Inns of Court

London's four Inns of Court—Gray's Inn, Lincoln's Inn, the Inner Temple, and the Middle Temple—provided legal education to young men beginning in the 1300s. The Inns also became centers of intellectual and social activity in Renaissance England. Many of the men who attended them did not become practicing lawyers, but they used the Inns as a way to make connections with members of high society.

Beginning in the late 1400s, the Inns of Court became part of the growing humanist* movement. As in France and Italy, the lawyers of Renaissance England contributed to the growing interest in ancient cultures and history. By bringing together large numbers of students in the lively city of London, the Inns supported scholarship, creative writing, and patronage* of the arts and learning.

The Inns of Court also had a great impact on England's poetry and drama during the Renaissance. Life at the Inns included a steady diet of plays, dancing, and music. Many of England's finest Renaissance authors, including the poet John DONNE and the playwright John Ford, attended the Inns of Court. William SHAKESPEARE's plays The Comedy of Errors and Twelfth Night were also performed at the Inns.

* humanist: Renaissance expert in the humanities (the languages, literature, history, and speech and writing techniques of ancient Greece and Rome)
* patronage: support or financial sponsorship