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(14111  CENTURY) 


THE  MEDIAEVAL  STAGE 
BYE.K.CHAMBERS.VOL.II 


OXFORD    UNIVERSITY    PRESS 
M.CMIII 


Impression  of  ipaj 
Hrst  Edition  IQOJ 

This  impression  has  been  produced  photographically  by  the 
MUSTON  COMPANY,  from  sheets  of  the  First  Edition 


Printed  wholly  in  England  for  the  MusTON  COMPANY 

By  LOWE  &  BRYDONE,  PRINTERS,  LTD. 
PARK  STREET,  CAMDEN  TOWN,  LONDON,  N.W.  i. 


CONTENTS 

VOLUME  I 

PAGE 

PREFACE         . v 

LIST  OF  AUTHORITIES xiii 

BOOK  I.     MINSTRELSY 

CHAP. 

I.  THE  FALL  OF  THE  THEATRES i 

II.  MIMUS  AND  Sc6.p  .        .        .        .        .        .        .  23 

III.  THE  MINSTREL  LIFE 42 

IV.  THE  MINSTREL  REPERTORY 70 

BOOK  II.     FOLK  DRAMA  .,, 

V.  THE  RELIGION  OF  THE  FOLK 89 

VI.  VILLAGE  FESTIVALS 116 

VII.  FESTIVAL  PLAY 146 

VIII.  THE  MAY-GAME 160 

IX.  THE  SWORD-DANCE 182 

X.  THE  MUMMERS'  PLAY 205 

XI.  THE  BEGINNING  OF  WINTER         .         .         .         .         .228 
XII.  NEW  YEAR  CUSTOMS 249 

XIII.  THE  FEAST  OF  FOOLS 274 

XIV.  THE  FEAST  OF  FOOLS  (continued}         ,         .         .         .301 
XV.  THE  BOY  BISHOP         .         .         .         .         .         -         •     336 

XVI.  GUILD  FOOLS  AND  COURT  FOOLS.       -.         .         .         -372 
XVII.  MASKS  AND  MISRULE 390 


VOLUME  II 

BOOK  III.     RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

XVIII.  LITURGICAL  PLAYS i 

XIX.  LITURGICAL  PLAYS  (continued)     .         .         .         .  41 

XX.  THE  SECULARIZATION  OF  THE  PLAYS  ....       68 

XXL  GUILD  PLAYS  AND  PARISH  PLAYS        .        .        .        .106 

XXII.  GUILD  PLAYS  AND  PARISH  PLAYS  (continued^       .        .124 

XXIII.  MORALITIES,  PUPPET-PLAYS,  AND  PAGEANTS         .        -149 


iv  CONTENTS 


BOOK  IV.  THE  INTERLUDE 

CHAP.  PAGE 

XXIV.  PLAYERS  OF  INTERLUDES 179 

XXV.  HUMANISM  AND  MEDIAEVALISM 199 


APPENDICES 

A.  THE  TRIBUNUS  VOLUPTATUM 229 

B.  TOTA  loCULATORUM    ScENA 230 

C.  COURT  MINSTRELSY  IN  1306 234 

D.  THE  MINSTREL  HIERARCHY 238 

E.  EXTRACTS  FROM  ACCOUNT  BOOKS 240 

I.  Durham  Priory    . 240 

II.  Maxstoke  Priory 244 

III.  Thetford  Priory 245 

IV.  Winchester  College 246 

V.  Magdalen  College,  Oxford 248 

VI.  Shrewsbury  Corporation 250 

VII.  The  Howards  of  Stoke-by-Nayland,  Essex  .         -255 
VIII.  The  English  Court 256 

F.  MINSTREL  GUILDS    .        .        .        .        .        .        .        .258 

G.  THOMAS  DE  CABHAM         .......     262 

H.  PRINCELY  PLEASURES  AT  KKNIL^ORTH      ....     263 

I.  A  Squire  Minstrel       .         .        .         .         ,  .     263 

II.  The  Coventry  Hock-Tuesday  Show      .        .  .264 
I.  THE  INDIAN  VILLAGE  FEAST    ....  .     266 
J.  SWORD-DANCES .270 

I.  Sweden  (sixteenth  century) 270 

II.  Shetland  (eighteenth  century)  .  .  .  .271 
K.  THE  LUTTERWORTH  ST.  GEORGE  PLAY  .  .  .  .276 

L.  THE  PROSE  OF  THE  Ass 279 

M.  THE  BOY  BISHOP 282 

I.  The  Sarum  Office 282 

1  II.  The  York  Computus 287 

N.  WINTER  PROHIBITIONS 290 

O.  THE  REGULARIS  CONCORDIA  OF  ST.  ETHELWOLD  .  .  306 

P.  THE  DURHAM  SEPULCHRUM 310 

Q.  THE  SARUM  SEPULCHRUM 312 

R.  THE  DUBLIN  QUEM  QUAERITIS 315 


CONTENTS  v 

APP.  PAGE 

S.  THE  AUREA  MESA  OF  TOURNAI 318 

T.  SUBJECTS  OF  THE  CYCLICAL  MIRACLES      .        .        .        .321 
U.  INTIRLUDIUM  DE  CLERICO  ET  PUELLA       .        .        .        .324 

V.  TERENTIUS  ET  DELUSOR 326 

W.  REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS   ....    329 
X.  TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  AND  INTERLUDES  .        .        .    407 

I.  Miracle-Plays 407 

II.  Popular  Moralities 436 

III.  Tudor  Makers  of  Interludes .        .        .  .     443 

IV.  List  of  Early  Tudor  Interludes      ....     453 

SUBJECT  INDEX 462 


BOOK  III 

RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 


heje  vpon  a  doune, 

)?er  al  folk  hit  se  may, 
a  mile  from  J?e  toune, 

aboute  J>e  midday, 
f>e  rode  is  vp  arered ; 
his  frendes  aren  afered, 

ant  clynge)>  so  J>e  clay; 
]>z  rode  stond  in  stone, 
marie  stont  hire  one, 

ant  seij?  f  weylaway  * ! 


CHAPTER  XVIII 
LITURGICAL    PLAYS 

[Bibliographical  Note.  —  The  liturgical  drama  is  fully  treated  by 
W.  Creizenach,  Geschichte  des  neurren  Dramas  (vol.  i,  1893),  Bk.  2; 
L.  Petit  de  Julleville,  Les  Mystires(iSSo),  vol.  i.  ch.  2 ;  A.  df  Ancona,  Origini 
del  Teatro  Italiano  (2nd  ed.  1891),  Bk.  i,  chh.  3-6;  M.  Sepet,  Origines 
catholiques  du  Theatre  moderne  (1901),  and  by  L.  Gautier  in  Le  Monde 
for  Aug.  and  Sept.  1872.  'The  studies  of  W.  Meyer,  Fragmenta  Burana 
(1901),  and  C.  Davidson,  English  Mystery  Plays  (1892),  are  also  valuable. 
A.  W.  Ward,  History  of  English  Dramatic  Literature  (2nd  ed.  1899),  vol. 
i.  ch.  I  deals  very  slightly  with  the  subject.  A  good  popular  account  is 
M.  Sepet,  Le  Drame  chrttien  an  Moyen  Age  (1878).  Of  older  works,  the 
introduction  to  E.  Du  Merit's  Origines  latines  du  Thtdtre  moderne  (1849, 
facsimile  reprint,  1896)  is  the  best.  The  material  collected  for  vol.  ii  of 
C.  Magnin's  Origines  du  Theatre  is  only  available  in  the  form  of  reviews  in 
the  Journal  des  Savants  (1846-7),  and  lecture  notes  in  the  Journal  gtntral 
de  r  Instruction  publique  (1834-6).  Articles  by  F.  Clement,  L.  Deschamps 
de  Pas,  A.  de  la  Fons-Melicocq,  and  others  in  A.  N.  Didron's  Annales 
arche'ologiques  (1844-72)  are  worth  consulting;  those  of  F.  Clement  are 
reproduced  in  his  Histoire  de  la  Musique  religieuse  (1860).  There  are 
also  some  notices  in  J.  de  Douhet,  Dictionnaire  des  My  stores  (1854). 
— The  texts  of  the  Quern  quaeritis  are  to  be  studied  in  G.  Milchsack,  Die 
Oster-und  Passionsspiele,  vol.  i  (all  published,  1880),  and  C.  Lange,  Die 
lateinischen  Osterfeiern  (1887).  The  former  compares  28,  the  latter  no 
less  than  224  manuscripts.  The  best  general  collection  of  texts  is  that  of 
Du  M^ril  already  named :  others  are  T.  Wright,  Early  Mysteries  and 
other  Latin  Poems  (1838) ;  E.  de  Coussemaker,  Drames  liturgiques  du 
pfoyen  Age  (1860),  which  is  valuable  as  giving  the  music  as  well  as  the 
words ;  and  A.  Gast£,  Les  Drames  liturgiques  de  la  Cathe*drale  de  Rouen 
{^893).  A  few,  including  the  important  Antichristus>  are  given  by 
R.  Froning,  Das  Drama  des  Mittelalters  (1891).  The  original  sources 
lire  in  most  cases  the  ordinary  service-books.  But  a  twelfth-century  manu- 
||rtpt  from  St.  Martial  of  Limoges  (Bibl.  Nat.  Lat.  1139)  has  four  plays, 
a  Quern  quaeritis^  a  Rachel^  a  Prophetae^  and  the  Sponsus.  Facsimiles 
are  in  E.  de  Coussemaker,  Histoire  de  ?Harmonie  au  Moyen  Age  (18*2). 
A  thirteenth-century  manuscript  from  Fleury  (Orleans  MS.  178)  has  no  less 
than  ten,  a  Quern  quaeritis^  a  Peregrin*,  a  Stella  in  two  parts,  a  Conversio 
Paulij  a  Suscitatio  Lazari  and  four  Miracula  S.  Nicholai.  Two  later 
plays  and  fragments  of  three  others  are  found  in  the  famous  thirteenth- 
century  manuscript  from  Benedictbeuern  (Munich  MS.  19,486,  printed  in 
J.  A.  Schmeller,  Carmina  Buranay  3rd  ed.  1894,  with  additional  fragments 
in  W.  Meyer,  Fragmenta  Burana,  1901).  This  is  probably  the  repertory 
of  travelling  goliardic  clerks.  The  twelfth-century  manuscript  which 
preserves  the  three  plays  of  Hilarius  (Bibl.  Nat.  Lat.  11,331,  printed  in 
J.  J.  Champollion-Figeac,  Hilarii  Versus  et  Ludi,  1838)  is  of  a  similar 
character.— The  tropes  are  fully  dealt  with  by  L.  Gautier,  Hist,  de  la 

B 


2  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

Potsi*  titurgique  au  Moyen  Age,  vol.  i  (all  published,  1886),  and  W.  H. 
Frcre,  The  Winchester  Troper  (1894).  I  have  not  been  able  to  see 
A.  Reiners,  Die  Tropen-,  Prosen-  und  Prafations-Gesange  des  feierlichen 
Hochamtes  im  Mittelalter  (1884).  Antiquarian  data  are  collected  by 
H.  J.  Feasey,  Ancient  English  Holy  Week  Ceremonial  (1897),  and 
A.  Heales,  Easter  Sepulchres,  in  Archaeologia,  vol.  xlii.  I  have  printed 
an  important  passage  from  the  Regularis  Concordia  of  St.  Ethelwold 
(965-75)  in  Appendix  O.  The  Planctus  Mariae  are  treated  by  A.  Sch6n- 
bach,  Die  Marienklagen  (1874),  and  E.  Wechssler,  Die  romanischen 
Marienklagen  ( 1 893 ).  W.  Koppen,  Beitrdge  zur  Geschichte  der  deutschen 
Weihnachtsspiele  (1893),  and  M.  Sepet,  Les  Prophltes  du  Christ  (1878), 
contain  valuable  studies  of  the  evolution  of  the  Stella  and  the  Prophetae 
respectively.  The  relation  of 'dramatic  to  iconic  art  in  the  Middle  Ages  is 
brought  out  by  P.  Weber,  Geistliches  Schauspiel  und  kirchliche  Kunst 
(1894).  A  rather  primitive  bibliography  is  F.  H.  Stoddard,  References  for 
Students  of  Miracle  Plays  and  Mysteries  (1887).— Authorities  forEnglish 
facts  given  without  references  in  the  present  volume  will  be  found  in 
Appendices  W  and  X.] 

THE  discussions  of  the  first  volume  have  often  wandered 
far  enough  from  the  history  of  the  stage.  But  two  or  three 
tolerable  generalizations  emerge.  The  drama  as  a  living 
form  of  art  went  completely  under  at  the  break-up  of  the 
Roman  world  :  a  process  of  natural  decay  was  accelerated  by 
the  hostility  of  Christianity,  which  denied  the  theatre,  and 
by  the  indifference  of  barbarism,  which  had  never  imagined  it. 
If  anything  of  a  histrionic  tradition  survived,  it  took  the  shape 
of  pitiable  farce,  one  amongst  many  heterogeneous  elements 
in  the  spectacula  of  disreputable  mimes.  For  the  men  of  the 
Middle  Ages,  however,  peasants  or  burghers,  monks  or  nobles, 
such  spectacula  had  a  constant  attraction  :  and  the  persistence 
of  the  deep-rooted  mimetic  instinct  in  the  folk  is  proved  by 
the  frequent  outcrops  of  primitive  drama  in  the  course  of 
those  popular  observances  which  are  the  last  sportive  stage 
of  ancient  heathen  ritual.  Whether  of  folk  or  of  minstrel 
origin,  the  ludi  remained  to  the  last  alien  and  distasteful  to 
the  Church.  The  degradation  of  Rome  and  Constantinople 
by  the  stage  was  never  forgotten  ;  nor  the  association  with  an 
heathenism  that  was  glossed  over  rather  than  extinct :  and 
though  a  working  compromise  inevitably  tended  to  establish 
itself,  it  remained  subject  to  perpetual  protest  from  the 
austerer  spirit  in  the  counsels  of  the  clergy. 

It  is  the  more  remarkable  that  the  present  volume  has  to 
describe  a  most  singular  new  birth  of  the  drama  in  the  very 
bosom  of  the  Church's  own  ritual.  One  may  look  at  the 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS 


3 


event  as  one  will,  either  as  an  audacious,  and  at  least  partly 
successful,  attempt  to  wrest  the  pomps  of  the  devil  to  a 
spiritual  service,  or  as  an  inevitable  and  ironical  recoil  of 
a  barred  human  instinct  within  the  hearts  of  its  gaolers  them- 
selves. From  either  point  of  view  it  is  a  fact  which  the 
student  of  European  culture  cannot  afford  to  neglect.  And 
apart  from  its  sociological  implications,  apart  from  the  insight 
which  it  gives  into  the  temper  of  the  folk  and  into  the  appeal 
of  religion,  it  is  of  the  highest  interest  as  an  objpct  lesson  in 
literary  evolution.  The  historian  is  not  often  privileged  to 
isolate  a  definite  literary  form  throughout  the  whole  course 
of  its  development,  and  to  trace  its  rudimentary  beginnings, 
as  may  here  be  done,  beyond  the  very  borders  of  articulate 
speech. 

The  dramatic  tendencies  of  Christian  worship  declared 
themselves  at  an  early  period  l.  At  least  from  the  fourth 
century,  the  central  and  most  solemn  rite  of  that  worship  was 
the  Mass,  an  essentially  dramatic  commemoration  of  one  of 
the  most  critical  moments  in  the  life  of  the  Founder 2.  It  is 


1  On  these  tendencies  generally, 
see  Davidson,  130;  Ward,  i.  32; 
R.  Rosi&res,  SocittJ  fran$aise  au 
Moyen  Age^  ii.  228 ;  E.  King, 
Dramatic  Art  and  Church  Liturgy 
(Dublin  Review,  cxxv.  43).  Mediae- 
val liturgiologists  such  as  Belethus, 
Durandus,  and  Honorius  of  Autun 
(P.L.  clxxii),  lay  great  stress  on  the 
symbolical  aspect  of  ritual  and  cere- 
monial. J.  M.  Robertson,  The 
Gospel  Mystery-Play  (The  Re- 
former,  N.S.  iii  (1901),  657),  makes 
an  ingenious  attempt  to  show  that 
the  earlier  gospel  narratives  of  the 
Passion,  those  of  Saints  Matthew 
and  Mark,  are  based  upon  a 
dramatic  version.  This,  he  thinks, 
to  have  been  on  classical  lines,  and 
to  have  been  performed  liturgically 
until  about  the  second  century, 
when  it  was  dropped  in  deference 
to  the  ascetic  views  of  the  stage  then 
prevalent  (cf.  vol.  i.  p.  1 1).  But  the 
narrative,  with  its  short  speeches, 
its  crowd  of  characters  and  its 
sufferings  'coram  populo*  cannot, 
on  the  face  of  it,  be  derived  from  a 


classical  drama.  A  nearer  parallel 
would  be  the  Graeco-Jewish'Ef  aywyij 
of  Ezechiel  (first  century  B.C.,  cf. 
Ward,  i.  3).  The  Gospel  narrative 
is,  no  doubt,  mainly  *a  presenta- 
tion of  dramatic  action  and  dia- 
logue * ;  but  this  may  be  because  it 
was  built  up  around  Logia.  Of 
external  evidence  for  Mr.  Robert- 
son's view  there  is  none.  The  ritual  of 
the  first  two  centuries  was  probably 
a  very  simple  one ;  cf.  F.  E.  Warren, 
Liturgy  of  the  Ante-Nicene  Church , 
54.  The  earliest  liturgical  dramas, 
even  in  the  Greek  churches,  and 
those  only  guessed  at,  are  of  the 
fourth  (cf.  p.  206).  Mr.  Robertson 
claims  support  from  Gatatians,  iii.  i 
of?  /car*  oy>0aX/Lioirff  'Irjarovs  Xpiorbs 
rrpotypdcfrr)  t'orat/pctytcpo?.  Lightfoot, 
however,  declares  that  the  meaning 
of  npoypafatv  is  '  write  up  in  public/ 
1  placard/  '  proclaim.'  If  it  cannot, 
as  he  says,  mean  '  paint/  still  less 
can  it  mean  *  represent  dramati- 
cally.' 

2  Duchesne,  47:  A.  V.  G.  Allen, 
Christian  Institutions,  515. 


B  2 


4  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

his  very  acts  and  words  that  day  by  day  throughout  the  year 
the  officiating  priest  resumes  in  the  face  of  the  people.  And 
when  the  conception  of  the  Mass  developed  until  instead  of 
a  mere  symbolical  commemoration  it  was  looked  upon  as  an 
actual  repetition  of  the  initial  sacrifice,  the  dramatic  character 
was  only  intensified.  So  far  as  the  Canon  of  the  Mass  goes, 
this  point  needs  no  pressing.  But  the  same  liturgical  princi- 
ple governs  many  other  episodes  in  the  order  of  the  mediaeval 
services.  Take,  for  example)  the  ritual,  of  Gallican  origin, 
used  at  the  dedication  of  a  church  l.  The  bishop  and  his 
procession  approach  the  closed  doors  of  the  church  from 
without,  but  one  of  the  clergy,  quasi  latens,  is  placed  inside. 
Three  blows  with  a  staff  are  given  on  the  doors,  and  the 
anthem  is  raised  Tollite  portas,  principes,  vestras  et  elevamini, 
portae  aeternales,  et  introibit  Rex  glorias.  From  within  comes 
the  question  Qttis  est  iste  'rex  gloriae  ?  and  the  reply  is  given 
Dominus  virtutum  ipse  €st  Rex  gloriae.  Then  the  doors  are 
opened,  and  as  the  procession  sweeps  through,  he  who  was 
concealed  within  slips  out,  quasi  fugiens,  to  join  the  train.  It 
is  a  dramatic  expulsion  of  the  spirit  of  evil.  A  number  of 
other  instances  are  furnished  by  the  elaborate  rites  of  Holy 
week.  Thus  on  Palm  Sunday,  in  commemoration  of  the 
entry  into  Jerusalem,  the  usual  procession  before  Mass  was 
extended,  and  went  outside  the  church  and  round  the  church- 
yard or  close  bearing  palms,  or  in  their  place  sprigs  of  yew, 
box,  or  withies,  which  the  priest  had  previously  blessed2, 

1  Duchesne,  393,  469,  with  the  chcsne,  486)  as  already  in  use  at 
Ordo  dedications  Ecclesiae  from  a  Jerusalem  in   the  fourth    century, 
ninth-century  Metz  Sacramentary  *  Etiain  cum  coeperitesse  hora  uncle- 
tfcere  printed  ;    Maskell,  Monum.  cima,  legitur  ille  locus  de  evangelic, 
Rit.  EccL  AngL  (1882)  I.  cccxxvi,  ubi  infantes  cum  ramis  vel  palmis 
196,  with  text  from  Sarum  Pontifi-  occurrerunt     Domino,     dicentes : 
caL    The  ceremonies  are  symboli-  Benedictus   qui  venit   in   nomine 
cally   explained    by  Hugo  of  St.  Domini.     Et  statim  levat  se  epi- 
Victor,  de  Sacramentis,  ii.  5. 3  (P.  Z,;  scopus  et  omnis  populus  porro :  inde 
clxxvi,  441),  who  says, 'Interrogate  de  summo    monte    Oliveti   totum 
inclusi.  ignorantia  populi.1  pedibus  itur.    Nam  totus  populus 

2  Duchesne,  236;   Martene,  iii.  ante  ipsum  cum  ymnis  vel  anti- 
71 ;  Gast£,  69 ;  Feasey,  53  ;  Use  of  phonis,respondentes  semper:  Bene- 
-Sarum,  i.  59 ;  Sarum  Missal,  258 ;  dictus  qui  venit  in  nomine  Domini. 
Sarum    Processional,    47;     York  Etcjuotquot  sunt  infantes  in  hisdem 
Missal,  i.  84  ;    York  Processional^  locis,usque  etiam  qui  pedibus  ambu- 
148.    The  custom  is  described  in  lare  non  possunt,  quia  teneri  sunt, 
the    Peregrinatio    Silviae    (Du-  in  collo  illos  parentes  sui  tenent, 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS 


5 


The  introduction  of  *  Palmeul  might  make  the  ceremony 
more  dramatic  still 2.  Some  of  the  texts  used  were  of  a  pro- 
phetic character,  and  the  singer  of  these  was  occasionally 
dressed  as  a  prophet 2.  At  the  doors  of  the  church  the  pro- 
cession was  greeted  by  boys  stationed  upon  the  roof  of  the 
porch,  and  certain  French  uses  transferred  to  the  occasion  the 
dedication  solemnity  of  Tottite  portas  just  described 3.  The 
reading  of  the  gospel  narratives  of  the  Passion,  which  on 
Palm  Sunday,  on  the  Monday  or  Tuesday,  and  the  Wednes- 
day in  Holy  week  and  on  Good  Friday  preceded  the  Gospel 
proper,  was  often  resolved  into  a  regular  oratorio.  A  tenor 
voice  rendered  the  narrative  of  the  evangelist,  a  treble  the 
sayings  of  Jews  and  disciples,  a  bass  those  of  Christ  himself4. 
To  particular  episodes  of  these  Passions  special  dramatic 
action  was  appropriated.  On  Wednesday,  at  the  words  Velum 
templi  scissum  est,  the  Lenten  veil,  which  since  the  first  Sunday 
in  Lent  had  hidden  the  sanctuary  from  the  sight  of  the 
people,  was  dropped  to  the  ground 5.  On  Good  Friday  the 


omnes  ramos  tenentes,  alii  palma- 
rum,  alii  olivarum  ;  et  sic  deducitur 
episcppus  in  eo  typo  quo  tune 
Dominus  deductus  est.  Et  de 
summo  monte  usqce  ad  civitatem, 
et  inde  ad  Anastase  per  totam  civi- 
tatem, totum  pedibus  omnes,  sed  et 
si  quae  matronae  sunt  aut  si  qui 
domini,  sic  deducunt  episcopum 
respondentes,  et  sic  lente  et  lente, 
ne  lassetur  populus ;  porro  Jam  sera 
pervenitur  ad  Anastase.' 

1  Cf.  ch.xiv. 

2  Collier,  i.  82 ;  Ffcasey,  68,  75, 
quoting  payments  *  for  the  prophets.1 
their  '  raiment/  '  stages  '  for  them, 
&c.,  from  sixteenth-century  Revels 
and  churchwardens'  accounts.   The 
Sarum  Processional,  50  (from  eds. 
1508,  1517),  has  'finito  evangelio, 
unus  puer  ad  modum  prophetae  in* 
dutus,  stans  in  aliquo  eminent!  loco, 
cantat  lectionem  propheticam  modo 
cjuo  sequitur.'    Then  come  alternat- 
ing passages  between  the  'propheta' 
and  '  tres  clerici.'  Perhaps  the  latter 
were  also  sometimes  disguised,  but 
the  Sarum  Processional,  as  well  as 
the   thirteenth-century    Consuetu- 


dinary and  the  York  Missal  (MS. 
D),  all  specify  that  the  clergy,  other 
than  the  prophet,  shall  be  'habitu 
non  mutato.'  Several  of  the  London 
records  given  by  Mr.Feasey  mention 
an  '  angel/  and  one  of  them  a 
'chylde  that  playde  a  messenger.* 
A  Coutances  Order  of  1573  (Gast^, 
74)  forbids  '  spectacula  .  .  .  cum 
habitibus  inhonestis '  at  the  Gospel 
during  Mass  on  Palm  Sunday. 

5  Martene,  iii.  72  ;  Gastd,  72  ;  R. 
Twigge,  Mediaeval  Service  Bks. 
of  Aquitaine  (Dublin  Review,  cxv. 
294  ;  cxvii.  67)  ;  Pearson,  ii.  296. 

*  Sarum  Missal,  264.  The  York 
Missal,  i.  102,  says,  for  Good  Friday, 
'  Diaconus  legat  Passionem,'  but 
MS.  D.  adds  *  vel  legatur  a  tribus 
Presbyteris,  si  sic  ordinatum  erit.' 
Payments  for  the  singers  of  the 
Passion  are  quoted  from  church- 
wardens' accounts  (1447-1562)  by 
Feasey ,  8 1 .  The  singing  was  some- 
times done  from  the  rood  loft. 

1  Feasey,  17  ;  Use  of  Sarum,  i. 
140  'quarta  autem  feriaante  pascha 
dum  passio  domini  legitur  ad  pro- 
lacionem  ipsius  clausulae  Velum 


6  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

words  Partiti  stint  vestimenta  were  a  signal  for  a  similar 
bit  of  by-play  with  a  linen  cloth  which  lay  upon  the  altar  * 
Maundy  Thursday  had  its  commemorative  ceremony  of  the 
washing  of  feet  2 ;  while  the  Ttnebrae  or  solemn  extinction, 
one  after  another,  of  lights  at  the  Matins  of  the  last  three  days 
of  the  week,  was  held  to  symbolize  the  grief  of  the  apostles 
and  others  whom  those  lights  represented  3. 

These,  and  many  other  fragments  of  ceremonial,  have  the  po- 
tentiality of  dramatic  development.  Symbolism,  mimetic  action, 
are  there.  The  other  important  factor,  of  dialogued  speech,  is 
latent  in  the  practice  of  antiphonal  singing.  The  character- 
istic type  of  Roman  chant  is  that  whereby  the  two  halves  of  the 
choir  answer  one  another,  or  the  whole  choir  answers  the  single 
voice  of  the  cantor ',  in  alternate  versicle  and  respond  4.  The 
antiphon  was  introduced  into  Italy  by  St.  Ambrose  of  Milan. 
It  had  originated,  according  to  tradition,  in  Antioch,  had 
been  in  some  relation  to  the  histrionic  tendencies  of  Arianism, 
and  was  possibly  not  altogether  uninfluenced  by  the  traditions 
both  of  the  Greek  tragic  chorus  and  of  Jewish  psalmody5. 


templi   scissum    est :    praedictum  York  Missal,  i.  102  c  hie  distrahan- 

velum  in  area  presbiterii  decidat.'  tur  linteamina  super   altare   con- 

The  same  rubric  is  in  the  Wells  nexa ' ;    Sarum  Missal^  323  *  hie 

Ordinale  (H.  E.  Reynolds,   Wells  accedant  duo  ministri  in  superpelli- 

Cathedral)  42).  ceis,  unus  ad  dextrum  et  alius  ad 

1  J.  W.  Legg,  Westminster  Missal  sinistrum  cornu  altaris ;  et  inde  duo 

(H.B.S.),    1469;    G.    F.  Aungier,  linteamina  amoveant  quae  ad  hoc 

Hist,  and  Antiq. of  Sy on  Monastery,  super  altare  fuerunt  apposita.'    I 

350;    Lanfranc,  Decreta  pro  Ord.  find  the  custom  in  Aquitaine(Z>#£//# 

S.Bened.(P.L.c\.  465)  'Ubi  dicitur  Remew(  1897),  3^6),  and  in  Hungary 

Partiti  sunt  vestimenta  mea  sibi,  (Dank6,  Vetus  Hymnarium  Eccles. 

sint  duo  de  indutis   iuxta  altare,  Hungariae>  534)« 

hinc  et  inde  trahentes  ad  se  duos  2  Martene,  iii.  99 ;  Feasey,  107  ; 

pannos  qui  ante  officium  super  altare  Wordsworth,  1 84. 

missi  fuerant,  linteo  tamen  rema-  *  Feasey,  84 ;  Wordsworth,  290. 

nente  subtus  missale ' ;    Leofnc's  *  Strictly  speaking  the  Antiphon 

Missal  (Exeter,  eleventh  century),  is  begun  by  one  half  of  the  choir 

261  '  hac  expleta  statim  duo  diaconi  and  finished  by  the  other ;  the  Re- 

nudant  altare  sindone  quae  prius  sponsorium  is  a  solo  with  a  short 

fuerit  •  sub    evangelic    posita     in  refrain  sung  by  the  choir,  like  the 

modum  furantis.    Aliqui  vero,  ante-  secular  carole ;  cf.  ch.  viii,  and  Use 

quam  legatur  passio  domini,  prae-  of  Sarum,  i.  307  ;    Dank6,  Vetus 

parant sindones  duas  sibi  coherentes  Hymnarium  EccL  Hung.  II. 

et  in  eo  versu  ubi  legitur:  Partiti  5  Duchesne,  108;  Davidson,  134; 

sunt  'vestimenta^  scindunt  hinc  inde  F.  E.  Warren,  Liturgy  of  the  Ante- 

ipsas   sindones  desuper  altare  in  Nicene  Church,  74. 
modum  furantis^et  secum  auferunt  *; . 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS  7 

At  any  rate,  it  lent  itself  naturally  to  dialogue,  and  it  is  from 
the  antiphon  that  the  actual  evolution  of  the  liturgical  drama 
starts*  The  course  of  that  evolution  must  now  be  followed. 

The  choral  portions  of  the  Mass  were  stereotyped  about 
the  end  of  the  sixth  century  in  the  Antiphonarium  ascribed 
to  Gregory  the  Great l.  This  compilation,  which  included 
a  variety  of  antiphons  arranged  for  the  different  feasts  and 
seasons  of  the  year,  answered  the  needs  of  worship  for  some 
two  hundred  years.  With  the  ninth  century,  however,  began 
a  process,  which  culminated  in  the  eleventh,  of  liturgical 
elaboration.  Splendid  churches,  costly  vestments,  protracted 
offices,  magnificent  processions,  answered  especially  in  the 
great  monasteries  to  a  heightened  sense  of  the  significance  of 
cult  in  general,  and  of  the  Eucharist  in  particular  2.  Naturally 
ecclesiastical  music  did  not  escape  the  influence  of  this  move- 
ment The  traditional  Antiphonarium  seemed  inadequate  to 
the  capacities  of  aspiring  choirs.  The  Gregorian  texts  were 
not  replaced,  but  they  were  supplemented.  New  melodies 
were  inserted  at  the  beginning  or  end  or  even  in  the  middle 
of  the  old  antiphons.  And  now  I  come  to  the  justification  of 
the  statement  made  two  or  three  pages  back,  that  the  begin- 
nings of  the  liturgical  drama  lie  beyond  the  very  borders 
of  articulate  speech.  For  the  earliest  of  such  adventitious 
melodies  were  sung  not  to  words  at  all,  but  to  vowel  sounds 
alone.  These,  for  which  precedent  existed  in  the  Gregorian 
Antiphonarium^  are  known  as  neumae  8.  Obviously  the  next 
stage  was  to  write  texts,  called  generically  c  tropes/  to  them  ; 
and  towards  the  end  of  the  ninth  century  three  more  or  less 
independent  schools  of  trope-writers  grew  up.  One,  in 
northern  France,  produced  Adam  of  St.  Victor ;  of  another, 

1  Frere,  vi.   The  Gregorian  Liber  Aemukbatur  tamen  quaeque  gens 

Antiphonarius  is  in  P.L.  kxviii,  641 .  Christicolarum    adversus    alteram 

*  Radulphus    Glaber,   Hist,  sui  decentiore  frui.    Erat  enim  instar 

Temporis  (t  1044),  iii.  4  (Bouquet,  ac  si  mundus  ipse  excutiendo  semet, 

Rerum  Gallic,  et  Frantic.  Script,  x.  reiecta  vetustate,  passim  candidam 

29)  *  Igitur  infra  supradictum  mille-  ecclesiarum  vestem  induerit.' 
simum  tertio  iam  fere  imminente         *  Ekkehardus,    Vita  B.  Notkeri 

anno,  contigit  in  universe  pene  ter-  Balbuli>    c.  xvi  (Goldast,  Rerum 

rarum    orbe,  praecipue   tamen    in  Alaman.  Script.  i.   235)  'lubiius, 

Italia  et  in  Galliis,  innovari  Ecclesi-  id  est  neuma  ...  si  autem  tristitiae 

arupi  Basilicas,  licet  pleraeque  de-  fuerit  oratio,  ululatus  dicitur,  si  veto 

center  locatae  minime  indiguissent.  gaudii,  iubilus.' 


8  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

at  the  Benedictine  abbey  of  St.  Gall  near  Constance,  Notker 
and  Tutilo  are  the  greatest  names  ;  the  third,  in  northern 
Italy,  has  hitherto  been  little  studied.  The  Troparia  or  col- 
lections of  tropes  form  choir-books,  supplementary  to  the 
Antiphonaria.  After  the  thirteenth  century,  when  trope- 
writing  fell  into  comparative  desuetude,  they  become  rare ; 
and  such  tropes  as  were  retained  find  a  place  in  the  ordinary 
service-books,  especially  the  later  successor  of  the  Antipho- 
aarium,  the  Graduate.  The  tropes  attached  themselves  in 
varying  degrees  to  most  of  the  choral  portions  of  the  Mass. 
Perhaps  those  of  the  Alleluia  at  the  end  of  the  Graduate  are 
in  themselves  the  most  important.  They  received  the  specific 
names,  in  Germany  of  Sequentiae,  and  in  France  of  Prosae> 
and  they  include,  in  their  later  metrical  stages,  some  of  the 
most  remarkable  of  mediaeval  hymns.  But  more  interesting 
from  our  particular  point  of  view  are  the  tropes  of  the  Officium 
or  Introit)  the  antiphon  and  psalm  sung  by  the  choir  at  the 
beginning  of  Mass,  as  the  celebrant  approaches  the  altar 1. 

Several  Introit  tropes  take  a  dialogue  form.  The  following  is  a 
ninth-century  Christmas  example  ascribed  toTutilo  of  St.  Gall2. 

4  Hodie  cantandus  est  nobis  puer,  quern  gignebat  ineffabiliter 
ante  tempora  pater,  et  eundem  sub  tempore  generavit  inclyta 
mater. 

1  Gautier,  Les  Tropes,  passim ;  Chester,     Canterbury,    Worcester, 

Winchester    Troper^    vi ;    Dank6,  St.     Albans,     Dublin ;    Pamelius, 

Vetus  Hymnarium    Eccles.  Hun-  Liturgicon(lfaQ))\\.bll  an  English 

gariae,  15  ;  Julleville,  Myst.  i.  21  ;  Troper  in  the  library  of  St.  Bavon's, 

Creizenach,  i.  47.  Gautier,  i,  defines  Ghent.     Amongst    tropes    in    the 

a  trope,  'Qu'est-ce  qu'un  Trope?  wider    sense    are    included    the 

C'est  Tinterpolation  d'un  texte  htur-  farsurae  (vol.  i.  p.  377).  Many  of  the 

gique,'  and  M.  Gerbert,  de  cantu  later  tropes  are  trivial,  indecent,  or 

et    musica    sacra    (1774),    *•    34?  profane.      They  are  doubtless  the 

'Tropus,  in  re  liturgica,  est  versi-  work  si goliardi  (vol.  i.  p,  60). 

culus  quidam  aut  etiam  plures  ante  *  St.  Gall  MS.  484,  f.  13  (ninth 

intervelpostaliosecclesiasticoscan-  century);  cf.  Gautier,  34,  62,  139, 

tus  appositi.'    Of  earlier  writers*  cf.  218  ;     Winchester     Troper^    xvi ; 

Durandus,  iv.  5  *  Est  autem  proprie  Meyer,  34.    It  is  also  in  the  Win- 

tropus  quidam  versiculus  qui  in  prae-  Chester    Tropers     (tenth-eleventh 

cipuis  festiyitatibus  cantatur  imme-  century),  and  the  Canterbury  Tro- 

diate  ante  introitum  quasi  quoddam  per  (fourth  century),  and  is  printed 

praeambulum  et  continuatio  ipsius  therefrom  in    Winchester  Troper, 

introitus.'    Gautier,  in,  describes  4,  102.  Here  it  is  divided  between 

a  large  number  of  Tropers  ;  Frere,  two  groups  of  Cantore$>  and  has  the 

Winchester    Troper^    xxvii,    xxx,  heading  *  Versus  ante  officium  ca- 

those  of  English  uses  from  Win-  nendi  in  die  Natalis  Domini9 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS  9 

lnt\errogatio\. 

quis  est  iste  puer  quern  tarn  magnis  praeconiis  dignum 
vociferatis  ?    dicite  nobis  ut  collaudatores  esse  possimus. 
Resp\pnsio\, 

hie  enim  est  quern  praesagus  et  electus  symmista  dei  ad 
terram  venturum  praeuidens  longe  ante  praenotavit,  sicque 
praedixit/ 

The  nature  of  this  trope  is  obvious.  It  was  sung  by  two 
groups  of  voices,  and  its  closing  words  directly  Introduce  the 
Introit  for  the  third  mass  (Magna  missa)  on  Christmas  day, 
which  must  have  followed  without  a  break  1.  It  is  an  example 
of  some  half  a  dozen  dialogued  Introit  tropes,  which  might 
have,  but  did  not,  become  the  starting-point  for  further  dra- 
matic evolution 2.  Much  more  significant  is  another  trope  of 
unknown  authorship  found  in  the  same  St.  Gall  manuscript 8. 
This  is  for  Easter,  and  is  briefly  known  as  the  Quern  quaeritis. 
The  text,  unlike  that  of  the  Hodie  cantandus,  is  based  closely 
upon  the  Gospels.  It  is  an  adaptation  to  the  form  of  dialogue 
of  the  interview  between  the  three  Maries  and  the  angel  at 
the  tomb  as  told  by  Saints  Matthew  and  Mark  4. 

'Quern  quaeritis  in  sepulchro,  [o]  Christicolae ? 
lesum  Nazarenum  crucifixum,  o  caelicolae. 

non  est  hie,  surrexit  sicut  praedixerat. 
ite,  nuntiate  quia  surrexit  de  sepulchro. 

Resurrexi*! 

This  is  the  earliest  and  simplest  form  of  the  Quern  quaeritis. 

1  The  Introit  is :  '  Puer  natus  est  rr&.s'vermssacerdotales in  Hartker's 

nobis,  et  films    datus    est  nobis :  tenth-century  St.  Gall  Antiphona- 

cuius    imperium    super   humerum  rium  (J.  M.  Thomasius,  Opera,  iv. 

eius,    et     yocabitur    nomen    eius  187). 

magni  consilii  angelus.  Ps>  Cantate  *  St.  Gall  MS.  484,  f.  \\\  printed 

domino  canticum  novum.'  and   facsimiled    by    Gautier,  916, 

8  Gautier,  219,  prints  a  dialogued  220. 

trope  for  a  feast  of  St.  Peter  from  *  S.   Matthew  xxviii.   1-7  ;     S. 

an  eleventh-century  troper  of  St.  Mark  xvi.  1-7. 

Martial  of  L,imoges :  the  Winches-  "  The  Introit  is  :  '  Resurrexi  et 

ter  Troper^  6,  103,  has  one  for  St.  adhuc  tecum  sum,  alleluia :  posui- 

Stephen's   day    (Winchester)  and  sti  super  me  manum  tuam,  alle- 

one  for  St.  John  the  Evangelist's  Una;    mirabilis  facta  est  scientia 

(Canterbury).      Meyer,    35,    calls  tua.  alleluia,  alleluia.    Ps.  Domine, 

attention  to  the  dialogued  Christ-  probasti  me/ 


10  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

It  recurs,  almost  unaltered,  in  a  tenth-century  troper  from 
St.  Martial  of  Limoges  *.  In  eleventh-century  tropers  of  the 
same  church  it  is  a  little  more  elaborate  2. 

'TROPUS  IN  DIE. 

Quern  quaeritis  in  sepulchro,  Christicolae  ? 
Ihesum  Nazarenum  crucifixum,  o  caelicole. 

non  est  hie,  surrexit  sicut  praedixerat, 
ite,  nuntiate  quia  surrexit.    Alleluia. 

ad  sepulchrum  residens  angelus  nuntiat  resurrexisse 

Christum  : 
en  ecce  completum  est  illud  quod  olim  ipse  per  pro- 

phetam  dixerat  ad  patrem  taliter  inquiens, 

Resurrexi! 

Here  the  appended  portion  of  narrative  makes  the  trope 
slightly  less  dramatic.  Yet  another  addition  is  made  in  one 
of  the  Limoges  manuscripts.  Just  as  the  trope  introduces  the 
Introit)  so  it  is  itself  introduced  by  the  following  words : 

'Hora  est,  psallite.    iube,  dompnus,  canere. 
eia,  eia,  dicite.' 

As  M.  Gautier  puts  it,  the  trope  is  troped  3. 

In  the  Easter  Quern  quaeritis  the  liturgical  drama  was  born, 
and  to  it  I  shall  return.  But  it  must  first  be  noted  that  it  was 
so  popular  as  to  become  the  model  for  two  very  similar  tropes 
belonging  to  Christmas  and  to  the  Ascension.  Both  of  these 
are  found  in  more  than  one  troper,  but  not  earlier,  I  believe, 
than  the  eleventh  century.  I  quote  the  Christmas  trope  from 
a  St.  Gall  manuscript4. 

1  Lange,  22,  from  BibL  Nat.  Lat.  all   of  the   eleventh  century,  are 

MS.  I240,f.  30b.    As  to  date  (923-  described    by    Gautier,    in;     cf. 

34)  and  provenance  of  the  MS.,  I  p.  29. 

follow  H.  M.  Bannister  in  Journal  8  Bibl.  Nat.    1118,   f.  40*;    cf. 

of  Theological  Studies  ( April,  1901).  Gautier,  226;  Frere,  176. 

Lange,  4,  considers  it  an  eleventh-  *  Bodl.   Douce   MS.  222,    f.  6 

century  Antiphonar  from  Beaune.  (eleventh  century ;  cf.  Gautier,  136), 

*  Printed   by    Frere,    176 ;    cf.  printed  and  facsimiled  by  Gautier, 

Gautier,    219.      The    version    in  215, 219,    Du  Mtfril,  Or.  Lat.  149, 

Lange,    20,    is  incomplete.      The  gives  it  from  a  Limoges  Troper 

Limoges  Tropers  (Bibl.  Nat.  887,  (B.N.  909,  f.  9)  :  it  is  also  in  BJW. 

909,  10849  11x8,  1119,  1 120,  1121),  1118,  f.  8VO,  and  probably  the  other 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS  11 

1  In  Natale  Domini  ad  Missam  sint  parati  duo  diaconi  induti 
dalmaticis^  retro  altare  dicentes 

Quern  quaeritis  in  praesepe,  pastores,  dicite  ? 
Respondeant  duo  cantores  in  choro 

salvatorem  Christum  Dominum,  infantem  pannis  involutum, 
secundum  sermonem  angelicum. 
Item  diaconi 

adest  hie  parvulus  cum  Maria,  matre  sua,  de  qua,  vatici- 
nando,  Isaias  Propheta :  ecce  virgo  concipiet  et  pariet  filium. 
et  nuntiantes  dicite  quia  natus  est. 
Tune  cantor  dicat  excelsa  voce 

alleluia,  alleluia,  iam  vere  scimus  Christum  natum  in 
terris,  de  quo  canite,  omnes,  cum  Propheta  dicentes : 

Puer  natus  est! 

The  Ascension  trope  is  taken  from   an   English   troper 
probably  belonging  to  Christ  Church,  Canterbury  *. 
*  Quern  cernitis  ascendisse  super  astra,  o  Christicolae  ? 
Ihesum  qui  surrexit  de  sepulchro,  o  caelicolae. 

iam  ascendit,  ut  praedixit,  ascendo  ad  patrem  meum  et 

patrem  vestrum,  deum  meum  et  deum  vestrum. 
alleluia : 

regna  terrae,  gentes,  linguae,  conlaudate  dominum : 
quern  adorant  caeli  cives  in  paterno  solio: 
deo  gratias  dicite  eia.' 

I  return  now  to  the  Easter  Quern  quaeritis.  In  a  few 
churches  this  retained  its  position  at  the  beginning  of  Mass, 
either  as  an  Introit  trope  in  the  strict  sense,  or,  which  comes 
to  much  the  same  thing,  as  a  chant  for  the  procession  which 

Limoges  MSS.    Frere,  145,  gives  A.  xiv  (eleventh  century).    It  comes 

it    from   the    twelfth-century    St  between    an    illumination    of   the 

Magloire  Troper  (B.N.  13,252),  and  Ascension  and  the  heading  '  In  Die 

R.Twigge,  in  Dublin  Review  (1897),  Ascensionis  Domini.'    It  is  also  in 

362,  from  a  fifteenth-century  bre-  the  St. Magloire  Troper  (B.N.  1 3,2 52, 

viary  of  Clermont-Ferrand  (Cl.  F.  f.  iov)  under  the  heading '  In  Ascen- 

MS.  67).    Here  it  is  sung  by  two  sione  Tropi  ad  Processionem,'  and 

boys,  and  near  the  altar  after  the  in  the  St.  Martial  of  Limoges  Tro- 

Te  Deum  at  Matins.     According  pers  (Gautier,    219 ;    Lange,  20). 

to  Gautier,  123,  it  is  also  in  the  Martene,  iii.   193,  describes  it  as 

late  eleventh-century  Nevers  Troper  sung  in  the  procession  before  Mass 

(B.N.  9449).  at  Vienne. 
1  Frere,  1 10,  from  Cott.  MS.  Calig. 


