rhine, KG, FRS was a noted soldier, admiral, scientist, sportsman, colonial governor and amateur artist during the 17th century...
in the 17th century. Puritan
Puritan
The Puritans were a significant grouping of English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries. Puritanism in this sense was founded by some Marian exiles from the clergy shortly after the accession of Elizabeth I of England in 1558, as an activist movement within the Church of England...
or Roundhead
Roundhead
"Roundhead" was the nickname given to the supporters of the Parliament during the English Civil War. Also known as Parliamentarians, they fought against King Charles I and his supporters, the Cavaliers , who claimed absolute power and the divine right of kings...
propagandists alleged that the dog was "endowed" with magical
Magic (paranormal)
Magic is the claimed art of manipulating aspects of reality either by supernatural means or through knowledge of occult laws unknown to science. It is in contrast to science, in that science does not accept anything not subject to either direct or indirect observation, and subject to logical...
powers.
Origins
Castle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built in Europe and the Middle East during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars debate the scope of the word castle, but usually consider it to be the private fortified residence of a lord or noble...
of Linz
Linz
Linz is the third-largest city of Austria and capital of the state of Upper Austria . It is located in the north centre of Austria, approximately south of the Czech border, on both sides of the river Danube. The population of the city is , and that of the Greater Linz conurbation is about...
during the Thirty Years War. The Earl of Arundel
Thomas Howard, 21st Earl of Arundel
Thomas Howard, 21st Earl of Arundel KG, was a prominent English courtier during the reigns of King James I and King Charles I, but he made his name as a Grand Tourist and art collector rather than as a politician. When he died he possessed 700 paintings, along with large collections of sculpture,...
, an Englishman who had grown concerned about Rupert's plight, gave him the animal to keep him company during his confinement. The dog was a rare breed of white hunting
Hunting
Hunting is the practice of pursuing any living thing, usually wildlife, for food, recreation, or trade. In present-day use, the term refers to lawful hunting, as distinguished from poaching, which is the killing, trapping or capture of the hunted species contrary to applicable law...
poodle
Poodle
The Poodle is a breed of dog. The poodle breed is found officially in toy, miniature, and standard sizes, with many coat colors. Originally bred as a type of water dog, the poodle is highly intelligent and skillful in many dog sports, including agility, obedience, tracking, and even herding...
; Boye was sufficiently impressive and famous across Europe that the Ottoman Sultan
Great Sultan
Great Sultan is one of various informal titles, such as Grand Turk, used to refer to the Ottoman Sultan, known in Ottoman Turkish as Padishah, Hünkar or Hakan, the sovereign of the Ottoman dynasty....
of the day, Murad IV
Murad IV
Murad IV Ghazi was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1623 to 1640, known both for restoring the authority of the state and for the brutality of his methods...
, requested that his ambassador attempt to find him a similar animal. Boye accompanied Rupert during his travels until 1644.
Propaganda and magical powers
Boye accompanied his master from 1642 to 1644 during the English Civil WarEnglish Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
. Rupert was the iconic Royalist cavalier
Cavalier
Cavalier was the name used by Parliamentarians for a Royalist supporter of King Charles I and son Charles II during the English Civil War, the Interregnum, and the Restoration...
of the conflict and was frequently the subject of Parliamentarian
Roundhead
"Roundhead" was the nickname given to the supporters of the Parliament during the English Civil War. Also known as Parliamentarians, they fought against King Charles I and his supporters, the Cavaliers , who claimed absolute power and the divine right of kings...
propaganda
Propaganda
Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....
. Boye, who often accompanied Rupert into battle, featured heavily in this, and was widely suspected of being a witch's familiar
Familiar spirit
In European folklore and folk-belief of the Medieval and Early Modern periods, familiar spirits were supernatural entities believed to assist witches and cunning folk in their practice of magic...
. There were numerous accounts of Boye's abilities; some suggested that he was the Devil
Devil
The Devil is believed in many religions and cultures to be a powerful, supernatural entity that is the personification of evil and the enemy of God and humankind. The nature of the role varies greatly...
in disguise.
