Why was shakespeares acting troupe named kings men?

Answer 1

Before the reign of Queen Elizabeth, travelling troupes of actors were regularly prosecuted as vagabonds. However, as the status of actors improved, the Queen had a law passed which would allow troupes of actors to exist, provided that they had a noble or royal sponsor, or patron, who in theory employed the actors as servants. In reality, the patron had nothing to do with the day-to-day activity and business concerns of the actors, and in a bad economic climate, acting companies often went broke. But what the patron did give to the company was a name. During the reign of Queen Elizabeth, the patron of Shakespeare's company was the Lord Chancellor, Baron Hunsdon (and later his son, also Hunsdon and Lord Chancellor) so they were called the Chancellor's Servants or Chancellor's Men. When King James came to the throne, he and the royal family took over the patronage of all the larger acting companies, and he himself took over patronage of the Chancellor's Men, who of course thus became the King's Men.