12 


RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 


immediately  preceded.  This  was  the  use  of  the  Benedictine 
abbey  of  Monte  Cassino  at  the  beginning  of  the  twelfth  century, 
of  that  of  St  Denys  in  the  thirteenth  1,  and  of  the  church  of 
St.  Martin  of  Tours  in  the  fifteenth  2.  Even  in  the  seventeenth 
century  the  Quern  quaeritis  still  appears  in  a  Paris  manuscript 
as  a  *  tropus  V  and  Martene  records  a  practice  similar  to  that 
of  Monte  Cassino  and  St.  Denys  as  surviving  at  Rheims  in 
his  day  4. 

But  in  many  tropers,  and  in  most  of  the  later  service- 
books  in  which  it  is  found,  the  Quern  quaeritis  no  lofiger 
appears  to  be  designed  for  use  at  the  Mass.  This  is  the  case 
in  the  only  two  tropers  of  English  use  in  which,  so  far  as 
I  know,  it  comes,  the  Winchester  ones  printed  by  Mr.  Frere  5. 
I  reproduce  the  earlier  of  these  from  the  Bodleian  manuscript 
used  by  him 6. 


1  Martene,  iv.  147  ' "  Post  proces- 
sionem,"  addunt  Dionysianae  con- 
suet*  [thirteenth  century],  "ascen- 
dant iuxta  Sancta  Sanctorum  cjui- 
dam  bene  cantantes,  alii  in  dextro 
Ifitere,  alii  in  sinistro  latere  assi- 
stentes,  bene  et  honorifice  tropas 
scilicet :  Quern  quaeritis  ;  coniubi- 
lantes,et  sibi  invicem  respondentes; 
et  cum  intonuerint,  Quia  surrexi^ 
dicens,  P&tri,  mox  Archicantor  et 
duo  socii  eius  assistentes  in  chpro 
regias  virgas  in  manibus  tenentes, 
incipiant  pfficium."  Hunc  ritum 
accepisse  videntur  a  Cassinensibus, 
quorum  Ordinarium  [before  1105] 
haec  habet :  "  Processione  finita, 
vadat  Sacerdos  post  altare,  et  versus 
ad  chorum  dicat  alta  voce,  Quern 
quaeritis  f  et  duo  alii  Clerici  st^ntes 
in  medio  chori  respondeant :  lesum 
Nazarenumj  et  Sacerdos ;  Non  est 
hie;  illi  vero  conversi  ad  chorum 
dicant :  Alleluia.  Post  haec  alii 
quatuor  cantent  tropos,  et  agatur 
rnissa  ordine  suo.  As  usual  in 
Ordin&ria  (cf.  e.  g.  p.  309)  only  the 
opening  words  of  the  chants  are 
given.  A  similar  direction  is  con- 
tained in  MS.  Casinense,  199,  a 
twelfth-century  breviary  (Biblu>~ 
theca  CasinensiS)  iv.  124) :  cf.  also 
Lange,  21,  23. 

9  Martene;  iii.  173 ;  Lange,  24 


(Tours  i). 

8  Lange,  26.  Cf.  the  account  of 
the  Vienne  Quern  quaeritis  (p.  26). 

4  Martene,  iv.  148. 

•  Mr.  Frere  does  not  print  any 
fytroit  tropes  from  the  Worcester, 
St.  Albans,  and  Dublin  tropers :  a 
leaf  is  unfortunately  missing  from 
the  Canterbury  troper  (Frere,  107) 
where  the  Quern  quaeritis  might 
have  come.  It  is  not  amongst  the 
few  tropes  taken  by  Pamelius, 
Liturgicon  (1609),  ii.  611,  from  the 
English  troper  at  St.  Bavon's, 
Gherjt  (Frere,  142).  As  the  Con- 
cordia  Regularis  was  partly  based 
on  Ghent  customs  (cf.  p.  307),  I 
should  gladly  know  more  of  this. 

6  Bodl.  MS,  775  ;  described  by 
Frere,  xxvii,  as  MS.  E  *  Its  date 
lies  between  979  and  1016,  since 
Ethelred  is  mentioned  as  reigning 
sovereign  in  the  Litany  on  f.  i8v,  and 
inconsequence  it  hassometimesbeen 
called  "  The  Ethelred  Troper."  Also, 
as  it  has  the  Dedication  Festival  on 
the  24th  of  November,  it  is  probably 
anterior  to  the  re-dedication  of  the 
Cathedral  on  Oct.  20,  980,  since 
this  day  became  subsequently  the 
Dedication  Festival.'  A  facsimile 
from  the  MS.  was  published  by  the 
Palaeographical  Society  (Series  ii. 
pi.  iii),  and  it  was  suggested  that  it 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS  13 

ANGELICA  DE  CHRISTI  RESURRECTIONS. 

Quern  quaeritis  in  sepulchre,  Christicolae  ? 
Sanctarum  mulierum  responsio. 

Ihesum  Nazarenum  crucifixum,  o  caelicola  t 
Angelicae  voces  consolatus. 

non  est  hie,  surrexit  sicut  praedixerat, 

ite,  nuntiate  quia  surrexit,  dicentes : 
Sanctarum  mulierum  ad  omnem  clerum  modulatio 

alleluia  I  resurrexit  Dominus  hodie, 

leo  fortis,  Christus  filius  Dei !   Deo  gratias  dicite,  eia ! 
Dicat  angelus: 

venite    et    videte    locum    ubi    positus    erat    Dominus, 

alleluia!  alleluia! 
Iterum  dicat  angelus : 

cito    euntes    dicite    discipulis    quia    surrexit    Dominus, 

alleluia !  alleluia ! 
Mulieri  una  voce  canant  iubilantes : 

surrexit  Dominus  de  sepulchrd, 

qui  pro  nobis  pependit  in  ligno.' 

In  this  manuscript,  which  is  dated  by  Mr.  Frere  in  979  or 
980,  the  text  just  quoted  is  altogether  detached  from  the 
Easter  day  tropes.  Its  heading  is  rubricated  and  immediately 
follows  the  tropes  for  Palm  Sunday.  It  is  followed  in  its  turn, 
under  a  fresh  rubric,  by  the  ceremonies  for  Holy  Saturday, 
beginning  with  the  Benedictio  Cerei.  From  the  second,  some- 
what later  Cambridge  manuscript,  probably  of  the  early 
eleventh  century,  the  Holy  Saturday  ceremonies  have  dis- 
appeared, but  the  Quern  quaeritis  still  precedes  and  does  not 
follow  the  regular  Easter  tropes,  which  are  headed  Tropi  in 
die  Christi  Resurrectionis  *.  The  precise  position  which  the 

is  in  an  early  eleventh-century  hand,  MtS.  and  does  not  appear  to  be 

but  possibly  copied  an  earlier  text,  quite  complete.    It  is  facsimiled  by 

But   surely  it    would   have   been  Frere  (pi.  26*).    The  printed  text 

brought  up  to  date  on  such  a  matter  in  Frere,  1 7,represents  both  versions ; 

as  the  Dedication  Festival.  that  in  Manly,  i.  xxi,  follows  the 

1  C.C.C.  Cambridge  MS.  473,  of  Bodl  MS.    Both  Frere  and  Manly 

the  middle  of  the  eleventh  century,  have  *  Angelice  uocis    consolatio f 

described  by  Frere,  xxvii,  as  MS.  CC.  where  the  Bodl.  MS.,  as  I  read  it, 

The  text  of  the  Quern  quaeritis  dif~  has  '  Angelice   uoces   consolatus ' 

fers  slightly  from  that  of  the  Bodl.  (clearly  in  error), 


14  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

Quern  quaeritis  was  intended  to  take  in  the  Easter  services  is 
not  evident  from  these  tropers  by  themselves.  Fortunately 
another  document  comes  to  our  assistance.  This  is  the  Con- 
cordia  Regularis^  an  appendix  to  the  Rule  of  St.  Benedict 
intended  for  the  use  of  the  Benedictine  monasteries  in 
England  reformed  by  Dunstan  during  the  tenth  century. 
The  Concordia  Regularis  was  drawn  up  by  Ethelwold,  bishop 
of  Winchester,  as  a  result  of  a  council  of  Winchester  held  at 
some  uncertain  date  during  the  reign  of  Edgar  (959-79) ;  it 
may  fairly  be  taken  for  granted  that  it  fixed  at  least  the 
Winchester  custom.  I  translate  the  account  of  the  Quern 
quaeritis  ceremony,  which  is  described  as  forming  part,  not  of 
the  Mass,  but  of  the  third  Nocturn  at  Matins  on  Easter 
morning  *. 

c  While  the  third  lesson  is  being  chanted,  let  four  brethren 
vest  themselves.  Let  one  of  these,  vested  in  an  alb,  enter  as 
though  to  take  part  in  the  service,  and  let  him  approach  the 
sepulchre  without  attracting  attention  and  sit  there  quietly 
with  a  palm  in  his  hand.  While  the  third  respond  is  chanted, 
let  the  remaining  three  follow,  and  let  them  all,  vested  in  copes, 
bearing  in  their  hands  thuribles  with  incense,  and  stepping 
delicately  as  those  who  seek  something,  approach  the  sepulchre. 
These  things  are  done  in  imitation  of  the  angel  sitting  in  the 
monument,  and  the  women  with  spices  coming  to  anoint  the 
body  of  Jesus.  When  therefore  he  who  sits  there  beholds 
the  three  approach  him  like  folk  lost  and  seeking  something, 
let  him  begin  in  a  dulcet  voice  of  medium  pitch  to  sing 
Quern  quaeritis.  And  when  he  has  sung  it  to  the  end,  let  the 
three  reply  in  unison  Ihesu  Nazarenum*  So  he,  Non  est 
hic>  surrexit  sicut  praedixerat.  Jte,  nuntiate  quia  surrexit 
a  mortuis.  At  the  word  of  this  bidding  let  those  three  turn 
to  the  choir  and  say  Alleluia!  resurrexit  Dominus  !  This 
said,  let  the  one,  still  sitting  there  and  as  if  recalling  them,  say 
the  anthem  Venite  et  videte  locum.  And  saying  this,  let  him 
rise,  and  lift  the  veil,  and  show  them  the  place  bare  of  the 
cross,  but  only  the  cloths  laid  there  in  which  the  cross  was 

1  A  full  account  of  the  Concordia  Regularis  and  extracts  from  the  Latin 
text  are  in  Appendix  O. 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS  15 

wrapped  And  when  they  have  seen  this,  let  them  set  down 
the  thuribles  which  they  bare  in  that  same  sepulchre,  and 
take  the  cloth,  and  hold  it  up  in  the  face  of  the  clergy,  and  as 
if  to  demonstrate  that  the  Lord  has  risen  and  is  no  longer 
wrapped  therein,  let  them  sing  the  anthem  Surrexit  Dominus 
de  sepulchre^  and  lay  the  cloth  upon  the  altar.  When  the 
anthem  is  done,  let  the  prior,  sharing  in  their  gladness  at  the 
triumph  of  our  King,  in  that,  having  vanquished  death,  He 
rose  again,  begin  the  hymn  Te  Deum  laudamus.  And  this 
begun,  all  the  bells  chime  out  together.1 

The  liberal  scenario  of  the  Concordia  Regularis  makes  plain 
the  change  which  has  come  about  in  the  character  of  the 
Quern  quaeritis  since  it  was  first  sung  by  alternating  half- 
choirs  as  an  Introit  trope  *.  Dialogued  chant  and  mimetic 
action  have  come  together  and  the  first  liturgical  drama  is,  in 
all  its  essentials,  complete. 

I  am  not  quite  satisfied  as  to  the  relations  of  date  between 
the  Concordia  Regularis  and  the  Winchester  tropers,  or  as  to 
whether  the  Quern  quaeritis  was  intended  in  one  or  both  of 
these  manuscripts  for  use  at  the  Easter  Matins2.  But  it  is 
clear  that  such  a  use  was  known  in  England  at  any  rate 
before  the  end  of  the  tenth  century.  It  was  also  known  in 
France  and  in  Germany :  the  former  fact  is  testified  to  by  the 
Consuetudines  of  the  monastery  of  St.  Vito  of  Verdun 8 ;  the 

1  I  cannot  understand  why  Mr.  of  the  tropers. 
Frere,  xvi,  thinks  that  the   Quern         8  Martene,  iv.  299  '  Saecnlo,  ut 

quaeritis  was  '  a  dramatic  dialogue  aiunt,  x  scriptae ' :  cf.  Douhet,  849. 

which  came  to  be  used  as  a  trope  Martene,    iii.    173,  cites    another 

to  the  Introit  of  Easter:  but  at  Matins  version  from  a  'vetustissi- 

Winchester  it  kept  its  independent  mum  rituale '  of  Poitiers.     If  this  is 

place/     It  is  used  as  a  trope  a  cen-  identical  with  the  '  pontificate  ve- 

tury  before  the  date  of  the  Con-  tustissimum :  annorum  circiter  800' 

cordia  Regularis.  mentioned  in  his  list  of  authorities 

a  Why  is  the  Quern  quaeritis  in  (i.  xxii)  it  may  be  earlier  than  the 

the  Bodl.  MS.  apparently  on  Good  tenth  century.    It  is  certainly  not 

Friday  ?    Perhaps  this  was  an  ir-  the  '  liber  sacramentorum  annorum 

regular  use  reformed  by  Bp.  Ethel-  900  circiter '  with  which  Douhet, 

wold.  If  so  the  C.R.  must  be  about  848,  would  identify  it.    The  Ponti- 

980  or  later.  This  is  not  impossible  ficale  was  used  by  Martene  in  his 

(cf.  App.  O).    In  the  later  C.C.C.C.  edition  of  1738 ;  about  the  first  edi- 

JfS.  the  Q.  q.  might,  I  think,  from  tion  of  1700-6,  I  cannot  say.    This 

its  position  be  intended  for  Easter  version  is  not  in  Lange,  and,  as  the 

Matins.    The  version  described  in  omission  of  the  usual  first  line  is 

the  C  R.  differs  slightly  from  that  curious,  I  print  it  below  (p.  29). 


16  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

latter  by  the  occurrence  of  the  Qutm  quaeritis  in  a  troper  of 
Bamberg,  where  it  has  the  heading  Ad  visitandum  sepukhrum 
and  is  followed  by  the  Matins  chant  of  TV  Deum l. 

The  heading  of  the  Bamberg  version  and  the  detailed 
description  of  the  Concordia  Regularis  bring  the  Quern  quae- 
ritis  drama  into  close  relations  with  the  Easter  c sepulchre ' 2. 
They  are  indeed  the  first  historical  notices  of  the  ceremony 
so  widely  popular  during  the  Middle  Ages,  Some  account 
of  the  Easter  sepulchre  must  accordingly  be  inserted  here, 
and  its  basis  shall  be  the  admirably  full  description  of 
St.  Ethelwold3.  He  directs  that  on  Good  Friday  all  the 
monks  shall  go  discalceati  or  shoeless  from  Prime  *  until  the 
cross  is  adored J  4.  In  the  principal  service  of  the  day,  which 
begins  at  Nones,  the  reading  of  the  Passion  according  to 
St.  John  and  a  long  series  of  prayers  are  included.  Then 
a  cross  is  made  ready  and  laid  upon  a  cushion  a  little  way 
in  front  of  the  altar.  It  is  unveiled,  and  the  anthem  Ecce 
lignum  crucis  is  sung.  The  abbot  advances,  prostrates  him- 
self, and  chants  the  seven  penitential  psalms.  Then  he  humbly 
kisses  the  cross.  His  example  is  followed  by  the  rest  of  the 
monks  and  by  the  clergy  and  congregation.  St.  Ethelwold 
proceeds : — 

c  Since  on  this  day  we  celebrate  the  laying  down  of  the 
body  of  our  Saviour,  if  it  seem  good  or  pleasing  to  any  to 
follow  on  similar  lines  the  use  of  certain  of  the  religious,  which 
is  worthy  of  imitation  for  the  strengthening  of  faith  in  the 
unlearned  vulgar  and  in  neophytes,  we  have  ordered  it  on  this 
wise.  Let  a  likeness  of  a  sepulchre  be  made  in  a  vacant  part 
of  the  altar,  and  a  veil  stretched  on  a  ring  which  may  hang 
there  until  the  adoration  of  the  cross  is  over.  Let  the  deacons 
who  previously  carried  the  cross  come  and  wrap  it  in  a  cloth 

1  Lange,  29;  cf.  Creizenach,  L  return  to  the  choir  'cruce  vacua 

49.       *  nuntiantes:    Surrexit    Dontinus* 

9  The  Verdun  Consuetudines  do  (Martene,  iv.  299). 

not.    The  burial  and  resurrection  s  Appendix  O. 

of  the  cross  clearly  formed  no  part  *  Barje  feet  continued  to  be  the 

of  the  Good    Friday  and  Easter  rule  for  the  Adaratio  Crucis.    An 

rites.    The  dialogue  takes  place  'in  exception  is  at  Exeter,  where,  ac- 

subterraneis  specubus,'  i.e.  the  crypt,  cording  to  Pearson,  ii.  296,  they 

and  the  representatives  of  the  Manes  were  forbidden,  cf.  Feasey,  115. 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS  17 

in  the  place  where  it  was  adored  l.  Then  let  them  carry  it 
back,  singing  anthems,  until  they  come  to  the  place  of  the 
monument,  and  there  having  laid  down  the  cross  as  if  it  were 
the  buried  body  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  let  them  say  an 
anthem.  And  here  let  the  holy  cross  be  guarded  with  all 
reverence  .until  the  night  of  the  Lord's  resurrection.  By  night 
let  two  brothers  or  three,  or  more  if  the  throng  be  sufficient, 
be  appointed  who  may  keep  faithful  wake  there  chanting 
psalms/ 

The  ceremony  of  the  burial  or  Depositio  Crucis  is  followed 
by  the  Missa  Praesanctificatorum,  the  Good  Friday  com- 
munion with  a  host  not  consecrated  that  day  but  specially 
reserved  from  Maundy  Thursday;  and  there  is  no  further 
reference  to  the  sepulchre  until  the  order  for  Easter  day  itself 
is  reached,  when  St.  Ethelwold  directs  that  '  before  the  bells 
are  rung  for  Matins  the  sacristans  are  to  take  the  cross  and 
set  it  in  a  fitting  place/ 

In  the  Concordia  Regularis,  then,  the  Depositio  Crucis  is 
a  sequel  to  the  Adoratio  Crucis  on  Good  Friday.  The  latter 
ceremony,  known  familiarly  to  the  sixteenth  century  as 
'creeping  to  the  cross,'  was  one  of  great  antiquity.  It  was 
amongst  the  Holy  week  rites  practised  at  Jerusalem  in  the 
fourth  century 2,  and  was  at  an  early  date  adopted  in  Rome  3. 
But  the  sepulchre  was  no  primitive  part  of  it 4  ;  nor  is  it 

1  StEthel wold's  Latin  is  atrocious,  8  Duchesne,  238.    For  the  medi- 

but  I  think  that  the  sepulchre  was  aeval  ceremony,  cf.  Feasey,    114; 

made  on  the  altar,  not  in  the  hollow  Pearson,  ii.  293;  Milchsack,  121; 

of  it,  and  covered  from  sight  until  Rock,   Hi.    2,    241  ;     Martene,   iii. 

wanted  by  a  veil  let  down  all  round  129  ;     iv.    137  ;     Sarum     Missal, 

it  from  a  circular  support  above.  328 ;    York  Missal,   i.    105 ;    York 

Cf.  the  Latin  text  in  Appendix  O  :  Manual,    156,    and    the    Durham 

perhaps  it  is  corrupt.  extract  in  Appetldix  P :  for  that  of 

*  Percgrinatio  Silviae    in    Du-  modern  Rome,  Malleson  and  Tuker, 

chesne,49O.  The  object  of  adoration  ii.  271. 

was  a  fragment  of  the  true  Cross,  4 

'  sanctum  lignum  crucis.'    The  In-  cra 

yention  of  the  Cross  by  St.  Helena  century,  ed.    H.  A.  Wilson,   77); 

is  put  ISy  tradition  t326.  Doubtless  nor  the  Sacramentum  Gregorianum 

many  other  churches  obtained  a  (teighth  century,  P.  L.  Ixxviii.  86), 

fragment,  and  used  it  for  the  same  '  qua  salutata  et  reposita  in  loco 

purpose :    cf,  Feasey,   1 16.     Thus  suo ' ;   nor  in  the  Roman  Ordines 

the  cross  used  at  Rome  was  'lignum  collected  by  Mabillon  (P.  L.  Ixxviii) 

pretiosae  crucis'  (Duchesne,  465  :  nor  in  those  added  by  Duchesne, 

cf.  his  ed.  of  the  Liber  Pontificalis,  451,  464.    The  Ordines  of  954  and 

i«  374)-  963  repeat  the  Gregorian  formula, 

CHAMBERS.    II  C 


18 


RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 


possible  to  trace  either  the  use  which  served  St.  Ethelwold 
as  a  model  \  or  the  home  or  date  of  the  sepulchre  itself.  It 
is  unlikely,  however,  that  the  latter  originated  in  England, 
as  it  appears  almost  simultaneously  on  the  continent,  and 
English  ritual,  in  the  tenth  century,  was  markedly  behind 
and  not  in  advance  of  that  of  France  and  Germany2.  St. 
Ethelwold  speaks  of  it  as  distinctively  monastic  but  certainly 
not  as  universal  or  of  obligation  amongst  the  Benedictine 
communities  for  whom  he  wrote.  Nor  did  the  Concordia 
Regularis  lead  to  its  invariable  adoption,  for  when  ^Eifric 
adapted  St.  Ethelwold's  work  for  the  benefit  of  Eynsham 
about  1005  he  omitted  the  account  of  the  sepulchre3,  and 
it  is  not  mentioned  in  Archbishop  Lanfranc's  Benedictine 
Constitutions  of  io754.  At  a  later  date  it  was  used  by  many 


which  is  expanded  by  those  of  1215 
and  1319  into  '  in  suo  loco  super 
altare.'  There  is  no  mention  of  the 
sepulchrum  in  the  Gallican  liturgical 
books  collected  by  Mabillon  (P.  Z. 
Ixxii).  Of  English  books  Leofric's 
Exeter  Missal  (tenth  century,  ed. 
F.  E.  Warren)  has  no  Sepulchrum ; 
nor  the  Missal  of  St.  Augustine's 
Canterbury  (tiioo,  ed.  M.  Rule), 
'reposita  in  loco  solito* ;  nor  the 
Missal  of  Robert  of  Jumi&ges  (ninth 
and  tenth  century,  ed.  H.  A.  Wilson 
for  H.  B.  S0c.).  Pearson,  ii.  316, 
suggests  that  the  cross  used  for 
adoration  was  the  great  rood  usually 
placed  in  the  rood-loft,  but  some- 
times *  super  altare.' 

1  Ethelwold's  Concordia  Regu- 
laris was  largely  founded  on  that 
of  Benedict  of  Aniane  (t8i7  ;  cf. 
Miss  Bateson  in  E,  H.  Review, 
ix.  700),  but  there  is  no  Easter 
week  ordo  in  this  (P.  L.  ciii.  701 ) 
nor  in  the  same  writer's  Memoriale 
or  Ordo  Monasticus  (P.  L.  Ixvi. 
937:  cf.  his  Vita^  c.  viii,  in  Acta 
SS.  Feb.  ii.  618).  Ethelwold  also 
borrowed  customs  from  Fleury 
and  Ghent  (Appendix  O).  The 
sepulchrum  is  not  mentioned  in  the 
Consuetudines  Floriacenses  (tenth 
century,  ed.  De  Bosco,  Floriac. 
Vet.  Bibl.  (1605),  390) ;  cf.  Creize- 
nach,  i.  49 ;  nor  in  the  description 
of  a  thirteenth-century  coutumier 


in  Rocher,  Hist,  de  ? Abbaye  de  St.- 
Benctt-sur-Loire>  323.  The  only 
Fleury  Quern  quaeritis  is  of  a  late 
type  in  a  thirteenth-century  MS.; 
cf.  p.  32.  At  Ghent,  however,  an 
inventory  of  treasures  remaining  at 
StBavon's  after  a  Norman  invasion 
(1019-24)  includes  '  tabulas  de  se- 
pulchro  23,'  which  appear  to  be 
distinct  from  reliquiae  'de  sepul- 
chro  Domini*  and  'de  operculo 
ligneo  quod  super  corpus  ipsius 
positum  fuit  in  sepulchro'  (Neues 
Archiv,  viii.  374).  Did  the  pos- 
session of  these  *  reliquiae'  sug- 
gest to  the  monks  of  St.  Bavon's 
the  construction  of  an  Easter 
sepulchre  ? 

"  It  is  merely  a  guess  to  say  St. 
Gall.  Schiibiger,  Sangerschule 
St.  Gallens,  69,  mentions  the  se- 
pulchre there,  but  gives  no  very 
early  notice.  The  sepulchre  was 
known  in  the  Eastern,  as  well  as 
the  Western  Church,  and  for  all 
I  know  may  have  come  from  Jeru- 
salem (Feasey,  177).  As  to  date, 
Weber,  32,  suggests  that  pictorial 
representations  of  the  Maries  at 
the  tomb  show  the  influence  of  the 
dramatic  Visitatio  Sepulchri  as  far 
back  as  the  ninth  century.  His 
chief  point  is  that  the  Maries  carry 
turribula  (Cf.  p.  25,  n.  5). 

8  E.  H.  Review,  ix.  706. 

4  P.  L.  cl.  465  'adorata  ab  omni- 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS 


19 


Benedictine  houses,  notably  by  the  great  Durham  Priory l ; 
but  the  Cistercians  and  the  Carthusians,  who  represent  two 
of  the  most  famous  reforms  of  the  order,  are  said  never  to 
have  adopted  it,  considering  it  incompatible  with  the  austerity 
of  their  rule 2.  On  the  other  hand  it  was  certainly  not,  in 
mediaeval  England,  confined  to  monastic  churches.  The 
cathedrals  of  Salisbury3,  York4,  Lincoln5,  Hereford6,  Wells7, 
all  of  which  were  served  by  secular  canons,  had  their  sepulchres, 
and  the  gradual  spread  of  the  Sarum  use  probably  brought 
a  sepulchre  into  the  majority  of  parish  churches  throughout 
the  land  8. 

There  are  naturally  variations  and  amplifications  of  the 
sepulchre  ceremonial  as  described  by  St.  Ethelwold  to  be 
recorded.  The  Depositio  Cruets,  instead  of  preceding  the 
Missa  Praesanctificatorum,  was  often,  as  in  the  Sarum  use, 


bus  cruce,  portitores  eius  elevantes 
earn  incipiant  antiphonam  Super 
omnia  ligna  cedrorum,  et  sic  vadant 
ad  locum  ubi  earn  collocare  debent/ 
This  does  not  exclude  a  sepulchre, 
but  probably  the  locus  was  an  altar 
which  might  serve  as  a  statio  for 
the  processions  'ad  crucifixum' 
ordered  on  Easter  Saturday  after 
vespers  and  thrice  a  day  through 
Easter  week.  Such  processions 
continued  in  later  ritual  to  visit 
the  cross  after  its  Elevatio  on 
Easter  morning :  cf.  York  Manual, 

177- 

1  See  the  description  of  the 
ceremony  by  a  sixteenth-century 
eye-witness  in  Appendix  P.  The 
sepulchrum  was  also  used  by  the 
Bridgettines  of  Sion  monastery,  an 
order  of  reformed  Benedictine  nuns 
(G.  F.  Aungier,  Hist,  of  Syon 
Monastery ',  350). 

*  J.  D.  Chambers  citing  J.  B. 
Thiers,  De  Exposition  5.  Sacra- 
menti<  iii.  19. 

3  See  the  extracts  from  Sarum 
service-books  in  Appendix  Q. 

4  York   Missal,    L    106;     York 
Manual,  163,  170. 

8  Wordsworth,  278. 
8  Hereford  Missal  (ed  Hender- 
son), 96. 


7  H.  E.  Reynolds,  Wells  Cathe- 
dral, 32. 

8  The   fullest   accounts    of   the 
Easter  sepulchre  in  England  are 
those   by    H.  J.  Feasey,  Ancient 
English  Holy    Week    Ceremonial, 
129,  and  A.  Heales,  Easter  Sepul- 
chres:   their  Object,  Nature,  and 
History  in  Archaeologia,  xlii.  263  ; 
cf.  also  Monumenta  Vetusta  (Soc. 
of  Antiquaries),  iii.  pll.  xxxi,  xxxii ; 
Parker,   Glossary  of  Architecture, 
s.v.  Sepulchre;  M.  E.  C  Walcott, 
Sacred  Archaeology,  s.v.  Easter  Se- 
pulchre ;  T.  F.  Dyer,  Church  Lore 
Gleanings,  219;    W.  Andrews,  Old 
Church  Lore,  iii ;  J.  D.  Chambers, 
App.yuKN ;  Micklethwaite,52;  Rock, 
iii.  2.  92,  240,  251.    Continental  or- 
dines  and  notices  may  be  found  in 
Martene,  iii.  131,  172,  178;  iv.  141, 
145  ;  Milchsack,  41,  121 ;  Pearson, 
ii.  295 ;  Wetzer  and  Welte,  Kirchen- 
Lexicon,    s.v.    Grab ;    J.    Dank6, 
Vetus  Hymn.  Eccl.  Hungariae^  535, 
579.     I  have  not  seen  this  writers 
Die  Feier  des  Osterfestes  (Wien, 
1872).    On  representations  of  the 
sepulchre  in  mediaeval  art,  cf.  P. 
Weber,  32,  and  the  miniature  from 
Robert  of  Jumifcges*  Missal  (ed. 
F,  E.  Warren  for  H.  £.  Soc.  pi. 
viii). 


20  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

transferred  to  the  end  of  Vespers,  which  on  Good  Friday 
followed  the  Missa  without  a  break1.  The  Elevatto  regularly 
took  place  early  on  Easter  morning  before  Matins*  The 
oldest  custom  was  doubtless  that  of  the  Regularis  Concordia, 
according  to  which  the  cross  was  removed  from  the  sepulchre 
secretly  by  the  sacristans,  since  this  is  most  closely  in  agree- 
ment with  the  narrative  of  the  gospels.  But  in  time  the 
Elevatio  became  a  function.  The  books  of  Salisbury  and 
York  provide  for  it  a  procession  with  the  antiphons  Ckristus 
resurgens  and  Surrexit  Dominus.  Continental  rituals  show 
considerable  diversity  of  custom  2.  Perhaps  the  most  elaborate 
ceremonials  are  those  of  Augsburg  and  Wiirzburg,  printed  by 
Milchsack.  In  these  the  Tollite  portas  procession,  which  we 
have  already  found  borrowed  from  the  dedication  of  churches 
for  Palm  Sunday,  was  adapted  to  Easter  day  8.  But  the  old 
tradition  was  often  preserved  by  the  exclusion  or  only  partial 
admission  of  the  populace  to  the  Elevatio.  In  the  Augsburg 
ritual  just  quoted,  all  but  a  few  privileged  persons  are  kept 
out  until  the  devil  has  been  expelled  and  the  doors  solemnly 
opened  4.  A  curious  light  is  thrown  upon  this  by  a  decree  of 
the  synod  of  Worms  in  1316,  which  orders  that  the  '  mystery 
of  the  resurrection '  shall  be  performed  before  ft&plebs  comes 

1  At  Exeter  on  the  other  hand  vel  cimeterium  .  .  .  usque  ad  ulti- 

Vespers  on  both  Good  Friday  and  mamianuam,quaeclaudatur.'  Here 

Easter  Eve  were  sung  before  the  the  Tollite  portas  dialogue  is  held 

Sepulchre ;  and  so  with  the  Hours  with  the  « levita  iunior,  vel  alius  in 

at  Tours  (Feasey,  130).  figura  dial^oli  grossa  voce.'   On  the 

*  Martene,  iii.  179;    Milchsack,  other  xhand,  in  the   Ordo   Wirce- 
122;  Lange,  135.    The  latter  gives  burgensis  of  1564  the  procession 
a  Passau  fifteenth-century  version  knocks  at  the  door  from  inside,  and 
which  ends  'quibus  finitis  stantes  the  respondent  'loco  Sathanae'  is 
ante  altare,  mutua  caritate  se  invi-  without. 

cem  deosculentur,  dicentes:   Sur-         *  'Sacerdos  .  .  .  antequam  con- 

rtxit  dominus  vere.    Et  afparuit  gregetur  chorus,  cum  processione 

symoni.      Dicatur    una   oratio    de  sibi    paucorum  adiunctorum   .  .  . 

resurrectione.    Statim  fiat  pulsatio.'  foribus  ecclesiae  clausis,  secretius 

The  Easter  greeting  and  kiss  of  tollat  sacramentum  de  sepulchre ' ; 

peace  Were  in  use,  either  before  or  cf.    the    fifteenth-century    Passau 

after   Matins   at    many   chfcrches  Breviary  (Lange,  135)  'clam  sur- 

(Martene,  iii.  171,  180)  and  do  not  gitur'  and  the  Ordo  Sepulturae  in 

depend  upon  the  sepulchre.  the  Missalis  Posoniensis  of  1341 

*  Milchsack,  128, 135 ;  cf.  Meyer,  (Dank6,     579)     Maicis     exclusis,' 
64.   The  Ordo  Augvstensis  &i  1487  I  have  not  noticed  any  such  liraita- 
directs  that  a  procession  shall  go  tion  in  English  rubrics  later  than 
from  the  sepulchre  '  per  ambitum  the  Concordia  Regularis. 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS 


21 


into  the  church,  and  gives  as  a  reason  the  crowds  caused  by 
a  prevalent  superstition  that  whoever  saw  the  crucifix  raised 
would  escape  for  that  year  c  the  inevitable  hour  of  death '  \ 

A  widespread  if  not  quite  universal  innovation  on  the 
earlier  use  was  the  burial,  together  with  the  cross  or  crucifix, 
of  a  host,  which  was  consecrated,  like  that  used  in  the  Missa 
Praesanctificatoruni)  on  Maundy  Thursday.  This  host  was 
laid  in  a  pyx2,  monstrance8,  or  cup4,  and  sometimes  in  a 
special  image,  representing  the  risen  Christ  with  the  cross 
or  labarum  in  his  hands,  the  breast  of  which  hdd  a  cavity 
covered  with  beryl  or  crystal6.  Within  the  sepulchre  both 
the  host  and  the  crucifix  were  laid  upon  or  wrapped  in  a  fine 
linen  napkin. 

The  actual  structure  of  the  sepulchre  lent  itself  to  consider- 
able variety.  St  Ethelwold's  assimilatio  quaedam  sepulchri 
upon  a  vacant  part  of  the  altar  may  have  been  formed,  like 
that  at  Narbonne  several  centuries  later,  by  laying  together 
some  of  the  silver  service-books 6.  There  are  other  examples 
of  a  sepulchre  at  an  altar,  and  it  is  possible  that  in  some  of 


1  Milchsack,   119  'quum  a  no- 
stris  antecessoribus  ad  nos  perve- 
nerit,  ut  in  sacra  nocte  dominicae 
resurrectionis  ad  sustollendam  cru- 
cifixi imaginem  de  sepulchre,  ubi  in 
parasceve  locata  fuerat,  nimia  vi- 
rorum    et   mulierum    numerositas, 
certatim  sese  comprimendo,  eccle- 
siam  simul  cum  canpnicis  et  vicariis 
introire  nitantur,  opinantes  errpnee, 
quod  si  viderent  crucifixi  imaginem 
sustolli,  evaderent  hoc  anno  inevita- 
bilem  mortis  horam.     His  itaque 
obviantes  statuimus,ut  resurrectionis 
mysterium  ante  ingressum  plebis 
in  ecclesiamperagatur ' :  cf.  Pearson, 
ii.  298. 

2  A  Finchale  inventory  of  1481 
(J.  T.  Fowler,  Trans,  of  Durham 
and  North.  Arch.  Soc.    iv.    134) 
includes ( Item  I  pixis  argentea  cum 
coopertorio  et  ymagine  crucifixi  in 
summitate  cpopertorii  pro  corpora 
x1  deferendo  in  passione  x1/   A  pyx 
was  also  used  in  the  Sarum  rite 
(Appendix  Q). 

*  Feasey,    165  ;     Dank6,     Vet. 
Hymn.  EccL  Hung.  535. 


4  York  Manual,  174  *  cuppa  in 
qua  est  sacramentum.' 

5  At  Durham  (Appendix  P)  and 
at  Lincoln  (Wordsworth,  278) ;   cf. 
Feasey,   164;    Heales,   307.     The 
image  '  cum  corona  spinea '  used  at 
York  (York  Manual^  170)  was  of 
course  the  crucifix.  A  Reformation 
record  of  1566  at  Belton,  Lincoln- 
shire, speaks  of  'a  sepulker  with 
little  Jack  broken  in  pieces '  (Feasey, 
165).    Either  a  mere  image  or  a 
mechanical  puppet  (cf.  p.  158)  may 
be  meant.     The   labarum  is  the 
sign  of  the  risen  Christ  in  the  later 
versions  of  the  Quern   quacritis\ 
cf.  p.  35.     It  figures  in  nearly  all 
paintings  of  the  Resurrection. 

6  Narbonne  Ordinarium  (1*1400) 
Mevent  cum  filo  pannum,  qui  est 
super  libros  argenti  super   altare 
in  figura   sepulcri'   (Martene,  Hi. 
172 ;  Lange,  65) ;  Le  Mans,  Ordi~ 
narium  'Tune  tres   derici    acce- 
dentes   ad  altare  cum   reverentia 
sublevent  palium  cum  quo  sepul- 
chrum  fuerit  coopertum*  (Lange, 
66) ;  cf*  Pearson,  ii.  293. 


22  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

these  the  altar  itself  may  have  been  hollow  and  have  held  the 
sacred  deposit.  Sometimes  the  high  altar  was  used,  but 
a  side-altar  was  naturally  more  convenient,  and  at  St.  Law- 
rence's, Reading,  the  c  sepulchre  awlter  *  was  in  the  rood-loft 1. 
The  books  were  a  primitive  expedient.  More  often  the  sepul- 
chre was  an  elaborate  carved  shrine  of  wood,  iron,  or  silver. 
If  this  did  not  stand  upon  the  altar,  it  was  placed  on  the  north 
side  of  the  sanctuary  or  in  a  north  choir  aisle.  In  large 
churches  the  crypt  was  sometimes  thought  an  appropriate 
site2.  Often  the  base  of  the  sepulchre  was  formed  by  the 
tomb  of  a  founder  or  benefactor  of  the  church,  and  legacies 
for  making  a  structure  to  serve  this  double  purpose  are  not 
uncommon  in  mediaeval  wills.  Such  tombs  often  have  a 
canopied  recess  above  them,  and  in  these  cases  the  portable 
shrine  may  have  been  dispensed  with.  Many  churches  have 
a  niche  or  recess,  designed  of  sole  purpose  for  the  sepulchre  3. 
Several  of  these  more  elaborate  sepulchres  are  large  enough  to  be 
entered,  a  very  convenient  arrangement  for  the  Quern  quaeritis* ; 
a  few  of  them  are  regular  chapels,  more  than  one  of  which  is 
an  exact  reproduction  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre  at  Jerusalem,  and 
is  probably  due  to  the  piety  of  some  local  pilgrim  5.  Wood, 
metal,  or  stone,  permanent  or  movable,  the  sepulchre  was 
richly  adorned  with  paintings  and  carvings  of  the  Passion  and 
the  Resurrection,  with  Easter  texts,  with  figures  of  censer- 
swinging  angels  and  sleeping  knights  6.  A  seal  was,  at  least 

1  Feasey,   131.      In  versions  of  Tarrant  Hinton,  Dorset,  which  is 

the  Quern  quaeritis  given  by  Lange,  not  amongst  those  mentioned  by 

24,  25,  26,  the  action  is  at  the  altar.  Heales  or  Feasey. 

A  Senlis  Breviary  (fourteenth  cen-  4  The  performers  are  sometimes 

tury)  has  '  elevantes  palium  altaris '  directed  to   enter   the   sepulchre ; 

(Lange,  27),  and  a  Sens  thirteenth-  cf.  e.g.  Lange,  28. 

century   MS.  'Sublevans  tapetum  5  Feasey,   149.     There   is  such 

altaris,  tamquam  respiciens  in  se-  a  chapel  beneath  the  choir  of  the 

pulchrum'  (Lange,  64).    But  I  am  Jerusalem  church  at  Bruges.    The 

not  sure  that  there  was  a  genuine  Winchester  sepulchre  is  a  chapel, 

sepulchre  in  all  these  cases :    cf.  but  not  of  the  Jerusalem  type.    At 

P«  26.  St.  Gall  the  sepulchre  was  (t  1583) 

*  Wlirzburg  Breviary  (fourteenth  in    the    'sacellum    S.  Sebastian! ' 

century)  'descendunt  in  criptam  ad  (Lange,  69). 

visitandum  sepulcrtnn'  (Lange,  53) :  6  J.  Britton,  Redcliffe  Church,  47, 

cf.  the  Verdun  Consuetudines  (p.  16),  prints  a  contemporary  description 

where  there  may  or  may  not  have  of  a  sepulchre  given  in  1470  by 

been  a  regular  sepulchre.  'Maister  Canynge'  to    St.  Mary 

9  1  have  seen  a  beautiful  one  at  Redcliffe,    Bristol,  with,   amongst 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS  23 

at  Hereford  and  in  Hungary,  set  upon  it l,  A  canopy  was  hung 
over  it  and  upon  it  lay  a  pall,  also  a  favourite  object  for  a  pious 
legacy.  Similar  legacies  might -meet  the  expense  of  the 
'  sepulchre  light/  which  was  kept  burning  from  Good  Friday 
to  Easter  morning,  and  was  only  extinguished  for  a  few 
minutes  on  Easter  Saturday  to  be  re-lit  from  the  freshly 
blessed  'new  fire2/  Or  the  light  might  be  provided  by  one 
of  the  innumerable  guilds  of  the  Middle  Ages,  whose  members, 
perhaps,  also  undertook  the  devout  duty  of  keeping  the  two 
nights'  vigil  before  the  sepulchre 3.  This  watch  was  important. 
The  Augsburg  ritual  already  quoted  makes  the  possibility  of 
arranging  it  a  condition  of  setting  up  the  se'pulchre  at  all 4. 
The  watchers  sang  psalms,  and  it  is  an  example  of  the  irre- 
pressible mediaeval  tendency  to  mimesis  that  they  were  some- 
times accoutred  like  the  knights  of  Pilate  6.  After  the  Elevatio, 
the  crucifix  seems  to  have  been  placed  upon  a  side-altar  and 
visited  by  processions  in  Easter,  while  the  host  was  reserved 
in  a  tabernacle.  The  Sarum  Custumary  directs  that  the 
empty  sepulchre  shall  be  daily  censed  at  Vesperg  and  removed 


other  adornments,  'Heaven  made 
of  timber  and  stain'd  clothes '  and 
'Hell,  made  of  timber  and  iron- work 
thereto,  with  Divels  to  the  number 
of  13.'  This  is  apparently  not  a 
Chatterton  forgery.  Feasey,  166, 
gives  a  somewhat  similar  London 
specification,  and  also  (p.  145)  de- 
scribes a  fourteenth-century  wooden 
sepulchre  from  Kilsby,  Northants, 
believed  to  be  the  only  one  in 
existence.  I  have  a  suspicion  that 
the  wooden  so-called  'watcher's 
chamber'  to  the  shrine  of  St. 
Frideswide  in  Christ  Church, 
Oxford,  is  really  a  sepulchre.  It  is 
in  the  right  place,  off  the  north 
choir  aisle,  and  why  should  a 
watcher  of  the  shrine  want  to  be 
perched  up  in  a  wooden  'cage  ou 
the  top  of  a  tomb? 

1  Dank6, 536, 580.  Two  instances 
are  given.  In  one  the  sepulchre 
was  sealed,  in  the  other  the  pyx, 
'sigillo  vel  clavi  ecclesiae.'  At 
Hereford  'episcopus  .  .  .  cereo 
claudat  sepulchrum'  (Feasey,  159, 
from  Harl.  MS.  2081). 


3  Cf.  vol.  i.  p.  126. 

8  Wordsworth,  279;  Feasey,  161 ; 
Heales,  272,  299. 

4  Milchsack,  127. 

B  G.  Gilpin,  The  Bee- Hive  of  the 
Romish  Church  (1579)  (translated 
from  Isaac  Rabbotenu  of  Louvain, 
1569)  'They  make  the  graue  in  a 
hie  place  in  the  church,  where  men 
must  goe  up  manie  steppes,  which 
are  decked  with  blacke  cloth  from 
aboue  to  beneath,  and  upon  everie 
steppe  standeth  a  siluer  candlesticke 
with  a  waxe  candle  burning  in  it, 
and  there  doe  walke  souldiours  in 
harnesse,  as  bright  as  Saint  George, 
which  keep  the  graue,  till  the 
Priests  come  and  take  him  up; 
and  then  commeth  sodenlie  a 
Jlash  of  fire,  wherwith  they  are 
~all  afraid  and  fall  downe ;  and  then 
up  startes  the  man,  and  they  begin 
to  sing  Alleluia,  on  all  handes,  and 
the  clocke  striketh  eleuen.'  Feasey, 
1 68,  quotes  De  Moleon  for  a  state- 
ment that  the  watchers  at  Orleans 
were  dressed  as  soldiers. 