John Cleveland
John Cleveland
John Cleveland was an English poet.The son of an usher in a charity school, Cleveland was born in Loughborough, and educated at Hinckley Grammar School. Admitted to Christ's College, Cambridge, he graduated BA in 1632 and became a fellow of St John's College in 1634...
and other Royalist satirists and parodists mocked these Parliamentarian attitudes and produced lampoons that satirised the alleged "superstition" and "credulity" of their opponents; Cleveland claimed that Boy was Prince Rupert's shapeshifting familiar, and or demonic origins. Other satirists suggested that Boye was a "Lapland
Lapland (region)
Lapland is a region in northern Fennoscandia, largely within the Arctic Circle. It streches across Norway, Sweden, Finland and the Kola Peninsula . On the North it is bounded by the Barents Sea, on the West by the Norwegian Sea and on the East by the White Sea...
Lady" who had been transformed into a white dog. Boye was also "able" to find hidden treasure
Treasure
Treasure is a concentration of riches, often one which is considered lost or forgotten until being rediscovered...
, was invulnerable to attack, could catch bullet
Bullet
A bullet is a projectile propelled by a firearm, sling, or air gun. Bullets do not normally contain explosives, but damage the intended target by impact and penetration...
s fired at Rupert in his mouth, and prophesy as well as the 16th century soothsayer
Fortune-telling
Fortune-telling is the practice of predicting information about a person's life. The scope of fortune-telling is in principle identical with the practice of divination...
, Mother Shipton. Royalist soldiers also promoted Boye, as their adopted mascot
Mascot
The term mascot – defined as a term for any person, animal, or object thought to bring luck – colloquially includes anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, professional sports team, society, military unit, or brand name...
, to the rank of Sergeant-Major-General
Major General
Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...
.
Reportedly, Boye had other endearing attributes, such as cocking his leg when he heard the name of John Pym
John Pym
John Pym was an English parliamentarian, leader of the Long Parliament and a prominent critic of James I and then Charles I.- Early life and education :...
, leader of the Parliamentarian forces He was also alleged to have performed for Charles I, slept in Prince Rupert's bed, played with Princes Charles, James and Harry and Princess Henrietta and was often fed roast beef and capon breast by Charles I himself.
Death
Boye died during the Battle of Marston MoorBattle of Marston Moor
The Battle of Marston Moor was fought on 2 July 1644, during the First English Civil War of 1642–1646. The combined forces of the Scottish Covenanters under the Earl of Leven and the English Parliamentarians under Lord Fairfax and the Earl of Manchester defeated the Royalists commanded by Prince...
in 1644. He had been left safely tied up in the Royalist camp, but escaped and chased after Rupert. The battle went badly for the Royalists, and Rupert was forced to flee the field; Boye was killed during the ensuing fighting. He was prominently depicted in woodcut
Woodcut
Woodcut—occasionally known as xylography—is a relief printing artistic technique in printmaking in which an image is carved into the surface of a block of wood, with the printing parts remaining level with the surface while the non-printing parts are removed, typically with gouges...
scenes drawn of the battle at the time, lying upside down, dead; Simon Ash, a contemporary historian of the event, drew specific attention to the death of this 'much spoken of' dog.
Contemporary works about Boye
- Observations Upon Prince Rupert's White Dog called Boy (Anonymous, 1642)
- A Dialogue, or Rather a Parley, between Prince Rupert's Dog whose name is Puddle and Tobies Dog, whose name is Pepper (Anonymous, 1643).
- The Parliament's Unspotted Bitch (Anonymous, 1643)
- A Dog's Elegy: Elegy of Prince Rupert's Tears for the Late Defeat at Marston Moor where his Beloved Dog named Boy was killed by a Valiant Soldier (Anonymous, 1644)
Further reading
- Stoyle, Mark. (2011) The Black Legend of Prince Rupert's Dog: Exeter: University of Exeter Press.