The “Marlboro Men” of the Early Seventeenth Century

Abstract

In the course of the early seventeenth century, smoking tobacco changed from being a vice of social outcasts to a common pastime enjoyed in all echelons of Dutch society. Among the first to experiment with tobacco were male youths. This article questions why young men started using tobacco and explores possible “smoking” role models that might have influenced them to take up smoking. The most likely candidates were soldiers and civic guards, who, in general, were considered macho men. Besides being heroes on the battlefield and protectors of cities, these models of manhood were renowned to youngsters for their drinking, womanizing, and smoking. In the eyes of male youths, these activities were important liminal rites that demarcated boyhood from manhood.