24  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

on  the  Friday  in  Easter  week  before  Mass l.  Naturally  there 
was  some  division  of  opinion  at  the  Reformation  as  to  the 
precise  spiritual  value  of  the  Easter  sepulchre.  While  Bishop 
Hooper  and  his  fellow  pulpiters  were  outspoken  about  the 
idolatrous  cult  of  a  *  dead  post  V  the  more  conservative  views 
which  ruled  in  the  latter  years  of  Henry  VIII  declared  the 
ceremony  to  be  '  very  laudable '  and  *  not  to  be  contemned  and 
cast  away  V  The  Cromwellian  Injunctions  of  1538  sanctioned 
the  continued  use  of  the  sepulchre  light,  and  by  implication 
of  the  sepulchre  itself.  The  Edwardine  Injunctions  of  1547 
suppressed  the  sepulchre  light  and  were  certainly  interpreted 
by  Cranmer  and  others  as  suppressing  the  sepulchre  4.  The 
closely  related  *  creeping  to  the  cross '  was  forbidden  by  pro- 
clamation in  1548;  and  in  1549,  after  the  issue  of  the  first 
Act  of  Uniformity  and  the  first  Prayer  Book  of  Edward  VI, 
the  disallowance  of  both  ceremonies  was  legalized,  or  renewed 
by  Articles  for  the  visitation  of  that  year6.  Payments  for  the 
breaking  up  of  the  sepulchre  now  appear  in  many  church- 
wardens' accounts,  to  be  complicated  before  long  by  payments 
for  setting  the  sepulchre  up  again,  in  consequence  of  an  order 
by  Queen  Mary  in  1554 6.  In  the  same  year  the  crucifix  and 
pyx  were  missing  out  of  the  sepulchre  at  St.  Pancras'  Church 
in  Cheapside,  when  the  priests  came  for  the  Elevatio  on  Easter 
morning,  and  one  Marsh  was  committed  to  the  Counter  for 

1  Appendix  Q.  Majesty,  1536  (Burnet,  i.  I.  435; 

*  Hooper,  Early  Writings  (Par-  i.  2.  472 ;    cf.    Froude,    ii.    486) ; 
ker  Soc.),  45  'The  ploughman,  be  Siry?*,  Eccles.  Memorials,  i. 1.546; 
he  never  so  unlearned,  shall  better  i.  2.  432. 

be  instructed  of  Christ's  death  and  *  Dixon,  ii.  82,  432,  513,  516; 

passion  by  the  corn  that  he  soweth  iii.    37  ;    Hardy   and    Gee,   Doc. 

in  the  field,  and  likewise  of  Christ's  illustrative    of   English    Church 

resurrection,  than  by  all  the  dead  History ',  278 ;  Cardwell,  Documen- 

posts  that  hang  in  the  church,  or  tary  Annals  of  the  Reformation^ 

are  pulled  out  of  the  sepulchre  with  i.    7 ;     Froude,    iv.    281.      There 

Christus  resurgent.     What  resem-  certainly  were  sepulchres  in  1548 

blance  hath  the  taking  of  the  cross  (Feasey,  175). 

out  of  the  sepulchre  and  going  a  5  Dixon,  in.  37 ;  Wilkins,  iv.  32. 

procession  with  it,  with  the  resur-  The  Act  of*  and  3  Edward  VI, 

rectidn  of  Christ?    None  at  all:  c.    10    (Froude,  iv.  495),  against 

the  dead  post  is  as  dead  when  they  images  and  paintings,  was  probably 

sing  Jam  non  moritur,  as  it  was  also  held  to  require  the  demolition 

when  they  buried  it  with  In  pace  of  many  sepulchres :    cf.  Ridley's 

foetus  est  locus  etus9:   cf.  Ridley,  Visitation  Articles  of  1550,  quoted 

Works  (Parker  Soc.),  67.  by  Hcales,  304. 

*  Articles  devised  by  the  Kings  *  Dixon,  iv.  129. 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS  26 

the  sacrilege1.  The  Elizabethan  Injunctions  of  1559,  although 
they  do  not  specifically  name  the  sepulchre,  doubtless  led  to 
its  final  disappearance2.  In  many  parts  of  the  continent 
it  naturally  lasted  longer,  but  the  term  *  visiting  sepulchres  * 
seems  in  modern  times  to  have  been  transferred  to  the  devotion 
paid  to  the  reserved  host  on  Maundy  Thursday  8. 

I  now  return  to  the  Quern  quaeritis  in  the  second  stage  of 
its  evolution,  when  it  had  ceased  to  be  an  Introit  trope  and 
had  become  attached  to  the  ceremony  of  the  sepulchre. 
Obviously  it  is  not  an  essential  part  of  that  ceremony.  The 
Depositio  and  Elevatio  mutually  presuppose  each  other  and, 
together,  are  complete.  For  the  dramatic  performance,  as 
described  by  St.  Ethelwbld,  the  clergy,  having  removed  the 
cross  at  the  beginning  of  Matins,  revisited  the  empty  sepulchre 
quite  at  the  close  of  that  service,  after  the  third  respond4, 
between  which  and  the  normal  ending  of  Matins,  the  Te  Deum> 
the  Quern  quaeritis  was  intercalated.  The  fact  that  the  Maries 
bear  censers  instead  of  or  in  addition  to  the  scriptural  spices, 
suggests  that  this  Visitatio  grew  out  of  a  custom  of  censing  the 
sepulchre  at  the  end  of  Matins  as  well  as  of  Evensong 6.  But  the 
Visitatio  could  easily  be  omitted,  and  in  fact  it  was  omitted  in 
many  churches  where  the  Depositio  and  Elevatio  were  in  use. 
The  Sarum  books,  for  instance,  do  not  in  any  way  prescribe 
it.  On  the  other  hand,  there  were  probably  a  few  churches 

1  Dixon,  iv.  1 57 ;  S.  R.  Maitland,  (Feasey,  142),  and  pious  legacies 

Essays    on    the   Reformation  (ed.  begin    to    direct    tombs  '  whereas 

1899),  1 86.  the  sepulchre  was  wonte  to  stande.' 

*  Hardy  and  Gee,  op.  cit.  428.  *  Davidson,  140;    Malleson  and 

Art  xxiii  forbids  *  monuments    of  Tuker,    ii.    263,    267,    272.      The 

. .  .  idolatry  and  superstition.'    The  latest  examples  of  the  Quern  quae- 

Elizabethan  Visitation  Articles  col-  ritis  are  of  the  eighteenth  century 

lected  in  the  Second  Report  of  the  from  Cologne  and  Angers  (Lange, 

Ritual  Commission  make  no  men-  36,  39)  and  Venice  (Z.  f.  d.  A.  xli. 

tion  of  sepulchres.    They  generally  77). 

follow  pretty  closely  the  wording  4  This  respond  begins  Dum  trans- 

of  the  Injunctions.  But  the  Articles  isset  Sabbatum. 

of  Bentham,  Bishop  of  Lichfield  *  Cf.  p.  18,  n.  2.      The  Sarum 

and  Coventry  (1565),  specify '  monu-  Custumary  provides  for  censing  on 

ments  of  idolatry  and  superstition '  feasts  (a)  at  the   anthem  '  super 

as    including    *  Sepulchres    which  Magnificat '  at  Vespers,  (b)  during 

were  used  on  Good  Friday  '(Heales,  or  after  the  Te  Deum  at  Matins 

307).    Notices  of  the  destruction  of  (Use  of  Sarum>  i.  113,  121).    The 

sepulchres  become  numerous,  being  sepulchre  is  included  only  at  Vespers 

found,  for  instance,  in  the  case  of  (cf.  Appendix  Q),  but  the  variation 

50  out  of  153  Lincolnshire  churches  I  suggest  would  not  be  great. 


26 


RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 


which  adopted  the  Visitatio  without  the  more  important  rite. 
Batnberg  seems  to  have  been  one  of  these,  and  so  possibly 
were  Sens,  Senlis,  and  one  or  two  others  in  which  the  Quern 
quaeritis  is  noted  as  taking  place  at  an  altar1.  However, 
whether  there  was  a  real  sepulchre  or  not,  the  regular  place 
of  the  Quern  quaeritis  was  that  prescribed  for  it  by  St.  Ethel- 
wold,  between  the  third  respond  and  the  Te  Deum  at  Matins. 
It  has  been  found  in  a  very  large  number  of  manuscripts,  and 
in  by  far  the  greater  part  of  them  it  occupies  this  position 2. 
In  the  rest,  with  the  exception  of  a  completely  anomalous 
example  from  Vienne 3,  it  is  either  a  trope  *,  or  else  is  merged 


1  Cf.  p.  22,  n.  I.  The  Bamberg 
Agenda  of  1-1597  (Lange,  93)  has 
an  Ordo  msitandi  sepulchrum 
which  opens  with  directions  for 
the  construction  of  a  sepulchre, 
which  would  obviously  not  be  the 
case  if  the  Depositio  and  Elevatio 
had  preceded.  Lange  rarely  prints 
more  than  the  Visitatio^  but  of  one 
group  of  texts  he  notes  (p.  135)  that 
the  MSS.  generally  have  also  the 
Elevatio. 

8  Lange's  collection  from  224 
MSS.  supersedes  those  of  Du  M^ril, 
CoussemaUer,  Milchsack,  &c.  He 
supplemented  it  by  versions  from 
Meissen,  Worms,  Venice,  and  Grau 
in  Hungary  in  Z.  /.  d.  A.  (1896), 
xli.  77 ;  and  has  not  got  those  from 
the  (*)  Winchester  Tropers  (cf. 
p.  12);  (b)  Autun  and  Nevers 
Tropers  of  the  eleventh  century 
(Gautier,'l26, 219) ;  (c)  St.  Magloire, 
twelfth-century  Troper  (cf.  p.  n); 
(ct)  Dublin  Processionals  (Appen- 
dix R);  *(e)  Laon  twelfth-century 
Ordinary  (Chevalier,  Ordinaires 
de  Laon,  118);  (/)  Clermont- 
Ferrand  fifteenth-century  Breviary 
(cf.  p.  ii);  (g)  Poitiers  Ritual 
(Martene,  iii.  173);  (ft)  Verdun, 
tenth-century  Consuetudinary  ( Mar- 
tene, iv.  299;  cf.  p.  15).  The  MSS, 
extend  from  the  tenth  to  the  eigh- 
teenth century.  The  majority  of 
them  are  Breviaries;  some  are 
Ordinaries,  Antiphoners,  Proces- 
sionals ;  a  few  are  late  Tropers,  in 
which,  besides  the  Tropes  proper, 
the  Holy  week  Ordo  is  included  (cf. 


Gautier,  81) ;  two  (B.  ff.  Lat.  1139 
from  Limoges,  and  Orleans  MS. 
178,  from  Fleury)  are  special  books 
of  dramatic  repraese&tationes\  cf. 
p.  i. 

8  Martene,  iii.i  80, from  an  undated 
Caeremoniale.  Lange,  26,  only  gives 
a  portion  of  the  text  containing  the 
Quern  quaeritis  proper,  which  was 
sung  as  a  processional  trope  before 
the  Missa  maior.  The  procession 
had  immediately  before  gone  to  the 
sepulchre  and  sung  other  anthems. 
But  the  sepulchre  played  a  part  at 
two  other  services.  Before  Matins 
the  clergy  had  in  turn  entered  the 
sepulchre,  found  i£  empty,  came 
out  and  given  eacn  other  the  kiss 
of  peace  and  Easter  greeting.  No 
Elevatio  is  described;  perhaps  it 
was  still  earlier  *  clam.1  After  Lauds, 
the  Missa  matutinalis  was  sung 
'  ad  sepulchrum  *  and  the  prosa  or 
Alleluia  trope  was  thus  performed: 
4  Prosa  Victimae  Pasckali.  Finite  V 
Dicat  nobis  Maria,  clericulus  stans 
in  sepulcro  cum  amictu  parato  et 
stola,  dicat  f.  Angelicos  testes. 
Chorus  respondeat  Die  nobis  Maria. 
Clericulus  dicat  Angelicas  testes* 
Clericus  dicat  Surrexit  Christus. 
Chorus  Credendum  est  magis  usque 
ad  finem.'  On  this  prose  and  its 
relation  to  the  Quern  quaeritis  cf. 
p.  29.  At  St  Mark's,  Venice 
(Z.f.d.A.  xli.  77),  the  position  ofthe 
Quern  quaeritis  is  also  abnormal, 
coming  just  before  Prime,  but  this 
version  dates  from  1736. 

4  Cf.  p.  12. 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS  27 

with  or  immediately  follows  the  Elevatio  before  Matins  \  The 
evidence  of  the  texts  themselves  is  borne  out  by  Durandus, 
who  is  aware  of  the  variety  of  custom,  and  indicates  the  end 
of  Matins  as  \hzproprior  locus*. 

No  less  difficult  to  determine  than  the  place  and  time  at 
which  the  Easter  sepulchre  itself  was  devised,  are  those 
at  which  the  Quern  quaeritis,  attached  to  it,  stood  forth  as 
a  drama.  That  the  two  first  appear  together  can  hardly 
be  taken  as  evidence  that  they  came  into  being  together. 
The  predominance  of  German  and  French  versions  of  the 
Quern  quaeritis  may  suggest  an  origin  in  the  Prankish  area : 
and  if  the  influence  of  the  Sarum  use  and  the  havoc  of  service- 
books  at  the  Reformation  may  between  them  help  to  account 
for  the  comparative  rarity  of  the  play  in  these  islands,  no  such 
explanation  is  available  for  Italy  and  Spain.  The  develop- 
ment of  the  religious  drama  in  the  peninsulas,  especially  in 
Italy,  seems  to  have  followed  from  the  beginning  lines  some- 
what distinct  from  those  of  north-western  Europe.  But 
between  France  and  Germany,  as  between  France  and 
England,  literary  influences,  so  far  as  clerkly  literature  goes, 
moved  freely :  nor  is  it  possible  to  isolate  the  centres  and 
lines  of  diffusion  of  that  gradual  process  of  accretion  and 
development  through  which  the  Quern  quaeritis  gave  ever  fuller 
and  fuller  expression  to  the  dramatic  instincts  by  which 
it  was  prompted.  The  clerici  vagantes  were  doubtless  busy 
agents  in  carrying  new  motives  and  amplifications  of  the  text 
from  one  church  to  another.  Nor  should  it  be  forgotten  that, 
numerous  as  are  the  versions  preserved,  those  which  have 
perished  must  have  been  more  numerous  still,  so  that,  if  all 

1  Lange,  28  (Parma),  30  (Laon),  faciunt,  antequam   matutinum  in- 

47  (Constance),  68  (Rheinau),  69  choent,  sed  hie  est  proprior  locus, 

(St.  Gall).  At  Rheinau,  the  Elevatio  eo  quod  Te  deum  laudamus  cxpri- 

takes  place  in  the  course  of  the  mit  horam,  qua  resurrexit.    Quidam 

Quern  quaeritis  :    at    Parma,  and  etiam  earn  faciunt  ad  missam,  cum 

probably  in  the  other  cases,  the  dicuntur    sequentia    ilia    Victimae 

'  sacrista  pervigil '  has  already  re-  paschali,  cum  dicitur  versus  Die 

moved  the  *  Corpus  Christ!/  nobis  ct  sequentes.1    Joannes  Ab- 

*  Durandus,  lib.  vi.  c.  87.    He  rincensis, deOffic.eccles.(P.L.v&\\\. 

describes  the  normal  Visitatio^  in  54),  briefly  notes  the  'officium  se- 

terms  much  resembling  those   of  pulchri*  as  'post  tertium  respon- 

Belethus    (cf.    p.  31),    and    adds  sorium/  and  says  no  more* 
'  quidam  vero  hanc  presentationem 


28  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

were  before  us,  the  apparent  anomaly  presented  by  the 
occurrence  of  identical  features  in,  for  instance,  the  plays 
from  Dublin  and  Fleury,  and  no  others,  would  not  improbably 
be  removed.  The  existence  of  this  or  that  version  in  the 
service-books  of  any  one  church  must  depend  on  divers  con- 
ditions ;  the  accidents  of  communication  in  the  first  place,  and 
in  the  second  the  laxity  or  austerity  of  governing  bodies  at 
various  dates  in  the  licensing  or  pruning  of  dramatic  elabora- 
tion. The  simplest  texts  are  often  found  in  the  latest  manu- 
scripts, and  it  may  be  that  because  their  simplicity  gave  no 
offence  they  were  permitted  to  remain  there.  A  Strassburg 
notice  suggests  that  the  ordering  of  the  Quern  quaeritis  was 
a  matter  for  the  discretion  of  each  individual  parish,  in  inde- 
pendence of  its  diocesan  use l ;  while  the  process  of  textual 
growth  is  illustrated  by  a  Laon  Ordinarium>  in  which  an  earlier 
version  has  been  erased  and  one  more  elaborate  substituted 2. 

Disregarding,  however,  in  the  main  the  dates  of  the  manu- 
scripts, it  is  easy  so  to  classify  the  available  versions  as  to 
mark  the  course  of  a  development  which  was  probably  com- 
plete by  the  middle  of  the  twelfth  and  certainly  by  the 
thirteenth  century.  This  development  affected  both  the  text 
and  the  dramatic  interest  of  the  play.  The  former  is  the 
slighter  matter  and  may  be  disposed  of  first 8. 

The  kernel  of  the  whole  thing  is,  of  course,  the  old  St.  Gall 
trope,  itself  a  free  adaptation  from  the  text  of  the  Vulgate, 
and  tlie  few  examples  in  which  this  does  not  occur  must 
be  regarded  as  quite  exceptional 4.  The  earliest  additions 
were  taken  from  anthems,  which  already  had  their  place 

1  Strassburg   Agenda    of    1513  qualitate  commodum  fore  iudica- 

(Lange,  50)  '  Haec  prescripta  visi-  verint.' 

tatio  sepulcri  observetur  secundum  a  Laon  Ordinarium  of  twelfth 
consuetudinem  cuiuslibet  ecclesiae.'  century  (U.  Chevalier,  Ordtnaires 
Meyer,  33,  quotes  a  passage  even  de  Laon>  118).  The  change  con- 
more  to  the  point  from  the  Bamberg  sisted  mainly  in  the  introduction  of 
Agenda  of  1587  '  Haec  dominicae  the  Victimae  paschali :  cf.  p.  29. 
resurrectionis  commemoratio  cele-  8  Cf.  the  mil  discussion,  mainly 
brioribus  servit  ecclesiis,  unde  alia-  from  the  textual  point  of  view, 
rum  ecclesiarum  utpote  minorum  et  throughout  Lange's  book,  with  that 
ruralium  rectores  et  parochi  ex  of  Meyer,  and  Creizenach,  i.  47 ; 
ordine  hie  descripto  aliquid  saltern  Froning,  3  ;  Wirth,  I. 
desumere  possunt,  quod  pro  loci  *  The  Bohemian  fourteenth-cen- 
et  personarum  illic  convenientium  tury  version  (Lange,  130)  is  nearly 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS 


29 


in  the  Easter  services,  and  which  in  some  manuscripts  of  the 
Gregorian  Antipkonarium  are  grouped  together  as  suitable  for 
insertion  wherever  may  be  desired l.  So  far  the  text  keeps 
fairly  close  to  the  words  of  Scripture,  and  even  where  the 
limits  of  the  antiphonary  are  passed,  the  same  rule  holds 
good.  In  time,  however,  a  freer  dramatic  handling  partly 
establishes  itself.  Proses,  and  even  metrical  hymns,  beginning 
as  choral  introductions,  gradually  usurp  a  place  in  the  dialogue, 
and  in  the  latest  versions  the  metrical  character  is  very  marked. 
By  far  the  most  important  of  these  insertions  is  the  famous 
prose  or  sequence  Victimae  paschali,  the  composition  of  which 
by  the  monk  Wipo  of  St.  Gall  can  be  pretty  safely  dated  in  the 
second  quarter  of  the  eleventh  century 2.  It  goes  as  follows : 

'Victimae  paschali  laudes  immolant  Christiani. 
agnus  redemit  oves,  Christus  innocens  patri  reconciliavit 

peccatores. 
mors  et  vita  duello  conflixere  mirando,  dux  vitae  mor- 

tuus  regnat  v'ivus. 


all  narrative  sung  by  the  Ebdo- 
marius  :  the  only  dialogue  is  from 
the  Victimae  paschali.  Martene, 
iii.  173,  gives,  from  a  *  vetustissimum 
Rituale,'  this  Poitiers  version,  not 
in  Lange,  '  Finitis  matutinis,  acce- 
dunt  ad  sepulchrum,  portantes  lu- 
minaria.  Tune  incipit  Maria :  Ubi 
est  Christus  meusf  Respondet 
angelus  Non  est  hie.  Tune  Maria 
aperit  os  sepulchri,  et  dicit  publica 
voce :  Surrexit  Christus.  Et  omnes 
respondent  Deo  gratias.'  Possibly 
Maria  here  is  the  Virgin,  who  is  not 
usually  included  in  the  Visitatio. 
But  the  same  anthem  opens  a 
twelfth-century  Limoges  version, 
headed  'Oc  est  de  mulieribus'  in 
B.  N.  Lot.  MS.  1139,  a  collection 
of  ritual  plays.  The  full  text  is '  Ubi 
est  Christus  meus  dominus  et  films 
excelsus  ? '  which  is  not  really  appro- 
priate to  any  other  speaker:  cf. 
Milchsack,  38.  A  frequent  variant 
on  *  Quern  quaeritis  in  sepulchro, 
o  Christicolae  ? '  is '  Quern  quaeritis, 
o  treoiulae  mulieres,  in  hoc  tumulo 
plorantes  ?';  nor  can  the  two  forms 
be  localized  (Lange,  84). 


1  Lange,  32.  These  MSS.  are  of 
the  eleventh  and  twelfth  centuries. 
I  find  no  such  section  in  the  normal 
text  of  the  Gregorian  Liber  respon- 
sa/tSj  which  is  the  antiphonary  for 
the  office  (P.  L.  Ixxviii.  769).  The 
'antiphonae  deresurrectione  domini 
ubicumque  voluerjs '  of  the  B.  N. 
Lot.  MS.  17,436  include  the  'Cito 
euntes  dicite,  &c.,'  *  Currebant  duo 
simul,  &c.,' '  Ardens  est  cor  meum, 
&c./  and  others  which  are  regularly 
introduced  into  the  play.  Another 
commonly  used  is  the  Christus 
resurgens  with  its  verse,  '  Dicant 
nunc  ludaei,  &c.,'  which  the  Sarum 
books  assign  to  the  Elevatio  (Ap- 
pendix Q) :  cf.  Lange,  77. 

1  Text  in  Daniel,  Thesaurus 
HymnologicuS)  ii.  95 ;  Kehrein, 
Lateiniscne  Sequenzen  des  Mittel- 
alters j  8 1,  and  with  facsimile  and 
setting  in  A.  Schiibiger,  Die  Sanger- 
schuleSt.  Gallens,  90,  &c. ;  cf.  Lange, 
59;  Meyer,  49,  76;  Miichsack,  34  ; 
Chevalier,  Repertorium  Hymno- 
logicum,  s.  vv. ;  A.  Schiibiger,  La 
Sequence  de  PAques  Victimae 
chali  et  son  auteur  (1858). 


80  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

die  nobis,  Maria,  quid  vidisti  in  via  ? 

sepulchrum  Christi  viventis  et  gloriam  vidi  rcsurgentis; 

angelicos  testes,  sudarium  et  vestes. 

surrexit  Christus,  spes  mea,  praecedet  suos  in  Galilaeam. 

credendum  est  magis  soli  Mariae  veraci,  quam  ludaeo- 

rum  turbae  fallaci. 
scimus  Christum  surrexisse  a  mortuis  vere:    tu  nobis, 

victor,  rex,  miserere/ 

Originally  written  as  an  Alleluia  trope  or  sequence  proper, 
a  place  which  it  still  occupies  in  the  reformed  Tridentine 
liturgy1,  the  Victimae  paschali  cannot  be  shown  to  have  made 
its  way  into  the  Quern  quaeritis  until  the  thirteenth  century  2. 
But  it  occurs  in  about  a  third  of  the  extant  versions,  sometimes 
as  a  whole,  sometimes  with  the  omission  of  the  first  three 
sentences,  which  obviously  do  not  lend  themselves  as  well 
as  the  rest  to  dramatic  treatment.  When  introduced,  these 
three  sentences  are  sung  either  by  the  choir  or  by  the  Maries: 
the  other  six  fall  naturally  into  dialogue. 

The  Victimae  paschali  is  an  expansion  of  the  text  of  the 
Quern  quaeritis,  but  it  does  not  necessarily  introduce  any  new 
dramatic  motive.  Of  such  there  were,  from  the  beginning, 
at  least  two.  There  was  the  visit  of  the  Maries  to  the 
sepulchre  and  their  colloquy  with  the  angel ;  and  there  was 
the  subsequent  announcement  of  the  Resurrection  made  by 
them  in  pursuance  of  the  divine  direction.  Each  has  its 
appropriate  action  :  in  the  one  case  the  lifting  of  the  pall  and 
discovery  of  the  empty  sepulchre,  in  the  other  the  display  by 
the  Maries  of  the  cast-off  grave-clothes,  represented  by  a 
linteum,  in  token  of  the  joyful  event.  It  is  to  this  second 
scene,  if  the  term  may  be  used  of  anything  so  rudimentary, 
that  the  Victimae  paschali  attaches  itself.  The  dialogue  of 
it  is  between  the  Maries  and  the  choir,  who  stand  for  the 
whole  body  of  disciples,  or  sometimes  two  singers,  who  are 
their  spokesmen  3.  A  new  scene  is,  however,  clearly  added  to 

1  Malleson-Tuker,  ii.  27.  It  is  (Chevalier,  Ordinaires  de  Loon, 

used  throughout  Easter  week,  1 1 8). 

1  Lange,6o.  It  was  interpolated  8  Narbonne,  ti4oo  (Lange,  65) 

during  the  thirteenth  century  in  'duo  canonici,  tanquam  apostoli  ; 

a  twelfth-century  Laon  version  cf.  Lange,  75. 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS  31 

the  play,  when  these  two  singers  not  only  address  the  Maries, 
but  themselves  pay  a  visit  to  the  sepulchre.  Now  they  repre- 
sent the  apostles  Peter  and  John.  In  accordance  with  the 
gospel  narrative  John  outstrips  Peter  in  going  to  the  sepulchre, 
but  Peter  enters  first :  and  the  business  of  taking  up  the 
linteum  and  displaying  it  to  the  other  disciples  is  naturally 
transferred  to  them  from  the  Maries.  The  apostle  scene  first 
makes  its  appearance  in  an  Augsburg  text  of  the  end  of  the 
eleventh  century,  or  the  beginning  of  the  twelfth  \  *It  occurs 
in  rather  more  than  half  the  total  number  of  versions. 
These  are  mainly  German,  but  the  evidence  of  Belethus  is 
sufficient  to  show  that  it  was  not  unknown  in  twelfth-century 
France2.  The  addition  of  the  apostle  scene  completed  the 
evolution  of  the  Easter  play  for  the  majority  of  churches. 
There  were,  however,  a  few  in  which  the  very  important  step 
was  taken  of  introducing  the  person  of  the  risen  Christ  him- 
self ;  and  this  naturally  entailed  yet  another  new  scene.  Of 
this  type  there  are  fifteen  extant  versions,  coming  from 
one  Italian,  four  French,  and  four  German  churches  3.  The 
earliest  is  of  the  twelfth  century,  from  a  Prague  convent.  The 
new  scene  closely  follows  the  Scripture  narrative.  Mary 

1  Augsburg   liber   liturgicus   of  has,  like  the  older  Roman  liturgies, 
eleventh  or  twelfth  century  (Lange,  *  crucifixus  in  suum  locum  reponi 
82).  debet '  (c.  xcviii).    Durandus,  vi.  87j 

2  Belethus,  c.  cxiii  (P.  L.    ccii.  has  an  account  very  similar  to  that 
119)  *  fit  enim  in  plerisque  Ecclesiis  of  Belethus,  but  says  '  Si  qui  autem 
ut  cantato  ultimo  response,   cum  habent  versus  de  hac  representa- 
candelis  cereis  et  solemni  proces-  done  composites,  licet  non  authen- 
sione  eant  ex  choro  ad  locum  quern-  ticos   non   improbamus ' ;   cf.   alsc 
dam,  ubi  imaginarium  sepulcrum  p.  27. 

compositum  est,  in  quod  mtrodu-  8  Engelberg     (1372),     Cividal* 

cuntur  aliquot  in  personis  mulierum  (fourteenth    century),    Nuremberg 

et  discipulorum  loannis  et  Petri,  (thirteenth    century),     Einsiedeh 

quorum  alter  alterp  citius  re vertitur,  (thirteenth  century),   Prague  (six 

sicut  Joannes  velocius  cucurrit  Petro,  twelfth    to    fourteenth   centuries) 

atque  item  alii  quidam  in  personis  Rouen  (two,  thirteenth  and  fifteentl 

angelorum  qui  Christum resurrexisse  centuries),  Mont  St-Michel  (four 

dixerunt  a  mortuis.     Quo  quidem  teenth  century ),Coutances( fifteen tl 

facto  personae  eae  redeunt  ad  cho-  century),  Fleury  (Orleans  MS.  178 

rum,  referuntque  ea  quae  viderint  thirteenth  century) ;  all  printed  b; 

et  audierint.    Tune  chorus,  audita  Lange,  136  sqq.  Gaste',  58,  63,  als< 

Christ!  resurrectione,  prorumpit  in  gives  the  Rouen  and    Coutance 

altam  vocem,  inquiens,  Te  Deum  versions,  the  latter  more  fully  tha 

laudamus?  It  is  to  be  observed  that  Lange.    Meyer,  80,  discusses  th 

Belethus  knows  no  Depositio  and  interrelations  of  the  texts. 
Elevatio.    After  the  Adoratio^  he 


32  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

Magdalen  remains  behind  the  other  Maries  at  the  sepulchre. 
The  Christ  appears  ;  she  takes  him  for  the  gardener,  and  he 
reveals  himself  with  the  Noli  me  tangere.  Mary  returns  with 
the  new  wonder  to  the  choir.  This  is  the  simplest  version  of 
the  new  episode.  It  occurs  in  a  play  of  which  the  text  is 
purely  liturgical,  and  does  not  even  include  the  Victimae 
paschali.  A  somewhat  longer  one  is  found  in  a  Fleury  play, 
which  is  in  other  respects  highly  elaborate  and  metrical, 
Here  the  Christ  appears  twice,  first  disguised  in  similitudinem 
hortolani^  afterwards  in  similit^inem  domini  with  the  labarum 
or  resurrection  banner.  The  remaining  versions  do  not  depart 
widely  from  these  two  types,  except  that  at  Rouen  and  Mont 
St-Michel,  the  Christ  scene  takes  place,  not  at  the  sepulchre 
but  at  the  altar,  and  at  Cividale  in  a  spot  described  as  the 
ortus  Christi1. 

The  formal  classification,  then,  of  the  versions  of  the  Quern 
quaeritis,  gives  three  types.  In  the  first,  the  scenes  between 
the  Maries  and  the  angel,  and  between  the  Maries  and  the 
choir,  are  alone  present ;  in  the  second  the  apostle  scene  is 
added  to  these  ;  the  third,  of  which  there  are  only  fifteen 
known  examples,  is  distinguished  by  the  presence  of  the 
Christ  scene.  In  any  one  of  these  types,  the  Victimae  paschali 
and  other  proses  and  hymns  may  or  may  not  be  found 2.  And 
it  must  now  be  added  that  it  is  on  the  presence  of  these  that 
the  greater  or  less  development  of  lyric  feeling,  as  distinct 
from  dramatic  action,  in  the  play  depends.  The  metrical 
hymns  in  particular,  when  they  are  not  merely  choral  overtures, 
are  often  of  the  nature  of  planctus  or  laments  put  in  the 
mouths  of  the  Maries  as  they  approach  the  sepulchre  or  at 
some  other  appropriate  moment.  These  planctus  add  greatly 
to  the  vividness  and  humanity  of  the  play,  and  are  thus  an 
important  step  in  the  dramatic  evolution.  The  use  of  them 

1  Lange,  138.     In  this  text  the  the   apparition   'in  sinistro  cprnu 

Maries  have  a  locus  suus.    The  altaris,' for  at  Easter,  1570,  divine 

MS.  i$  a  Processional^  and  it  may  service  was  performed  in  a  *  paradis 

be  that  the  play  was  given  not  in  dresse*  avec  la  plus  grande  solennite 

the  church,  but  in  the  open  square,  dans  la  chapelle  Notre- Dame,  der- 

as  was  the  Annunciation  play  in  the  riere  le  chceur '  (Gaste*,  58). 

same  MS.  (Coussemaker,  284;  cf.  *  These  are  of  course  the 'versus* 

p.  67).    It  is  none  the  less  litur-  spoken  of  with   tolerance  in  the 

gical.    Rouen    had    probably   an  passage  just  quoted  from  Duran- 

6  ortus  Christi '  out  of  which  came  dus. 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS  33 

may  be  illustrated  by  that  of  the  hymn  Heu  I  plus  pastor 
occiditur  in  the  Dublin  version  found  by  Mr.  Frere  and  printed, 
after  a  different  text  from  his,  in  an  appendix  \  This  play  has 
not  the  Christ  scene,  and  belongs,  therefore,  to  the  second  type 
of  Quern  guaeritis,but,  in  other  respects,  including  \hsplanctus, 
it  closely  resembles  the  Fleury  version  described  above. 
Another  planctus,  found  in  plays  of  the  third  type  from 
Engelberg,  Nuremberg,  Einsiedeln,  and  Cividale,  is  the  Heu 
nobis  !  internets  mentes  2 ;  a  third,  the  Heu  !  miser ae  cur  contigit> 
seems  to  have  been  interpolated  in  the  Heu  f  pius  pastor  at 
Dublin  ;  a  fourth,  the  Omnipotent  pater  altissime>  with  a  refrain 
Heu  quantus  est  dolor  noster  f  is  found  at  places  so  far  apart 
as  Narbonne  and  Prague  3  :  and  a  fifth,  Heu  dolor  >  keu  quam 
dira  doloris  angustia  I  is  also  in  the  Fleury  text 4. 

Another  advance  towards  drama  is  made  in  four  Prague 
versions  of  the  third  type  by  the  introduction  of  an  episode 
for  which  there  is  no  Scriptural  basis  at  all.  On  their  way  to 
the  sepulchre,  the  Maries  stop  and  buy  the  necessary  spices 
of  a  spice-merchant  or  unguentarius.  In  three  thirteenth- 
century  texts  the  unguentarius  is  merely  a  persona  muta ;  in 
one  of  the  fourteenth  he  is  given  four  lines 5.  The  unguentarius 
was  destined  to  become  a  very  popular  character,  and  to  afford 
much  comic  relief  in  the  vernacular  religious  drama  of 
Germany.  Nor  can  it  be  quite  confidently  said  that  his 
appearance  in  these  comparatively  late  liturgical  plays  is  a 
natural  development  and  not  merely  an  instance  of  reaction 
by  the  vernacular  stage. 

1  Appendix  R.    The  Heu  /  pius  Ungentarius : 
fas  for  occiditur  does  not  seem  to  *dabo  vpbis  ungenta  optima, 

nave  been  found  outside  the  Fleury  salvatoris  ungere  vulnera, 

and  Dublin  plays  (Chevalier,  Re-  sepulturae  eius  ad  memoriam 

pert.  Hymn.  n°.  7741).  et  nomen  eius  ad  gloriam.' 

8  Lange,   136,   141 ;   Milchsack,  The  earlier  texts  have  *  aromata . . . 

35.  66.  memori,'  preceded  by '  Mariae  can- 

*  Lange,  64,  74.  tantes  "  aromata  "    procedant  ad 

4  Ibid.  162.  unguentarium  pro  accipiendis  un- 

6  Ibid.    151.      The   fourteenth-  gentis'  and  followed   by  'quibus 

century  text  runs  :  acceptis  accedant  ad  sepulchrum.1 

Tres  Mariae;  Meyer,  58,  91,  106,  calls  this  scene, 

'  aromata  preciosa  querimus,  in  which  he  finds  the  first  introduc- 

Christi  corpus  ungere  volumus,  tion    of   non-liturgical  verse,   the 

holocausta  sunt  odorifera  Zehnsilber spiel ,  and  studies  it  at 

sepulturae  Christi  memori.'  great  length. 

D 


84  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

The  scenic  effect  of  the  Quern  quaeritis  can  be  to  some 
extent  gathered  from  the  rubrics,although  these  are  often  absent 
and  often  not  very  explicit,  being  content  with  a  general 
direction  for  the  performers  to  be  arrayed  in  similitudinem 
mulierum  or  angelorum  or  apostolorum,  as  the  case  may  be. 
The  setting  was  obviously  simple,  and  few  properties  or 
costumes  beyond  what  the  vestments  and  ornaments  of  the 
church  could  supply  were  used.  The  Maries  had  their  heads 
veiled  \  and  wore  surplices,  copes,  chasubles,  dalmatics,  albs,  or 
the  like.  These  were  either  white  or  coloured.  At  Fecamp 
one,  presumably  the  Magdalen,  was  in  red,  the  other  two  in 
white 2.  The  thuribles  which,  as  already  pointed  out,  they 
carried,  were  sometimes  replaced  by  boxes  or  vases  represent- 
ing the  ointment  and  spices 3.  Sometimes  also  they  carried, 
or  had  carried  before  them,  candles.  Two  or  three  rubrics 
direct  them  to  go  pedetemptim,  as  sad  or  searching  *.  They 
were  generally  three  in  number,  occasionally  two,  or  one  only. 
The  angels,  or  angel,  as  the  case  might  be,  sat  within  the 
sepulchre  or  at  its  door.  They,  too,  had  vestments,  generally 
white,  and  veiled  or  crowned  heads.  At  Narbonne,  and 
probably  elsewhere,  they  had  wings5.  They  held  lights, 
a  palm,  or  an  ear  of  corn,  symbolizing  the  Resurrection  6.  The 
apostles  are  rarely  described ;  the  ordinary  priestly  robes 
doubtless  sufficed.  At  Dublin,  St.  John,  in  white,  held  a  palm, 
and  St.  Peter,  in  red,  the  keys  7.  In  the  earliest  Prague  version 
of  the  Christ  scene,  the  Christ  seems  to  be  represented  by  one 
of  the  angels 8.  At  Nuremberg  the  dominica  persona  has 
a  crown  and  bare  feet9.  At  Rouen  he  holds  a  cross,  and 

1  Lange,    24,  51,  64   'coopertis  mam  manu  tenens,  in  capite  fanu- 
capitibus'  (Tours,  fifteenth  century),  lumlargumhabens'(Toul,  thirteenth 
'  capita  humeralibus  velata '  (Rhei-  century), '  tenens  spicam  in  manu ' 
nauVamictibus  in  capitibus  eorum '  ( Rouen,  fifteenth  century),  *  tenens 
(Narbonne,  1 1400).  palmam  in  manu  et  habens  coronam 

2  Lange,  36  (fourteenth  century),  in  capite'  (Mont  St-Michel,  four- 

8  Ibid.  27,  36,  53,  64,  &c. ;  Ap-     teenth     century),    '  vestitus    alba 
pendix  R.  deaurata,  mitra  tectus   caput  etsi 

4  Lange,  51,  160;  cf.  Cone.  Re-  deinfulatus,    palmam    in    sinistra, 

gularis  (Appendix  O).  ramum  candelarum  plenum  tenens 

0  Lange,  04  'induti  albis  et  amict-  in  manu  dextra '  (Fleury,  thirteenth 

ibus  cum  stolis  violatis  et  sindone  century), 

rubea  in  facie  eorum  et  alls    in  7  Appendix  R. 

humeris '  (Narbonne,  1 1400).  *  Lange,  147. 

9  Lange,  40,  155,  158,  162  'pal-  '  Ibid.   143   'quae    sit    vestita 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS  35 

though  there  is  a  double  appearance,  there  is  no  hint  of  any 
change  of  costume l.  But  at  Coutances  and  Fleuiy  the  first 
appearance  is  as  hortulanus,  indicated  perhaps  by  a  spade, 
which  is  exchanged  on  the  second  for  the  cross a. 

It  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  Quern  quaeritis  remained 
imperfectly  detached  from  the  liturgy,  out  of  which  it  arose. 
The  performers  were  priests,  or  nuns,  and  choir-boys.  The 
play  was  always  chanted,  not  spoken  8.  It  was  not  even  com- 
pletely resolved  into  dialogue.  In  many  quite  late  versions 
narrative  anthems  giving  the  gist  of  each  scene  are  retained, 
and  are  sung  either  by  the  principal  actors  or  by  the  choir, 
which  thus,  as  in  the  hymns  or  proses  which  occur  as  over- 
tures 4,  holds  a  position  distinct  from  the  part  which  it  takes 
as  representing  the  disciples  5.  Finally  the  whole  performance 
ends  in  most  cases  with  the  Te  Deum  laudamus,  and  thus 
becomes  a  constituent  part  of  Matins,  which  normally  comes 
to  a  close  with  that  hymn.  The  intervention  of  the  congrega- 
tion, with  its  Easter  hymn  Christ  ist  erstanden,  seems  to  lie 
outside  the  main  period  of  the  evolution  of  the  Quern  quaeritis. 
I  only  find  one  example  so  early  as  the  thirteenth  century 

dalmatica  casulamque  complicatam  perhaps  throw  light  on  the  relation 

super  humeros  habeat ;  coronamque  of  the  versions  to  each  other.    I  am 

capiti  superimpositam,  nudis  pedi-  sorry  that  it  is  beyond  my  powers': 

bus.'  moreover  Lange  does  not  give  the 

1  Lange,  156  'albatus  cum  stola,  notation  ;  Coussemaker  gives  it  for 

tenens  crucem.'  half  a  dozen  versions. 

*  Ibid.    159,     164     c  in    habitu  4  For  such  overtures  cf.  Lange, 

ortplani  ...  redeat,    indutus  capa  36,62,64;  Milchsack, 37, 38,40.  On 

serica  vel  pallio  serico,  tenens  era-  the  doubtful  use  of  the  Gloriosi  et 

cem '  (Coutances) ;  *  praeparatus  in  famosi  at  Einsiedeln,  cf.  p.  £4. 

similitudinem    hortolani    ...  is,  6  In  the  Prague  versions  (Lange, 

qui  ante  fuit  hortulanus,  in  simili-  151).    The  choir,  or  rather  'con- 

tudinem    domini   veniat,  dalmati-  ventus/  introduces  the  scenes  with 

catus  Candida  dalmatica,  Candida  the  three  following  anthems:    (i) 

infula  infulatus,  phylacteria  pretiosa  '  Maria  Magdalen  a  et  alia  Maria 

in  capite,  crucem  cum  labaro  in  ferebant  diluculo  aromata,  dominum 

dextra,  textum  auro  paratorium  in  querentes  in  monumento,7  (ii)'  Maria 

sinistra    habens'    (Fleury).      The  stabat      ad     monumentum     foris 

labarum  is  the  banner  of  Constan-  plorans ;  dum  ergo  fleret,  inclinavit 

tine  with  the  Chi-Ro  monogram  se  et  prospexit  in  monumentum,* 

(cf.  Gibbon-Bury,  if.  567) :  but  the  (iii)  *  Currebant  duo  simul  et  ille 

banner  usually  attached  to  the  cross  alius  discipulus  praecucurrit  cicius 

in  mediaeval  pictures  of  the  Resur-  petro  et  venit  prior  ad  monumen- 

rection  itself  bears  simply  a  large  turn.' 

cross  ;  cf.  Pearson,  ii.  310.  4  Lange,  146  (Nuremberg) ;  for 

9  A  study  of  the  music  might  later  examples  cf.  Lange,  99  sqq. 

D  3 


36  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

It  is  in  quite  late  texts  also  that  certain  otfrer  Easter  motives 
have  become  attached  to  the  play.  The  commonest  of  these 
are  the  whispered  greeting  of  Surrexit  Ckristus  and  the  kiss 
of  peace,  which  have  been  noted  elsewhere  as  preceding 
Matins1.  At  Eichstadt,  in  1560,  is  an  amusing  direction, 
which  Mr.  Collins  would  have  thought  very  proper,  that  the 
pax  is  to  be  given  to  the  dominus  terrae,  si  ibi  fuerit>  before 
the  priest  The  same  manuscript  shows  a  curious  combina- 
tion of  the  Quern  guaeritis  with  the  irrepressible  Tottite  portas 
ceremony 2.  Another  such  is  found  at  Venice 8.  But  this  is 
as  late  as  the  eighteenth  century,  to  which  also  belongs  the 
practice  at  Angers  described  by  De  Moleon,  according  to 
which  the  Maries  took  up  from  the  sepulchre  with  the  linteum 
two  large  Easter  eggs — deux  ceufs  d'autruche  4. 

Besides  the  Quern  quaeritis,  Easter  week  had  another 
liturgical  drama  in  the  Peregrini  or  Peregrinus*.  This 
was  established  by  the  twelfth  century.  It  was  regularly 
played  at  Lichfield6,  but  no  text  is  extant  from  England, 
except  a  late  transitional  one,  written  partly  in  the  ver- 
nacular 7.  France  affords  four  texts,  from  Saintes 8,  Rouen 9, 

The  hymn  generally  comes  just  6  Lichfield  Statutes  of  Hugh  de 
before  the  Te  Denm.  A  fourteenth-  Nonant,  1 188-98  (Lincoln  Statutes^ 
century  Bohemian  version  from  ii.  15,  23)  'Item  in  nocte  Natalis 
Prague  (Lange,  131)  has  a  similar  representacio  pastorum  fieri  con- 
Bohemian  hymn  *  Buoh  wssemoh-  suevit  et  in  diluculp  Pasche  repre- 
uczy.'  At  Bambergin  1597 'potest  sentacio  Resurreccionis  domimcae 
chorus  populo  iterum  praecjnere  et  representacio  peregrinorum  die 
cantilenas  pascales  Germanicas '  lune  in  septimana  Pasche  sicut  in 
(Lange,  95).  At  Rheinau  in  1573  libris  super  hijs  ac  alijs  compositis 
it  is  suggested  that  the  Quern  quae-  continetur . . .  De  officio  succentoris 
ritis  itself  may  as  an  alternative  be  . . .  et  providere  debet  quod  repre- 
sung  in  German  (Lange,  68) (  hisce  sentacio  pastorum  in  nocte  Natalis 
aut  German icis  versibus  cantatis.'  domini  et  miraculorum  in  nocte 
At  Aquileja  in  1495  *  Populus  Pasche  et  die  lune  in  Pascha  con- 


?£cole  des 

Ymnum  suum :  Te  Deum '  (Lange,  *Chartes,  xxxiv.  314,  from  B.  N.  Lot. 

