March 26

On the 26th in 1484, William Caxton published his translation of Aesop’s Fables, in London, England. Aside from this date, little else is known with any certainty about Caxton. What is known is that he was the first English person to become a printer in England; his contemporaries in London were Dutch, French or German. Caxton was exposed to the printer’s trade during a tour of the continent. While in Germany, Caxton was bitten by the publishing bug and when he returned home, he immediately set about establishing himself as a printer and bookseller. Not surprisingly, he met with a great deal of resistance and outright hostility from the Merchant class in England, who felt that “if the printed page were to become widely available to the population, then it might filter through to the poor. The poor might then become aware and enlightened of their circumstances and, ultimately become dissatisfied and aggrieved.” You have to admit that his critics had made a damn good point. I have to admit that I am highly aggrieved.