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The Legacy of Civility
Historical Etiquette Texts
The following sampler of etiquette manuals, conduct guides, and social‑behavior texts are linked to freely accessible digital archives. While their guidance reflects the time in which they were written, each text enriches our understanding of courtesy, civility, and social life and invites us to consider their relevance today.
16th–17th Century
Considered a foundational text on etiquette and written during the Renaissance, the book's format is a fictional philosophical dialogue amongst members of an Italian court as they debate what makes a gentleman. The original manuscript was composed over the course of twenty years, from 1508 to 1528, at which time it was published by the Aldine Press in Venice. The English translation was particularly popular in Elizabeth England, the court of which had an affinity for Italian culture.
Baldassare Castiglione, translated by George Bull
1528
Reprinted 2003
Written by Erasmus of Rotterdam, the "Prince of the Humanists" and one of the most influential scholars of the Northern Renaissance. Widely considered the first major treatise on the moral and practical education of children in Western Europe. Originally written in Latin, the book was extremely popular and translated into many other languages. It became a source text for countless etiquette manuals thereafter.
Desiderius Erasmus
1560
An English translation of the famous 1558 Renaissance courtesy book, Il Galateo. Written by the Italian diplomat, writer, and clergyman, Archbishop Giovanni della Casa, from the perspective of a sage and mature character advising a young nephew. Described by an 18th century Italian critic, the book is "the most elegant thing, as to stile, that we have in our language."
Giovanni della Casa
1663
Written by a French diplomat, and building on other works including those of Erasmus and Della Casa, and the Jesuit manual, "Bienséance de la conversation entre les hommes." In a 20th century analysis, a critic asserts "Courtin's treatise is of interest not merely because it contains a careful treatment of the principles of civility but because it describes concretely many of the social practices of the day that are not ordinarily dealt with in courtesy books of the period."
Antoine de Courtin
1678
20th Century
Contemporary
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