67).             t  16,309  (thirteenth-century  Saintes 

1  Lange,  *39,  119,  122,  124;  cf.  Breviary),  begins  'Quando   fiunt 

Martene,  iii.  171.  Peregrini,  non  dicitur  prosa,  sed 

3  Lange,  41.  peregrini  deforis  veniunt  canendo 
*  Z.f.d.  A.  xli.  77.  ista* ;  ends  with  Magnificat  and 

4  Lange,  39.  Oratio,    l  Deus  qui    sollempnitate 

5  Creizenach,  i.  56;  JullevilJe,  i.  paschali/ 

67.  '  Text  in  Gastd,  65 ;  Du  M6ril, 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS  87 

Beauvais  \  and  Fleury  M.  The  play  is  also  recorded  at  Lille 
In  Germany  it  is  represented  by  a  recently-discovered  frag- 
ment of  the  famous  early  thirteenth-century  repertory  of  the 
scholar es  vagantes  from  the  Benedictbeuern  monastery4. 
The  simplest  version  is  that  of  Saintes,  in  which  the  action 
is  confined  to  the  journey  to  Emmaus  and  the  supper  there. 
The  Rouen  play  is  on  the  same  lines,  but  at  the  close  the 
disciples  are  joined  by  St  Mary  Magdalen,  and  the  Victimae 
paschali  is  sung.  The  Benedictbeuern  play  similarly  ends 
with  the  introduction  of  the  Virgin  and  two  other  Maries  to 
greet  the  risen  Christ.  But  here,  and  in  the  Beauvais  and 
Fleury  plays,  a  distinct  scene  is  added,  of  which  the  subject  is 
the  incredulity  of  Thomas  and  the  apparition  to  him.  It 
is,  I  think,  a  reasonable  conjecture  that  the  Peregrini^  in 
which  the  risen  Christ  is  a  character,  was  not  devised  until 
he  had  already  been  introduced  into  the  later  versions  of  the 
Quern  quaeritis.  Indeed  the  Fleury  Peregrini>vt\fa  its  double 
appearance  and  change  of  costume  for  Christ,  seems  clearly 
modelled  on  the  Fleury  Quern  quaeritis.  But  the  lesser  play 
has  its  own  proper  and  natural  place  in  the  Easter  week 
services.  It  is  attached  to  the  Processio  ad  fontes  which  is 
a  regular  portion,  during  that  season,  of  Vespers 5.  The  Christ 
with  the  Resurrection  cross  is  personated  by  the  priest  who 

1 1 7,  from  Rouen  Ordtnarium  (four-  Orleans  MS.  178  (thirteenth  cen- 

teenth  century),  begins  '  Officium  tury),  begins  '  Ad  faciendam  simili- 

Peregrinorum  debet  hie  fieri  hoc  tudinem  dominicae  apparitionis  in 

modo ' ;  ends  '  Et  processio,  factis  specie  Peregrini,  quae  fit  in  tertia 

memoriis,  redeat  in  choro  et  ibi  feria  Paschae  ad  Vesperas ' ;    ends 

finiantur    vesperae.'      Gast£,    68,  *  Salve,  festa  dies.' 

quotes  an  order  of  1452  'Domini  *  E.  Hautcceur, Documents litur* 

capitulantes  concluserunt  quod  in  giquesde  Lille,  $$,tomOrdinarium 

isfcs  festis  Paschae  fiat  misterium  of  thirteenth  century, '  Feria  ii.  . . . 

representans  resurrectionem  Christ!  in  vesperis  . . .  post  collectam  fit 

et  apparitionem  eius  suis  discipulis,  representatio   perejpnorum.     Qua 

eundo   apud  castrum  de  Emaux,  facta  cantatur  Christus  resurgens, 

amotis  et  cessantibus  indecenciis.'  et  itur  in  chorum/ 

1  Text  in  G.  Desjardins,  Hist,  de  *  W.  Meyvr$Fragmenta  Burana, 

la  Cath.  de  Beauvais  (1865),  115,  131,  with  text  and  facsimile.    The 

269,  begins  '  Ordo  ad  suscipiendum  play   begins    '  Incipit    exemplum 

peregnnum  in  secunda  feria  Paschae  apparicionis  domini  discipulis  suis 

ad  vesperas ' ;  ends  with  Oratio  de  (mxta)  castellum  Emaus,  ubi  illis 

Resurrectione.     Meyer,    133,    de-  apparuit  in  more  peregrin!,'  &c 

scribes  the  MS.  as  of  the  first  half  *  Use  of  Sarum>  i.  157 ;   Sarum 

of  the  twelfth  century.  Breviary \  i.  dcccxxix. 

1  Text  in  Du  Mfril,  120,  from 


88  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

normally  accompanies  the  procession  cum  cruce.  At  Rouen 
the  play  was  a  kind  of  dramatization  of  the  procession  itself1 ; 
at  Lille  it  seems  to  have  had  the  same  position ;  at  Saintes 
and  Beauvais  it  preceded  the  Magnificat  and  Oratio  or  Collecta, 
after  which  the  procession  started.  In  the  remaining  cases 
there  is  no  indication  of  the  exact  time  for  the  Peregrini. 
The  regular  day  for  it  appears  to  have  been  the  Monday  in 
Easter  week,  of  the  Gospel  for  which  the  journey  to  Emmaus 
is  the  subject ;  but  at  Fleury  it  was  on  the  Tuesday,  when 
the  Gospel  subject  is  the  incredulity  of  Thomas.  At  Saintes, 
a  curious  rubric  directs  the  Christ  during  the  supper  at 
Emmaus  to  divide  the  *  host'  among  the  Peregrini.  It  seems 
possible  that  in  this  way  a  final  disposal  was  found  for  the 
host  which  had  previously  figured  in  the  Depositio  and  Elevatio 
of  the  sepulchre  ceremony, 

A  long  play,  probably  of  Norman  origin  and  now  preserved 
in  a  manuscript  at  Tours,  represents  a  merging  of  the  Elevatio >, 
the  Quern  quaeritis,  and  the  Peregrini*.  The  beginning  is 
imperfect,  but  it  may  be  conjectured  from  a  fragment  belonging 
to  Klosterneuburg  in  Germany,  that  only  a  few  lines  are 
lost3.  Pilate  sets  a  watch  before  the  sepulchre.  An  angel 
sends  lightning,  and  the  soldiers  fall  as  if  dead  4.  Then  come 
the  Maries,  with  planctus.  There  is  a  scene  with  the  un- 
guentarius  or  mercator^  much  longer  than  that  at  Prague, 
followed  by  more  planctus.  After  the  Quern  quaeritis,  the 
soldiers  announce  the  event  to  Pilate,  A  planctus  by  the 

1  The  Peregrini  start '  a  vestiario  also  contains  the  *  Ordo  representa- 

.  .  .  per   dextram  alam   ecclesiae  cionis  Adae/  and  is  not  native  to 

usque  ad   portas  occidentals,  et  Tours,  cf,  p.  71. 

subsistentes  in  capite  processionis.'  8  Milchsack,  105  ;  Creizenach,  i, 

Then  the  Sacerdos, '  nudus  pedes,  90.    The  beginning  and  end  of  the 

ferens     crucem    super     dextrum  Klosterneuburg  play  were  printed 

humerum '    comes   *  per   dextram  from  a  thirteenth-century  MS.,  now 

alam    ecclesiae'    to    meet    them,  lost,  by  B.  Fez,  Thesaurus  novus 

They  lead  him  '  usque  ad  taberna-  Anecd.  ii,  i.  liii.     It  began  *  Prime 

culum,  in  piedio  navis  ecclesiae,  in  producaturPilatuscumresponsorio: 

similitudinem  castelli  Emaux  prae-  Ingressus  Pilatusj  and  ended  with 

paratum.'  *  Christ,   der   ist  erstanden';    cf. 

1  Text  in  Milchsack,  97  ;  Cousse-  Meyer,  126. 

maker,  21,  from  Tours  MS.  927  4  '  Modo  veniat  angelus  et  iniciat 

(twelfth  or  thirteenth  century) ;  cf.  eis  fulgura ;  milites  cadunt  in  ter- 

Creizenach,  i.  88  ;  Julleville,  i.  62 ;  ram  velut  mortui.' 
Meyer,  95  ;  and  on  the  MS.  which 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS  89 

Magdalen  leads  up  to  the  apparition  to  her.  The  Maries 
return  to  the  disciples.  Christ  appears  to  the  disciples,  then 
to  Thomas,  and  the  Victimae  paschali  and  Te  Deum  conclude 
the  performance.  A  fragment  of  a  very  similar  play,  breaking 
off  before  the  Quern  quaeritis,  belongs  to  the  Benedictbeuern 
manuscript  already  mentioned l. 

It  is  clear  from  the  rubrics  that  the  Tours  play,  long  as 
it  is,  was  still  acted  in  church,  and  probably,  as  the  Te  Deum 
suggests,  at  the  Easter  Matins  f.  Certainly  this  waa  the  case 
with  the  Benedictbeuern  play.  In  a  sense,  these  plays  only 
mark  a  further  stage  in  the  process  of  elaboration  by  which 
the  fuller  versions  of  the  Quern  quaeritis  proper  came  into 
being.  But  the  introduction  at  the  beginning  and  end  of 
motives  outside  the  events  of  the  Easter  morning  itself  points 
to  possibilities  of  expansion  which  were  presently  realized, 
and  which  ultimately  transformed  the  whole  character  of  the 
liturgical  drama.  All  the  plays,  however,  which  have  so  far 
been  mentioned,  are  strictly  plays  of  the  Resurrection.  Their 
action  begins  after  the  Burial  of  Christ,  and  does  not  stretch 
back  into  the  events  of  the  Passion.  Nor  indeed  can  the 
liturgical  drama  proper  be  shown  to  have  advanced  beyond 
a  very  rudimentary  representation  of  the  Passion.  This  began 
with  the  planctus,  akin  to  those  of  the  Quern  quaeritis,  which 
express  the  sorrows  of  the  Virgin  and  the  Maries  and  St.  John 
around  the  cross 8.  Such  planctus  exist  both  in  Latin  and 

1  Meyer,  97,  125,  with  text  and  crum  praedicti   milites,  procidant 

facsimile,  '  Incipit  ludus  immo  ex-  quasi  mortui,  nee  surgant  donee 

einplum  Dominice  resurrection  is.'  incipiatur  Te  Deum , . . .  &c.J    There 

The  episode  of  the  Resurrection  is   no   actual   appearance   of  the 

with  the  dismay  of  the  soldiers  is  Rising  Christ  in  any  of  these  three 

found  not  only  in  the  Tours  and  plays  as  originally  written.    But  a 

Benedictbeuern  MS.,  but  also  in  the  later  hand  has  inserted  in  the  Bene- 

simpler  Coutances  Quern  quaeritis.  dictbeuern  MS.  directions  for  the 

Lange,  157,  omits  this  passage,  but  Christ  to  appear,  discourse  with  the 

Gastl,  63,  gives  it;    'Si   Mariae  angels,  and  put  on   the  'vestem 

debeant  representarig  finito  respon-  ortulani.1 

sorio  quatuor  cleria  armati  acce-  *  Creizenach  thinks  the  play  (like 

dentes  ad  sepukrum  Domini  pannis  Adam)    was    outside   the  church, 

sericis  decenter  ornatum  et  secum  because  the  Maries  appear  '  ante 

dicant  personagia  sua.    Quo  facto,  ostium  ecclesiae.'    But  'ante9  may 

duo  pueri  induti  roquetis  veniant  be  inside.    Mary  Magdalen  at  one 

ad   monumentum    ferentes    duas  point  is  '  in  sinistra  parte  ecclesiae 

virgas  decorticatas  in  quibus  sunt  stans,'  and  most  of  the  action  is 

decem  candelae  ardentes  ;  et  statim  round  the  sepulchrum. 

cum  appropinquaverint  ad  sepul-  *  E.  Wechssler,    Die    romani* 


40 


RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 


the  vernacular.  The  earliest  are  of  the  twelfth  century. 
Several  of  them  are  in  dialogue,  in  which  Christ  himself 
occasionally  takes  part,  and  they  appear  to  have  been  sung 
in  church  after  Matins  on  Good  Friday  *.  The  planctus  must 
be  regarded  as  the  starting-point  of  a  drama  of  the  Passion, 
which  presently  established  itself  beside  the  drama  of  the 
Resurrection.  This  process  was  mainly  outside  the  churches, 
but  an  early  and  perhaps  still  liturgical  stage  of  it  is  to  be 
seen  in  the  Itidus  breviter  de  passione  which  precedes  the 
elaborated  Quern  quaeritis  of  the  Benedictbeuern  manuscript, 
and  was  probably  treated  as  a  sort  of  prologue  to  it.  The 
action  extends  from  the  preparation  for  the  Last  Supper  to 
the  Burial.  It  is  mainly  in  dumb-show,  and  the  slight 
dialogue  introduced  is  wholly  out  of  the  Vulgate.  But  at 
one  point  occurs  the  rubric  Maria  planctum  faciat  quantum 
melius  potesty  and  a  later  hand  has  inserted  out  of  its  place  in 
the  text  the  most  famous  of  all  the  laments  of  the  Virgin,  the 
Planctus  ante  nescia 2. 


schen  Marienklagen  (1893) ;  A. 
Schonbach,  Die  Marienklagen 
(1873) ;  cf.  Creizenach,  i.  241  ; 
Julleville,  i.  58  ;  Sepet,  23 ;  Milch- 
sack,  92  ;  Coussemaker,  285,  346 ; 
Meyer,  67 ;  Pearson,  ii.  384. 

1  A  planctus  ascribed  to  Bona- 
ventura  (thirteenth  century)  has  the 
titles  *  Officium  de  compassione 
Mariae'  (Wechssler,  14),  and 
'  Officium  sanctae  crucis'  (Bibl.de 
ffccoledes  Chartes^  xxxiv.  315).  An- 
other, the  'Surgit  Christus  cum 
trophaeo,'  is  headed  in  thirteenth- 
ana  fourteenth  -  century  MSS. 
'  Sequentia  devota  antiquorum  no- 
strorum  de  resurrectionis  argu- 
mentis.  Sanctarum  virginum 
Mariae  ac  Mariae  Magdalene  de 
compassione  mortis  Christi  per 
modum  dyalogi  sequential  The 
chorus  begins,  and  '  tres  bene  voci- 
ferati  schol&res  respondent'  (text 
in  Milchsack,  92 ;  cf.  Wechssler, 
14).  A  third, '  6  fratres  et  sorores,' 
is  headed  'Hie  incipit  planctus 
Mariae  et  aliorum  in  die  Parasceves* 
(text  from  fourteenth-century  Civi- 
dale  MS.  in  Coussemaker,  285 ; 
Julleville,  i.  58 ;  cf.  Wechssler,  17). 


Ducange,  s.  v.  Planctus,  quotes  a 
(thirteenth-century)Toulouse  rubric, 
'  planctum  beatissimae  Virginis 
Mariae,  qui  dicitur  a  duobus 
puerulis  post  Matutinum  et  debent 
esse  monachi,  si  possunt  reperiri 
ad  hoc  apti.'  This  planctus  was 
sung  from  the  *  cathedra  praedica- 
torii.'  On  the  use  of  vernacular 
Italian  planctus  by  the  laudesi  in 
churches  through  Lent,  cf.  Wechs- 
sler, 30.  The  vernacular  German 
'ludus  passionis*  printed  by  O. 
Schonemann,  Der  Sundenfall  und 
Marienklage  (1855),  129,  from  a 
Wolfenbiittel  fifteenth-  century,  MS., 
seems  to  have  still  been  meant  for 
liturgical  use,  as  it  has  the  rubric 
'debet  cantari  post  crux  fidelis  et 
sic  finiri  usque  ad  vesperam  lamen- 
tabiliter  cum  caeteris  sicut  con- 
suetum  est  fieri.'  It  incorporates 
the  Depositio. 


122,  with  text  and  facsimile.  The 
piece  ends  'et  ita  inchoatur  ludus 
de  resurrectione.  Pontifices  :  O 
domine  recte  meminimusj  which 
is  the  opening  of  the  Easter  play 
already  ?^ 


CHAPTER  XIX 
LITURGICAL  PLAYS  (continued) 

THE  *  Twelve  days  '  of  the  Christmas  season  are  no  less 
important  than  Easter  itself  in  the  evolution  of  the  liturgical 
drama.  I  have  mentioned  in  the  last  chapter  a  Christmas 
trope  which  is  evidently  based  upon  the  older  Easter  dialogue. 
Instead  of  Quern  quaeritis  in  sepulchre,  o  Christicolae  ?  it 
begins  Quern  quaeritis  in  praesepe,  pas  tores,  dicitef  It  occurs 
in  eleventh-  and  twelfth -century  tropers  from  St.  Gall, 
Limoges,  St.  Magloire,  and  Nevers.  Originally  it  was  an 
Introit  trope  for  the  third  or  c  great '  Mass.  In  a  fifteenth- 
century  breviary  from  Clermont-Ferrand  it  has  been  trans- 
ferred to  Matins,  where  it  follows  the  Te  Deum  ;  and  this  is 
precisely  the  place  in  the  Christmas  services  occupied,  at 
Rouen,  by  a  liturgical  drama  known  as  the  Ojficium  Pastorum^ 
which  appears  to  have  grown  out  of  the  Quem  quaeritis  in 
praesepe  ?  by  a  process  analogous  to  that  by  which  the  Easter 
drama  grew  out  of  the  Quem  quaeritis  in  sepulchro l  ?  A 
praesepe  or  c  crib/  covered  by  a  curtain,  was  made  ready 
behind  the  altar,  and  in  it  was  placed  an  image  of  the  Virgin. 
After  the  Te  Deum  five  canons  or  vicars,  representing  the 
shepherds,  approached  the  great  west  door  of  the  choir. 
A  boy  in  similitttdinem  angeli  perched  in  excelso  sang  them 
the  *  good  tidings/  and  a  number  of  others  in  voltis  ecclesiae 
took  up  the  Gloria  in  excelsis.  The  shepherds,  singing  a  hymn, 
advanced  to  the  praesepe.  Here  they  were  met  with  the 
Quem  quaeritis  by  two  priests  quasi  obstetrices*.  The  dia- 

1  Printed   by    Du    M&U,   147;  904);  it  is  also  in  B.  N.  Lat.  1213 

Gastl,  25 ;    Davidson,  173,  from  (fifteenth  century)  and  Bibl.  Maza- 

Rouen    Ordinaria   (Rouen   MSS.  rin.  216  (Du  M&il,  148). 

Y.  108  of  fifteenth  century,  Y.  1 10  *  The  *  obstetrices '  figure  in  the 

of  fourteenth   century);    Cousse-  ProtevangeliumIacobi,Mi.i%$<y\. 
maker,  235,  with   notation,   from 
Rouen  Gradual  (Bibl.  Nat.  Lat. 


42  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

logue  of  the  trope,  expanded  by  another  hymn  during  which 
the  shepherds  adore,  follows,  and  so  the  drama  ends.  But  the 
shepherds  'rule  the  choir'  throughout  the  Missa  in  Gallicantu 
immediately  afterwards,  and  at  Lauds,  the  anthem  for  which 
much  resembles  the  Quern  quaeritis  itself1.  The  misterium 
pastorum  was  still  performed  at  Rouen  in  the  middle  of  the 
fifteenth  century,  and  at  this  date  the  shepherds,  cessantibus 
stultitiis  et  insolenciis>  so  far  as  this  could  be  ensured  by  the 
chapter,  took  the  whole  '  service '  of  the  day,  just  as  did  the 
deacons,  priests,  and  choir-boys  during  the  triduum  2. 

If  the  central  point  of  the  Quern  quaeritis  is  the  sepukhrum^ 
that  of  the  Pastores  is  the  praesepe.  In  either  case  the  drama, 
properly  so  called,  is  an  addition,  and  by  no  means  an  invari- 
able one,  to  the  symbolical  ceremony.  The  Pastores  may,  in 
fact,  be  described,  although  the  term  does  not  occur  in  the 
documents,  as  a  Visitatio  praesepis.  The  history  of  the 
praesepe  can  be  more  definitely  stated  than  that  of  the  sepul- 
chrum.  It  is  by  no  means  extinct.  The  Christmas  c  crib '  or 
crhhe,  a  more  or  less  realistic  representation  of  the  Nativity, 
with  a  Christ-child  in  the  manger,  a  Joseph  and  Mary,  and 
very  often  an  ox  and  an  ass,  is  a  common  feature  in  all 
Catholic  countries  at  Christmas  time3.  At  Rome,  in  par- 
ticular, the  esposizione  del  santo  bambino  takes  place  with 
great  ceremony4.  A  tradition  ascribes  the  first  presepio 
known  in  Italy  to  St.  Francis,  who  is  said  to  have  invented  it 
at  Greccio  in  1233*.  But  this  is  a  mistake.  The  custom  is 

gelium,  ch.  13   (Tischendorf,  77).  &c.    Et  ipsi  responderunt :  Natum 

In  the  latter  they  are  named  Salome  vidimus' 

and  Zelomi.  *  Gast£,  33. 

1  Gastg,     31      '  Archiepiscopus,  *  Tille,Z>.  ^.309;  Pollard,  xiii ; 

vel  alias  sacerdos  versus  ad  Pasto-  Durandus-Barth&emy,    iii.    411  ; 

res  dicat:  Quern  vidistis,  pastores  >  E.     Martinengo-Cesaresco,    Puer 

dicitej  annunciate  nobis  in  terris  Parvulus  in  Contemporary  Review> 

quis  apparuit.     Pastores  respon-  Ixxvii  (1900),  117;  W.H.D.  Rouse, 

deant :   Natum  vidimus  et  choros  in  F.  L.  v.  6 ;  J.  Feller,  Le  Beth- 

aneelorum  collaudantes  Dominum.  Mem  Vervittois,  10.  I  find  a  modern 

Alleluia,  alleluia^  et  totam  anti-  English   example   described   in   a 

phonam  finiant':    cf.  Meyer,  39;  letterof  1878  written  by  Mr.Coventry 

Sarum  Breviary,  clxxxviii ;   Mar-  Pat  more's  son  Henry  from  a  Catholic 

tene,  iil  36;  Durandus,  yi.  13,  16  school  at  \3sh&9t(Li/eofC.Patmore9 

'inlaudibus matutinis  quasi  choream  i.  308). 

ducimus,  unde  in  prima  antiphona  4  Malleson-Tuker,  ii.  212. 

dicimus ;  Quern  wdistis,  pastores  t  5  P.  Sabatier,  Life  of  St.  Francis 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS  48 

many  centuries  older  than  St.  Francis.  Its  Roman  home 
is  the  church  of  S.  Maria  Maggiore  or  Ad  Praescpe,  otherwise 
called  the  'basilica  of  Liberius.'  Here  there  was  in  the 
eighth  century  a  permanent  praesepe  *,  probably  built  in  imi- 
tation of  one  which  had  long  existed  at  Bethlehem,  and  to 
which  an  allusion  is  traced  in  the  writings  of  Origen 2.  The 
praesepe  of  S.  Maria  Maggiore  was  in  the  right  aisle.  When 
the  Sistine  chapel  was  built  in  1585-90  it  was  moved  to  the 
crypt,  where  it  may  now  be  seen.  This  church  became  an 
important  station  for  the  Papal  services  at  Christmas.  The 
Pope  celebrated  Mass  here  on  the  vigil,  and  remained  until 
he  had  also  celebrated  the  first  Mass  on  Christmas  morning. 
The  bread  was  broken  on  the  manger  itself,  which  served  as 
an  altar.  At  S.  Maria  Maggiore,  moreover,  is  an  important 
relic,  in  some  boards  from  the  culla  or  cradle  of  Christ,  which 
are  exposed  on  thtpresepio  during  Christmas 3.  Thepresepio 
of  S.  Maria  Maggiore  became  demonstrably  the  model  for 
other  similar  chapels  in  Rome4,  and  doubtless  for  the  more 
temporary  structures  throughout  Italy  and  western  Europe 
in  general. 

In  the  present  state  of  our  knowledge  it  is  a  little  difficult 
to  be  precise  as  to  the  range  or  date  of  the  Pastores.  The 
only  full  mediaeval  Latin  text,  other  than  that  of  Rouen, 
which  has  come  to  light,  is  also  of  Norman  origin,  and  is  still 
unprinted 6.  In  the  eighteenth  century  the  play  survived  at 
Lisieux  and  Clermont 6.  The  earliest  Rouen  manuscript  is  of 
the  thirteenth  century,  and  the  absence  of  any  reference  to 

(Eng.  transl.),  285,  from  Thomas  6  Gast£,  33,  citing   Montpellier 

of  Celano,    Vita  Prima,  84,   and  MS.  H.  304.  The  play  occurs,  with 

Bonaventura,  Vita^  149 ;  cf.  D'An-  an  Offidum  Stellae>  in  an  anony- 

cona,  i.  116.  mous   treatise  De   ratione   divini 

1  Usener,   L  280.    It   is    called  officiL     The  Amiens  Ordinarium 
'oratorium  sanctum  quod  praesepe  of  1291  (Grenier,  389)  gives  direc- 
dicitur'    (t73i-4i)    and    ' camera  tions  for   a  Pastores   during    the 
praesepii '  (1-844-7).  procession  after  the  communion  at 

2  Origen,  adv.  Celsum>  i.  51 ;  cf.  the  midnight  mass.    In  preparation 
Usener,  i.  283,  287.  lights  were  lit  at  \ht  praesepe  during 

8  Usener,  i.  281;   Tille,  D.  W.  first  vespers  *dum  canitur  versus 

54;  Malleson-Tuker,  ii.  210.  praesepe  iamfulget  tuum?    At  the 

4  Usener,  i.  280.     Gregory  IV  end  of  the  first  nocturn  the  figure 

(827-43)  '  sanctum  fecit  praesepe  of  a  child  was  placed  there.  At  the 

ad  similitudinem  praesepii  S.  del  first  lesson  of  the  second  nocturn 

genetricis  quae  appellatur  maior/  the  cry  of  noel  was  raised, 

in  S.  Maria  in  Trastevere.  •  Du  M6il,  148. 


44  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

the  Officium  Pastorum  by  John  of  Avranches,  who  writes 
primarily  of  Rouen,  and  who  does  mention  the  Officium 
Stellae^  makes  it  probable  that  it  was  not  there  known  about 
I0701.  Its  existence,  however,  in  England  in  the  twelfth  century 
is  shown  by  the  Lichfield  Statutes  of  1 188-98,  and  on  the  whole 
it  is  not  likely  to  have  taken  shape  later  than  the  eleventh. 
Very  likely  it  never,  as  a  self-contained  play,  acquired  the 
vogue  of  the  Quem  quaeritis.  As  will  be  seen  presently,  it 
was  overshadowed  and  absorbed  by  rivals.  I  find  no  trace 
of  it  in  Germany,  where  thzpraesefe  became  a  centre,  less  for 
liturgical  drama,  than  for  carols,  dances,  and  '  crib-rocking  V 

Still  rarer  than  the  Pastores  is  the  drama,  presumably 
belonging  to  Innocents'  day,  of  Rachel.  It  is  found  in  a 
primitive  form,  hardly  more  than  a  trope,  in  a  Limoges 
manuscript  of  the  eleventh  century.  Here  it  is  called  Lamen- 
tatio  Rachel,  and  consists  of  a  short  planctus  by  Rachel  her- 
self, and  a  shoit  reply  by  a  consoling  angel.  There  is  nothing 
to  show  what  place  it  occupied  in  the  services  8. 

The  fact  is  that  both  the  Pastores  and  the  Rachel  were  in 
many  churches  taken  up  into  a  third  drama  belonging  to  the 
Epiphany.  This  is  variously  known  as  the  Tres  Reges^  the 
Magi)  HerodeSy  and  the  Stella.  It  exists  in  a  fair  number  of 
different  but  related  forms.  Like  the  Quem  quaeritis  and  the 
Pastores,  it  had  a  material  starting-point,  in  the  shape  of  a 
star,  lit  with  candles,  which  hung  from  the  roof  of  the  church, 
and  could  sometimes  be  moved,  by  a  simple  mechanical 
device,  from  place  to  place*.  As  with  the  Quem  quaeritis^ 

1  loannes  Abrincensis,  De  officiis  153  'stellam  pendentem  in  filo, 

ecclesiasticis  (P.  L.  cxlvii.  41,  43).  quae  antecedit  eos*  (Limoges).  The 

Neither  Belethus  nor  Durandus  churchwardens'  accounts  of  St. 

mentions  the  Pastores.  Nicholas, Yarmouth,  from  1462-1512 

8  Cf.  vol.  i.  p.  273.  The  prae-  (Norfolk  Archaeology^.  334),  con- 

sepe  is  of  course  in  the  Stella,  which  tain  payments  for  '  making  a  new 

is  found  at  Strassburg,  Bilsen,  and  star,' '  leading  the  star,'  *  a  new  balk 

Einsiedeln,  but  even  this  is  more  line  to  the  star  and  ryving  the  same 

characteristic  of  France  than  of  star.9  Pearson,  ii.  325,  lays  stress 

Germany.  *  on  the  prominence  of  the  star  in 

8  Text  ed,  C.  Magnin  (Journal  the  German  vernacular  mysteries. 

des  Savants  (1846),  93),  frbm  Bibl.  J.  T.  Micklethwaite,  Ornaments  of 

Nat.  Lot.  1139.  the  Rubric,  44,  says  that  the  '  star1 

*  Gastl,  50  '  Corona  ante  cru-  was  called  a  'trendle'  or  'rowell.' 

cem  peadens  in  modura  stellae  Its  use  does  not  necessarily  imply 

accendatur'  (Rouen);  Du  M6ril,  the  presence  of  a  drama. 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS  45 

the  development  of  the  Stella  must  be  studied  without  much 
reference  to  the  relative  age  of  the  manuscripts  in  which  it 
happens  to  be  found.  But  it  was  probably  complete  by  the 
end  of  the  eleventh  century,  since  manuscripts  of  that  date 
contain  the  play  in  its  latest  forms  *. 

The  simplest  version  is  from  Limoges 2.  The  three  kings 
enter  by  the  great  door  of  the  choir  singing  zprosula.  They 
show  their  gifts,  the  royal  gold,  the  divine  incense,  the  myrrh 
for  funeral.  Then  they  see  the  star,  and  follow  it  to  the  high 
altar.  Here  they  offer  their  gifts,  each  contained  in  a  gilt 
cup,  or  some  other  locale  pretiosum,  after  which  a  boy,  repre- 
senting an  angel,  announces  to  them  the  birth  of  Christ,  and 
they  retire  singing  to  the  sacristy.  The  text  of  this  version 
stands  by  itself:  nearly  all  the  others  are  derived  from  a 
common  tradition,  which  is  seen  in  its  simplest  form  at 
Rouen3.  In  the  Rouen  Officium  Stellae>  the  three  kings, 
coming  respectively  from  the  east,  north,  and  south  of  the 
church,  meet  before  the  altar.  One  of  them  points  to  the 
star  with  Jhis  stick,  and  they  sing  : 

1 1.  Stella  fulgore  nimio  rutilat, 

2.  Quae  regem  regum  natum  demonstrat 

3,  Quern  venturum  olim  prophetiae  signaverant.1 

1  The  account  of  the  Stella  here  Bibl.  Nat.  Lot.  MS.  904  (thirteenth- 
given  should  be  supplemented  from  century  Gradual,  with  notation) ; 
Creizenach,  i.  60  ;  Koppen,  10.  P.  L.  cxlvii.  135,  from  B.N.  904  and 
The  latter  studies  the  verbal  rela-  B.N.Lat.  12 13  (fifteenth-century Or- 
tion  of  the  texts  much  more  fully  dinarium) ;  cf.  Gast£,  3.  The  rubric 
than  can  be  done  here.  Meyer,  38,  begins '  Officium  regum  triumsecun- 
argues  for  their  origin  in  an  arche-  dum  usum  Rothomagensem.  Die 
type  from  Germany.  There  are  epyphaniae,  tercia  cantata-'  John 
doubtless  many  other  texts  yet  of  Avranches(t  1070)  describing  the 
unprinted.  Ch.  Magnin,  Journal  de  Epiphany  service,  probably  of 
f  Instruction  publique,  Sept.  13,  Rouen,  says,  after  mentioning  the 
1835,  mentions  such  in  Soleures,  Evangelium  genealogiae,  which 
Fribourg,  and  Besangon  Rituals.  follows  the  ninth  responsorium  of 

*  TextinDuM£ril,isi ;  Martene,  Matins,  'Deinde  stellae  officium 

Hi.  44,  from  Limoges  Ordinarium  incipiat '  (P.  L.  cxlvii.  43).  Gast£, 

of  unspecified  date.  The  version  53,  quotes  some  Rouen  chapter 

is  partly  metrical,  and  the  action  orders.  In  1379  Peter  Chopillard, 

took  place '  cantato  offertorio,  ante-  painter,  was  paid  *  pro  pingendo 

quam  cant  ad  offerendum.  baculos  quos  portant  Reges  die 

8  Text  in  Gast£,  49;  Du  M£ril,  Apparitionis.'  In  1 507  the  chapter 

153;  Davidson,  176;  from  Rouen  after  'matura  deliberatio9  ordered 

MS?i.  1 10  (fourteenth-century  Ordi-  the  'representatio  trium  Regum '  to 

narium)\  Coussemaker,  242,  from  beheld.  In  1521  they  suppressed  it 


46  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

They  kiss  each  other  and  sing  an  anthem,  which  occurs  also  in 
the  Limoges  version :  Eamus  ergo  et  inquiramus  eumt  offe- 
rentes  ei  munera  ;  aurum  thus  et  myrrham.  A  procession  is 
now  formed,  and  as  it  moves  towards  the  nave,  the  choir  chant 
narrative  passages,  describing  the  visit  of  the  Magi  to  Jerusa- 
lem and  their  reception  by  Herod.  Meanwhile  a  star  is  lit 
over  the  altar  of  the  cross  where  an  image  of  the  Virgin  has 
been  placed-  The  Magi  approach  it,  singing  the  passage 
which  begins  Ecce  Stella  in  Oriente.  They  are  met  by  two  in 
dalmatics,  who  appear  to  be  identical  with  the  obstetrices  of 
the  Rouen  Pas  fores.  A  dialogue  follows : 

'Qui  sunt  hi  qui,  Stella  duce,  nos  adeuntes  inaudita 
ferunt. 

Magi  respondeant : 

nos  sumus,  quos  cernitis,  reges  Tharsis  et  Arabum  et  Saba, 
dona  ferentes  Christo,  regi  nato,  Domino,  quern,  Stella  dedu- 
cente,  adorare  venimus. 

Tune  duo  Dalmaticati  aperientes  cortinam  dicant : 

ecce  puer  adest  quern  queritis,  lam  properate  adorate, 
quia  ipse  est  redemptio  mundi. 

Tune  procidentes  Reges  ad  terram>  simul  salutent  puerum>  ita 
dieentes : 

salve,  princeps  saeculorum. 

Ttinc  unus  a  suofamulo  aurum  accipiat  et  dicat : 

suscipe,  rex,  aurum. 

Et  offerat. 

Secundus  ita  dicat  et  offerat: 

tolle  thus,  tu,  vere  Deus. 

Terdus  ita  dicat  et  offerat : 

mirram,  signum  sepulturae.' 

Then  the  congregation  make  their  oblations.  Meanwhile  the 
Magi  pray  and  fall  asleep.  In  their  sleep  an  angel  warns 
them  to  return  hpme  another  way.  The  procession  returns 
up  a  side  aisle  to  the  choir;  and  the  Mass,  in  which  the  Magi, 
like  the  shepherds  on  Christmas  day, f  rule  the  choir,'  follows. 
In  spite  of  the  difference  of  text  the  incidents  of  the  Rouen 
and  Limoges  versions,  except  for  the  angelic  warning  intro- 
duced at  Rouen,  are  the  same.  There  was  a  dramatic  advance 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS  47 

when  the  visit  to  Jerusalem,  instead  of  being  merely  narrated 
by  the  choir,  was  inserted  into  the  action.  In  the  pky  per- 
formed at  Nevers  *,  Herod  himself,  destined  in  the  fullness  of 
time  to  become  the  protagonist  of  the  Corpus  Christi  stage, 
makes  his  first  appearance.  There  are  two  versions  of  the 
Nevers  play.  In  the  earlier  the  new  scene  is  confined  to 
a  colloquy  between  Herod  and  the  Magi : 

1  \MagiI\  Vidimus  stellam  eius  in  Oriente,  et  agnovimus 
regem  regum  esse  natum. 

\Herodes^\  regem  quern  queritis  natum  Stella  quo  signo  didi- 
cistis  ?  Si  ilium  regnare  creditis,  dicite  nobis. 

[Magi.~\  illurrt  natum  esse  didicimus  in  Oriente  Stella  mon- 
strante. 

\HerodesI\  ite  et  de  puero  diligenter  investigate,  et  inventum 
redeuntes  mihi  renuntiate.' 

The  later  version  adds  two  further  episodes.  In  one  a 
nuntius  announces  the  coming  of  the  Magi,  and  is  sent  to 
fetch  them  before  Herod :  in  the  other  Herpd  sends  his 
courtiers  for  the  scribes,  who  find  a  prophecy  of  the  birth  of 
the  Messiah  in  Bethlehem.  Obviously  the  Herod  scene 
gives  point  to  the  words  at  the  end  of  the  Rouen  play,  in 
which  the  angel  bids  the  Magi  to  return  home  by  a  different 
"way. 

At  Comptegne  the  action  closes  with  yet  another  scene,  in 
which  Herod  learns  that  the  Magi  have  escaped  him  2. 

' Nuncius.  Delusus  es  domine,  magi  viam  redierunt  aliam. 
\Herodes.  incendium  meum  ruina  extinguam  8.] 

1  Texts  ed.L.Delisle,  in  Romania^  one,  a  free  revision  of  the  normal 

iv  (1875),  I.    The  earlier  version  is  text,  is  headed: 

from  Bibl.  Nat.  Lot.  9449  (tio6o,  '  Sic    speciem    veteres    stellac 

a  Gradual,  or,  according  to  Gautier,  struxere  parentes, 

Les  Tropes,  123,  a  Troper).    The  quatinus     hos     pueri    versus 

text  is  headed  'Versus  ad  Stellam  psallant  duo  regi.' 

faciendam.'      The   later    is   from  ..*  Text  in  K.  A.  M.  Hartmann 

£.  N.  Lot.  1235   (twelfth-century  Uber  das  altspaniscke  Dreikonig* 

Gradual).      It    is    headed    '  Ad  spiel  (Leipzig  Diss.  1879),  43,  from 

Commfunionem].*      Of    the    first  eleventh-century  B.  N.  Lat.  MS 

part,  down  to  the  end  of  the  inter-  16,819. 

view  with  Herod,  there  are  two  *  This  line  is  not  actually  in  the 

alternative  forms  in  this  MS.    The  Compi£gne  text.    But  it  is  in  most 


48  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

Armiger.  decerne,  domine,  vindicari  iram  tuam,  et  stricto 
mucrone  quaerere  iube  puerum,  forte  inter  occisos  occidetur 
et  ipse. 

Herodes.  indolis  eximiae  pueros  fac  ense  perire. 

Angelus.  sinite  parvulos  venire  ad  me,  talium  est  enim 
regnum  caelorum.1 

In  a  Norman  version  which  has  the  same  incidents  as  the 
Compi&gne  play,  but  in  parts  a  different  text,  the  armiger  is  the 
son  of  Herod,  and  the  play  ends  with  Herod  taking  a  sword 
from  a  bystander  and  brandishing  it  in  the  air  \  Already  he 
is  beginning  to  tear  a  passion  to  tatters  in  the  manner  that 
became  traditionally  connected  with  his  name.  Another 
peculiarity  of  this  Norman  version  is  that  the  Magi  address 
Herod  in  an  outlandish  jargon,  which  seems  to  contain  frag- 
ments of  Hebrew  and  Arabic  speech. 

The  play  of  the  Stella  must  now,  perhaps,  be  considered, 
except  so  far  as  mere  amplifications  of  the  text  are  concerned, 
strictly  complete.  But  another  step  was  irresistibly  suggested 
by  the  course  it  had  taken.  The  massacre  of  the  Innocents, 
although  it  lay  outside  the  range  of  action  in  which  the  Magi 
themselves  figured,  could  be-not  merely  threatened  but  actually 
represented.  This  was  done  at  Laon 2.  The  cruel  suggestion 
of  Archelaus  is  carried  out.  The  Innocents  come  in  singing 
and  bearing  a  lamb.  They  are  slain,  and  the  play  ends  with 
a  dialogue,  like  that  of  the  distinct  Limoges  planctus>  between 
the  lamenting  Rachel  and  an  angelic  consolatrix. 

The  absorption  of  the  motives  proper  to  other  feasts  of  the 
Twelve  nights  into  the  Epiphany  play  has  clearly  begun. 
A  fresh  series  of  examples  shows  a  similar  treatment  of  the 
Pastores.  At  Strassburg  the  Magi>  as  they  leave  Herod,  meet 
the  shepherds  returning  from  Bethlehem  : 

of  the  later  versions  of  this  scene,  unfortunately  not  printed  by  Caste*, 

and  is  interesting,  as  being  a  classi-  53.  It  is  from  the  De  ratione  divini 

cal  tag  from  Sallust,  Catilinay  c.  32 ;  officii  in  Montpellier  MS.  H.  304. 
cf.  K6i>pen,  ai;  Creizenach,  i.  63.         f  Text,  headed  *Ordo    Stellae* 

Reminiscences  of  Aeneid,  viii.  112;  in    U.    Chevalier,    Ordinaires    de 

ix.  376,  are   sometimes   put   into  ffgtise  de  Laon,  xxxvi,  389  from 

Herod's  mouth  in  the  scene  with  Laon  MS.  263  (thirteenth-century 

the  Magi  (Du  Mtfril,  164,  166).  Trophonarium). 
1  The  version  is  described,  but 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS  49 

'Pastores,  dicite,  quidnam  vidistis? 
infantem  vidimus/ 

This,  however,  is  not  taken  from  the  Pastores  itself,  but  from 
the  Christmas  Lauds  antiphon1.  Its  dramatic  use  may  be 
compared  with  that  of  the  Victimae  paschali  in  the  Quern 
quaeritis.  In  versions  from  Bilsen 2  near  Li&ge  and  from 
Mans  3,  on  the  other  hand,  although  the  meeting  of  the  Magi 
and  the  shepherds  is  retained,  a  complete  Pastores p,  with  the 
angelic  tidings  and  the  adoration  at  the  praesepe>  forms 
the  first  part  of  the  office,  before  the  Magi  are  introduced 
at  all. 

The  Strassburg,  Bilsen,  and  Mans  plays  have  not  the 
Rachel^  although  the  first  two  have  the  scene  in  which  the 
nuntius  informs  Herod  that  the  Magi  have  deceived  him. 
A  further  stage  is  reached  when,  as  at  Freising  and  at 
Fleury,  the  Pastores \  Stella  and  Rachel  all  coalesce  in  a  single, 
and  by  this  time  considerable,  drama.  The  Freising  texts, 
of  which  there  are  two,  are  rather  puzzling  4.  The  first  closely 
resembles  the  plays  of  the  group  just  described.  It  begins  with 
a  short  Pastores,  comprising  the  angelic  tidings  only.  Then 
the  scenes  between  the  Magi  and  Herod  are  treated  at  great 
length.  The  meeting  of  the  Magi  and  the  shepherds  is  followed 
by  the  oblation,  the  angelic  warning,  and  the  return  of  the 

1  Text  printed  by  Lange  in  Zeitsch.  The    'rex1     who    presided    and 
/.  deutsch.  Alterthutn,  xxxii.  412,  possibly  acted  Herod  (cf.  p.  56) 
from  B.  M.  Add.  MS.  23,922  (Anti-  was,  I  suppose,  an  Epiphany  king 
phoner  of  ft 200).    The  play  was  or  '  rex  fatuorum.9 

'  In  octava  Epiphaniae '  after  the         8  Translation  only  in  P.  Piolin, 

Magnificat  at  Vespers.  ThtAtre  chretien   dans  le  Maine 

2  Text  in  C.Cahier  and  A.  Martin,  (1891),  21.     The  exact  source  is 
Melanges  d>ArMologie,i.(i%tf-<)),  not  given. 

258  ;  Ctement,  113,  from  eleventh-         *  The  first  text  in  Du  Merit,  156 ; 

century  Evangeharium^  now  in  a  Davidson,  174,  from  Munich  MS. 

Bollandist   monastery  in   Brussels  6264*  (eleventh  century).    Appar- 

(Meyer,  41).    It  is  a  revision  of  the  ently  it  begins  with  a  bit  of  dumb 

normal  text.    The  author  has  been  show, '  Rex  sedens  in  solio  quaerat 

so  industrious  as  even  to  put  many  consilium :    exeat  edictum  ut  pe- 

of  the  rubrics  in  hexameters.    The  reant  continue  qui  detrahunt  eius 

opening  is  „  jmperio.'    Then   comes  *  Angelus, 

'  Ordo.  Post  Benedicdmus  puero-  in  primis.9    Second  text,    headed 

rum  splendida  coetus  'Ordp  RachaehV  in  Du  Me*ril,  171 ; 

ad  regem  pariter  debent  proten-  Froning,  871,  from  Munich  MS. 

deregressu,  6264    (eleventh    century).      It   is 

praeclara  voce  necnon  istic   re-  mainly  metrical. 

sonare.' 

CHAMBERS.    II  £ 


50  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

messenger  to  Herod.  In  the  second  Freising  text,  which 
is  almost  wholly  metrical,  the  Pastores  is  complete.  It  is 
followed  by  a  quite  new  scene,  the  dream  of  Joseph  and  his 
flight  into  Egypt.  Then  come  successively  the  scene  of  fury 
at  court,  the  massacre,  fazplancttis  and  consolation  of  Rachel, 
Clearly  this  second  text,  as  it  stands,  is  incomplete.  The 
Magi  are  omitted,  and  the  whole  of  the  latter  part  of  the 
play  is  consequently  rendered  meaningless.  But  it  is  the 
Magi  who  are  alone  treated  fully  in  the  first  Freising  text. 
I  suggest,  therefore,  that  the  second  text  is  intended  to 
supplement  and  not  to  replace  the  first  It  really  comprises 
two  fragments :  one  a  revision  of  the  Pastores,  the  other  a 
revision  of  the  closing  scene  and  an  expansion  of  it  by  a  Rachel. 

As  to  the  Fleury  version  there  can  be  no  doubt  whatever *. 
The  matter  is,  indeed,  arranged  in  two  plays,  a  Herodes  and 
an  Interfectio  Puerorum,  each  ending  with  a  Te  Deum ;  and 
the  performance  may  possibly  have  extended  over  two  days. 
But  the  style  is  the  same  throughout  and  the  episodes  form 
one  continuous  action.  It  is  impossible  to  regard  the  Inter- 
fectio  Puerorum  as  a  separate  piece  from  the  Herodes,  acted 
a  week  earlier  on  the  feast  of  the  Innocents ;  for  into  it, 
after  the  first  entry  of  the  children  with  their  lamb,  gaudentes 
per  monasterium,  come  the  flight  into  Egypt,  the  return  of 
the  nuntius,  and  the  wrath  of  Herod,  which,  of  course,  pre- 
suppose the  Magi  scenes.  Another  new  incident  is  added 
at  the  end  of  the  Fleury  play.  Herod  is  deposed  and  Archelaus 
set  up ;  the  Holy  Family  return  from  Egypt,  and  settle  in  the 
parts  of  Galilee 2. 

I  have  attempted  to  arrange  the  dozen  or  so  complete 
Epiphany  plays  known  to  scholars  in  at  least  the  logical  order  of 
their  development.  There  are  also  three  fragments,  which  fit 
readily  enough  into  the  system.  Two,  from  a  Paris  manuscript 
and  from  Einsiedeln,  may  be  classed  respectively  with  the 

1  Texts  in  Du.M^ril,  162,- 175;  the  name  *Le  Galilee,'  given  at 

Davidson,  175  ;  Coussemaker,  143 ;  Lincoln  to  a  room  over  the  south 

Wright,  32,  from  Orleans  M S.  178,  porch  and  also  found  elsewhere, 

The  first  part  begins  with  the  rubric  may  be  *  derived  from  some  inci- 

*  Para  to  Herode  et  ceteris  per-  dent  in  the  half-dramatic  Paschal 

sonis  .  .  .';  the  second  with  'Ad  ceremonies.'  For  another  liturgical 

interfectionem  Puerorum  . . .'  drama  in  which  '  Galilee '  is  re- 

1  Wordsworth,  147,  suggests  that  quired  as  a  scene,  cf.  p.  60. 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS  51 

Compi&gne  and  Strassburg  texts l.  The  third,  from  Vienne,  is 
an  independent  version,  in  leonine  hexameters,  of  the  scene  in 
which  the  Magi  first  sight  the  star,  a  theme  common  to  ^11  the 
plays  except  that  of  Limoges  2.  I  do  not  feel  certain  that  this 
fragment  is  from  a  liturgical  drama  at  all. 

The  textual  development  of  the  Stella  is  closely  parallel 
to  that  of  the  Quern  quaeritis.  The  more  primitive  versions 
consist  of  antiphons  and  prose  sentences  based  upon  or  in 
the  manner  of  the  Scriptures.  The  later  ones,  doubtless 
under  the  influence  of  wandering  scholars,  become  increasingly 
metrical.  The  classical  tags,  from  Sallust  and  Virgil,  are 
an  obvious  note  of  the  scholarly  pen.  With  the  exception 
of  that  from  Limoges,  all  the  texts  appear  to  be  derived  by 
successive  accretions  and  modifications  from  an  archetype 
fairly  represented  at  Rouen.  The  Bilsen  text  and  the  Vienne 
fragment  have  been  freely  rewritten,  and  the  process  of  re- 
writing is  well  illustrated  by  the  alternative  versions  found 
side  by  side  in  the  later  Nevers  manuscript.  With  regard 
to  the  place  occupied  by  the  Stella  in  the  Epiphany  services, 
such  manuscripts  as  give  any  indications  at  all  seem  to  point 
to  a  considerable  divergence  of  local  use.  At  Limoges  and 
Nevers,  the  play  was  of  the  nature  of  a  trope  to  the  Mass, 
inserted  in  the  former  case  at  the  Offertorium,  in  the  latter  at 
the  Communio  3.  At  Rouen  the  Officium  followed  Tierce,  and 
preceded  the  ordinary  procession  before  Mass.  At  Fleury 
the  use  of  the  Te  Deum  suggests  that  it  was  at  Matins ;  at 
Strassburg  it  followed  the  Magnificat  at  Vespers,  but  on  the 
octave  of  Epiphany,  not  Epiphany  itself.  Perhaps  the  second 
part  of  the  Fleury  play  was  also  on  the  octave.  At  Bilsen 
the  play  followed  the  Benedicamus,  but  with  this  versicle 
nearly  all  the  Hours  end4.  I  do  not,  however,  hesitate  to 

1  B.N.  Lat.  1152  (eleventh  cen-  Eoy.'    The  first  three  lines,  headed 

\&ryY\KBibLder£coledesChartes,  'Stella/   are   an    address   to   the 

xxxiv.    657.    Einsiedeln    fragment  *  exotica  plebs ' ;   each  of  the  re- 

(eleventh-twelfth  century)  printed  maining  ten  lines  is  divided  between 

by    G.    Morel    in   Pilger   (1849),  three  speakers,  *  Aureolus,'  *  Thure- 

401 ;  cf.  Kdppen,  13.  olus/  '  Myrrheolus.' 

*  Text  in  Du  M£ril,  151,  from  s  On  the  use  of  tropes  at  these 

Vienne  MS.  941   (fourteenth  cen-  points  in  the  Mass,  cf.  Frere,  xix. 

tury).  It  is  entitled '  Ad  adorandum  *  Use  ofSarum>  i.  280. 
filium  Dei  per  Stellam  invitantur 

£  2 


52  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

say  that  the  Limoges  use  must  have  been  the  most  primitive 
one.  The  kernel  of  the  whole  performance  is  a  dramatized 
Offertorium.  It  was  a  custom  for  Christian  kings  to  offer 
gold  and  frankincense  and  myrrh  at  the  altar  on  Epiphany 
day 1 ;  and  I  take  the  play  to  have  served  as  a  substitute 
for  this  ceremony,  where  no  king  actually  regnant  was 
present. 

There  is  yet  one  other  liturgical  play  belonging  to  the 
Christmas  season,  which  for  the  future  development  of  the 
drama  is  the  most  important  of  all.  This  is  the  Prophetae  *, 
It  differs  from  the  Quern  quaeritis^  the  Peregrini>  the  Pastores> 
and  the  Stella  by  the  large  number  of  performers  required, 
and  by  the  epical  mode  of  its  composition.  Its  origin,  in 
fact,  is  to  be  sought  in  a  narrative,  a  lectio,  not  a  chant.  The 
source  was  the  pseudo-Augustinian  Sermo  contra  ludaeos^ 
Paganos  et  Arianos  de  Symbolo,  probably  written  in  the  sixth 
century,  but  ascribed  throughout  the  Middle  Ages  to  the 
great  African 3.  A  portion  of  this  sermon  was  used  in  many 
churches  as  a  lesson  for  some  part  or  other  of  the  Christmas 
offices4.  The  passage  chosen  is  in  a  highly  rhetorical  vein. 
Vos,  inquam,  convenio,  O  ludaei  cries  the  preacher,  and  calls 
upon  the  Jews  to  bear  witness  out  of  the  mouths  of  their  own 
prophets  to  the  Christ.  Isaiah,  Jeremiah,  Daniel,  Moses, 
David,  Habakkuk,  Simeon,  Zacharias  and  Elisabeth,  John 
the  Baptist ; — each  in  turn  is  bidden  to  speak,  and  each 
testimony  is  triumphantly  quoted.  Then :  Ecce>  convertimur 

1  Martene,  Hi.  44 ;  in  England  Sepet  has  exaggerated  the  impor- 
the  royal  offering  is  still  made,  by  tance  of  the  Prophetae  in  the  de- 
proxy,  at  the  Chrpel  Royal,  St.  velopment  of  the  O.T.  dramatic 
James's  (Ashton,  237).  cycle. 

*  I    follow    the    epoch-making         8  Text  in  P.L*  xlii.  1117  ;  on  the 

ttude  of  M.  Sepet,  Les  Prophetes  date  cf.  Weber,  41.    The  lectio  is 

du  Christ^  in  BibL  de  r£cole  des  printed  by  Sepet,  xxviii.  3. 
Chartes,  xxviii.  (1867),  i,  210,  xxix.         *  At  Aries  it  was  the  sixth  lectio 

(1868),  205,  261,  xxxviii.  (1877),  397  at  Matins  on  Christmas  day  (Sepet, 

(I  am  sorry  not  to  be  able  to  cite  xxviii.  2) ;  at  Rome  the  fourth  lesson 

the  separate  editibn  printed  at  Paris,  at  Matins  on  Christmas  eve  (Mar* 

1878) ;  cf.  also  Creizenach,  i.  67 ;  tene,  iii.  31) ;  at  Rouen  it  was  read 

Julie ville,  Myst.  i.  35  ;  and,  espe-  at  Matins  two  days  earlier  (Mar- 

cially,  Weber,  41.    But    none    of  tene,  iii.  34) ;  in  the  3 *arum  Breviary \ 

these  writers  could  make  use  of  the  i.  cxxxv,  it  makes  the  fourth,  fifth, 

Laon  version    discovered    by  M.  and  sixth  lectiones  at  Matins  6n  the 

Chevalier.    Meyer,  53,  suggests  that  fourth  Sunday  in  Advent 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS  53 

ad  gentes.  V\Tg\\—poeta  facundissimus — is  pressed  into  the 
service,  for  the  famous  line  of  his  fourth  eclogue : 

*iam  nova  progenies  caelo  demittitur  alto1/ 

Nebuchadnezzar,  who  saw  four  walking  in  the  furnace,  and 
finally  the  Erythraean  Sibyl,  whose  acrostic  verses  on  the 
'Signs  of  Judgement'  first  appear  in  the  writings  of  Eusebius2. 
The  dramatic  form  of  this  lectio  possibly  led  to  its  being 
chanted  instead  of  read,  and  distributed  between  several 
voices  in  the  manner  of  the  Passions  from  Palm  Sunday  to 
Good  Friday3.  At  any  rate  in  the  eleventh  century  there 
appears  in  a  Limoges  manuscript  a  metrical  adaptation  in 
which  it  has  been  wholly  converted  into  a  dramatic  dialogue  4. 
This  Limoges  Prophetae  follows  the  sermon  pretty  closely  in 
its  arrangement.  A  Precentor  begins  : 

'Omnes  gentes  congaudentes,  dent  cantum  laetitiae! 
deus  homo  fit,  de  domo  David,  natus  hodie/ 

He  addresses  a  couplet  each  Ad  ludaeos,  Ad  Gentes,  and  then 
calls  in  turn  upon  each  of  the  prophets,  who  reply,  Virgil 
pronouncing  his  line,  the  Sibyl  the  ludicii  Signum,  and  the 
others  a  couplet  or  quatrain  apiece.  They  are  nearly  identical 
with  the  personages  of  the  sermon :-  Israel  is  added,  Zacharias 
disappears,  and  the  order  is  slightly  different.  Finally  the 
Precentor  concludes : 

{ ludaea  incredula, 
cur  manens  adhuc  inverecunda?' 

Two  later  versions,  belonging  respectively  to  Laon6  and  to 

1  BucoL  iv.  7.  *  Text  in  Du  M&il,  179 ;  Cousse- 

2  Eusebius,  Orat.Const.  Magn.ad  maker,  II ;  Wright,  60;  from  Bibl. 
Sanctorum  Coetum>  c.  18  (P.G.  xx.  Nat.  Lat.  1139  (eleventh  or  twelfth 
1288).    On  the  ludicii  Signum  and  century).    Weber,  51,  gives  an  in- 
the  Dit  des  quinze  Signes  (Text  in  teresting  account  of  the  Prophetae 
Grass,  Adamsspiel,  57)  derived  from  in  art,  and  points  out  that  the  play 
it,  cf.  Sepet,  xxviii.  8 ;  Du   M&il,  seems    to    have    influenced    such 
185.    According  to  Martene,  iii.  34,  representations  in  Italy  early  in  the 
the  Versus  Sibyllae  were  often  sung  eleventh  century. 

at  Matins  on'  Christmas  day,  ap-  5  Text   in  U.  Chevalier,   Ordt- 

parently  apart  from  the  sermo.  Thus  naires  de  FEglise  de  Laon,  xxxvi, 

at  Limoges  they  were  sung  after  the  385,  from  Laon   MS.    263  (thir- 

sixth  responsorium.  teenth  century  Trophonarium).    It 

*  Sepet,  xxviii.  13 ;  cf.  p.  5.  is  headed  *  Ordo  Prophetarum.' 


54  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

Rouen1,  diverge  far  more  from  the  model.  They  are  at 
much  the  same  stage  of  development.  In  both  the  play 
is  ushered  in  with  the  hymn  Gloriosi  et  famosi^  the  verses 
of  which  are  sung  by  the  prophets,  and  the  refrain  by  the 
choir2.  The  costumes  and  symbols  of  the  prophets  are 
carefully  indicated  in  the  rubrics.  The  Precentor  of  Limoges 
is  represented  by  two  singers,  called  at  Laon  Appellator.es>  and 
at  Rouen  Vocatores.  The  dialogue  is  amplified  beyond  that 
of  Limoges.  Sex  ludaei  and  sex  Gentiles,  for  instance,  take 
parts:  and  the  Vocatores  comment  with  the  choir  in  an 
identical  form  of  words  on  each  prophecy.  The  Laon  text 
is  a  good  deal  the  shorter.  The  prophets  are  practically  the 
same  as  at  Limoges,  with  one  remarkable  exception.  At 
the  end  is  introduced  Balaam,  and  to  his  prophecy  is  appended 
a  miniature  drama,  with  the  angel  and  the  ass :  thus — 

1  Hie  veniat  Angelus  cum  gladio.    Balaam  tangit  asinam,  et 
ilia  non  praecedente,  dicit  iratus : 

quid  moraris,  asina, 

obstinata  bestia? 

iam  scindent  calcaria 

costas  et  praecordia. 
Puer  sub  asina  responded: 

1  Text  in  Gast£,  4,  from  Rouen         *  The  Gloriosi  et  famosi  hymn 

MS.  Y.    1 10    (fourteenth-century  occurs  in  a  twelfth-century  Einsie- 

Ordinarium).      The     opening    is  deln   MS.  (Milchsack,   36)  as  an 

'NoteyC&ntorisiFestumAstnorum  overture   to   the  Quern  quaeritis. 

fiat,  processio  ordinetur  post  Ter-  It  is  arranged  for  'chorus'    and 

ciam.     Si  non  fiat  Festum,  tune  '  Prophetae,  and  was  therefore  bor- 

fiat  processio,  ut  nunc  praenotatur.  rowed  from  Christmas.    Itisifollow- 

QrdoProcesstomsAsinorumszcun-  ed  by  another  hymn,  more  strictly 

dum  Rothomagensem  usum.  Tercia  ¥&sz\u\)\.\itHortumpraedestinatio, 

cantata,    paratis    Prophetis    iuxta  and  this,  which  is  also  used  with 

suum   ordinem,  fornace  in  medio  the  Sens  Quern  quaeritis  (Milch- 

navis  ecclesiae  lintheo  et  stuppis  sack,  58),  is  sung  at  the  end  of  the 

constituta,    processio   moveat    de  Rouen  Profhetae  by  'omnes  pro- 

claustro,  et  duo  clerici  de  secunda  phetae  $t  mmistri  [?  •»  vocatores]  in 

sede,  in  cappis,  processionem  re-  pulpito'— a  curious  double  borrowing 

gant,  hos  versus  canentes :  Gloriosi  between  the  two  feasts.    Meyer,  5 1 , 

et  famosi.  . . .  Ttihc  processio  in  argues   that  the  Einsiedeln   MS., 

medio  ecclesiae  stet.'    At  the  end  which  is  in  a  fragmentary  state, 

the  *  Prophetae   et  ministri '  rule  contained  a  Prophetae>  to  which, 

the  choir.    Unfortunately  the  MS.,  and  not  to  the  Quern  quaeritis ,  the 

like  other  Ordinariay  only  gives  the  Gloriosi  et  famosi  belonged, 
first  words  of  many  of  the  chants. 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS  55 

angelus  cum  gladio, 
quern  adstare  video, 
prohibet  ne  transeam; 
timeo  ne  peream.1 

The  Rouen  text  adds  quite  a  number  of  prophets.  The  full 
list  includes  Moses,  Amos,  Isaiah,  Aaron,  Jeremiah,  Daniel, 
Habakkuk,  Balaam,  Samuel,  David,  Hosea,  Joel,  Obadiah, 
Jonah,  Micah,  Nahum,  Zephaniah,  Haggai,  Zechariah,  Ezekiel, 
Malachi,  Zacharias,  Elisabeth,  John  the  Baptist,  Simeon, 
Virgil,  Nebuchadnezzar,  and  the  Sibyl.  In  this  version,  also, 
the  part  of  Balaam  is  expanded  into  a  drama. 

'Duo  missi  a  rege  Balac  dicant: 

Balaam,  veni  et  fac. 

Tune  Balaam^  ornatus^  sedens  super  asinam,  habens  calcaria, 
retineat  lora  et  calcaribus  percutiat  asinam,  et  quidam  iuvenis, 
habens  alas,  tenens  gladitim,  obstet  asinae.  Quidam  sub  asina 
dicat : 

cur  me  cum  calcaribus  miseram  sic  laeditis. 
Hoc  die  to,  Angelus  ei  dicat : 

desine  regis  Balac  praeceptum  perficere.1 

Here,  too,  another  little  drama  is  similarly  introduced.  This 
is  the  story  of  Shadrach,  Meshach,  and  Abednego,  which,  with 
an  imago  for  the  brethren  to  refuse  to  worship  and  a  fornax 
for  them  to  be  cast  into,  attaches  itself  to  the  vocatio  of 
Nebuchadnezzar. 

In  the  Limoges  manuscript  the  Prophetae  is  followed  by 
the  words  Hie  inchoant  Benedicamus l.  As  has  been  pointed 
out  in  the  case  of  the  Bilsen  Pastores,  this  is  not  conclusive 
as  to  the  hour  at  which  the  performance  took  place.  The  day 
was  probably  that  of  Christmas  itself.  But  even  the  day  would 
naturally  vary  with  the  variable  position  of  the  lectio  out  of 
which  the  Prophetae  grew.  At  Lincoln  it  was  likewise 
Christmas  day.  But  at  Rouen  the  processio  asinorum  was 
on  Christmas  eve,  and  took  the  place  of  the  ordinary  festal 
procession  after  Tierce  and  before  Mass  2.  And  at  St.  Martin 

1  Sepet,  xxviii.  25.  Puer  natus  est>  which  belongs  to 

*  So  says  Gast£,  4.    But  I  think  the  Afagna  missa  of  the  feast-day, 

he  must  be  wrong,  for  the  Jntroit  and  not  to  the  eve. 

with  which  the  text  concludes  is 


66  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

of  Tours  the  Prophetae  was  on  New  Year's  day,  performances 
being  given  both  at  Matins  and  Vespers  \ 

The  question  naturally  suggests  itself :  What  was  the  rela- 
tion of  these  liturgical  plays  of  the  Christmas  season  to  the 
Feast  of  Fools  and  other  ecclesiastical  ludi  of  the  Twelve 
nights,  which  were  discussed  in  the  first  volume?  At  Rouen, 
the  Prophetae  received  the  name  of  processio  asinorum  and 
took  place  at  a  festum  asinorum^  a  name  which  we  know  to 
have  been  elsewhere  synonymous  with  festum  fatuorum. 
At  Tours,  it  was  played  at  a  reformed  festum  novi  anni^ 
with  a  Boy  Bishop  and  at  least  traces  of  expelled  disorder. 
So,  too,  with  the  other  plays.  The  Rouen  Pastores  was 
infected  by  the  fifteenth  century  with  the  stultitiae  et  inso- 
lentiae  of  the  triduum.  At  Bilsen  the  Stella  was  performed 
before  a  rex,  who  can  hardly  have  been  any  other  than  a  rex 
fatuorum  of  Epiphany.  At  Autun  the  regnum  Herodis  was 
considered  a  Feast  of  Fools  2.  Probably  in  both  churches  the 
rex  acted  Herod  in  the  play.  I  think  it  must  be  taken  for 
granted  that  the  plays  are  the  older  institution  of  the  two. 
They  seem  all  to  have  taken  shape  by  the  eleventh  century, 
before  there  is  any  clear  sign  that  the  Kalends  had  made  their 
way  into  the  churches  and  become  the  Feast  of  Fools.  The 
plays  may  even  have  been  encouraged  as  a  counter-attraction, 
for  the  congregation,  to  the  Kalends  outside.  On  the  other 
hand,  I  do  not  hold,  as  some  writers  do,  that  the  riotous 
Feasts  of  Asses  were  derived  from  the  pious  and  instructive 
ceremony  so  called  at  Rouen  3.  On  the  contrary,  Balaam  and 
his  ass  are  an  interpolation  in  the  Prophetae  both  at  Rouen 

1  Martene,  iii.  41,  from  a  four-     [responsorium  ?]  in  pulpito 

teenth-century  Rituale :  '  dicto  ver-  Post  [primam]  recitatur  miraculum 

siculo  tertii  nocturni,  accenditur  to-  [Martene    conjectures    martyrolo- 

tum  luminare,  et  veniunt  Prophetae  giunt\  in  claustro  . .  .  [Ad  vesperas] 

in  capitulo  revestiti,  et  post  cantant  dictis  psalmis  et  antiphpnis,  ducunt 

insimul  Lumen  Patris,  et  clericus  ad  poftam  Thesaurarii  prophetas, 

solus  dicit  In  gaudio,  et  post  legitur  sicut  ad  matutinum  et  reducunt  in 

septima  lectio.     Post  nonam  lecti-  chorum  similiter,  et  habent  clerici 

onem  ducunt  prophetas  de  capitulo  virgas  plenas  candelis  ardentibus, 

ad  portam  Thesaurarii   cantilenas  vocant  eos  clerici  duo  sicut  ad  ve- 

cantando,  et  post  in  chorum,  ubi  speras[?  matutinum].'  Presentlyfol- 

dicunt  cantori  prophetias,  et  duo  lows  the  DeQosuit :  cf.  vol.i.p.  309. 

clericuli   in   pulpito  cantando  eos  *  Cf.  vol.  i.  p.  313. 

appellant.      Post    dicitur    nonum  3  Caste*,  20. 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS  57 

and,  more  obviously,  at  Laon.  Balaam,  alone  of  the  Laon 
performers,  is  not  from  the  pseudo-Augustine  sermon.  Is  he 
not,  therefore,  to  be  regarded  as  a  reaction  of  the  Feast  of 
Fools  upon  the  Prophetae,  as  an  attempt  to  turn  the  estab- 
lished presence  of  the  ass  in  the  church  to  purposes  of 
edification,  rather  than  of  ribaldry l  ?  I  think  the  explanation 
is  the  more  plausible  one.  And  I  find  a  parallel  reaction  of  the 
turbulence  of  the  Feast  of  Fools  upon  the  Stella^  in  the  vio- 
lence of  speech  and  gesture  which  permanently  associated  itself 
at  a  very  early  stage  with  the  character  of  Herod.  The  view 
here  taken  will  be  confirmed,  when  we  come  to  consider  certain 
ecclesiastical  criticisms  passed  upon  the  liturgical  plays  in  the 
twelfth  century. 

Whatever  the  exact  relation  of  the  divine  and  profane  ludi 
at  Easter  and  Christmas  may  be,  it  seems  to  have  been,  in  the 
main,  at  these  two  great  seasons  of  festivity  that  what  may  be 
called  the  spontaneous  growth  of  drama  out  of  liturgy  took 
place.  There  are  yet  a  fair  number  of  Latin  plays  to  be 
spoken  of  which  are  in  a  sense  liturgical.  That  is  to  say, 
they  were  acted,  certainly  or  probably,  in  churches  and  during 
intervals  in  the  services.  But  of  these  such  a  spontaneous 
growth  cannot  be  asserted,  although  it  cannot  also,  in  the 
present  state  of  the  evidence,  be  confidently  denied.  Their 
metrical  and  literary  style  is  parallel  to  that  of  the  Easter 
and  Christmas  plays  in  the  latest  stages  of  development ;  and, 
until  further  data  turn  up,  it  is  perhaps  permissible  to  con- 
jecture that  they  were  deliberately  composed  on  the  model  of 
the  Quern  quaeritis  and  the  Stella^  when  these  had  become 
widespread  and  popular.  Indeed,  some  such  derivation  of 
the  Peregrini  from  the  Quern  quaeritis  and  of  the  Stella  itself, 
at  least  in  part,  from  the  Pastores^  has  already  appeared 
probable. 

In  dealing  with  this  new  group  of  plays,  we  come,  for  the 
first  and  only  time,  upon  an  individual  author.  As  might  be 
expected,  this  author  is  a  sckolaris  vagan$>  by  name  Hilarius, 

1  Sepet,  xxviii.  219,  suggests  that  Possibly,  yet  his  introduction  at  the 

Balaam,  when  first  introduced  into  end  of  the  Laon  play  (unknown  to 

the  Prophetae,  merely  prophesied,  Sepet)  looks  as  if  he  were  an  appen- 

as  he  does  in  the  Adam  (Grass,  46).  dix  for  the  sake  of  his  ass. 


68  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

It  would  even  /be  doing  him  no  great  injustice  to  call  him 
a  goliard.  Wh^t  little  is  known  of  Hilarius  is  gathered  from 
his  writings,  which  exist  in  a  single  manuscript.  He  may 
have  been  an  Englishman,  for  a  large  proportion  of  his  verses 
are  addressed  to  English  folk.  He  was  a  pupil,  about  1125, 
of  the  famous  Abelard  at  his  oratory  of  Paraclete  in  a  desert 
near  Nogent-sur-Seine.  Afterwards  he  made  his  way  to 
Angers.  Many  of  his  verses  are  of  the  familiar  goliardic 
type,  amorous  and  jocund;  but  amongst  them  are  three 
plays l.  Two  of  these  are  comparatively  short,  and  contain 
each  a  few  stanzas  of  French  interspersed  amongst  the  Latin. 
The  subject  of  one  is  a  miracle  wrought  by  St.  Nicholas2; 
of  the  other,  the  Suscitatio  Lazari*.  The  third  play,  wholly 
in  Latin,  falls  into  two  parts,  and  gives  at  considerable  length 
the  story  of  Daniel*.  I  take  it  that  these  plays  were  not 
written  for  any  church  in  particular,  but  represent  the  repertory 
of  a  band  of  wandering  clerks.  At  the  end,  both  of  the  Daniel 
and  of  the  Suscitatio  Lazari,  is  a  rubric  or  stage-direction, 
to  the  effect  that,  if  the  performance  is  given  at  Matins,  the 
Te  Deum  should  follow;  if  at  Vespers,  the  Magnificat. 
Evidently  the  connexion  with  the  church  service,  so  organic 
in  the  plays  of  the  more  primitive  type,  has  become  for 
Hilarius  almost  accidental.  As  to  the  place  of  the  plays 
in  the  calendar,  the  manuscript  gives  no  indication,  and 
probably  Hilarius  and  his  friends  would  be  willing  enough 
to  act  them  whenever  they  got  a  chance.  But  the  St.  Nicholas 

1  Champollion  *  Figeac,   Hilarii  Quo    finite,   si    factum   fuerit    ad 

Versus  et  Ludi  (1838),  from  B.  N.  Matutinas,    Lazarus   in  piat :    Te 

Lat.MS.iiffii.  The  plays  are  also  Deum  laudamus:  si  vero  ad  Ve- 

printed  by  Du  M£ril,  Or.  Lot.     On  speras  :     Magnificat   anima    mea 

thelife  cf.  Hist. Litt.de  la  France^**.  Dominum? 

627;  D. N. B.  s.v.  Hilary;  Morley,         *  Du   Me*ril,   241   'Historia  de 

English  Writers,  Hi.  107.  Daniel  repraesentanda/  with  a  list 

1  Du    M&ril,  272  *  Ludus  super  of  the  'personae  necessariae'  and 

iconia  Sancti  Nicolai.'    There  is  a  a  final  rubric  as  in  the  'Suscitatio 

*  persona  iconic.'  A  Barbarus  speaks  Lazari':  cf.  Sepet,  xxviii.  232,  on 

partly  in  French.     ,  this  and   similar  plays  and  their 

9  Du     Meril,    225    *  Suscitatio  relation  to  the  Prophetae.    From 

Lazari :    ad   quam  istae  personae  the  names  *  Hilarius/  '  lordanus/ 

sunt  necessariae :   Persona  Lazari,  *  Simon/  attached  to  parts  of  the 

duarum  Sororum,  quatuor  ludaeo-  Daniel  in  the  MS.,  it  would  seem 

rum,  lesu  Christi,  duodecim  Apo  that  Hilarius  had  collaborators  for 

stolorum,vel  sex  ad  minus . . .  (ends),  this  play  (Sepet,  xxviii.  248). 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS  59 

play  would  come  most  naturally  on  the  day  of  that  saint, 
December  6.  The  Suscitatio  Lazari  would  be  appropriate 
enough  as  an  addition  to  the  Quern  quaeritis  and  fatPeregrini 
in  Easter  week.  The  story  is  told,  indeed,  in  the  Gospel  for 
Friday  in  the  fourth  week  in  Lent ;  but  that  does  not  seem 
a  very  likely  date  for  a  play.  The  Daniel  perhaps  grew, 
as  we  have  seen  a  Balaam  and  a  Nebuchadnezzar  growing, 
out  of  a  Prophetae\  and  may  have  been  a  substitute  for 
a  Prophetae  at  Christmas. 

These  dates  are  borne  out,  or  not  contradicted,  by  other 
similar  plays,  which  have  more  of  a  local  habitation.  For  no 
one  of  Hilarius*  three  stands  quite  alone.  Of  Latin  plays  of 
St.  Nicholas,  indeed,  quite  a  little  group  exists ;  and  the  great 
scholastic  feast  evidently  afforded  an  occasion,  less  only  than 
Easter  and  Christmas,  for  dramatic  performances.  The  earliest 
texts  are  from  Germany.  Two  are  found  in  a  Hildesheim 
manuscript  of  the  eleventh  century * ;  a  third  in  an  Einsiedeln 
manuscript  of  the  twelfth2.  The  thirteenth-century  Fleury 
playbook  contains  no  less  than  four,  two  of  which  appear 
to  be  more  developed  forms  of  the  Hildesheim  plays.  The 
theme  is  in  every  case  one  of  the  miraculous  deeds  which 
so  largely  make  up  the  widespread  legend  of  the  saint 8, 
Nicholas  restores  to  life  the  three  clerks 

1  quos  causa  discendi  literas 
apud  gentes  transmisit  exteras,' 

and  whom  the  greed  of  an  innkeeper  has  slain  4.  He  provides 
with  a  dowry  the  daughters  of  a  poor  gentleman,  who  are 
threatened  with  a  life  of  shame6.  He  brings  back  from 
captivity  the  son  of  his  wealthy  adorer  6.  His  image  preserves 

1  E.  Dummler,  in  Z.f.  d.  Alter-  The  play  ends  with  the  Te  Deum. 

thumy  xxxv.  401 ;  xxxvi.  238,  from  The  same  subject  is  treated  in  the 

B.  M.  AddL  MS.  22,414  ('  Liber  Einsiedeln  play,  and  one  of  those 

Sancti  Godehardi  in  Hild[esheim] ').  from  Hildesheim. 

On  the  group  of  Nicholas  plays  cf.  6  Du  M&il,  254 ;  Coussemaker, 

Creizenach,  i.  105.  83.    The  play  ends  with  the  anthem 

s  G.    Morel,    in    Anzeiger  fur  '  O  Christi  pietas,'  used  at  second 

Kunde  der  deutschen  Vorzeit,  vi.  Vespers    on    St.     Nicholas'    day 

(1859),  207,  from  Einsiedeln  MS.  34.  (Sarum  Breviary,  iii.    38).     The 

8   Golden      Legend,      ii.     109 ;  same  subject  is  treated  in  the  other 

Wace,    Vie  de  Saint-Nicolas  (ed.  Hildesheim  play. 

Delius,  1850).  '  Du  M&il,  276 ;  Coussemaker, 

*  DuM&il,262;  Coussemaker,  100.  123 ;  begins  '  Ad  repraesentandum 


60  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

from  housebreakers  the  riches  of  a  Jew1.  Alone  of  the  extant 
Latin  plays,  these  of  St.  Nicholas  are  drawn  from  outside  the 
Biblical  story.  Each  of  the  Fleury  versions  introduces  at 
the  end  one  of  the  anthems  proper  to  St.  Nicholas*  day,  and 
their  connexion  with  the  feast  is  therefore  clear. 

A  second  Lazarus  play,  which  includes  not  only  the  Susci- 
tatio  but  also  the  episode  of  Mary  Magdalen  in  the  house  of 
Simon,  is  likewise  in  the  Fleury  playbook2.  A  second  Daniel^ 
composed  by  the  iuventus  of  Beauvais,  occurs  in  the  same 
manuscript  which  contains  the  Office  of  the  Circumcision  for 
that  cathedral 3.  It  was  perhaps  intended  for  performance  on 
the  day  of  the  asinaria  festa.  Other  plays  seem,  in  the  same 
way  as  the  Daniel,  to  have  budded  off  from  the  Prophetae. 
A  fragment  is  preserved  of  an  Isaac  and  Rebecca  from  Kloster 
Vorau  in  Styria 4.  A  twelfth-century  mention  of  an  Elisaeus  6 
and  an  eleventh-century  one  of  a  Convivium  Herodis 6,  which 
suggests  rather  the  story  of  John  the  Baptist  than  that  of  the 
Magi)  point  to  an  activity  in  this  direction  of  which  all  the 
traces  have  possibly  not  yet  been  discovered. 


quomodoSanctusNicolaus,  &c. . . . ':  As  in  the  Beauvais  Officium  Circum- 

ends  wjth  anthem  '  Copiosae  carita-  cisionis,  there  are  many  processional 

tis '  used  at  Lauds  on  St.  Nicholas1  chants  or  conductus,  in  one  of  which 

day  (Sarum  Breviary ',  iii.  37).  are  the  terms  '  celebremus  Natahs 

*  Du  Me*ril,  266 ;    Coussemaker,  solempnia '  and  '  in  hoc  Natalitio ' 
109  ;  begins  '  Aliud  miraculum  de  which  attach  the  play  to  Christmas, 
Sancto  Nicolao,  &c.  .  .  . ' :    ends  or  at  least  the  Christmas  season, 
with  anthem.  '  Statuit  ei  Dominus/  The  text  begins  '  Incipit  Danielis 
not  in  Sarum  Breviary ,  but  used  at  ludus,'  and  ends  with  the  Te  Deum. 
Rome  as  Introit  on  feasts  of  Pontiffs.  The  following  quatrain  serves  as 
This    is    the  subject  of  Hilarius*  prologue: 

play.  '  Ad  honorem  tui,  Christe, 

2  Text  in  DuM^ril,  213;  Cousse-  Danielis  ludus  iste 

maker,  220.    The  play  contains  a  in  Belvaco  est  inventus 

Paschal  sequence  and  ends  with  a  et  invenit  hunc  iuventus.' 

Te  Deum.    Part  of  the  action  is  in  Meyer,  56,  finds  relations  between 

2i4latea\  Simon  hasa<&pi#.r,  which  the  Beauvais  Daniel  and  that  of 

afterwards  'efficiatur    quasi  Beth-  Hilarius. 

ania.'      Other     *  loci '     represent  4  Text  in  Anzeigerfur  Kunde  d. 

'Jerusalem*   and    'Galilaea1    (cf.  deutschen  Vorzeit  (1877),  169,  from 

p.  50),  and  the  'Suscitatio*  takes  late  twelfth-century  MS. ;  cf.Creizc- 

place  at  a  'monumentum'  (probably  nach,  i.  74. 

the  Easter  sepulchre).  *  Cf.  p.  99. 

*  Text  in  Coussemaker,  49,  and  *  Creizenach,  i.  6,  71.    The  un- 
Danjou,  Revue  de  la  Musique  religi-  authentic  Annales  of  Corvei  men- 
euse,  iv.  (1848),  65.  Cf.  Sepet,  xxviii.  tion  also  a  play  on  Joseph  under  the 
232,  and  on  the  MS.,  vol.  i.  p.  284.  year  1264  (Creizenach,  i.  75). 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS  61 

Three  plays,  each  more  or  less  unique  in  character,  complete 
the  tale.  The  Fleury  playbook  has  a  Convtrsio  Beati  Pauli 
Apostoli^  doubtless  designed  for  the  feast  on  January  25 l. 
The  shorter,  but  highly  interesting  collection  from  Limoges, 
has  a  play  of  the  wise  and  foolish  virgins,  under  the  title  of 
Sponsus 2,  This  has  attracted  much  attention  from  scholars, 
on  account  of  the  fact  that  it  is  partly  in  French,  or  more 
strictly  in  a  dialect  belonging  to  the  Angoumois,  and  slightly 
affected  by  Prove^al.  As  it  is  therefore  of  the  nature  of 
a  transitional  form,  it  may  be  well  to  give  a  somewhat  full 
account  of  it  It  opens  with  a  Latin  chorus  beginning 

'  Adest  sponsus  qui  est  Christus :  vigilate,  virgines  I ' 

The  angel  Gabriel  then  addresses  the  virgins,  and  warns  them 
in  four  French  stanzas  to  expect '  un  espos,  Sauvaire  a  nom.' 
Each  stanza  has  a  refrain,  probably  sung  chorally : 

1  gaire  noi  dormet : 
aici  's  Tespos  que  vos  or  atendet  I 

Then  comes  a  lyric  dialogue,  in  which  the  Fatuae^  who  have 
wasted  their  oil,  attempt  in  vain  to  get  some,  first  from  the 
Prtidentes,  and  then  from  somtMercatores>  whose  presence  here 
recalls  the  unguentarius  in  the  Prague  versions  of  the  Quern 
quaeritis*.  This  dialogue  is  in  Latin,  but  with  a  French 
refrain : 

c  dolentas,  chaitivas,  trop  i  avem  (or  avet)  dormit' 

1  Text  in  Du  M&il,  237  ;  Cousse-  385.    The  manuscript  is  BibL  Nat. 

maker, 210;  begins 'Ad  repraesen-  Lat.  1139.    MM.  Cloetta  (p.  221) 

tandam  conversiohem  beati   Pauli  and  G.  Paris  (Litt.fr.  au  moyen 

apostoli,  &c. . . . ' :    ends  with   Te  Age 2,  237,  246)  assign  the  Sponsus 

Deum.    Four  *  sedes '  are  required,  to  the  earlier  half  or  second  third 

and  a  *  lectus '  for  Ananias.  of  the    twelfth    century,  and  the 

1  Latest  text,  with  long  introduc-  former,  with  the  delightful  diffidence 

tion,    mainly    philological,  by   W.  of  a  philologist,  thinks,  on  linguistic 

Cloetta,  in  Romania,  xxii.  (1893),  grounds,  that    it  was    written  at 

177 ;    others  by  Du  M£ril,  233 ;  Saint   Amant    de    Boixe    (sixteen 

Coussemaker,  i ;  E.  Boehmer,  in  kilometres  north  of   Angoul£me). 

Romanische    Studien,   iv.   99 ;   K.  It  only  remains  for  some  archivist 

Bartsch,  Lang,  et  Litt.  fran^atses^  to  find  a  clerk  of  St.  Martial  of 

13;  cf.  also  Julleville,  JLes  Myst.  i.  Limoges  whose  native  place  was 

27  ;  E.  Stengel,  Z.f.  rom.  Phil.  iii.  this  very  village. 
233 ;  E.  Schwan,  Z.f.  rom.  Phil.  xi.         *  Cf.  p.  33. 
469 ;  H.  Morf,  Z.  f.  rom.  Phil.  xx. 


62  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

Then  comes  the  Sponsus,  to  whom  the  Fatuae  finally  appeal : 

'  audi,  sponse,  voces  plangentium : 
aperire  fac  nobis  ostium 
cum  sociis  ad  dulce  prandium ; 
nostrae  culpae  praebe  remedium ! 
dolentas,  chaitivas,  trop  i  avem  dormit 

Christus. 

amen  dico,  vos  ignosco,  nam  caretis  lumine, 
quod  qui  perdunt  procul  pergunt  huius  aulae  limine, 
alet,  chaitivas,  alet,  malaureias ! 
a  tot  jors  mais  vos  son  penas  livreias, 
e  en  efern  ora  seret  meneias ! 
Modo  accipiant  eas  daemones  et  praecipitentur  in  infernuw! 

This  stage  direction,  together  with  an  allusion  in  the  opening 
lines  of  the  Sponsus  to  the  '  second  Adam/  link  this  remark- 
able, and,  I  venture  to  think,  finely  conceived  little  piece  to 
the  Christmas  play  of  Adam  to  be  discussed  in  the  next 
chapter.  It  has  essentially  an  Advent  theme,  and  must  have 
been  performed  either  in  Advent  itself  or  at  the  Christmas 
season,  with  which  Advent  is  prophetically  connected  *. 

Finally,  there  is  a  play  which  was  almost  certainly  performed 
at  Advent 2.  This  is  the  Tegernsee  play  of  Antichristus  3.  It 
is  founded  upon  the  prophecy  in  St.  Paul's  second  epistle  to 
the  Thessalonians  of  the  homo  peccati,  filius  perditionis,  who 
shall  sit  in  the  temple  of  God  until  the  Christ  shall  slay  him 
with  the  breath  of  his  mouth,  and  destroy  him  with  the  glory 
of  his  advent4 :  and  it  is  an  elaborate  spectacle,  requiring  for 

1  H.  Morf,  loc.  tit.,  considers  the  to  do  with  Easter.    The  latest  and 

Sponsus  an  Easter  play.  best  edition  is  that  by  W.  Meyer,  in 

*  Creizenach,  i.  77.    An  Italian  Sitsungsberichted.  hist. -pkil.  Class* 

dramatic  Lauda  on  the  same  sub*  d.  kbnigL  bayr.  Akad\    d.   Wiss. 

ject  is  headed  'In   Dominica  de  (Munich),   1882,    i.     The   unique 

Adventu '  (D'Ancona,  i.  141).  MS.  is  Munich  MS.  19,41 1  (twelfth- 

8  Text  in  Froning,  206,  from  edi-  thirteenth    century),    formerly    in 

tion  of  Zezschwitz,  Vom  romischtn  Kloster  Tegernsee.  Both  Zezschwitz 

Kaisertum  deutscher Nation  (1877).  and  Meyer  have  long  and  valuable 

The   earliest    edition    is    by   Fez,  introductions ;    cf.    also    Froning, 

Thesaurus  Anecd.  Noviss.  (1721-9),  199;  Creizenach,  i.  78.    T.  Wright 

ii.  3,  187.    This  writer  introduced  prints  the  play  from  Fez,  in  Chester 

confusion  by  giving  the  play  the  P/qys,  ii.  227. 

title  Ludus  paschalis  de  aaventu  et  4  2  Thessalonians,  ii.  3-12.    Ac- 

interitu  Antichristi.  It  has  nothing  cording  to  York  Missal,  i.  10,  part 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS  68 

its  proper  performance  a  large  number  of  actors  and  a  spacious 
stage,  with  a  temple  of  God  and  seven  royal  sedes,  together 
with  room  for  much  marching  and  counter-marching  and 
warfare1.  It  must  have  taken  up  the  whole  nave  of  some 
great  church.  It  begins  with  a  procession  of  Emperor,  Pope, 
and  Kings,  accompanied  by  personages  emblematic  of  Gentili- 
tas,  Sinagoga  and  Ecclesia  with  her  attendants  Misericordia 
and  lustitia.  The  first  part  of  the  action  represents  the 
conquest  of  the  four  corners  of  Christendom  by  the  Emperor 
and  his  championship  of  Jerusalem  against  the  King  of 
Babylon.  Ecclesia^  Gentilitas,  and  Synagoga  punctuate  the 
performance  with  their  characteristic  chants.  Then  come  the 
Hypocrites,  sub  silentio  et  specie  humilitatis  inclinantes  circum- 
quaque  et  captantes  favorem  laicorum.  They  are  followed  by 
Antichrist  himself,  who  instructs  Hypocrisy  and  Heresy  to 
prepare  the  way  for  his  advent.  Presently  Antichrist  is 
enthroned  in  the  temple  and  gradually  saps  the  Empire, 
winning  over  the  King  of  the  Greeks  by  threats,  the  King  of 
the  Franks  by  gifts,  and  the  King  of  the  Teutons,  who  is 
incorruptible  and  invincible,  by  signs  and  wonders.  He  marks 
his  vassals  on  the  brow  with  the  first  letter  of  his  name. 
Then  the  Hypocrites  attempt  to  persuade  Synagoga  that 
Antichrist  is  the  Messiah ;  but  are  refuted  by  the  prophets 
Enoch  and  Elijah.  Antichrist  has  the  rebels  slain ;  but  while 
he  is  throned  in  state,  thunder  breaks  suddenly  over  his  head, 
he  falls,  and  Ecclesia  comes  to  her  own  again  with  a  Laudem 
dicite  deo  nostro. 

The  author  of  the  Antichristus  is  not  only  a  skilled  crafts- 
man in  rhyming  Latin  metres  ;  he  is  also  capable  of  carrying 
a  big  literary  scheme  successfully  to  a  close.  His  immediate 
source  was  probably  the  tenth-century  Libellus  de  Antichristo 

of  this  passage  is  read  at  Mass  on  Roman! ;  huic  collocantur  sedes 

Saturday  in  the  Quatuor  Tempora  regis    Theotonicorum    et    sedes 

of  Advent.  regis  Franconim. 

1  '  Templum  domini  et  vii  sedes  Ad  austrum  sedes  regis  Graecorum. 

regales  primum  collocentur  in  hunc  Ad  meridiem  sedes  regis  Babiloniae 

modum :  et  Gentilitatis.' 

Ad orientem  templum domini;  huic  Other  than  this  direction  the  play 

collocantur  sedes  regis  Hieroso-  has  no  heading,  but  in  later  stage- 

limorum  et  sedes  Sinagogae.  directions  it  is  incidentally  called  a 

Ad  occidentem  sedes  imperatoris  'ludus.' 


64  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

of  Adso  of  Toul l.  Into  this  he  has  worked  the  central  theme 
toittutProphetae  and  the  debating  figures  from  that  very  popular 
dfbat  or  '  estrif/  the  Alter catio  Ecdesiae  et  Synagogae  2.  His 
work  differs  in  several  obvious  respects  from  the  comparatively 
simple,  often  naive,  liturgical  dramas  which  have  been  con- 
sidered. It  is  ambitious  in  scope,  extending  to  between  four 
and  five  hundred  lines.  It  introduces  allegorical  figures,  such 
as  we  shall  find,  long  after,  in  the  moralities.  It  has  a  pur- 
pose other  than  that  of  devotion,  or  even  amusement.  It  is, 
in  fact,  a  Ttndenzschrift>  a  pamphlet.  The  instinct  of  the 
drama,  which  sways  the  imaginations  of  men  perhaps  more 
powerfully  than  any  other  form  of  literature,  to  mix  itself  up 
with  politics  is  incorrigible :  Antichristus  is  a  subtle  vindica- 
tion, on  the  one  hand,  of  the  Empire  against  the  Papacy,  on  the 
other  of  the  rex  TeutonicoPum  against  the  rex  Francortitn.  It 
probably  dates  fromabout  1 160,  when  Frederick  Barbarossa  was 
at  the  height  of  his  struggle  with  Alexander  III,  who  enjoyed 
the  sympathies  of  Louis  VII  of  France.  And  it  is  anti-clerical. 
The  Hypocrites  who  carry  out  the  machinations  of  Antichrist 
are  the  clerical  reformers,  such  as  Gerhoh  of  Reichersberg  3, 
who  were  the  mainstay  of  the  papacy  in  Germany. 

It  is  improbable  that  the  few  and  scattered  texts  which 
have  come  to  light  represent  all  the  liturgical  plays  which  had 
made  their  appearance  by  the  middle  of  the  twelfth  century. 
Besides  the  lost  Elisaeus  and  Convivium  Herodis,  there  is 
evidence,  for  example,  of  scholars'  plays  in  honour,  not  only 
of  St.  Nicholas,  but  of  their  second  patron,  the  philosophical 
St.  Catharine  of  Alexandria.  Such  a  ludus  de  Sancta  Katarina 
was  prepared  at  Dunstable  in  England  by  one  Geoffrey,  a 
Norman  clerk  who  had  been  invited  to  England  as  school- 
master to  the  abbey  of  St.  Albans.  For  it  he  borrowed  certain 

1  Printed  in  P.  L.  ci.  1291.  and  its  place  in  the  religious  drama 

a  Pseudo  -  Augustine,    De  alter-  and   religious    art.     It   is   a    most 

catione     Ecdesiae    et    Synagogae  -  valuable  study,  but  I  find  no  ground 

dialogus  in   P.  L.   xlii.    1131.     On  for  the  conjecture  (Weber,  31,  36) 

this  theme  and  the   dtbats  based  that  the  Alter  catio,  like  the  Pro- 

thereon  cf.  Hist.  Litt.   xxiij.  216;  phetae,  had  already,  before  the  A nti- 

G.  Paris,  §  155;  Pearson,  ii.  376.  christ,  been  semi-dramatically  ren- 

P.   Weber,  Geistltches    Schauspiel  dered  in  the  liturgy. 

und  kirchlicke   Kunst    (1894),  is  •  Cf.  p.  98. 
mainly  occupied  with  this  motive 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS  65 

choir  copes  belonging  to  the  abbey,  and  had  the  misfortune 
to  let  these  be  burnt  with  his  house.  Deeply  repentant, 
he  took  the  religious  habit,  and  in  1119  became  abbot  of 
St.  Albans.  From  this  date  that  of  the  ludus  may  be  judged 
to  be  early  in  the  twelfth  century l. 

It  cannot,  of  course,  be  assumed  that  every  play,  say  in  the 
fifteenth  century,  which  although  probably  or  certainly  written 
in  the  vernacular  was  performed  in  a  church,  had  a  Latin 
prototype2.  Many  such  may  have  been  written  and  acted  for 
the  first  time  on  existing  models,  when  the  vernacular  dranja 
was  already  well  established.  But  there  are  certain  feasts 
where  it  is  possible  to  trace,  on  the  one  hand,  the  element  of 
mimetic  ceremony  in  the  services,  and  on  the  other,  perhaps, 
some  later  representation  in  the  dramatic  cycles,  and  where 
a  Latin  text  might  at  any  time  turn  up  without  causing 
surprise.  With  a  few  notes  on  some  of  these  this  chapter 
must  conclude.  A  highly  dramatic  trope  for  Ascension  day, 
closely  resembling  the  Quern  quaeritis,  has  already  been  quoted 
from  the  tropers  of  Limoges  3.  An  Ordinarium  of  St.  Peter's 
of  Lille  directs  that,  after  the  respond  Non  vos  relinquam,  the 
officiant  shall  mount  a  pulpit  and  thence  appear  to  ascend 
towards  heaven  from  the  top  of  a  mountain  *.  Fifteenth-century 
computi  speak  of  this  or  of  a  more  elaborate  performance  as 
a  mysterium,  and  include  amongst  other  items  payments  for 
painting  the  scars  on  the  hands  of  the  performer  5.  On  Whit- 

1  Representations  y  s.v.  D unstable,  degustasset,  cantato  responsorio 
8  At  Rouen,  e.g.,  a  confraternity  Non  vos  relinquam^  ambonem  as- 
played  a  misterium  on  the  feast  of  cendebat,ubiexmonteeffictocoelum 
the  Assumption  in  a  waxen  '  hortus '  petere  videbatur  ;  tune  f>ueri  syrn- 
set  up  in  their  chapel;  and  this  phoniaci  veste  angelica  induti  de- 
between  1446  and  1521  required  cantabant  Viri  Galilaei,  etc.' 
reformation  from  various  '  derisio-  *  Julleville,  Les  Myst.  ii.  9; 
nes,'  especially  a  '  ludus  de  mar-  Annales  archtologiques,  xviii.  173 
mousetis  '  (Caste*,  76).  But  I  know  'pro  pingendo  cicatrices  in  manibus 
of  no  evidence  for  a  Latin  Assump-  D.  lohannis  Rosnel,  facientis  my- 
tion  play,  although  such  may  quite  sterium  in  die  Ascensionis '  (1416), 
well  have  existed.  The  Lincoln  '  pro  potandum  cum  discipulis,' '  vi- 
Assumption  play  was  given  in  the  cariis  representantibus  Crucifixum 
cathedral,  as  a  wind-up  to  a  cycle  cum  suis  discipulis  et  ibidem  simul 
(Representations )  s.v.  Lincoln).  manducantibus  et  bibentibus  vi- 
8  Cf.  p.  n.  num,'  '  pro  pingendo  vulnera,'  'pro 
4  Ducange,  s.v.  Festum  Ascen-  faciendo  novas  nubes/  'pro  pictura 
stonis,  'qui  .  .  .  oflficio  hac  die  prae-  dictarum  nilbium,'  '  pro  cantando 
erat,  cum  modicum  panis  et  vini  nonvos.'  In  Germany  (Naogeorgos 


CHAMBERS.     II 


66 


RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 


Sunday  it  was  the  custom  at  St.  Paul's  in  London  and  many 
other  churches,  during  the  singing  of  the  hymn  Vent  Creator 
Spiritus  at  Tierce,  to  open  a  hole  in  the  roof  and  let  down 
symbols  of  the  Pentecost ;  a  dove,  a  globe  of  fire,  bits  of 
burning  tow  to  represent  tongues  of  fire,  a  censer,  flowers, 
pieces  of  flaky  pastry l.  This  same  hole  in  the  roof  sometimes 
served  a  similar  purpose  at  a  mimetic  representation  of  the 
Annunciation.  The  Gospel  for  the  day  was  recited  by  two 
clerks  dressed  as  Mary  and  the  angel,  and  at  the  words 
Spiritus  Sanctus  supervenit  in  te  a  white  dove  descended  from 
the  roof.  This  can  hardly  be  called  a  drama,  for,  with  the 
exception  of  a  short  fifteenth-century  text  from  Cividale,  only 
th^  words  of  the  Gospel  itself  seem  to  have  been  used ;  but 
obviously  it  is  on  the  extreme  verge  of  drama.  A  curious 
variant  in  the  date  of  this  ceremony  is  to  be  noted.  In  several 


in  Stubbes,  i.  337)  the  crucifix  was 
drawn  up  by  cords  and  an  image  of 
Satan  thrown  down.  For  England, 
see  the  end  of  Lambarde's  account, 
below. 

1  Grenier,  388  (Amiens,  1291, 
and  elsewhere  in  Picardy) ;  Haut- 
cceur,  Documents  liturgiques  de 
Lille,  65  (thirteenth  century),  and 
Histoire  de  rEglise  de  Lille^  i.  427 ; 
Gaste*,  75  (Bayeux,  thirteenth  cen- 
tury, Caen,  Coutances) ;  D'Ancona, 
i.  31  (Parma),  i.  88  (Vicenza,  1379, 
a  more  elaborate  out-of-door  per- 
formance) ;  Naogeorgos  in  Stubbes, 
i«  337  (Germany) ;  Ducange,  s.  v. 
nebulae.  I  have  three  English  ex- 
amples :  Hone,  E.  D.  Book,  i.  685 
(Computus  of  St.  Patrick's,  Dublin, 
for  1 509), '  we  have  iv*  viid  paid  to 
those  playing  with  the  great  and 
little  angel  and  the  dragon  ;  Hi8  paid 
for  little  coids  employed  about  the 
Holy  Ghost ;  iv"  vid  for  making  the 
angel  censing  (thurijficantis)^  and 
ii1  iid  for  cords  of  it — all  on  the 
feast  of  Pentecost' ;  Lincoln  Sta- 
tutes^ i.  335  ;  ii.  cxviii.  165  (1330) 
1  in  distributione  autem  Pentecostali 
percipiet .  .  .  clericustlucens  colum- 
bam  vj  denarios ' ;  W.  Lambarde, 
Alphabetical  Description  of  the 
Chief  Places  in  England  and  Wales 
(1730,  written  in  sixteenth  century), 


459,  s.  v.  Wytney,  '  The  like  Toye  I 
myselfe  (beinge  then  a  Chyld)  once 
saw  in  Poules  Church  at  London,  at 
a  Feast  of  Whitsontyde,  wheare  the 
comynge  downe  of  the  Holy  Cost 
was  set  forthe  by  a  white  Pigion, 
that  was  let  to  fly  out  of  a  Hole, 
that  yet  is  to  be  sene  in  the  mydst 
of  the  Roofe  of  the  great  He,  and  by 
a  longe  Censer,  which  descendinge 
out  of  the  same  Place  almost  to  the 
verie  Grounde,  was  swinged  up  and 
downe  at  suche  a  Lengthe,  that  it 
reached  with  thone  Swepe  almost 
to  the  West  Gate  of  the  Churche, 
and  with  the  other  to  the  Quyre 
Staires  of  the  same,  breathynge  out 
over  the  whole  Churche  and  Com- 
panie  a  most  pleasant  Perfume  of 
suche  swete  Thinges  as  burned 
thearin;  with  the  like  doome 
Shewes  also,  they  used  every  whear 
to  furnishe  sondrye  Partes  of  their 
Churche  Service,  as  by  their  Spec- 
tacles of  the  Nativitie,  Passion,  and 
Ascension  of  Christe?  From  further 
notices  in  W.  S.  Simpson,  St.  Paul's 
and  Old  City  Life,  62,  83,  it  appears 
that  the  censing  was  on  Monday, 
Tuesday,  and  Wednesday  in  Whit- 
week,  that  the  Lord  Mayor  attended, 
and  that  the  ceremony  was  replaced 
by  sermons  in  1548. 


LITURGICAL  PLAYS 


67 


Italian  examples,  of  which  the  earliest  dates  from  1261,  and  in 
one  or  two  from  France,  it  belongs  to  the  feast  of  the  Annuncia- 
tion proper  on  March  25  l.  But  in  later  French  examples, 
and  apparently  also  at  Lincoln2,  it  has  been  transferred  to 
the  Advent  season,  during  which  naturally  the  Annunciation 
was  greatly  held  in  remembrance,  and  has  been  attached 
to  the  so-called  '  golden  '  Mass  celebrated  ten  days  before 
Christmas  during  the  Quatuor  Tempora*.  It  thus  became 
absorbed  into  the  Christmas  dramatic  cycle. 


1  Creizenach,  5.  76 ;  D'Ancona,  i. 
90, 92, 1 14  (Padua,  Venice,  Trevigi), 
and  i.  29  (Parma  Ordinarium  of 
fifteenth  century)  *  ad  inducendum 
populum  ad  contritionem,  ...  ad 
confirmandum  ipsum  in  devotione 
Virginis  Mariae  ...  fit  reverenter 
et  decenter  Repraesentatip  Virginis 
Mariae  . .  .  cum  prophetis  et  aliis 
solemnitatibus  opportunist  Cousse- 
maker,  280  (Cividale  Proces- 
sionalia  of  fourteenth  and  fifteenth 
centuries).  In  the  fourteenth  century 
there  was  a  procession  to  the  market- 
place, where  *  diaconus  legat  evan- 
gelium  in  tono,  et  fit  repraesentatio 
Angeli  ad  Mariam.'  In  the  fifteenth 
century  '  In  Annuntiatione  B.  M. 
Virginis  Repraesentatio*  was  a 
similar  procession  and  *  cantatur 
evangelium  cum  ludo,  quo  finito, 
revertendo  ad  ecclesiam,  cantatur 
Te  Deum.'  The  text  goes  slightly 
beyond  the  words  of  the  Gospel 
(Luke  5.  26-38)  having  a  part  for 
'  Helisabeth.'  Caste*,  79,  describes 
the  foundation  of  a  mystere  of  the 
Annunciation  during  vespers  on  the 
eve  of  the  feast  at  Saint- Lo,  in  1521. 


2  I  gather  this  from  the  consuetude 
of  giving  gloves  to  Mary,  the  Angel, 
and    the    Prophets   at    Christmas 
(Representations,     s.  v.      Lincoln). 
Here,  as  at  Parma,  the  Propketae 
appear  in  connexion  with  the  An- 
nunciation ceremony. 

3  See  the  curious  and  detailed 
document  in  Appendix  S  as  to  the 
Tournai  ceremony  founded  by  Peter 
Cotrel  in  the  sixteenth  century.    A 
precisely   similar    foundation    was 
that  of  Robert  Fabri  at  Saint  Omer 
in    1543    (Bull.   arch,   du    Comite* 
des  travaux  historiques  (1886),  80  ; 
Mtm.  de  la  Soc.  des  Antiquaires  de 
la  Morinie>  xx.  207).  The  inventory 
of  the  '  ornementz  et  parementz '  in 
a  'coflfre  de  cuir  boully'  includes 
'  ung  colomb  de  bois  revestu  de 
damas  bianco.'    Alike  at  Tournai, 
St.  Omer,  and  Besan^on  (Martenc, 
iii.  30)  the  ceremony  was  on  th* 
Wednesday  in  the  Quatuor  Tempora 
of  Advent.    For  the  '  golden  Mass ' 
of  this  day  the  Gospel  is  the  same 
as  that  of  the  Annunciation  ;    cf. 
York  Missal,  i.  6;  Pfannenschmidt, 
438. 


F 


CHAPTER  XX 
THE  SECULARIZATION  OF  THE  PLAYS 

{Bibliographical  Note.  —  The  best  general  account  of  the  vernacular 
religious  drama  of  Europe  is  that  of  W.  Creizenach,  Geschichte  desneueren 
Dramas  (vol.  i.  1893),  Books  2-4;  and  this  may  be  supplemented  by 
K.  Hase,  Das  gdstliche  Schaitspiel  (1858,  trans.  A.  W.  Jackson,  1880) ; 
R.  Proelss,  Geschichte  des  neueren  Dramas  (1880-3),  vol.  i.  ch.  I  ; 
C.  Davidson,  English  Mystery  Plays  (1892),  and  G.  Gregory  Smith,  The 
Transition  Period  (1900),  ch.  7.  There  is  also  the  cumbrous  work  of 
J.  L.  Klem,  Geschichte  des  Dramas  (1865-86).  The  nearest  approach  to 
a  general  bibliography  is  F.  H.  Stoddard,  References  for  Students  of 
Miracle  Plays  and  Mysteries  (1887). — For  Germany  may  be  added 
R.  Froning,  Das  Drama  des  Mittelalters  (1890-1);  K.  Pearson,  The 
German  Passion  Play  (in  The  Chances  of  Death  and  Other  Studies  in 
Evolution,  1897,  vol.  ii) ;  L.  Wirth,  Die  Osier-  und  Passionsspiele  bis  zum 


16.  Jahrhundert  (1889)  ;  J.  E.  Wackernell,  Altdeutsche  Passionsspiele  aus 
Tirol,  1897  ;  R.  Heinzel,  Beschreibung  des  geistlichen  Schauspiels  im  dent- 
schen  Mittelalter(\%$&)<  and  the  articles  by  F.  Vogt  on  Mittelhochdeutsche 


Literatur,  §  73,  and  H.  Jellinghaus  on  Mittelniederdeutsche  Literatur,  §  5, 
in  H.  Paul,  Grundriss  der  germanischen  Philologie,  vol.  ii  (2nd  ed.  1901). 
F.  Vogt  gives  a  few  additional  recent  references.  Older  works  are 

F.  I.  Mone,  Schauspiele  des  Mittelalters  (1846) ;  H.  Reidt,  Das  geistliche 
Schauspiel  des   Mittelalters    in  Deutschland  (1868),   and   E.  Wilken, 
Geschichte  der  geistlichen  Spiele  in  Deutschland  (1872).     Many  of  the 
books  named  print  texts.    Lists  of  others  are  given  by  Pearson  and  by 
Heinzel,  and  full  bibliographical  notices  by  K.  Goedeke,  Grundriss  zur 
Geschichte  der  deutschen  Dichtung  (2nd  ed.),  vol.  i  (1884),  §§  67,  92,  and 
vol.  ii  (1886),  §   145.— For  France,  L.  Petit  de  Julleville,  Les  Mysteres 
(1880),  is  excellent  and  exhaustive,  and  contains  many  bibliographical 
references,  although  the  *  Liste  des  ouvrages  a  consulted  intended  as  part 
of  the  work  seems  never  to  have  been  printed.    M.  de  Julleville  is  also 
the  writer  of  the  article  on  Th£dtre  religieux  in  the  Hist,  de  la  Langue  et 
de  la  Literature  fran$aises>  vol.  ii  (1896).   G.  Grober's  article  on  Franzo- 
sische  Litteratur,  §§  129, 362  in  his  Grundriss  der  romanischen  Philologie, 
vol.  ii  (i  901-2  ),bf  ings  the  subject upto date  and  adds  some  recent  authorities. 
Mortensen,  Medelttdsdramat  i  Frankrike  (1899),  is  beyond  my  range. 

G.  Paris,  La  Literature  fran^aise  au  moyen  dge  (2nd  ed.,  1890),  is  a  brief 
summary,  and  L.  Cledat,  Le  Tht&tre  au  moyen  dge  (1897),  a  useful 
popular  account.    G.  Bapst,  Essai  sur  FHistoire  du  TMdfre  (1893),  is 
good  on  matters  of  stage  arrangement.     Older  works  are  O.  Le  Roy, 
Etudes  sur  les  Mystires  (1837),  and  J.  de  Douhet,  Dictionnaire  des 
Mysteres   (1854).    t)nly  fragments  of  C.   Magnin's  investigations   are 
available  in  the  Journal  des  Savants  (1846-7)  and  the  Journal  gtntral 
de  r Instruction  publique  (1834-6).    Texts  are  in  A,  Jubinal,  Mysteres  rfu 
15*  sitcle  (1837) ;  Monmerque  et  Michel,  Thtdtre  fran$ais  au  moyen  dge 
(1842);   E.  Fournier,  Le  Thtdtre  fran^ats  avant  la  Renaissance  (1872), 


THE  SECULARIZATION  OF  THE  PLAYS      69 

and  the  series  published  by  the  Soritte*  des  Anciens  TexUs  fran$ais .  The 
most  recent  text  of  Adam  is  that  by  K.  Grass,  Das  Adamsspiel  (1891). 
M.  Wilmotte,  Les  Passions  allemandes  du  Rhin  dans  leur  Rapport  awe 
fancien  Thtdtre  franyris  (1898),  deals  with  the  interrelations  of  the  French 
and  German  texts.  C.  Hastings,  Le  Thtdtre  fran$ais  et  anglais  (1900, 
trans.icxn ),  is  a  compilation  of  little  merit. — For  Italy  there  is  A.  D'Ancona, 
Origini  del  Teatro  italiano  (2nd  ed.  1891),  with  texts  in  the  same  writer's 
Sacre  Rappresentazioni  (1872),  in  Monaci,  Appunti  per  la  Storia  del 
Teatro  italiano  (Rivista  di  Filologia  Romana,  vols.  i,ii),  and  in  F.  Torraca, 
//  Teatro  italiano  dei  Secoli  xiii^  xiv>  e  xv  (1885). — For  Spain,  A.  F.  von 
Schack,  Gesch\chte  der  dramatischen  Litteratur  und  Kunst  in  Spanien 
(1845-54),  and  G.  Baist,  Spanische  Litteratur,  §§  19,  63,  in  Grober>s 
Grundnss^  vol.  ii  (1897). — For  the  minor  Romance  dramatic  literatures, 
Provencal,  Catalan,  Portuguese,  I  must  be  content  to  refer  to  the  last- 
named  authority,  and  for  that  of  Holland  to  the  similar  Grundriss^oi 
H.  Paul] 

THE  evolution  of  the  liturgic  play  described  in  the  last 
two  chapters  may  be  fairly  held  to  have  been  complete  about 
the  middle  of  the  thirteenth  century.  The  condition  of  any 
further  advance  was  that  the  play  should  cease  to  be  liturgic. 
The  following  hundred  years  are  a  transition  period.  During 
their  course  the  newly-shaped  drama  underwent  a  process 
which,  within  the  limits  imposed  by  the  fact  that  its  subject- 
matter  remained  essentially  religious,  may  be  called  seculari- 
zation. Already,  when  Hilarius  could  write  plays  to  serve 
indifferently  for  use  at  Matins  or  at  Vespers,  the  primitive 
relation  vtrepraesentatio  to  liturgy  had  been  sensibly  weakened. 
By  the  middle  of  the  fourteenth  century  it  was  a  mere  sur- 
vival. From  ecclesiastical  the  drama  had  become  popular. 
Out  of  the  hands  of  the  clergy  in  their  naves  and  choirs,  it 
had  passed  to  those  of  the  laity  in  their  market-places  and 
guild-halls.  And  to  this  formal  change  corresponded  a 
spiritual  or  literary  one,  in  the  reaction  of  the  temper  of  the 
folk  upon  the  handling  of  the  plays,  the  broadening  of  their 
human  as  distinct  from  their  religious  aspect.  In  their  origin 
officia  for  devotion  and  edification,  they  came,  by  an  irony 
familiar  to  the  psychologist,  to  be  primarily  spectacula  for 
mirth,  wonder,  and  delight. 

It  is,  however,  the  formal  change  with  which  I  am  here 
mainly  concerned ;  and  of  this  it  will  be  the  object  of  the 
present  chapter  to  trace  as  briefly  as  possible  the  outlines. 
The  principal  factor  is  certainly  that  tendency  to  expansion 
and  coalescence  in  the  plays  which  has  been  already  seen  at 


70  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

work  in  the  production  of  such  elaborate  pieces  as  the  Quern 
quaeritis  of  the  Tours  or  that  of  the  Benedictbeuern  manu- 
script, the  Fleury  Stella,  the  Rouen  Prophetae  and  the  Anti- 
christus.  This  culminates  in  the  formation  of  those  great 
dramatic  cycles  of  which  the  English  Corpus  Christi  plays  are 
perhaps  the  most  complete  examples.  But  before  we  can 
approach  these,  we  must  consider  a  little  further  the  indepen- 
dent development  of  the  Easter  and  Christmas  groups. 

It  is  noteworthy  that,  during  the  period  now  under  dis- 
cussion, the  importance  of  Christmas  falls  markedly  into  the 
background  when  compared  with  that  of  Easter  ;  and  a  reason 
for  this  will  presently  suggest  itself.  The  Stella,  indeed,  as 
such,  appears  to  have  almost  reached  its  term  * ;  for  such 
further  growth  as  there  is  we  must  look  chiefly  to  the  Pro- 
phetae. The  process  by  which  little  episodic  dramas,  as  of 
Balaam  and  Nebuchadnezzar  at  Rouen,  bud  out  from  the 
stem  of  the  Prophetae,  is  one  capable  of  infinite  extension. 
By  1204  the  play  had  found  its  way  to  Riga,  on  the  extreme 
border  of  European  civilization,  and  the  ludus  prophetarum 
ordinatissimus  there  performed  included  scenes  from  the  wars 
of  Gideon,  David,  and  Herod 2.  The  text  of  the  Riga  play  is 
unfortunately  not  preserved,  but  the  famous  Norman-French 
Ordo  repraesentationis  Adae  is  an  example  of  a  Prophetae,  in 
which  the  episodes,  no  longer  confined  to  the  stories  of  the 
prophets  in  the  stricter  sense,  have  outgrown  and  cast  into  the 
shade  the  original  intention  8.  Most  things  about  the  Adam 

1  Creizenach,  i.  154,  317,  346.    A  neophytis,  quam  paganis,  qui  ade- 
slight  addition  to  the  S fella  is  made  rant,  per  interpretem  diligentissime 
by  two  Provencal  plays  of  ti3co  exponebatur.      Ubi  autem   armati 
(ed.  P.  Meyer  in  Romania,  xiv.  496)  Gedeonis  cum  Philistaeis  pugna- 
and  1333  (dramatis  personae  only  bant;  pagani,timentebOtddi,fugere 
in  Revue  des  Socie'th  savantes,  viii.  coeperunt,  sed  caute  sum  revocati 
259)  which  introduce  episodes  from  ...   In  eodem  ludo  erant  bella, 
the  life  of  the  Virgin  previous  to  vtpote  Dauid,  Gedeonis,  Herodis. 
the  Nativity.                           ,  Erat  et  doctrina  Veteris  et  No\* 

2  Creizenach,  i.  70,  quoting  Gesta  Testament!.' 

Alberti Uvomensis  episcopi  (ti226)  3  Text   edited  by   V.  Luzarche 

mGruber,Ortgin£sLiv0niae(i74o)9  (Tours,  1854);   L.  Palustre  (Paris, 

34  4  Eadem  hyeme  factus  est  ludus  1877) ;   K*  Bartsch,  Chrestomatkie, 

prophetarum  ordinatissimus,  quam  ed.   1880,  91) ;    K.  Grass  (Halle, 

Latini  Comoediam  yocant,  in  media  1891);  cf.  the  elaborate  study  by 

Riga,  ut  fidei  Christianae  rudimenta  Sepet,  xxix,  105,  261,  and  Julleville, 

gen  tilitas  fide  etiamdisceretoculata.  Les Myst.  i.8i;  ii.ai7;  Creizenach, 

Cuius  ludi  et  comoediae  materia  tarn  i.  130 ;  Ctedat,  1 5.  The  manuscript 


THE  SECULARIZATION  OF  THE  PLAYS      71 

are  in  dispute.  Scholars  differ  as  to  whether  the  manuscript 
belongs  to  the  twelfth  or  the  thirteenth  century,  and  as  to 
whether  it  is  the  work  of  a  Norman  or  of  an  Anglo-Norman 
scribe.  The  piece  is  manifestly  incomplete,  but  how  far 
incomplete  it  is  hard  to  say.  What  we  have  consists  of  three 
sections.  There  is  a  long  play  of  nearly  six  hundred  lines  on 
the  Fall  and  Expulsion  from  Paradise,  in  which  the  speakers 
are  Adam  and  Eve,  the  Figura  of  God  and  the  Diabolus. 
Then  comes  a  much  shorter  one  of  Cain  and  Abel  ;  and 
finally  a  Prophetae,  which  breaks  off  after  the  part  of  Nebu- 
chadnezzar. Of  the  general  character  of  this  interesting  piece 
something  further  will  be  said  presently,  but  the  point  to 
notice  here  is  that,  although  Adam  and  Abel  may  of  course  be 
regarded  as  prophetic  types  of  Christ,  if  not  exactly  prophets, 
yet  there  is  a  real  extension  of  the  dramatic  content  of  the 
Prophetae  in  the  prefixing  to  it  of  a  treatment  of  so  momen- 
tous a  subject  as  the  Fall l.  For  with  the  addition  of  the  Fall 
to  the  already  dramatized  Redemption,  the  framework  of  a 
structural  unity  was  at  once  provided  for  the  great  cosmic 
drama  of  the  future.  And  the  important  motive  seems  to 
have  been  still  further  emphasized  in  a  lost  play  performed 
at  Regensburg  in  1195,  which  treated,  besides  the  Prophets 
and  the  Creation  and  Fall  of  Man,  the  Creation  of  the  Angels 
and  the  Fall  of  Lucifer  2. 

is  Tours  MS.  927,  formerly  belong-  prophecy.   The  remaining  contents 

ing  to  the  Benedictines  of  Mar-  of  the  first  part  of  the  MS.,  which 

moutier.  Grass,  vi,  summarizes  the  may  be  of  the  twelfth  century,  are 

opinions  as  to  its  date.    In  any  some  hymns  and  the  Latin  Tours 

case  the  text   is  probably  of  the  Quern  quaeritis  (p.  38). 

twelfth   century,  and    Grass,   171,  1  Sepet,  xxix,  112, 128,  points  out 

after  an  elaborate  grammatical  in-  that  certain  lecticnes  and  respon- 

vestigation,  confirms   the  opinion  soria  which  accompany  the  Adam 

of  Luzarche,  doubted  by  Littre*  and  and  Cain  and  Abel  are  taken  from 

others,  that  it  is  of  Anglo-Norman  the  office  for  Septuagesima.    Pos- 

rather  than  Norman  origin.    But,  sibly  an  independent  liturgical  drama 

even  if  the  writer  was  an  Anglo-  of  the  Fall  arose  at  Septuagesima 

Norman  clerk,  the  play  must  have  and  was  absorbed  by  the  Prophetae, 

been  written   for   performance   in  But  mention  of  the  *  primus  Adam ' 

France.     I  doubt  if  it  was  ever  is  not  uncommon  in  the  Nativity 

actually  played  or  finished.     It  is  liturgy ;  cf.  Sepet,  xxix,  107,  and  the 

followed  in  the  MS.  by  a  Norman  Sponsus  (p.  61). 

(not  Anglo-Norman)  poem  on  the  *  Annale$Ratisponenses(M*G*H. 

Fifteen  Signs  of  Judgement  (text  in  Scriptores,  xvii.  590)  *  Anno  Domini 

Grass,  57),  which  looks  like  material  1 194.    Celebratus  est  in  Ratispona 

collected  for   an  unwritten   Sibyl  ordocreacionisangelorumetruina[e] 


72  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

Yet  another  step  towards  the  completion  of  the  Christmas 
cycle  was  taken  when  the  Prophetae  and  the  Stella  were 
brought  together  in  a  single  drama.  Such  a  merging  is  repre- 
sented by  two  related  texts  from  German  sources l.  One  is 
from  a  fourteenth -century  manuscript  now  at  St.  Gall 2.  The 
structure  is  of  the  simplest.  The  setting  of  the  pseudo- 
Augustine  sermon  has  altogether  disappeared.  Eight  prophets 
deliver  a  speech  apiece,  announcing  their  own  identities  after 
a  naYve  fashion — Ich  bin  der  alte  Balaam^  and  so  forth — which 
strongly  recalls  the  'folk'  or  'mummers"  plays.  Then  follows 
without  break  a  Stella,  whose  scenes  range  from  the  Marriage 
of  the  Virgin  to  the  Death  of  Herod.  Far  more  elaborate  is 
the  Christmas  play  found  in  the  famous  repertory  of  the 
scholares  vagantes  from  Benedictbeuern  3.  A  peculiarity  of 
this  is  that  for  the  first  time  Augustine  appears  in  propria 
persona.  He  presides  over  the  prophecies,  taking  the  place  of 
the  Precentor  of  the  Limoges  Prophetae ',  and  the  Appellatores 
or  Vocatores  of  Laon  and  Rouen.  The  only  prophets  are 
Isaiah,  Daniel,  the  Sibyl,  Aaron,  and  Balaam,  and  there  is 
once  more  a  special  episode  for  Balaam's  ass. 

'  Qninto  loco  procedat  Balaam  sedens  in  asina  et  cantans : 
vadam,  vadam,  ut  maledicam  populo  huic. 
Cut  occurrat  Ahgelus  evaginato  gladio  dicens: 
cave,  cave  ne  quicquam  aliud  quam  tibi  dixero  loquaris. 
Et  asinus  cui  inside t  Balaam  perterritus  retrocedat.     Postea 
recedat  angelus  et  Balaam  cantet  hoc  : 
orietur  stella  ex  lacob,  etc/ 

A  long  disputatio  follows  between  Augustine,  an  Archisyna- 
gogus,  and  the  prophets,  in  which  at  one  point  no  less  a  person 
intervenes  than  the  Episcopus  Puerorum,  affording  an  inter- 

Luciferi  et  suorum,  et  creacionis  8  Text  in  Schmeller,  Carmina 

hominis  et  casus  et  prophetarum  Burana,  80;  Du  M£ril,  187; 

.  .  .  septima  Idus  Februarii.'  Froning,  877,  from  a  Munich 

1  KSppen,  3  5,  discusses  the  textual  MS.  of  thirteenth  to  fourteenth 

relation  between  the  St.  Gall  and  century  formerly  in  the  abbey 

Benedictbeuern  plays  and  their  of  Benedictbeuern  in  Bavaria ;  cf. 

common  source,  the  Freising  Stella.  Creizenach,  i.  96;  Sepet,  xxxviii, 

*  Text  in  Mone,  Sckauspiele  des  398.  The  title  '  Ludus  scenicus 

Mittdalters,  i.  143 ;  cf.  Creizenach,  de  nativitate  Domini'  given  by 

i.  123-  Schmeller  is  not  in  the  MS. 


THE  SECULARIZATION  OF  THE  PLAYS      73 

esting  example  of  that  interrelation  between  the  religious 
plays  and  the  festivities  of  the  triduum  and  the  Feast  of 
Fools,  about  which  something  has  already  been  said l.  Pre- 
sently the  prophets  retire  and  sit  in  locis  suis  propter  honorem 
ludi.  The  Stella  extends  from  the  Annunciation  to  the  Flight 
into  Egypt.  Here  the  original  play  seems  to  have  ended ; 
but  a  later  writer  has  added  a  scene  in  Egypt,  in  which  the 
idols  fall  at  the  approach  of  the  Holy  Family,  and  some  frag- 
ments adapted  from  the  Antichristus^  and  hardly  worked  up 
into  anything  that  can  be  called  a  scene. 

The  form  of  Christmas  play,  then,  characteristic  of  the 
transition  century,  consists  of  a  version  of  the  Prophetae  ex- 
tended at  the  beginning  by  a  dramatic  treatment  of  the  Fall, 
or  extended  at  the  end  by  the  absorption  of  the  Stella.  It  so 
happens  that  we  do  not,  during  the  period  in  question,  find 
examples  in  which  both  extensions  occur  together.  But  this 
double  amplification  would  only  be  the  slightest  step  in 
advance,  and  may  perhaps  be  taken  for  granted.  The  Rouen 
My s tire  de  t Incarnation  et  la  Nativitt  of  1474  offers,  at  a 
much  later  date,  precisely  the  missing  type2. 

The  Easter  cycle,  also,  received  memorable  accretions 
during  the  period.  The  Quern  quaeritis  of  the  Tours  manu- 
script, it  will  be  remembered,  included  a  series  of  scenes 
beginning  with  the  Setting  of  the  Watch  before  the  Sepulchre, 
and  ending  with  the  Incredulity  of  Thomas.  Important 
additions  had  still  to  be  made,  even  within  the  limits  of  this 
cadre.  One  was  a  more  complete  treatment  of  the  Resurrec- 
tion itself  through  the  introduction  of  the  figure  of  Christ 
stepping  with  the  labarum  out  of  the  sepulchre,  in  place  of 
a  mere  symbolical  indication  of  the  mystery  by  the  presence 
of  angels  with  lighted  candles  and  the  dismay  of  the  soldiers3. 
Another,  closely  related  to  the  Resurrection,  was  the  scene 
known  as  the  Harrowing  of  Hell.  This  was  based  upon  the 
account  of  the  Descensus  Christi  ad  Inferos,  the  victory  over 
Satan,  and  the  freeing  from  limbo  of  Adam  and  the  other  Old 

1  Cf.  p.  56.  The  Balaam  in  Adam  Bibliophiles  normands};  cf.  Julie- 
is  *  sedens  super  asinam,'  but  no  ville,  Les  Myst.  ii.  36,  430. 
further  notice  is  taken  of  the  animal.  8  Cf.  p.  38. 

2  Text  ed.  Le  Verdier  (Sec.  des 


74  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

Testament  Fathers,  which  forms  part  of  the  apocryphal  Gospel 
of  Nichodtmus1.  The  narrative  makes  use  of  that  Tollite 
portas  passage  from  the  twenty-fourth  Psalm,  which  we  have 
already  found  adapted  to  the  use  of  more  than  one  semi- 
dramatic  ceremonial2,  and  naturally  this  found  its  way  into 
the  Harrowing  of  Hell,  together  with  the  so-called  canticum 
triumpkale,  a  song  of  welcome  by  the  imprisoned  souls : 

1  Advenisti,  desirabilis,  quern  exspectabamus  in  tenebris,  ut 
educeres  hac  nocte  vinculatos  de  claustris. 
te  nostra  vocabant  suspiria. 
te  larga  requirebant  lamenta. 
tu  factus  es  spes  desperatis,  magna  consolatio  in  tormentis/ 

I  cannot  share  the  view  of  those  who  look  upon  the  East 
Midland  English  Harrowing  of  Hell  as  intended  for  dramatic 
representation.  The  prologues  found  in  two  of  the  three 
manuscripts  leave  it  clear  that  it  was  for  recitation.  It  is  in 
fact  of  the  nature  of  an  'estrif '  or  dtbat>  and  may  be  compared 
with  an  Anglo-Saxon  poem  of  the  eighth  or  tenth  century  on 
the  same  subject 3.  But  there  is  evidence  that  the  scene  had 
found  its  way  into  the  Easter  cycle  at  least  by  the  beginning 
of  the  thirteenth  century,  for  it  occurs  amongst  the  fragments 
of  a  play  of  that  date  from  Kloster  Muri ;  and  in  later  versions 
it  assumed  a  considerable  prominence  4. 

1  Tischendorf,  Evangelia  Apo-  The  Harleian  has : 

crypha  (1876),  389.  '  Alle  herkneth  to  me  nou, 

*  Cf.  pp.  4,  5,  20.      One  of  the  A  strif  will  I  tellen  ou/ 

anthems  for  Easter    Saturday  in  The    Auchinleck    prologue    lacks 

the  Sarum  Breviary  is  Elevamini^  the  beginning,  but  the  end  agrees 

portae.  with  the  Harleian.    Boddeker,  who 

8  Text  in  Pollard,  166 ;  K.  B6d-  accepts  the  dramatic  character  of 

deker,  Altenglische  Dichtungen  des  the  piece,  thinks  that  the  prologues 

MS.  Harl.  2253  (1878),  204;   E.  were  prefixed  later  for  recitation. 

Mall,7%* Harrowing of  Hell '(1871);  In  any  case  this  poem  became  a 

cf.  Ten  Brink,  ii.  242 ;  Ward,  i.  90 ;  source  for   a   play  in  the  Ludus 

Creizenach,  i.  158.  There  are  three  Coventriae  cycle  (Pollard,  xxxviii). 

MSS.:   (a)  Bodl.  Digby  MS.  86  *  Text    of    Muri   fragments    in 

(late  thirteenth  century) ;  (b)  Harl.  Froning,   228 ;    cf.   Creizenach,   i. 

AfS.  225  3  (1-1310);  (c)Edin.Advoc.  114;  Wirth,  133,  281,    A  French 

Libr.    (Auchinleck}^  MS.    W.    41  fragment    (t  1300-50)    also    intro- 

(early  fourteenth    century).      The  ducing  this  theme   is  printed  by 

Digby   version    has    a    prologue  J.  B£dier,  in  Romania^  xxiv.  (1895), 

beginning:  86.    Pez,  Script,  rerum   auslria- 

*  Hou  ihesu  crist  herewede  helle  carum,  ii.  268,  describes  a  vision 

Of  hardegates  ich  wille  telle.'  of  the   thirteenth-century  recluse 


THE  SECULARIZATION  OF  THE  PLAYS      75 

The  liturgical  drama  proper  abstained  in  the  main  from 
any  strictly  dramatic  representation  of  the  Passion.  The 
nearest  approach  to  such  a  thing  is  in  the  dialogued  versions 
of  the  Planctus  Mariae  and  in  the  Benedictbeuern  Ludus 
breviter  de  Passione,  which  extends  very  slightly  beyond  these. 
The  central  event  of  the  transition  period  is,  therefore,  the 
growth  side  by  side  with  the  Quern  quaeritis  of  a  Passion  play, 
which  in  the  end  rather  absorbs  than  is  absorbed  by  it. 
A  marked  advance  in  this  direction  is  shown  in  an  Anglo- 
Norman  fragment,  probably  written  in  the  twelfth  century, 
which  includes,  not  indeed  the  Crucifixion  itself,  but  the 
Descent  from  the  Cross,  the  Healing  of  Longinus,  and  the 
Burial  of  Christ  *.  The  first  recorded  Passion  play  is  in  Italy. 
It  took  place  at  Siena  about  1200 2.  In  1244  the  Passion  and 
Resurrection  were  played  together  at  Padua 3.  The  earliest 
text  of  a  Passion  play  is  contained  in  the  Benedictbeuern 
manuscript 4.  It  opens  with  the  Calling  of  Andrew  and  Peter, 
the  Healing  of  the  Blind,  Zacchaeus  and  the  Entry  into  Jeru- 
salem. Then  follows  a  long  episode  of  Mary  Magdaden. 
She  is  represented  with  her  lover,  buying  cosmetics  of  a 
Mercator — we  have  had  the  Mercator  in  the  Quern  quaeritis 
and  in  the  Sponsus — and  with  a  profane  song  upon  her  lips : 

Wilbirgis:    'Item    quadam    nocte  MS.  is  of  the  fourteenth  century, 

Dominicae  Resurrectionis,  cum  in  but    the    Norman-French,    which 

Monasterio  ludus  Paschalis  tarn  a  some  writers,  as  with  the  Adam, 

Clero    quam    a    populo    ageretur,  think  Anglo-Norman,  is  assigned 

quia  eidem  non  potuit  corporaliter  to  the  end  of  the  twelfth  century, 

interesse,  cpepit  desiderare,  ut  ei  *  D'Ancona,  i.  90.     The  original 

Dominus  aliquam  specialis  consola-  authority  for  the  statement,  taken 

lionis  gratiam   per  Resurrectionis  from  a  MS.  treatise  on  the  Com- 

suae   gaudia  largiretur.    Et  vidit  media  italiana  by  Uberto  Benvo- 

quasi  Dominum  ad  Inferos  descen-  glienti,  is  not  given, 

dentem  et  inde  animas  eruentem,  *  D'Ancona,  i.  87,  quoting  several 

quae  quasi  columbae  candidissimae  chronicles :    '  hoc    anno    in    festo 

circumvolantes  ipsum  comitabantur,  Pascae  facta  fuit  Reppraesentatio 

et  sequebantur  ab  inferis  redeun-  Passionis  et  Resurrectionis  Christ! 

tern.1    Meyer,  61,  98,  deals  fully  solemniter   et    ordinate    in    Prato 

with  the  development  of  the  Resur-  Vallis.' 

rection    and    Harrowing   of   Hell  *  Text    in   Schmeller,   Carmina 

themes  in  the  early  vernacular  plays.  Burana>    95  ;     Du    Mlril,     1 26 ; 

1  Text  in  Monmerqu£  et  Michel,  Froning,  284 ;    cf.   Creizcnach,   i. 

Thtdtre  fr.  au   moyen    Agey    10,  92;    Wirth,   131,  278.     The  only 

from  Bibl.  Nat.fr.  902 ;  c£  Creize-  heading  to  the  play  in  the  MS.  is 

nach,  i.  135;  Julleville,  Les  Myst.  'SanctaMariaassitnostroprincipio! 

i.  91;   ii.  220;   Ctedat,  59.     The  amen.7 


76  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

'Mundi  delectatio  dulcis  est  et  grata, 
cuius  conversatio  suavis  et  ornata.' 

She  is  converted  in  a  dream,  puts  on  black,  buys  ointments 
from  the  same  Mercator,  and  adores  the  Lord  in  the  house  of 
Simon.  Then  come,  far  more  briefly  treated,  the  Raising  of 
Lazarus,  the  Betrayal  by  Judas,  the  Last  Supper,  the  Mount 
of  Olives,  the  Passion  itself,  from  the  Taking  in  Gethsemane 
to  the  Crucifixion.  The  introduction  here  of  some  planctus 
Mariae  points  to  the  genesis  of  the  drama,  which  closes  with 
the  Begging  of  the  Body  of  Christ  by  Joseph  of  Arimathaea. 
And  so,  at  a  blow,  as  it  were,  the  content  of  the  Easter  play 
is  doubled.  Certain  episodes,  such  as  the  Conversion  of 
Mary  Magdalen  and  the  Raising  of  Lazarus  had,  as  we 
know,  received  an  independent  dramatic  treatment ;  but  in  the 
main  the  play  before  us,  or  its  source,  bears  the  character  of 
a  deliberate  composition  on  the  lines  of  the  pre-existing  Quern 
quaeritis.  That  it  was  to  be  followed  in  representation  by 
a  Quern  quaeritis  may  perhaps  be  taken  for  granted.  Indeed 
there  is  one  personage,  the  wife  of  the  M creator >  who  is  named 
in  a  list  at  the  beginning,  but  has  no  part  in  the  text  as  it 
stands 1.  She  may  have  come  into  the  Benedictbeuern  Quern 
quaeritis,  of  which  a  fragment  only  survives,  and  this  may  have 
been  intended  for  use,  as  might  be  convenient,  either  with  the 
Ludus  breviter  de  Passione^  or  with  the  longer  text  now  under 
consideration.  At  all  events,  Passion  and  Resurrection  are 
treated  together  in  two  slightly  later  texts,  one  from  the  south 
of  France2,  the  other  from  St.  Gall8.  The  St.  Gall  Passion 
play  takes  the  action  back  to  the  beginning  of  the  missionary 
life  of  Christ,  giving  the  Marriage  at  Cana,  the  Baptism, 
and  the  Temptation.  It  also  includes  a  Harrowing  of 
Hell. 

Certain  forms  of  the  Passion  play,  as  the  conjoint  Passion 
and  Resurrection  may  now  be  termed,  show  an  approximation 
to  the  type  of  the  Christmas  play.  It  is  obvious  that  the 

1  Scenes  between  'the  Mercator>  teenth-century  texts  exist,  one  in 

his  wife,  and  their  lad  Rubin  play  Provencal,  one  in  Catalan. 
a  large  part  in  the  later  German         3  Text  in  Mone,  Sckauspiele  des 

Passion  plays ;  cf,  Wirth,  168.  Mittelalters^  i.  72  ;  cf.  Creizenach, 

*  Creizenach,  i.  155.    Two  four-  i.  lai ;  Wirth,  135,  282. 


THE  SECULARIZATION  OF  THE  PLAYS      77 

Fall  and  the  Prophetae  would  be  as  proper  a  prologue  to  the 
Passion  which  completes  the  Atonement  as  to  the  Nativity 
which  begins  it.  And  the  presence  of  Adam  and  other  Old 
Testament  characters  in  the  Harrowing  of  Hell  would  be  the 
more  significant  if  in  some  earlier  scene  they  had  visibly  been 
haled  there.  The  first  trace  of  these  new  elements  is  in  the 
St.  Gall  play,  where  the  Augustine  of  the  Prophetae  is  intro- 
duced to  speak  a  prologue.  A  long  Frankfort  play  of  the 
fourteenth  century,  of  which  unfortunately  only  the  stage 
directions  and  actors'  cues  are  preserved,  carries  the  process 
further  l.  Again  Augustine  acts  as  presenter.  A  Prophetae 
begins  the  performance,  which  ends  with  the  Ascension,  a 
Disputatio  Ecclesiae  et  Synagogae  and  the  baptizing  of  the 
incredulous  Jews  by  Augustine.  On  the  other  hand,  the  Fall 
forms  the  first  part  of  an  early  fourteenth-century  Passion 
play  from  Vienna2.  Both  the  Fall  of  Lucifer  and  that  of 
Adam  and  Eve  are  included,  and  there  is  a  supplementary 
scene  in  hell,  into  which  the  souls  of  a  usurer,  a  monk,  a  robber, 
and  a  sorceress  are  successively  brought.  Lucifer  refuses  to 
have  anything  to  do  with  the  monk,  an  early  use  of  the 
Tomlinson  motive. 

The  dramatic  evolution  is  now  within  measurable  distance 
of  the  '  cosmic  '  type  finally  presented  by  the  English  Corpus 
Christi  plays.  Two  further  steps  are  necessary :  the  juxta- 
position of  the  Nativity  and  Passion  scenes  behind  their 
common  Old  Testament  prologue,  and  the  final  winding  up 
of  the  action  by  the  extension  of  it  from  the  Ascension  to  the 
second  coming  of  the  Christ  in  the  Last  Judgement.  The 
eschatological  scenes  of  the  Sponsus  and  the  Antichristus  are 
already  available  for  such  an  epilogue.  That  the  whole  of 
this  vast  framework  was  put  together  by  the  beginning  of  the 
fourteenth  century  may  be  inferred  from  the  notices  of  two 
performances,  in  1298  and  1303  respectively,  at  Cividale3.  The 

1  Text  in  Froning,  340  (begins     scalis');  cf.  Creizenach,  i.  92,  120; 
'  Incipit    ordo    sive   registrum    de     Wirth,  134,  293. 

passione  domini ') ;  cf.  Creizenach,  8  Giuliano  da  Cividale,  Cronaca 

i.  219;  Wirth,  137,  295.  Friulana      (D'Ancona,      i.      915 

2  Text  in  Froning,  305  (begins  Muratori,  Rer.  ItaL  Script,  xxiv, 
*  Ad  materiae  reductionem  de  pas-  1205,      1209):        'Anno      domini 
sione   domini.     Incipit  ludus  pa-  MCCLXXXXVindieviiexeunte  Maio, 


78 


RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 


first  included  the  Passion,  Resurrection,  Ascension,  Advent  of 
the  Holy  Spirit,  and  Advent  of  Christ  to  Judgement:  the 
second  added  to  these  the  Creation,  Annunciation,  Nativity, 
with  much  else,  and  the  Antichrist.  Any  further  development 
could  now  be  merely  episodic.  The  text  could  be  amplified 
at  the  fancy  of  the  individual  writer,  or  upon  the  suggestion 
of  the  great  epic  narratives,  such  as  the  Cursor  Mundi,  the 
Passional,  the  Erlosung1.  An  infinity  of  new  scenes  could 
be  added  from  the  Old  Testament2,  from  the  apocryphal 
gospels  and  acts,  from  the  historic  narratives  of  the  vengeance 
of  the  Crucified  One  upon  Rome  and  Jewry3.  But  beyond 
the  limits  of  the  fixed  cadre  it  was  now  impossible  to  go,  for 
these  were  coincident  with  the  span  of  time  and  eternity. 

It  is  now  necessary  to  consider  briefly  some  modifications 
in  the  general  character  of  the  religious  plays  which  accom- 
panied or  resulted  from  this  great  expansion  of  their  scope. 


videlicet  in  die  Pentecostes  et  in 
aliis  duobus  sequentibus  diebus, 
facta  fuit  Repraesentatio  Ludi 
Christi,  videlicet  Passionis,  Resur- 
rectionis,  Ascensionis,  Adventus 
Spiritus  Saiicti,  Adventus  Christi 
ad  iudicium,  in  curia  Domini  Pa- 
triarchaeAustriaecivitatis,honorifice 
et  laudabiliter,  per  Clerum  civita- 
tensem  . .  .  Anno  MCCCIII  facta  fuit 
per  Clerum,  sive  per  Capitulum 
civitatense,  Repraesentatio :  sive 
factae  fuerunt  Repraesentationes 
infra  scriptae  :  In  primis,  de  Crea- 
tione  primorum  parentum ;  deinde 
de  Annunciatione  Beatae  Virginis, 
de  Partu  et  aliis  multis,  et  de  Pas- 
sione  et  Resurrectione,  Ascensione 
et  Adventu  Spiritus  Sancti,  et  de 
Antichristo  et  aliis,  et  demum  de 
Adventu  Christi  ad  iudicium.  Et 
predicta  facta  fuerunt  solemniter  in 
curia  domini  Patriarchae  in  festo 
Pentecostes  cum  aliis  duobus  diebus 
sequent  ibus,praesente  r.  d.Ottobono 
patriarcha  aquileiensi,  d.  lacobo  q. 
d.  Ottonelli  de  Civitate  episcopo 
concordiensi,  et  aliis  multis  nobili- 
bus  de  civitatibus  et  castris  Foro- 
iulii,  die  xv  exeunte  Maio.'  Still 
earlier,  some  dramatic  fragments 
not  later  than  the  mid-thirteenth 


century  from  Kloster  Himmelgarten 
near  Nordhausen,  include  scenes 
from  both  the  early  and  late  life  of 
Christ  (Text,  ed.  Sievers,  in  Zeitsch. 
/.  d.  Phil.  xxi.  393  ;  cf.  Creizenach, 
i.  124) ;  but  these  might  conceivably 
belong  to  a  set  of  plays  for  different 
dates,  such  as  those  of  the  Sainte 
Genevi&ve  MS.  (Julleville,/>j  Myst. 
"•  379)*  Besides  the  English  cosmic 
cycles,  there  are  several  fifteenth- 
century  French  ones  described  by 
Julleville,  Les  Mystjn.  394  sqq. :  in 
Germany  plays  of  this  scope  are  rare. 

1  Pearson,  ii.  312;  Koppen,  49; 
Ten  Brink,  i.  287.     . 

2  Cf.  Sepet,  xxxviii,  415  ;  Creize- 
nach,  i.  260  ;  G.  Smith,  253  ;  Julle- 
ville, Les  My st.  ii.  352.    Le  Mistire 
du  viel  testament,  printed  1*1510 
ted.  Rothschild,  1878-91,  for  Soc. 
des  anciens  textes  fran$ats),  is   a 
fifteenth-century     compilation     of 
O.  T.  plays  from  various  sources. 

8  French  versions  of  the  Ven- 
geance de  Notre  Seigneur,  of  which 
the  chief  episode  is  the  Siege  of 
Jerusalem,  appear  in  the  fifteenth 
century  /Julleville,  Les  Myst.  ii.  12, 
415,  451).  A  late  Coventry  play  on 
the  same  theme  is  unfortunately 
lost. 


THE  SECULARIZATION  OF  THE  PLAYS      79 

These  all  tend  towards  that  process  of  secularization,  that 
relaxing  of  the  close  bonds  between  the  nascent  drama  and 
religious  worship,  which  it  is  the  especial  object  of  this  chapter 
to  illustrate.  Of  capital  importance  is  the  transference  of  the 
plays  from  the  interior  of  the  church  to  its  precincts,  to  the 
graveyard  or  the  neighbouring  market-place.  This  must  have 
been  primarily  a  matter  of  physical  necessity.  The  growing 
length  of  the  plays,  the  increasing  elaboration  of  their  setting, 
made  it  cumbrous  and  difficult  to  accommodate  them  within 
the  walls.  It  is  a  big  step  from  the  early  Quern  quaerit%s^ 
Pastores  or  Stella^  with  their  simple  mises-en-sctne  of  sepulch- 
rum  and  praesepe  to  the  complicated  requirements,  say,  of  the 
Fleury  group,  the  tabernaculum  in  similitudinem  castelli 
Emaus  for  the  Peregrini,  the  half-dozen  loca,  domus,  or  sedes 
demanded  by  the  Suscitatio  Lazari  or  the  Conversio  Pauli. 
Still  more  exigent  is  the  Antichristus  with  its  templum  domini 
and  its  seven  sedes  regales^  and  its  space  in  between  for  march- 
ings and  counter-marchings  and  the  overthrowing  of  kings. 
Yet  for  a  long  time  the  church  proved  sufficient.  The  Tours 
Quern  quaeritis  and  some,  if  not  all,  of  the  Fleury  plays  were 
demonstrably  played  in  the  church.  So  was  the  Rouen  Pro- 
phetae>  and  an  allusion  of  Gerhoh  of  Reichersberg  makes  it 
extremely  probable  that  so  was  the  Antichristus^.  One  must 
conceive,  I  think,  of  the  performances  as  gradually  spreading 
from  choir  to  nave,  with  the  doimtsy  loca>  or  sedes  set  at  intervals 
against  the  pillars,  while  the  people  crowded  to  watch  in  the 
side  aisles.  It  is  in  the  twelfth  century  that  the  plays  first 
seek  ampler  room  outside  the  church.  Of  the  transition  plays 
dealt  with  in  the  present  chapter,  the  Adam>  the  Benedict- 
beuern  Christmas  play,  the  Anglo-Norman  Resurrection^  were 
certainly  intended  for  the  open,  and  the  contrary  cannot  be 
affirmed  in  any  case  with  the  same  assurance.  Again,  the 
Riga  Prophetae  of  1204  was  in  media  Riga^  the  Padua  Passion 
play  of  1244  was  *n  a  meadow,  the  Pratum  Vallis,  while  in 
England  an  early  thirteenth-century  biographer  of  St.  John  of 
Beverley  records  a  miracle  wrought  at  a  Resurrection  play  in 
the  churchyard  of  the  minster. 


80  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

Of  the  type  of  performance  now  rendered  possible,  a  very 
good  notion  is  given  by  the  full  stage  directions  of  the  Adam. 
These  are  so  valuable  a  document  for  the  history  of  stage 
management  that  I  must  take  leave  to  excerpt  from  them 
somewhat  liberally.  The  opening  rubric  recalls  at  once  the 
minute  stage  directions  of  Ibsen  and  the  counsel  to  the  players 
in  Hamlet. 

1 A  Paradise  is  to  be  made  in  a  raised  spot,  with  curtains 
and  cloths  of  silk  hung  round  it  at  such  a  height  that  persons 
in  the  Paradise  may  be  visible  from  the  shoulders  upwards. 
Fragrant  flowers  and  leaves  are  to  be  set  round  about,  and 
divers  trees  put  therein  with  hanging  fruit,  so  as  to  give  the 
likeness  of  a  most  delicate  spot.  Then  must  come  the  Saviour 
clothed  in  a  dalmatic,  and  Adam  and  Eve  be  brought  before 
him.  Adam  is  to  wear  a  red  tunic  and  Eve  a  woman's  robe 
of  white,  with  a  white  silk  cloak ;  and  they  are  both  to 
stand  before  the  Figure,  Adam  the  nearer  with  composed 
countenance,  while  Eve  appears  somewhat  more  modest.  And 
the  Adam  must  be  well  trained  when  to  reply  and  to  be 
neither  too  quick  nor  too  slow  in  his  replies.  And  not  only  he, 
but  all  the  personages  must  be  trained  to  speak  composedly, 
and  to  fit  convenient  gesture  to  the  matter  of  their  speech. 
Nor  must  they  foist  in  a  syllable  or  clip  one  of  the  verse,  but 
must  enounce  firmly  and  repeat  what  is  set  down  for  them 
in  due  order.  Whosoever  names  Paradise  is  to  look  and  point 
towards  it/ 

After  a  lectio  and  a  chant  by  the  choir,  the  dialogue  begins. 
The  Figura  instructs  Adam  and  Eve  as  to  their  duties  and 
inducts  them  into  Paradise. 

*  Then  the  Figure  must  depart  to  the  church  and  Adam 
and  Eve  walk  about  Paradise  in  honest  delight  Meanwhile 
the  demons  are  to  run  about  the  stage  (per  plateas),  with  suit- 
able gestures,  approaching  the  Paradise  from  time  to  time  and 
pointing  out  the  forbidden  fruit  to  Eve,  as  though  persuading 
her  to  cat  it.  Then  the  Devil  is  to  come  and  address  Adam.' 

The  diabolus  thinks  he  is  prevailing  upon  Adam.  He  joins 
the  other  demoas  and  make  sallies  about  the  plateae.  Then 
he  returns  hylaris  etgaudens  to  the  charge.  But  he  fails. 

c  Then,  sadly  and  with  downcast  countenance,  he  shall  leave 
Adam,  and  go  to  the  doors  of  hell,  and  hold  council  with  the 


THE  SECULARIZATION  OF  THE  PLAYS      81 

other  demons.  Thereafter  he  shall  make  a  sally  amongst  the 
people,  and  then  approach  Paradise  on  Eve's  side,  address- 
ing her  with  joyful  countenance  and  insinuating  (blandiens) 
manner/ 

Eve,  too,  is  hard  to  persuade,  and  is  scolded  by  Adam  for 
listening  to  the  diabolus.  But  when  a  serpens  artificiose 
compositus  rises  hard  by  the  trunk  of  the  forbidden  tree,  she 
lends  her  ear,  is  won  over,  takes  the  apple  and  gives  it  to 
Adam. 

'  Then  Adam  is  to  eat  part  of  the  apple  ;  and  after  eating 
it  he  shall  immediately  recognize  his  sin  and  debase  himself. 
He  must  now  be  out  of  sight  of  the  people,  and  shall  put  off 
his  solemn  raiment,  and  put  on  poor  raiment  sewn  together  of 
fig-leaves,  and  with  an  air  of  extreme  dolour  shall  begin  his 
lament.1 

When  the  Figure  *  wearing  a  stole  '  comes  again,  Adam  and 
Eve  hide  in  a  corner  of  Paradise,  and  when  called  upon  stand 
up,  '  not  altogether  erect,  but  for  shame  of  their  sin  somewhat 
bowed  and  very  sad/  They  are  driven  out,  and  an  angel 
with  a  radiant  sword  is  put  at  the  gate  of  Paradise.  The 
Figure  returns  to  the  church. 

'  Then  Adam  shall  have  a  spade  and  Eve  a  hoe,  and  they 
shall  begin  to  till  the  soil  and  sow  corn  therein.  And  when 
they  have  sown,  they  shall  go  and  sit  down  a  while,  as  if 
wearied  with  toil,  and  anon  look  tearfully  at  Paradise,  beating 
their  breasts.  Meanwhile  shall  come  the  devil  and  shall  plant 
thorns  and  thistles  in  their  tillage,  and  avoid.  And  wheii 
Adam  and  Eve  come  to  their  tillage  and  see  the  thorns 
and  thistles  sprung  up,  they  shall  be  smitten  with  violent  grief 
and  shall  throw  themselves  on  the  earth  and  sit  there,  beating 
their  breasts  and  thighs  and  betraying  grief  by  their  gestures. 
And  Adam  shall  begin  a  lament/ 

Now  the  last  scene  is  at  hand. 

'Then  shall  come  the  devil  and  three  or  four  devils  with 
him,  carrying  in  their  hands  chains  and  iron  fetters,  which 
they  shall  put  on  the  necks  of  Adam  and  Eve.  And  some 
shall  push  and  others  pull  them  to  hell;  and  hard  by  hell 
shall  be  other  devils  ready  to  meet  them,  who  shall  hold  high 
revel  (tripudium)  at  their  fall.  And  certain  other  devils  shall 


CHAMBERS.    It 


82  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

point  them  out  as  they  come,  and  shall  snatch  them  up  and 
carry  them  into  hell ;  and  there  shall  they  make  a  great 
smoke  arise,  and  call  aloud  to  each  other  with  glee  in  their 
hell,  and  clash  their  pots  and  kettles,  that  they  may  be  heard 
without.  And  after  a  little  delay  the  devils  shall  come  out 
and  run  about  the  stage  ;  but  some  shall  remain  in  hell.9 

The  shorter  play  of  Cain  and  Abel  is  similarly  conceived. 
The  sacrifices  are  offered  on  two  great  stones  'which  shall 
have  been  made  ready  for  the  purpose ' ;  and  at  the  end  of 
the  performance  the  devils  hale  off  Cain  and  Abel  also  to  hell 
'  beating  Cain  often  ;  but  Abel  they  shall  lead  more  gently.' 
The  prophets,  who  have  been  prepared  in  a  secret  spot,  now 
advance  one  by  one  and  deliver  their  prophecies.  Their 
appearance  is  described  much  as  in  the  earlier  Prophetae^  and 
it  is  noted  that  each  in  turn  at  the  finish  of  his  harangue  is  to 
be  led  off  to  hell  by  the  devils. 

Unless  the  Adam  extended  much  beyond  the  text  left  to 
us,  a  comparatively  small  number  of  loca  would  suffice  for 
its  representation.  The  contemporary  Anglo-Norman  Resur- 
rection play  required  thirteen,  as  is  set  out  at  length  in  a 
versified  prologue: 

f  En  ceste  manere  recitom 
La  seinte  resurreccion. 
Primerement  apareillons 
Tus  les  lius  e  les  mansions : 
Le  crucifix  primerement 
E  puis  apres  le  monument. 
Une  jaiole  i  deit  aver 
Pur  les  prisons  emprisoner. 
Enfer  seit  mis  de  cele  part, 
E  mansions  de  1'altre  part, 
E  puis  le  ciel ;   et  as  estals 
Primes  Pilate  od  ces  vassals. 
Sis  u  set  chivaliers  aura. 
Catphas  en  1'altre  serra ; 
Od  lui  seit  la  jeuerie, 
Puis  Joseph,  cil  d'Arimachie. 
El  quart  liu  seit  danz  Nichodemes. 


THE  SECULARIZATION  OF  THE  PLAYS      83 

Chescons  i  ad  od  sei  les  soens. 
El  quint  les  deciples  Crist. 
Les  treis  Maries  saient  el  sist 
Si  seit  pourv^u  que  Tom  face 
Galilee  en  mi  la  place; 
Jemaiis  uncore  i  seit  fait, 
U  Jhesu  fut  al  hostel  trait ; 
E  cum  la  gent  est  tute  asise, 
E  la  p^s  de  tutez  parz  mise, 
Dan  Joseph,  cil  d'Arimachie, 
Venge  a  Pilate,  si  lui  die/ 

I  have  ventured  to  arrange  these  lius  (loco)  and  mansions 
(domus)  or  estals  (sedes\  upon  the  indications  of  the  prologue, 
in  the  following  plan  : 

Crucifix 


t 


Monument      []  fl      Jaiole 

(sepulchrum) 


Ciel      []       P      Enfer 

Maries      (J  []      Pilate 


Deciples     []  CD  fj      Caiphas 

Jemaiis 
Nichodemes      PI  |~j      Joseph 


CD 
Galilee 

And  I  would  point  out  that  such  a  scheme  is  simply  a  con- 
tinuation of  the  arrangement  down  the  choir  and  nave  o* 
a  church  suggested  above1.  The  crucifix  is  where  it  would 
stand  in  the  church,  above  the  altar.  The  place  of  the 
monument  corresponds  to  that  most  usual  for  the  sepulchrum 
on  the  north  side  of  the  chancel.  The  positions  of  heaven 
and  hell  are  those  in  the  former  case  of  the  stairs  up  to  the 

1  Cf.  p.  79- 
G2 


84 


RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 


rood-loft,  in  the  latter  of  the  stairs  down  to  the  crypt;  and  what, 
in  a  church,  should  serve  for  hell  and  heaven  but  crypt  and 
rood-loft1?  The  Galilee  answers  to  the  porch  at  the  west 
end  of  the  church,  which  we  know  to  have  been  so  called  2 ; 
and  the  castle  of  Emmaus  stands  in  the  middle  of  the  nave, 
just  as  it  did  in  the  Fleury  Peregrini.  With  my  conjectural 


A.  B.  C.  The  three  divisions 
of  the  stage,  corre- 
sponding to  the  nave, 
choir,  and  sanctuary 
of  a  church. 

1.  The  first  door. 

2.  Hell. 

3.  The  Garden  of  Gethse- 

mane. 

4.  Mount  Olivet. 

5.  The  second  door. 

6.  Herod's  palace. 

7.  Pilate's  palace. 

8.  The  pillar  of  scourging. 

9.  The  pillar  for  the  cock. 

10.  The  house  of  Caiaphas. 

11.  The  house  of  Annas. 

12.  The  house  of  the   Last 

Supper. 

13.  The  third  door. 

14.  15,  16,  17.  Graves  from 

which  the  dead  arise. 
1 8,  19.   Crosses  of  the  two 
thieves. 

20.  Cross  of  Christ. 

21.  The  Holy  Sepulchre. 

22.  Heaven. 


PLAN  OF  DONAUESCHINGEN  PASSION-PLAY  STAGE  (sixteenth  century). 

plan  may  be  compared  this  actual  plan  of  a  sixteenth-century 
stage  from  Donaueschingen,  in  which  a  similar  principle  is 
apparent,  the  three  divisions  formed  by  cross  -  barriers 
corresponding  to  the  three  divisions  of  a  church — sanctuary, 
choir,  nave  8. 


1  Pearson,  ii.  315;  and  cf.  the 
angels  aloft  in  the  Rouen  Pastores 
(P- 41)- 


•  Cf.  p.  50. 

8  Plan  in  Mone,  ii.  156  ;  Froning, 
277 ;   Davidson,  199 ;   Pearson,  ii. 


THE  SECULARIZATION  OF  THE  PLAYS      85 

The  Anglo-Norman  Resurrection  play  was  pretty  clearly 
out  of  doors l ;  and  the  double  line  of  sedes  may  be  thought 
of  as  stretching  from  the  west  door  of  the  church  right  across 
the  market-place.  In  Adam  the  Figura  comes  and  goes 
from  and  to  the  church,  which  thus  serves  for  a  del ;  in  the 
Benedictbeuern  Christmas  play,  the  chair  of  Augustine  is  set 
in  fronte  ecclesiae.  This  arrangement,  also,  can  be  paralleled 
from  later  plays,  both  French  and  German.  At  Freiburg 
in  1504  the  stage  was  built  across  the  cathedral  yard  from 
the  south  door  to  the  Kaufhaus,  a  space  of  some  1 10  feet  long*. 
At  Rouen,  in  1474,  the  establies  went  across  the  market-place 
from  the  Axe  and  Crown  to  the  Angel3.  It  must  not, 
however,  be  supposed  that  the  rectangular  stage  survived 
as  the  invariable  type.  In  particular  a  round  type  was 
sometimes  preferred.  The  Cornish  guary-plays  were  given 
in  rounds,  and  a  round  is  figured  in  a  fifteenth-century 
miniature  by  Jean  Fouquet,  representing  a  play  of  Saint 
Apollonia4. 

I  have  spoken  of  a  stage,  but  I  am  not  sure  that  there  was 
any  stage  in  the  sense  of  a  platform.  There  is  certainly  no  such 
scaffold  in  Fouquet's  miniature,  and  the  plateae  of  the  Fleury 
Suscitatio  Lazari  and  the  Adam  are  probably  only  the  open 
spaces  kept  free  for  the  actors  between  the  sedes 5.  In  the 
Adam  the  devils  are  able  to  make  sallies  from  the  plateae 
amongst  the  spectators.  The  latter  probably  crowded  upon 
barriers  between  the  sedes.  In  the  miniature,  however,  the 
sedes  stand  close  together  and  are  considerably  raised,  with 

320  ;    Konnecke,   Bilderatlas,   55  :  rand,  Lit.  Hist.  i.  470. 

on  the  play,  cf.  Creizenach,  i.  224  ;  °  D'Ancona,  i.  191,  however,  de- 

Wirth,  139, 327.  Another  sixteenth-  scribes  the    Italian    devozioni   as 

century  plan  from  Lucerne  is  given  taking  place  on  talami  or  platforms 

by  Leibing,  Die  Inscenierung  des  in  the  naves  of  churches.  In  France, 

2-tagjgen     Ostersfiiels,    1869;    cf.  minor  religious  plays  at  least  took 

Creizenach,  i.  168.  place  on  scaffolds,  built  up  some- 

1  See  the  mention  of  '  en  mi  la  times  against  the  wall  of  a  church 

place '  in  the  prologue  ;  but  *  place '  (Bapst,  23,  29).     A  raised  stage, 

might  be  only  the  French  equivalent  with  sedes  along  the  back  of  it,  is 

of  *  platea '  as  used  in  the  Fleury  shown  by  the  miniatures  in  the  MS. 

Suscitatio  Lazari.  of  the   Valenciennes  Passion  (re- 

8  Pearson,  ii.  322.  produced  in  Jusscrand,  SAa&esfeare 

8  Julleville,  Les  Afyst.  ii.  37.  in  France,  63  ;  cf.  Julleville,'  Les 

4  Reproduced  in  Ctedat,4;  Bapst,  Mysttres,  ii.  153) ;  but  this  is  as  late 

33,  from  Horae  of  1 1460 ;  cf.  Jusse-  as  1 547. 


88  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

ladders  running  up  to  them.  The  spectators  stand  beneath. 
The  prologue  to  the  Anglo-Norman  Resurrection  speaks  of 
la  gent  as  seated,  and  possibly  raised  scaffolds  for  the  audience 
were  already  in  use.  These  were  certainly  known  later,  and 
the  descriptions  of  some  of  them  as  no  less  than  nine  stories 
high  have  given  rise  to  an  erroneous  theory  that  the  plays  were 
performed  upon  a  many-storied  stage  \  It  is  clear  that  this 
was  not  really  the  case.  All  the  sedes  were  on  the  same  level, 
except  that,  for  greater  dignity,  the  Calvary,  the  Heaven,  the 
Paradise  might  be,  as  in  Adam,  loco  eminentiore^  and  that  the 
infernum  or  hell,  conventionally  represented  by  the  head  and 
open  gullet  of  a  monstrous  dragon,  was  low  down,  as  if  in  the 
bowels  of  the  earth 2.  It  should  be  added  that,  as  early  as  the 
first  quarter  of  the  twelfth  century,  plays  had  begun  to  make 
their  way  from  the  church,  if  not  into  the  open,  at  any  rate 
into  buildings  of  domestic  use.  The  authority  for  this 
is  Gerhoh  of  Reichersberg,  who  speaks  of  performances 
in  the  refectory  of  Augsburg,  when  he  was  magister 
±cholae  there  about  H233,  Some  of  the  Fleury  or  other 
early  plays  may  conceivably  have  been  intended  for  the 
refectory. 

The  expansion  of  the  cycles  caused  difficulties  of  time,  as 
well  as  of  space.  Without  a  compression  of  manner  alien 
to  the  long-winded  Middle  Ages,  it  was  sometimes  impossible 
to  get  the  whole  of  the  matter  to  be  treated  within  the  limits 
of  a  single  day.  The  problem  was  amenable  to  more  than 
one  solution.  The  performance  could  be  spread  over  two 
or  more  sittings.  The  first  recorded  example  of  such  an 
arrangement  is  at  Cividale  in  1 298 4,  but  it  is  one  that  would 
naturally  suggest  itself,  especially  for  the  Easter  cycle,  which 
fell  naturally  enough  into  the  two  dramas  of  Passion  and 
Resurrection,  from  which,  indeed,  it  sprang.  In  the  Frankfort 
cue-book  of  %  fourteenth  century,  it  is  carefully  noted,  that 

1  Julleville,   Les   Myst.  i.    386;  est'  (Julleville,  Les  Myst.   il  77) 

Bawt,  28.  Just  such  an  '  enfer '  is  represented' 

c     *  ur    p/    I37-'  J  Amongst     the  m  th*  Fouquet  and  Valenciennes 

estabhes    required  for  the  Rouen  miniatures, 

play  of  1474  was  '  Enfer  faict  en  3  Cf.  p.  98. 

maniere  d'une  grande  gueulle  se  4  Cf.  p.  77. 
cloant  et  ouvrant  quant  besoing  en 


THE  SECULARIZATION  OF  THE  PLAYS      87 

if  the  audience  are  being  kept  too  long,  the  rectores  of  the 
play  shall  defer  the  Resurrection  to  a  second  day l.  Another 
device,  which  does  not  occur  so  early,  was  to  divide  the  cycle 
into  parts  and  play  them  in  successive  years.  This  method 
was  adopted  with  the  play  of  the  Seven  Joys  of  Mary  at 
Brussels2,  and  English  examples  will  be  found  in  a  later 
chapter 3. 

The  cycles  required  in  many  cases  a  larger  number  of  actors 
than  the  ecclesiastical  bodies,  even  with  the  aid  of  wandering 
clerks  and  the  cloister  schools,  could  supply.  It  was  necessary 
to  press  the  laity  into  the  service.  The  Easter  play,  of  which 
the  thirteenth-century  anchoress  Wilburgis  was  disappointed, 
was  acted  tarn  a  clero  quam  a  populo 4.  It  was  a  further  step 
in  the  same  direction  when  the  laity  themselves  took  over  the 
control  and  financing  of  plays.  For  this  one  must  look  mainly 
to  that  most  important  element  in  mediaeval  town  life,  the 
guilds.  Just  as  the  Feast  of  Fools  passed  from  the  hands 
of  the  clergy  into  those  of  the  soctttfs  joyeuses,  so  did  the 
religious  drama  into  those  of  more  serious  confraternities. 
The  burgenses  of  Cahors,  who  in  1290  and  1302  played 
a  ludum  de  miraculis  beati  Marcialis  in  the  graveyard  of 
St.  Martial  of  Limoges,  not  improbably  belonged  to  a  guild 
formed  to  do  honour  to  the  patron 5.  The  primary  purpose 
of  such  guilds  as  these  was  devotional,  and  if  they  acted  plays, 
it  was  doubtless  with  the  countenance  and  assistance  of  the 
clergy  to  whose  church  they  were  affiliated.  But  those  more 
secular  and  literary  guilds,  the  puys>  also  undertook  to  act 
religious  plays  no  less  than  softies  and  farces ;  and  in  them 

1  Froning,  363  'Et  notandum,  Augsburg  version  of  1487  (Milch- 
quod  optime  congruit,  ne  populus  sack,  129)  concludes  *  Permittitur 
nimiam  moram  faciendo  gravetur,  tamen  aliis,  qui  forsan  huiusmodi 
et  ut  resurrectio  domini  gloriosius  personas  [i.e.  *  sacerdotes  '  et  'can- 
celebretur,  ut  ulterior  ordo  ludi  in  tores ']  non  habent,  ut  cum  aliis 
diem  alterum  conservetur ;  quod  si  personis  et  etiam  moribus  honestis 
apud  rectores  deliberatum  fuerit,  tamen  et  discretis,  huiusmodi  visi- 
Augustinus  coram  populo  proclamet  tationem  sepulchri  exequantur.'  See 
dicens  sine  rigmo,  ut  in  die  crastino  also  the  jest  of  Tyll  Ulenspiegel 
revertatur.'  with  the  parson's  concubine  who 

*  Creizenach,  i.  340.  played  the  angel,  quoted  by  Pearson, 

9  Cf.  p.  130.  ii.  308. 

4  Cf.  p.  74.  By  the  fifteenth  6  Julleville,  Les  Myst.  ii.  2.  For 

century  lay  performers  appear  even  plays  by  German  guilds  cf.  Pearson, 

in  the  ritual  Quern  quaeritis.  An  ii.  364. 


88  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

it  may  be  suspected  that  the  influence  of  the  clergy  would 
have  to  contend  shrewdly  with  that  of  the  minstrels  *.  It  is 
not  surprising  to  come  in  time  upon  signs  of  a  rivalry  between 
lay  and  clerical  actors.  Thus,  in  1378,  the  scholars  of 
St.  Paul's  are  said  to  have  presented  a  petition  to  Richard  II, 
praying  him  to  prohibit  a  play  by  some  c  unexpert  people '  of 
the  History  of  the  Old  Testament,  a  subject  which  they  them- 
selves had  prepared  at  great  expense  for  the  ensuing  Christmas. 
It  may  have  been  some  similar  dispute  which  led  about  the 
same  date  to  the  formation  of  the  Parisian  Confrtrie  de  la 
PassioHy  which  received  from  Charles  VI  a  privilege  to  perform 
in  and  about  the  city,  and  became  a  model  for  many  similar 
confrMes  throughout  France.  The  charter  bears  the  date  of 
1402.  In  1398  the  provost  of  Paris  seems  to  have  been  moved 
to  forbid  dramatic  performances  without  special  sanction  in 
the  city  or  suburbs,  a  prohibition  which,  by  the  way,  was 
flouted  on  the  day  of  its  proclamation  at  Saint-Maur. 
Exactly  what  led  to  this  interposition  of  authority  is  not 
clear  ;  but  it  probably  induced  the  confrtrie,  who  may  have 
had  a  previous  less  formal  existence,  to  apply  for  their 
privilege 2.  The  confrtrie  de  la  Passion  seem  to  have  acted, 
as  a  rule,  in  closed  rooms.  It  is  not  unlikely  that  the  puys 
did  the  same. 

The  altered  conditions  of  representation  naturally  reacted 
upon  the  style  and  temper  of  the  plays  themselves.  This 
is  not  a  subject  that  can  be  discussed  in  detail  here,  but  a  few 
points  may  be  briefly  noted.  The  first  is  the  gradual  sub- 
stitution of  vernacular  tongues  for  the  Latin  of  the  liturgical 
drama.  This  was  almost  inevitable,  where  laymen  performed 
to  a  lay  audience.  But  the  liturgical  drama  itself  did  not 
absolutely  exclude  the  vernacular.  In  the  Sponsus,  and  in  the 
Suscitatio  Lazari  and  the  Nicholas  play  of  Hilarius,  frag- 
ments of  French  are  inserted,  just  as  they  are  in  the  c  farced ' 
epistles  used  at  <the  feasts  of  certain  saints,  notably  at  that  of 
St.  Stephen3.  It  was  a  step  further  when  in  the  fourteenth 

1  Creizenach,  i.  137  ;    Julleville,  belong  to  the  repertoires  vipuys. 
Les    Myst.  i.   115;   Les  Com.  43.         *  Julleville,  Les  Afyst.i.  412 ;  Les 

Probably  the  '  Jeu  de  Nicholas1  of  Com.  55. 

Jean  Bodel,  and  the  fourteenth-  *  Du  M£ril,  410,  414,  prints  ex- 
century  c  Miracles  de  Notre  Dame,1  amples  of  such  tpttres  farcies  for 


THE  SECULARIZATION  OF  THE  PLAYS     89 

century  the  nuns  of  Origny  Ste.-Benoite  rewrote  their  liturgical 
Quern  quaeritiS)  leaving  indeed  some  of  the  more  solemn  parts, 
such  as  the  dialogue  of  the  Maries  with  the  angel,  or  that  of 
the  Magdalen  with  the  risen  Christ,  in  Latin,  but  turning  the 
rest  into  French1.  Such  an  arrangement  as  this  of  Origny 
Ste.-Benoite  became  in  the  transition  plays,  intended  for  out- 
of-door  performance  to  a  popular  audience,  the  rule.  There 
was  naturally  some  local  variation.  Of  the  two  longer  scholars' 
plays  in  the  Benedictbeuern  manuscript,  the  Christmas  play 
is  wholly,  the  Passion  play  mainly,  in  Latin.  A  large  propor- 
tion of  Latin  seems  to  have  been  retained  in  the  Frankfort 
Passion  play  of  the  fourteenth  century.  But  on  the  whole, 
as  the  texts  grow,  and  especially  as  they  draw  upon  the 
apocryphal  books  or  the  great  mediaeval  vernacular  epics 
for  matter  not  in  the  liturgical  plays,  the  vernacular  steadily 
gets  the  upper  hand,  until  in  the  latest  versions  the  traces 
of  Latin  must  be  regarded  as  mere  survivals. 

In  some  cases  where  Latin  and  vernacular  appear  together, 
the  latter  is  of  the  nature  of  a  translation,  or  rough  and  often 
much  expanded  paraphrase,  of  the  former.  This  type  of  mixed 
and  obviously  transitional  text  can,  as  it  happens,  be  illustrated 
from  French,  German,  and  English  sources.  It  occurs,  for 
instance,  in  the  Adam.  Here  the  Adam  and  Eve  and  Cain 
and  Abel  scenes  are  wholly,  but  for  the  preliminary  lectio  and 
the  interpolated  chants  by  the  choir,  in  Norman-French. 
The  prophecies,  however,  are  given  in  the  double  form. 
Thus  Isaiah  says : 

'  Egredietur  virga  de  radice  Jesse,  et  flos  de  radice  eius 
ascendet,  et  requiescet  super  eum  spiritus  domini. 
*  Or  vus  dirrai  merveillus  diz  : 
Jesse  sera  de  sa  raYz. 
Verge  en  istra,  qui  fera  flor, 
Qui  ert  digne  de  grant  unor. 

the  feasts  of  St.  Stephen  and  St.  i.  64.  The  Quern  quaeritis  includes 

Thomas  of   Canterbury  :    cf.  the  the  Hortulanus  scene  and  has,  like 

numerous  references  in  D'Ancona,  the  Prague  versions,  the  Mercator. 

i.  66,  and  vol.  i.  p.  277.  It  was  probably  written  later  than 

1  Text  in  Coussemaker,  256,  from  1286,  as  the   Ordinarius    of  that 

BibLSt.QuentmMS.  75  (fourteenth  year  (Coussemaker,  337)  directs  a 

century) ;   cf.  Julleville,  Les  Myst.  shorter  version  in  Latin. 


90  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

Saint  espirit  Tavra  si  clos, 
Sor  ceste  flor  iert  sun  repos/ 

There  are  many  similar  examples  in  German  plays,  of  which 
the  most  complete  is  a  Quern  quaeritis  in  a  fourteenth-century 
manuscript  at  Troves1.  In  England  Professor  Skeat  discovered 
at  Shrewsbury  a  fragmentary  text  of  this  type  in  a  manuscript 
of  the  early  fifteenth  century 2.  It  is  written  in  a  northern, 
probably  Yorkshire,  dialect,  and  contains  the  part,  with  cues, 
of  a  single  actor  in  three  plays,  a  Pastores^  a  Quern  quaeritis^ 
and  a  Peregrini.  In  the  first  he  played  the  Third  Shepherd, 
in  the  second  the  Third  Mary,  in  the  last  probably  Cleophas, 
The  fragment  shows  clearly  enough  the  way  in  which  the 
Latin  text  was  first  sung  by  a  group  of  performers  together, 
and  then  expanded  by  them  separately  in  the  vernacular. 
The  two  documents  last  quoted  mark  not  only  the  transition 
from  Latin  to  the  vernacular,  but  also  that  from  the  sung 
drama  of  the  liturgies  to  the  spoken  drama  of  the  great  cycles. 
In  Professor  Skeat's  Shrewsbury  fragments  the  Lajtin  alone 
is  musically  noted.  In  the  Trfeves  Quern  quaeritis  the  Latin 
and  portions  of  the  German  are  noted,  and  a  careful  distinction 
is  made  between  the  lines  to  be  spoken  and  those  to  be  sung 
by  the  use  of  the  terms  cantat  and  dicit  in  the  rubrics  3. 

Again,  the  laicization  of  the  drama  was  accompanied  by  a 
further  development  of  the  secular  and  even  comic  elements, 
of  which  the  germs  already  existed  in  the  plays.  A  more 
human  and  less  distinctively  ecclesiastical  handling  became 
possible4.  The  figure  of  Herod  offered  a  melodramatic 
type  of  ranting  tyrant  which  the  tradition  of  the  stage  did 
not  readily  forget.  The  life  of  the  unconverted  Magdalen 
in  gaudio  gave  the  dramatist  his  opportunity  to  paint  scenes 
of  wholly  secular  luxury  and  romance.  Naturally  the  comic 
developments  attached  themselves  largely  to  personalities  not 

1  Text  in  Froningf,  49,  from  Trier  text  from  Shrewsbury  MS.  Mus. 

MS.  75  (begins  '  incipit  ludus  de  iii.  42  f.  48  (a  book  of  anthems), 

nocte  paschae,  de  tribus  Mariis  et  Manly,  i.  xxviii,  also  gives  it  with 

Maria  Magdalena '  .  .  .  ends  *  ex-  some  valuable  notes  of  his  own. 

plicit    ludus  *) ;    cf.    Creizenach,  i.  8  Creizenach,  i.  109. 

112;   Davidson,  149;  Wirth,  120,  4  Ibid.  i.  99, 202;  Pearson,  ii.  271, 

235-  302,  394J    Wirth,   168,  201,  215; 

*  Cf.  Academy  for  Jan.  4  and  n,  D'Ancona,  i.  62. 
1890,  where  Prof.  Skeat  prints  the 


THE  SECULARIZATION  OF  THE  PLAYS     91 

already  defined  in  the  Testament  narratives.  The  Mercator> 
for  instance,  whose  domesticities  with  his  wife  and  his 
apprentice  do  so  much  to  enliven  the  later  German  plays, 
is  a  thoroughly  characteristic  production  of  the  mediaeval 
folk  spirit,  for  the  delectation  of  which  Rutebeuf  wrote  the 
Dit  de  lErberie  \  It  is  not,  perhaps,  altogether  unjustifiable 
to  trace  a  relation  between  him  and  the  inveterate  quack 
doctor  of  the  spring  folk  drama  itself2.  This  would  not  be 
the  only  point  of  contact  between  the  ludi  of  the  Church  and 
those  of  the  folk.  The  significance,  from  this  point  of  view, 
of  Balaam's  ass  has  already  been  touched  upon3.  And  in 
the  growth  of  the  devil  scenes,  from  their  first  beginnings 
in  the  Sponsus  or  in  the  devil-deacon  of  the  Tollite  portas*> 
to  their  importance  in  the  Adam  or  the  various  treatments 
of  the  Fall  of  Lucifer  and  the  Harrowing  of  Hell,  may  we  not 
trace  the  influence  of  those  masked  and  blackened  demon 
figures  who  from  all  time  had  been  a  dear  scandal  of  the 
Kalends  and  the  Feast  of  Fools 5  ?  It  is  certain  that  the  imps 
who  sallied  amongst  the  spectators  and  haled  the  Fathers  off 
to  their  limbo  of  clashed  kettles  and  caldrons  must  have  been 
an  immensely  popular  feature  of  the  Adam ;  and  it  is  note- 
worthy that  in  more  than  one  place  the  compagnies  joyeuses 
who  inherited  the  Feast  of  Fools  joined  forces  with  more 
serious  confrtries  and  provided  comic  actors  for  the  religious 
plays 6. 

In  yet  another  way  the  coming  of  the  vernacular  affected 
the  character  of  the  religious  drama.  It  had  been  cosmopolitan ; 
it  was  to  be  national:  and  from  the  fourteenth  century,  in 
spite  of  a  few  lendings  and  borrowings,  and  of  a  certain 
uniformity  in  the  general  lines  of  development,  it  really 
requires  separate  treatment  in  each  of  the  European  countries7. 
In  Italy  the  divergence  from  the  common  type  was  perhaps 
most  marked  of  all,  although  I  think  that  Signor  D'Ancona 
and  others  have  perhaps  pushed  the  doctrine  of  the  independ- 
ence and  isolation  of  Italian  drama  to  an  extreme.  They 

1  Cf.  vol.  i.  p.  83.  6  Julleville,  Les   Myst.  ii.  412  ; 

2  Cf.  vol.  L  pp.  185,  207,  213.  Les  Com.  149,  237  (Chaumont),  239 

3  Cf.  p.  56.  (Chauny). 

4  Cf.  p.  4.  T  Creizenach,  i.  356 ;  cf.  p.  146. 
6  Cf.  vol.  i.  pp.  258,  268,  327, 


92  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

consider  that  it  almost  began  afresh  with  the  religious  stirrings 
of  the  Umbrian  Flagellants  in  1260.  The  compagnie  or  asso- 
ciations of  disciplinati,  who  were  the  outcome  of  this  thoroughly 
folk  movement,  were  wont,  as  they  lashed  themselves,  to  sing 
hymns  of  praise,  laudes,  whence  they  got  the  secondary  name 
of  laudesi.  The  lauds  were  mostly  sung  in  the  chapels  of  the 
compagnie  after  mass  and  a  sermon  on  Sundays.  Several 
fourteenth-century  collections  are  extant,  and  contain  examples 
intended  for  use  throughout  the  circle  of  the  ecclesiastical  year. 
Many  of  them  were  dialogued,  and  appear  to  have  been 
recited  in  costume  with  scenic  accessories.  The  dramatic 
lauds  were  specifically  known  as  devozioni^  and  by  the  end 
of  the  fourteenth  century  were  in  some  cases  performed  rather 
elaborately  upon  a  talamo  or  stage  in  the  nave  of  a  church, 
with  litoghi  deputati  for  the  accommodation  of  the  chief  actors. 
According  to  Signor  D'Ancona,  the  devozioni,  which  were 
composed  by  poor  folk,  were  taken  direct  from  the  liturgy 
and  owed  little  more  than  the  initial  hint  or  impulse  to  the 
liturgical  drama  ;  while  at  the  other  end  of  these  developments, 
they  became  the  source  of  the  out-of-door  and  splendidly- 
staged  sacre  rappresentazioni  which  originated  in  Florence 
in  the  fifteenth  century  and  thence  spread  to  other  Italian 
cities *.  On  this  theory  it  must  be  observed  that  the  devozioni 
have  not  been  shown  to  be  independent  of  the  liturgical 
drama,  and  that  the  derivation  of  the  sacre  rappresentazioni 
from  the  devozioni  is  purely  conjectural 3.  The  sacre  rappre- 
sentazioni were  out  of  doors  and  produced  by  the  clergy  or 
laity ;  the  devozioni,  which  have  not  been  traced  to  Florence, 
were  produced  indoors  by  religious  guilds  of  a  very  distinct 
type.  The  sacre  rappresentazioni)  moreover,  included  subjects, 
such  as  the  profeti,  which  are  not  within  the  cycle  of  the 

1  D'Ancona,  i.  87  sqq. ;  F.  Tor-  Monaci,  Appunti  per  la  storia  del 

raca,  Discussioni  e  ricerche  (1888),  teatro  itaiiano  in  Rivista  di  Filo- 

92 ;  Creizenach,  i.  299  sqq. ;  J.  A.  logia  Romany  i.  235,  ii.  29.    For 

Symonds,  Renaissante  in  Italy,  iv.  other  collections  cf.  D'Ancona,  i. 

242  sqq.;  G.  Smith,  297 ;  Wechssler,  153;  Gaspary,  i.  361.    D'Ancona 

30;  Gaspary,  i.  138,  357;  I.  S.  A.  *  has  published  Sacre  Rappresenta- 

Herford,    The    Confraternities    of  zioni  (1872).    A  selection  of  Lauds, 

Penance^  their  Dramas  and  thetr  Devozioni,  and  Rappresentazioni  is 

Lamentations  in  E.  Jf.  Review^  vi.  in  F.  Torraca,  //  teatro  itaiiano  dei 

(1891),  646.    A  first  instalment  of  Secoli  #*«',  #«/,  e  xv  (1885). 
dramatic  Lauds  was  published  by 


THE  SECULARIZATION  OF  THE  PLAYS      93 

devozioni)  but  do  belong  to  the  liturgical  drama.  It  is  at 
least  a  tenable  view,  that  the  devozioni  were  merely  a  back- 
water of  the  drama,  and  that  the  sacre  rappresentazioni  were 
derived,  like  the  fifteenth-century  plays  of  other  countries, 
from  the  liturgical  drama  through  the  medium  of  such  tran- 
sitional types  as  those  already  noted  at  Padua,  Siena,  and 
Cividale.  The  fact  that  the  only  transitional  texts  preserved 
are  those  of  the  devozioni  has  perhaps  led  to  an  exaggerated 
estimate  of  the  importance  of  these.  Even  liturgical  dramas 
are  rare  in  Italy,  although  there  are  sufficient  thoroughly  to 
establish  their  existence.  The  chroniclers,  however,  mention 
one  or  two  events  which  point  to  another  dramatic  tradition 
in  Italy  than  that  of  the  devozioni.  At  Florence  itself,  in 
1306,  there  was  a  show  of  Heaven  and  Hell  upon  the  Arno, 
which  though  merely  pantomimic,  may  have  been  based  on 
some  dramatic  representation  of  the  Last  Judgement1.  At 
Milan,  in  1336,  was  a  Stella,  in  which  the  Magi  rode  through 
the  streets,  and  Herod  sat  by  the  columns  of  San  Lorenzo  2. 
Both  of  these  performances,  like  those  at  Padua  and  Cividale 

1  D'Ancona,  i.  94.  cedentibus,  simiis,  babuynis,  et  di- 

a   Galvano    Flamma,    de    rebus  versis  generibus  animalium,    cum 

gestis  a   Vicecomitibus  (D'Ancona,  mirabili  populorum   tumultu,  per- 

i.  97  ;   Muratori,  Rer*  ItaL  Script,  venerunt  ad  ecclesiam  Sancti  Eu- 

xii.    1017).      The    ceremony    was  storgii.  Ubi  in  latere  altaris  maioris 

4  in  die  Epifanie  in  conventu  fra-  erat  praesepium  cum  bove  et  asino, 

trum  Praedicatorum  .  .  .  Fuerunt  etinpraesepioeratChristusparvulus 

coronati  tres  Reges  in  equis  magnis,  in  bracbiis  Virginis  matris.     Et  isti 

vallati  domicellis,  vestiti  variis,  cum  Reges  obtulerunt  Christo  munera ; 

somariis  multis  et  familia  magna  deinde  visi  sunt  dormire,  et  Angelus 

nimis.    Et  fuit  Stella  aurea  discur-  alatus  ei  dixit  quod  non  redirent 

rens  per  aera,  quae   praecedebat  per  contratam  Sancti  Laurentii,  sed 

istos  tres  Reges,  et  pervenerunt  ad  per  portam  Romanam  :    quod    et 

columnas  Sancti  Laurentii,  ubi  erat  factum  fuit.    Et  fuit  tantus  concur- 

rex  Herodes  effigiatus,  cum  scribis  sus  populi  et  militum  et  dominarum 

et  sapientibus.    Et  visi  sunt  inter-  et  clencorum,  quodnunquamsimilis 

rogareregemHerodem,ubiChristus  fere  visus  fuit    Et  fuit  ordinatum, 

nasceretur,  et  revolutis  multis  libris  quod  pmni  anno  istud  festum  fieret.' 

responderunt,  quod  deberet  nasci  This  is  precisely  the  liturgic  Stella 

in  civitate  Bethleem  in   distantia  translated    into    an    out-of-door 

quinque  milliariorum  a  Hierusalem.  spectacle^  which  in  its  turn  becomes 

Quo  audito,  isti  tres  Reges  coronati  the  model  for  many  a  Quattrocento 

aureis  coronis,  tenentes  in  manibus  painting ;  c£,  e.g.,  Botticelli's  Magi 

scyphos  aureos  cum  auro,  thure  et  in  the  Uffizi,  or  Gentile  da  Fabrianos, 

myrrha,  praecedente  Stella  per  aera,  with  the  baboons  done  to  the  life, 

cum  somariis  et  mirabili  famulatu,  in  the  Accademia. 
clangentibus  tubis,  et  bucinis  prae- 


94  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

and  the  sacre  rappresentazioni  themselves,  were  out  of  doors, 
It  is  true  that  the  sacre  rappresentazioni  fell  less  into  big 
cycles  than  did  the  contemporary  plays  of  other  countries : 
but  cycles  were  not  unknown  \  and  it  must  be  borne  in  mind 
that  the  extreme  beauty  and  elaboration  of  the  Florentine 
mise-en-sctne  made  a  limited  scheme,  on  grounds  both  of  time 
and  expense,  almost  imperative. 

'  With  out-of-door  plays  climatic  conditions  began  to  be  of 
importance.  Even  in  sunny  France,  Christmas  is  not  exactly 
the  season  to  hang  about  the  market-place  looking  at  an 
interminable  drama.  It  is  not  to  be  denied  that  Christmas 
plays  continued  to  be  occasionally  acted  well  through  the 
fifteenth  century 2,  but  the  number  of  these,  compared  with 
the  Passions,  is  small 3.  Even  Easter  weather  is  not  invariably 
genial.  Nor,  as  the  cycles  lengthened,  was  the  attachment 
of  them  to  any  one  of  the  feasts,  whose  events  they  com- 
memorated, a  matter  of  first-rate  importance.  A  tendency 
set  in  towards  playing  them,  as  far  as  possible  in  the  long 
warm  days  of  the  summer  months.  The  first  Whitsuntide 
performances  are  those  at  Cividale  in  1298  and  1303;  and 
Whitsuntide  became  a  very  favourite  date4.  At  Florence 
the  great  patronal  feast  and  procession  of  St.  John  the  Baptist 
on  June  24  was  a  natural  occasion  for  sacre  rappresentazioni  5. 


1  D'Ancona,  i.  94,  301,  considers,  are   elaborately  described 'in   the 
however,    that   the    late    fifteenth-  Storia  of  Matteo  di  Marco  Palmier! 
century  Passio  of  Revello  was  not  about    1454    (D'Ancona,    i.    228). 
a  native  growth,  but  modelled  on  Early  in  the  morning  of  June  22 
contemporary    cyclic    plays    from  started  a  procession  of  clergy,  com- 
France.  Pagn*ei    edifizii,    and     cavalleria. 

2  The  Rouen  play  of  1474  (Julie-  These  stopped  in  the  Piazza  della 
ville,  Les  Myst.  ii.  36)   was  one,  Signoria,      and     rappresentazioni, 
and  cf.  pp.  119,  122.  forming  a  complete  cycle  from  the 

8  Creizenach,  i.  242  ;  cf.  the  lists  Fall  of  Lucifer  to  the  Last  Judge- 
in  Julleville,  Les  Myst.  ii.  183.  ment,  and  lasting  sixteen  hours,  were 

*  Julleville,  Les  Myst.  ii.  9  sqq.  given  upon  the  edifizii.     D'Ancona 

*  D'Ancona,  i.  218;    Guasti,  Le  suggests  that  the  dumb  show  type  of 
Jeste  di  San  Giovann\  Baptista  in  rappresentazioni  preceded  the  dia- 

Firenze  (1884).    Rappresentazioni  lo^ued  one,'  come  piu  semplice.'  But 

on  St.  John's  day  were  known  to  this  seems  equally  inconsistent  with 

the  late  fourteenth-century  Floren-  his  view  that  the  rappresentazioni 

tine  historian  Goro  di  Stagio  Dati.  grew  out  videvozioni,  and  mine  that 

An  account  of  the  feast  in  1407  they  were  an  adaptation  of  earlier 

makes  no  mention  of  them,  but  cyclical  plays  to  the  conditions  of  the 

they  appear  in  that  of  1439,  and  Florentine  feast 


THE  SECULARIZATION  OF  THE  PLAYS     95 

Another  high  day  for  the  cyclical  drama  from  the  fourteenth 
century  onwards,  notably  in  England1  and  Spain2,  and  to 
a  much  less  degree  in  Germany3  and  France4,  was  the 
recently-established  feast  of  Corpus  Christi.  This,  the  most 
materialistic  of  all  the  Church's  celebrations,  is  in  honour  of 
the  mystery  of  the  transubstantiated  sacrament.  It  originated 
locally  in  an  alleged  revelation  to  Juliana,  a  Cistercian  religious 
of  Li&ge.  Pope  Urban  IV  designed  in  1264  to  make  it  a 
universal  festival,  but  he  died  in  the  same  year,  and  the  bull 
which  he  had  issued  remained  inoperative  until  it  was  con- 
firmed by  Clement  V  at  the  council  of  Vienne  in  1311. 
Corpus  Christi  day  was  the  Thursday  after  Trinity  Sunday. 
An  office  was  compiled  for  it  by  St.  Thomas  Aquinas,  and 
the  leading  ceremony  was  a  great  procession  in  which  the 
host,  escorted  by  local  dignitaries,  religious  bodies  and  guilds, 
was  borne  through  the  streets  and  displayed  successively  at 
out-of-door  stations6.  When  the  plays  were  transferred  to 
Corpus  Christi  day,  they  became  more  or  less  attached  to  this 
procession.  Sometimes,  perhaps,  the  procession  served  as 
a  mere  preliminary  parade  for  the  actors,  such  as  sometimes 
preceded  plays  at  other  times6.  The  play  itself  would 
follow  on  a  fixed  stage  of  the  ordinary  type.  But  the  method 
of  the  great  English  cycles  seems  to  point  to  a  more  complete 
merging  of  play  and  procession  than  this.  The  domus>  loci, 
or  sedes  were  set  upon  wheels,  and  known  as  'pageants7'; 
and  the  performance  was  gone  through  during  the  procession, 

1  Cf.  ch.  xxi.  are  those  of  Innsbruck,  1 1395  (Text 

*  D'Ancona,  i.  243 ;  Schack,  ii.  in  Monc,  Altteutsche  Schauspiele, 

103 ;    Ticknor,  Hist,   of  Spanish  145),    and    of    Kiinzelsau,   1 1479 

Lit.  ii.  249.     The  Autos  Sacra-  (ed.  H.  Werner,  in  Germania^  iv. 

mentales  are  so  named  from  their  338).    Cf.  the  description  (1*1553) 


connexion  with  this  day.  of  Naogeorgos  (transl.  Googe)  in 

8  Creizenach,  i.  170,  227.     The  Stubbes,  i.  337. 

earliest  German  mention  is  at  the  4  Julleville,  ii.  208. 

council  of  Prague  in  1366  (Hofler,  B  Ward,  i.  44 ;    Davidson,  215  ; 

Concilia  Pragensia,  13,  in  Abhandl.  Malleson-Tuker,  ii.  227. 

d.  konigl.  bohmischen  Gesellsch.  der  6  See  e.  g.  the  *  Processio  huius 

Wiss.  series  v.  vol.  12)  'omnibus  ludi'  at  the  end  of  the  text  of  the 

.  . .  clericis  et  laicis  .  . .  mandatur  Alsfeld  Passion  of  1501  (Froning, 

ut  ludos  theatrales  vel  etiam  fistu-  858) ;  cf.  Pearson,  ii.  365.    As  to 

latores  vel  ioculatores  in  festo  cor-  the  general  relations  of  processions 

poris  Christi  in  processionibus  ire  and  plays,  cf.  p.  1 60. 

quovis  modo  permittant  et  admit-  7  Cf.  p.  136. 
tant.9  Extant  Frohnleicknamsspiele 


being  repeated  at  the  various  stations  made  by  the  host. 
If  the  cycle  was  a  very  long  one,  time  could  be  saved  by 
making  an  early  play  at  one  station  coincident  with  a  later 
play  at  that  in  front  of  it.  It  is,  however,  easy  to  see  that  with 
the  arrangement  here  suggested  the  popularity  of  the  pageants 
might  throw  the  strictly  religious  aspect  of  the  procession 
rather  into  the  shade.  The  two  would  then  be  severed  again, 
but  the  play  might  still  retain  its  processional  character. 
This  is  not,  I  think,  an  unreasonable  conjecture  as  to  how 
the  type  of  play  found,  say  at  York,  may  have  come  into 
existence l.  To  Chester,  where  the  plays  were  not  on  Corpus 
Christi  day,  but  at  Whitsuntide,  the  method  must  have  been 
transferred  at  a  later  date. 

During  this  brief  survey  of  the  critical  period  for  the 
religious  drama  between  the  middle  of  the  thirteenth  and 
the  middle  of  the  fourteenth  century,  I  have  attempted  to 
bring  into  relief  the  tendencies  that  were  at  work  for  its 
remodelling.  But  it  must  not  be  supposed  that  either  the 
tendency  to  expansion  or  the  tendency  to  secularization  acted 
universally  and  uniformly.  The  truth  is  quite  otherwise. 
To  the  end  of  the  history  of  the  religious  drama,  the  older 
types,  which  it  threw  out  as  it  evolved,  co-existed  with  the 
newer  ones2.  The  Latin  tropes  and  liturgical  dramas  held 
their  place  in  the  church  services.  And  in  the  vernaculars, 
side  by  side  with  the  growing  Nativities  and  Passions,  there 
continued  to  be  acted  independent  plays  of  more  than  one 
sort.  There  were  the  original  short  plays,  such  as  the  Stella, 
the  Annunciation,  the  Sponsus,  the  Antichrist,  by  the  running 
together  of  which  the  cycles  came  into  being.  There  were 
plays,  on  the  other  hand,  which  originated  as  episodes  in  the 
cycles,  and  only  subsequently  attained  to  an  independent 

1  The  closest  merging  of  play  prosessionquejeu,etquelesestran- 

and  procession  is  suggested  by  an  giers  le  voient  aisement.'    Perhaps 

order  at  Draguignan  in  1558  (Julie-  the  short  speeches  of  the  Innsbruck 

ville,  Les  Myst.  ii.  209),  where  it  play  were  similarly  delivered  while 

was  ordered  *  Le  dit  jeu  jora  avec  the  procession  was  moving.    The 

la  procession  comme  auparadvant  nearest  continental  approach  to  the 

et  le  plus  d'istoeres  et  plus  brieves  English  type  is  the  Kiinzelsau  play, 

que  puront  estre  seront  et  se  dira  which  was  divided  into  three  parts 

tout  en  cheminant  sans  ce  que  j>er-  and  played  at  three  different  stations 

sonne  du  j'eu  s'areste  pour  eviter  (Creizenach,  i.  227). 

prolixit^  et  confusion  taut  de  ladite.  *  Creizenach,  i.  2^ 


THE  SECULARIZATION  OF  THE  PLAYS      97 

existence.  The  majority  of  these  were  Old  Testament  plays, 
budded  off,  like  the  Daniel,  from  the  Prophetae.  And  finally 
there  were  numerous  plays  drawn  from  hagiological  legends, 
many  of  which  never  came  into  connexion  with  the  cycles 
at  all.  Thus  in  the  transition  period  we  find,  not  only  plays 
on  St.  Nicholas  and  St.  Catherine  for  which  liturgical  models 
existed,  but  also  the  great  French  series  of  Miracles  of  the 
Virgin,  and  plays  on  Saints  Theophilus,  Dorothy,  Martial, 
and  Agnes  *.  The  natural  tendency  of  great  churches  to 
magnify  their  own  patron  saints  led  to  further  multiplication 
of  themes.  In  the  same  way,  long  after  the  lay  guilds  and 
corporations  had  taken  up  the  drama,  performances  continued 
to  be  given  or  superintended  by  the  clergy  and  their  scholars2. 
Priests  and  monks  supplied  texts  and  lent  vestments  for  the 
lay  plays.  To  the  last,  the  church  served  from  time  to  time 
as  a  theatre.  All  these  points,  as  well  as  the  traces  of  their 
liturgical  origin  lingering  in  the  cycles,  will  be  fully  illustrated, 
so  far  as  England  is  concerned,  in  the  following  chapters. 

The  question  presents  itself:  What  was  the  official  attitude 
of  the  high  ecclesiastical  authorities  towards  the  growing 
religious  plays?  It  is  not  precisely  answered,  as  the  history 
of  the  Feast  of  Fools  has  shown,  by  the  fact  that  the  chapters 
and  inferior  clergy  encouraged  and  took  part  in  them.  The 
liturgical  drama  had  its  motive,  as  St.  Ethelwold  is  careful 
to  point  out,  in  a  desire  for  devotion  and  the  edification  oi 

1  Creizenach,  i.  128,  137sqq.,  156;  voce,  lingua  latina  et  materna,  cuni 
Jujleville,  Les  Myst.  i.  95,  107,  115,  magna  reverentia  et  honore  ac  di 
185;  ii.  2,  4,  5,  221,  226,  345  ;  Les  versis    personacium    et    habituuir 
Com.  49  ;  Sepet,  202,  242  ;  Ctedat,  generibus  ad  hoc  congruis  et  neces- 
63,  73,  105.  sariis,  solemniter  et  pubhce  vitan 

2  Creizenach,  i.    130,    165,    176;  et  miracula   egregii   confessoris  e 
Julleville,  Les  Myst.   i.   347;    Les  pontificis  Machuti,  recitare  et  ex 
Com.  291  ;  D'Ancona,i.  57;  Pearson,  ponere,   missamque    solemnem    ir 
ii.  303  ;  Wirth,  144.     A  play  could  pontificalibus,  in  platea  seu  plateii 
be  given  outside  the  church  without  supradictis    super    altare    portatil, 
wholly  losing   its    connexion   with  consecrato    per    alterum    vestrum 
the  liturgy.     It  became   a  sort  of  canonicorum    vel   alium   ydoneum 
procession:  cf.  pp.  32,  67.  D'Ancona,  sacerdotem  celebrare  .  .  .  licentiam 
'•  59,  quotes  from  J?/^/.  deffceoledes  et    auctoritatem    impertimus     per 
Ck 


S)  iii.  450,  a  licence  given  by  praesentes/     Cf.  the  examples   of 

the  Bishop  of  Langres  in  1408  'Ut  plays  at  the  Feasts  of  Fools  and 

in  quadem  platea  vel  plateis  congruis  of  the  Boy  Bishop  (vol.  i.  pp.  295, 

et  honestis,  infra  vel  extra  villam,  296,  299,  304,  306,  309,  313,  342, 

prope  et  supra  rippariam  loci,  coram  348,  349,  380). 
clero  et  populo,  alta  et  intelligibili 

CHAMBERS.    II  H 


98 


RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 


the  vulgar1.  The  hope  of  affording  a  counter-attraction  to 
the  spring  and  winter  ludi  of  hard-dying  paganism  probably 
went  for  something.  Herrad  of  Landsberg,  in  the  twelfth 
century,  utters  a  regret  that  the  Stella  rightly  instituted  at 
Epiphany  by  the  Fathers  of  the  Church  had  given  place  to 
a  shameless  revel  2.  But  a  contrary  opinion  to  Hen-ad's  arose 
almost  contemporaneously  amongst  the  reforming  anti-imperial 
clergy  of  Germany.  This  finds  expression  more  than  once  in 
the  writings  of  Gerhoh  of  Reichersberg  3.  He  scoffs  at  the 
monks  of  Augsburg  who,  when  he  was  magister  scolae  there 
about  1  1  32,  could  only  be  induced  to  sup  in  the  refectory, 
when  a  representation  of  Herod  or  the  Innocents  or  some 
other  quasi-theatrical  spectacle  made  an  excuse  for  a  feast4. 
And  he  devotes  a  chapter  of  his  De  Investigatione  Antichristi, 
written  about  1161,  to  an  argument  that  clergy  who  turn  the 
churches  into  theatres  are  doing  the  work  of  that  very  Anti- 
christ of  whom  they  make  a  show6.  Evidently  Gerhoh  has 


•     »  Cf.  p.  16. 

s  Cf.voli.p.3i8.  Pearson,  ii.285, 
translates:  '  The  old  Fathers  of  the 
Church,  in  order  to  strengthen  the 
belief  of  the  faithful  and  to  attract 
the  unbeliever  by  this  manner  of 
religious  service,  rightly  instituted 
at  the  Feast  of  Epiphany  or  the 
Octave  religious  performances  of 
such  a  kind  as  the  star  guiding  the 
Magi  to  the  new-born  Christ,  the 
cruelty  of  Herod,  the  dispatch  of 
the  soldiers,  the  lying-in  of  the 
Blessed  Virgin,  the  angel  warning 
the  Magi  not  to  return  to  Herod, 
and  other  events  of  the  birth  of 
Christ.  But  what  nowadays  happens 
in  many  churches?  Not  a  cus- 
tomary ritual,  not  an  act  of  reverence, 
but  one  of  irreligion  and  extrava- 
gance conducted  with  all  the  license 
of  youth.  The  priests  having  changed 
their  clothes  go  forth  as  a  troop  of 
warriors;  there  is  'no  distinction 
between  priest  and  warrior  to  be 
marked.  At  an  unfitting  gathering 
of  priests  and  laymen  the  church 
is  desecrated  by  feasting  and  drink- 
ing, buffoonery,  unbecoming  jokes, 
play,  the  clang  of  weapons,  the 
presence  of  shameless  wenches, 


the  vanities  of  the  world,  and  all 
sorts  of  disorder.  Rarely  does 
such  a  gathering  break  up  without 
quarrelling/ 

8  On  Gerhoh  (1093-1169)  see  the 
article  in  the  2nd  ed.  of  Wetzer 
and  Welte's  Kirchenlexicon.  He 
took  a  strong  reforming  and  anti- 
imperial  line  in  the  controversies  of 
his  day. 

4  Gerhoh  us,  Comm*  in  Ps.  cxxxii 
(P.  L.  cxciv.  890) '  Cohaerebat  ipsi 
Ecclesiae  claustrum  satis  honestum, 
sed  a  claustrali  religione  omnino 
vacuum,  cum  neque  in  dormitorio 
fratres  dormirent,  neque  in  refectorio 
comederent,exceptisrarissimisfestis, 
maxime  in  quibus  Herodem  reprae- 
sentarent  Christi  persecutorem,  par- 
vulorum    interfectorem,    seu    ludis 
aliis  aut  spectaculis  quasi  theatra- 
libus     exhibendis      comportaretur 
symbolum  ad  faciendum  convivium 
in    refectorio  aliis  pene  omnibus 
temporibus  vacuo.' 

5  Gerhohus,  de  fnv.Ant.lib.  i.  c,  5, 
de  spectaculis  tkeatricis  in  ecclesia 
Dei  cxhibitis  (Gerhohi  Opera  Inc- 
dita,  ed.  Scheibelberger,  i.  25)  <Et 
sacerdotes,  qui  dicuntur,  iam  non 
ecclesiae  vel  altarif  ministerio  dcditi 


THE  SECULARIZATION  OF  THE  PLAYS     99 

been  stung  by  the  lampooning  of  his  party  as  the  Hypocritae 
in  the  pro- imperialist  Antichristus  which  is  still  extant.  But 
he  includes  in  his  condemnation  plays  of  a  less  special  and 
polemical  character,  referring  especially  to  the  Nativity  cycle 
and  to  a  lost  play  of  Elisaeus.  He  repeats  some  of  the  old 
patristic  objections  against  larvae  and  spectacula>  and  tells 
tales,  such  as  Prynne  will  tell  after  him,  of  how  horrors 
mimicked  by  actors  have  been  miraculously  converted  into 
verities1.  Literary  historians  occasionally  commit  them- 
selves to  the  statement  that  Innocent  III  forbade  the  clergy 
to  participate  in  miracle-plays2.  It  is  more  than  doubtful 


sunt,  sed  exercitiis  avaritiae,  vani- 
tatum  et  spectaculorum,  adeo  ut 
ccclesias  ipsas,  videlicet  orationum 
domus,  in  theatra  commutent  ac 
mimicis  ludorum  spectaculis  im- 
pleant.  Inter  quae  nimirum  spec- 
tacula  adstantibus  ac  spectantibus 
ipsorum  feminis  interdum  et  anti- 
christi,  de  quo  nobis  sermo  est, 
non  ut  ipsi  aestimant  imaginariam 
similitudmem  exhibent  sed  in  veri- 
tate,  ut  credi  potest  iniquitatis  ipsius 
mysterium  pro  parte  sua  implent. 
Quidni  enim  diabolus  abutatur  in 
serium  rebus  sibi  exhibitis  in  vani- 
tatis  ludicrum,  sicut  Dominus 
quoque  lesus  convertens  in  seria 
ludibria,  quibus  apud  ludaeos  vel 
Pilatum  in  passione  sua  affectus 
est  ?  ...  Quid  ergo  mirum  si  et  isti 
nunc  antichristum  vel  Herodem  in 
suis  ludis  simulantes  eosdem  non, 
ut  eis  intentioni  est,  ludicro  men- 
tiuntur  sed  in  veritate  exhibent,  ut- 
pote  quorum  vita  ab  antichrist!  laxa 
conversatione  non  Ipnge  abest  ?  .  . . 
Contigit,  ut  comperimus,  aliquando 
apud  tales,  ut  eum  quem  inter 
ludicra  sua  quasi  mortuum  ab 
Elisaeo  propheta  suscitantem  exhi- 
berent  peracta  simulatione  mortuum 
invenirent.  Alius  item  antichristo 
suo  quasi  suscitandus  oblatus  intra 
septem  dies  vere  mortuus,  ut  com- 
perimus, et  sepultus  est.  Et  quis 
scire  potest  an  et  cetera  simulata 
antichrist!  scilicet  effigiem,  dae- 
monum  larvas,  herorUanam  insaniem 
in  veritate  non  exhibeant? . . .  Exhi- 


bent praeterea  imaginaliter  et  sal- 
vatoris  infantiae  cunabula,  parvuli 
vagi  turn,  puerperae  virgin  is  matro- 
nalem  habitum,  steliae  quasi  sidus 
flammigerum,  infantum  necem,  ma- 
ternum  Rachelis  ploratum.  Sed 
divinitas  insuper  et  matura  facies 
ecclesiae  abhorret  spectacula  thea- 
tralia,  non  respicit  in  vanitates  et 
insanias  falsas,  immo  non  falsas  sed 
iam  veras  insanias,  in  quibus  viri 
totos  se  frangunt  in  femmas  quasi 
pudeat  eos,  quod  viri  sunt,  clerici 
in  milites,  homines  se  in  daemonum 
larvas  t ran sfigu rant  . .  .' 

1  Prynne,  Histriomastix,  556, 
refers  to  'the  visible  apparition  of 
the  Devill  on  the  Stage  at  the  Bel- 
savage  Play-house,  in  Queene  Eliza- 
beth's dayes  (to  the  great  amazement 
both  of  the  Actors  and  Spectators) 
whiles  they  were  there  prophanely 
playing  the  History  of  Faustus 
(the  truth  of  which  I  have  heard 
from  many  now  alive,  who  well 
remember  it),  there  being  some 
distracted  with  that  fearefull  sight.9 

a  Pollard,  xxiv.  I  do  not  know 
how  Ward,  i.  43,  gets  at  the  very 
different  theory  that  in  1210  (sic  for 
1207)  Innocent  III  ordered  plays  'to 
be  represented  outside  the  church 
as  well  as  inside.'  Mr.  Pollard,  by 
the  way,  assigns  the  prohibition  to 
1  Pope  Gregory/  a  further  mistake, 
due,  I  suppose,  to  the  fact  that  it 
was  subsequently  included  in  the 
Gregorian  Decretals. 


H 


100 


RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 


whether  this  was  so.  The  prohibition  in  question  is  familiar 
to  us,  and  it  is  clear  that  the  ludi  theatrales  which  Innocent 
barred  from  the  churches  were  primarily  the  Feasts  of  Fools, 
and  the  like  *.  And  as  a  matter  of  fact  the  glossa  ordinaria 
to  the  decretal  by  Bernard  de  Bottone,  which  itself  dates  from 
about  1263,  so  interprets  the  words  of  the  Pope  as  expressly 
to  allow  of  Christmas  and  Easter  representations  calculated 
to  stimulate  devotion 2.  Yet  there  would  have  been  no  need 
for  the  gloss  to  have  been  written  had  not  an  opposite  inter- 
pretation also  been  current.  It  was  perhaps  on  the  strength 
of  the  decree  that  another  reformer,  Robert  Grosseteste, 
justified  his  action  when  in  1244  he  directed  his  archdeacons 
to  exterminate,  so  far  as  they  could,  the  miracula,  which  he 
put  on  the  same  level  as  May-games  and  harvest-Mays,  or 
the  scotales  of  the  folk3.  And  it  is  certainly  appealed  to 
before  the  end  of  the  thirteenth  century  in  the  Manuel  des 
Ptchts  of  the  Anglo-Norman  William  of  Waddington4.  Robert 


1  Cf.  vol.  i.  p.  279. 

1  Quoted  by  Creizenach,  i.  101, 
'  Non  tamen  hie  prohibetur  reprae- 
sentare  praesepe  Domini,  Herodem, 
magos  et  qua! her  Rachel  ploravit 
filios  suos,  etc.,  quae  tangunt  fe- 
stivitates  illas,  de  quibus  hie  fit 
mentio,  cum  talia  ad  devotionem 
potius  inducant  homines  quam  ad 
lasciviam  vel  voluptatem,  sicut  in 
pascha  sepulcrum  Domini  et  alia 
repraesentantur  ad  devotionem  exci- 
tajidam':  cf.  vol  i.  p.  342.  J. 
Aquila,  Opusculum  Enchiridion 
appellatum  ferme  de  omni  ludorum 
genere,  f.  14  (Oppenheim,  1516), 
after  referring  to  the  canon,  says, 
*  Demonstrationes  quae  fiunt  ad 
honorem  dei  puta  passion  is  Christi 
aut  vitae  alicuius  sancti  non  prohi- 
bentur  in  sacris  locis  ac  temporibus 
fieri.'  Both  canon  and  gloss  are 
cited  in  Dives  and  Pauper •,  a  book 
of  fifteenth-century  English  morality 
(F.  A.  Gasquet,  Eve  of  Reformation, 
317):  cf.  also  D'Ancona,  i.  54. 

8  Cf.  vol.  i.  p.  91.  An  anchoress 
of  Tarrant  Keynston  (AncrenRiwle^ 
1-1150,  C  S.  318)  was  bound  to 
confess  if  she  'code  o£e  pleouwe 
ine  chircheie :  biheold  hit  ° 


wrastlinge  °t   o^er    fol   gomenes ' : 

but   'pleouwe,'  like  ludus   (vol.   i. 

P-  393)f  may  have  a  very  general 

meaning. 

4  Manning,  146: — 
Un  autre  folie  apert 
Vnt  les  fols  clercs  cuntroue, 
Qe  ( miracles'  sunt  apele; 
Lur  faces  vnt  la  deguise 
Par  visers,  li  forsene, — 
Qe  est  defend u  en  decree ; 
Tant  est  plus  grand  lur  peche. 
Fere  poent  representement, — 
Mes  que  ceo  seit  chastement 
En  office  de  seint  eglise 
Quant  horn  fet  la  deu  servise, — 
Cum  iesu  crist  le  fiz  dee 
En  sepulcre  esteit  pose, 
Et  la  resurrectiun, 
Pur  plus  auer  deuociun. 
Mes,  fere  foles  assemblez 
En  les  rues  des  citez, 
Ou  en  cymiters  apres  mangers, 
Quant  venent  les  fols  volunters, — 
Tut  dient  qe  il  le  funt  pur  bien, — 
Crere  ne  les  deuez  pur  rien 
Qe  fet  seit  pur  le  honur  de  dee, 
Eim  del  deable,  pur  verite, 
Seint  ysidre  me  ad  testimone 
Qe  fut  si  bon  clerc  lettre; 
11  cist  qe  cil  qg  funt  sepectacles 


THE  SECULARIZATION  OF  THE  PLAYS    101 

Grosseteste  presumably,  and  William  of  Waddington  speci- 
fically, objected  to  miracula  even  out  of  doors,  which  is  surely 
stretching  the  words  of  Innocent  III  beyond  what  they  will 
reasonably  bear.  In  any  case  the  austere  view  of  the  matter 
was  not  that  which  prevailed.  The  lax  discipline  of  the 
4  Babylonish  captivity '  at  Avignon,  which  allowed  the  Feast 
of  Fools  to  grow  up  unchecked  through  the  fourteenth  century, 
was  not  likely  to  boggle  at  the  plays.  The  alleged  indulgence, 
not  without  modern  parallels  *,  of  Clement  VI  to  the  spectators 
of  the  Chester  plays  and  the  performance  of  a  Stella  given 
by  the  English  bishops  in  honour  of  their  continental  col- 
leagues at  the  council  of  Constance  in  Hi;2  are  two  out  of 


Cume  lem  fet  en  miracles, 
Or  ius  qe  nus  nomames  einz  — 
Burdiz  ou  turneinens,  — 
Lur  baptesme  vnt  refusez, 
E  deu  de  ciel  reneiez/  &c. 

Robert     Mannyng    of    Brunne 
(1303)  translates  :— 
'  Hyt  ys  forbode  hym,yn  the  decre, 
Myracles  for  to  make  or  se  ; 
For  myracles,  jyf  |>ou  begynne, 
Hyt  ys  a  gaderyng,  a  syghte  of 

synne, 
He  may  yn  J>e  cherche  j>urghe 

)>ys  resun 

Pley  )>e  resurrecyun, 
pat  ys  to  seye,  how  Gode  ros, 
God  and  man  yn  my}t  and  los, 
To  make  men  be  yn  beleue  gode 
That  he  has  ros  wyb  flesshe  and 

blode  : 
And    he    may    pleye    wyj>outyn 

plyghte 

Howe  god  was  bore  yn  jole  nyght, 
To  make  men  to  beleue  stedfastly 
pat  he  lyghte  yn  )>e  vyrgyne  Mary. 
3uf  f>ou  do  hyt  in  weyys  or  greuys, 
A  syghte  of  synne  truly  hyt  semys. 
Seynt  Ysodre,  y  take  to  wytnes, 
For  he  hyt  seyj>  bat  soj>  hyt  es ; 
pus  hyt  sey)>  yn  nys  boke, 
Pey  foresake  £at  )>ey  toke— 
God  and  here  crystendom — 
pat  makeswyche  pleyysto  any  man 
As  myracles  and  bourdys, 
Or  tournamentys  of  grete  prys/  &c. 
The  reference  to  'Seynt  Ysodre' 
is  to  Isidore  of  Seville,  Etymolo- 
giarum  xviii.  59,  de  horum  \ludo- 


rum]  exsecratione  (/>..£.  Ixxxii.  660). 
The  saint  is  speaking  of  course  of 
the  Roman  spectacula. 

1  On  the  *  pardon  '  or  *  Ablass  * 
given  to  actors  at  Oberammergau, 
and  the  meaning,  or  want  of  mean- 
ing, to  be  attached  to  it,  see   an 
amusing  controversy  in  the  Nine- 
teenth Century  for  January  and  Feb- 
ruary, 1901. 

2  L'Enfant,  Hist,  du  Concile  de 
Constance  (1727),  ii.  404;    Hardt, 
Magnum    Oecumenicum    Constan- 
tiense  Concilium  (1700),  iv.  1089; 
K.  Schmidt,  Die  Digby-Spiele,  12. 
The  performance,  which  was  pos- 
sibly a  dumb  show,  took  place  at 
a  banquet  on  Jan.  24, 141$,  and  was 
repeated  on  the  following  Sunday 
before  the  emperor,  who  had  arrived 
in  the  interval.     Hardt  quotes  the 
German   of  one   Dacher,  an  eye- 
witness :  *  Am  24teQ  tag  des  Monats 
Januarii,  das  war  auff  Timotheus 
tag,  da  luden  die  Bischoff  aus  Enge- 
land,  der   Bischoff  Salisburgensis, 
der    Bischoff    von    Londen,    und 
demnach  funff  Bischoff  von  Enge- 
land,    alle    Raht    zu   Costniz  und 
sonst  viel  ehrbar  Burger  daselbst, 
in  Burchart  Walters  Haus,  das  man 
vorzeiten  nennt  zu  dem  Burgthor, 
itzt  zu  dem  gulden  Schvvert,  aller- 
nachst  bey  S.  Laurenz.    Und  gab 
ihnen  fast  ein  kostlich  mahl,  ie  2. 
Gericht  nacheinanderJedesGericht 
besonder  mit8  Essen  :  Die  trug  man 
allvveg  eins  mahl  dar,  deren  allweg 


102 


RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 


many  proofs  that  the  later  mediaeval  Church  found  no  difficulty 
in  accommodating  itself  to  the  somewhat  disconcerting  by- 
product of  its  own  liturgy1.  Such  opposition  to  the  religious 
drama  as  can  be  traced  after  the  thirteenth  century  came  not 
from  the  heads  of  the  Church  but  from  its  heretics.  It  is 
chiefly  represented  by  a  curious  Tretise  of  miraclis  pleyinge 
which  dates  from  the  end  of  the  fourteenth  century  and  may 
safely  be  referred  to  a  Wyclifite  origin 2.  The  burden  of  it 
is  the  sin  of  making  '  oure  pleye  and  bourde  of  tho  myraclis 
and  werkis  that  God  so  ernestfully  wroujt  to  us/  On  this  note 
the  anonymous  preacher  harps  rather  monotonously,  and 


waren  4  vefguld  oder  versilbert.  In 
dem  mahl,  zvvischen  dem  Essen, 
so  machten  sie  solch  bild  und 
geberd,  als  unser  Frau  ihr  Kind  un- 
sern  Herrn  und  auch  Gott  gebahr, 
mit  fast  k6stlichen  Tuchern  und 
Gevvand.  Und  Joseph  stellten  sie 
zu  ihr.  Und  die  heiligen  3  Konige, 
als  die  unser  Frauen  die  Opffer 
brachten.  Und  hatten  gemacht 
einen  lauteren  guidnen  Stern,  der 
ging  vor  ihnen,  an  einem  kleinen 
eisern  Drat.  Und  machten  Konig 
Herodem,  vvie  er  den  drey  Konigen 
nachsandt,  und  vvie  er  die  Kindlein 
ertodtet.  Das  machten  sie  alles 
mit  gar  ktfstlichem  Gevvand,  und 
mit  grossen  guldenen  und  silber- 
nen  Gurteln,  und  machten  das  mit 
grosser  Gezierd,  und  mit  grosser 
Demuht.' 

1  The  provincial  C.  of  Sens  ( 1 460), 
c,  3  (Labbe',  xiii.  1728),  while  con- 
firming the  Basle  decree,  allowed 
*  aliquid  iuxta  consuetudines  eccle- 
siae,  in  Nativitate  Domini,  vel  Re- 
surrectione  ...  fiat  cum  honestate 
et  pace,  absque  prplongatione,  im- 
pediment o,  vel  diminutione  seryitii, 
larvatione  et  sordidatione  faciei'; 
cf.  the  Toledo  decree  of  1473  quoted 
vol.  i.  p.  342.  The  C  of  Compostella 
(1565),  c.c.  9-11  '(Aguirra  Cone. 
Hispan.  v.  450, 460),  forbade '  actus 
sive  repraesentationes  *  during  ser- 
vice in  church;  they  might  take 
place  with  leave  of  the  bishop,, or  in 
his  absence  the  chapter,  before  or 
after  service.  Devotional  'actus' 
were  allowed  ia  Passion  week  on 


similar  conditions.  The  Corpus 
Christi  procession  *  semel  tantum 
subsistat,  causa  horutn  actuum  vel 
representationum  in  eo  loco  extra 
ecclesiam  quem  Praelatus  aut  [capi- 
tulum]  idoneum  iudicabit.'  On  the 
other  hand  the  C.  of  Seville  (1512), 
c.  21  (Aguirra,  v.  370),  had  forbid- 
den priests  or  monks  to  perform  or 
give  a  '  locus  '  for  such  *  actus  ' : 
k  Sumus  informati,  quod  in  quibus- 
dam  Ecclesiis  nostri  Archiepiscopa- 
tus  et  Provinciae  permittitur  fieri 
nonnullas  repraesentationes  Pas- 
sionis  Domini  nostri  lesu  Christi, 
et  alios  actus,  et  memoriam  Resur- 
rectionis,  Nativitatis  Salvatoris 
nostri,  vel  alias  repraesentationes. 
Et  quia  ex  talibus  actibus  orta  sunt, 
et  oriuntur  plura  absurda,  et  saepe 
saepius  scandala  in  cordibus  illorum 
qui  non  sunt  bene  confirmati  in 
nostra  sancta  fide  Catholica,videntes 
confusiones,  et  excessus,  qui  in  hoc 
committuntur  .  .  /  Cf.  also  the 
Langres  licence  of  1408  (p.  97). 

2  Text  in  Reliquiae  Antiquae,  ii. 
42;  Hazlitt,73;  from  late  fourteenth- 
century  volume  of  homilies  formerly 
in  library  of  St.  MartinVin-the- 
Fields.  There  is  also  in  Rel.  Ant. 
i.  322  a  satirical  English  poem  from 
Cott.  MS.  Cleop.  B.  ii  (fifteenth  cen- 
tury), against  the  miracle  plays  of 
the  'frer  mynours,'  apparently  at 
Rome.  But  the  Minorite  in  Pierce  the 
Ploughman's  Crede  (ti394,  ed. 
Skeat),  107,  says  of  his  order,  'At 
marketts  &  myrades  *  we  medlej)  vs 
nevere.' 


THE  SECULARIZATION  OF  THE  PLAYS    108 

adds  that  <myraclis  pleyinge  .  .  .  makith  to  se  veyne  sijtis 
of  degyse,  aray  of  men  and  wymmen  by  yvil  continaunse, 
eyther  stiryng  othere  to  letcherie  and  of  debatis.'  Like 
Gerhoh  of  Reichersberg,  he  thinks  the  plays  'gynnys  of 
the  dyvul  to  drawen  men  to  the  byleve  of  Anti-Crist/  He 
elaborately  confutes  the  views  that  they  are  for  the  worship 
of  God,  or  the  more  compassion  of  Christ,  or  lead  to  conver- 
sion. He  will  not  allow  that  *  summe  recreatioun  men  moten 
han,  and  bettere  it  is  or  lesse  yvele  that  thei  han  theyre  recrea- 
coun  by  pleyinge  of  myraclis  than  bi  pleyinge  of  other  japis.* 
The  analysis  of  the  piece  need  not,  perhaps,  be  pushed  further. 
The  opinions  expressed  do  not  appear  to  have  had  any  weight 
either  of  popular  or  of  ecclesiastical  sentiment  behind  them  ; 
but  they  curiously  antedate  the  histriomastic  tracts  of  many 
a  sixteenth  and  seventeenth-century  Puritan. 

This  chapter  may  be  fitly  closed  by  a  few  words  on  the 
subject  of  nomenclature l.  The  old  classical  terms  of  tragoedia 
and  comoedia  are  not  of  course  normally  used  of  the  religious 
plays  until  the  Renaissance  influences  come  in  towards  the 
end  of  the  fifteenth  century.  Their  mediaeval  sense,  in 
fact,  implies  nothing  distinctively  dramatic2.  The  liturgical 
plays  have  often  a  purely  liturgical  heading,  such  as  Processio 
Asinorum*)  or  Officium  Sepulchri*>  or  OrdoRachaelis^.  Perhaps 
officium  may  be  taken  to  denote  the  thing  itself,  the  special 
service  or  section  of  a  service ;  ordo  rather  the  book,  the 
written  directions  for  carrying  out  the  officium.  Or  they  have 

1  Creizenach,  i.  157,  162:  Julie-     48,93,  95,  146;  'Ordo  visitationis 
v\\\t,LesMyst. 1.107,  187;  G.  Smith,     sepulchri'(Strassburg,  1513),  'Ordo 
251;  Pollard,  xix;  Ward,  i.  41.  visitandi   sepulchrum'    (Bamberg, 

2  Cf.  ch.  xxv.  IS97)>  'Ordo  ad  visitandum  sepul- 
s  Cf.  p.   54  (Rouen,  Prophetae,     chrum'    (Prague,  twelfth  century, 

fourteenth  century).  Haarlem,  thirteenth  century), '  Ordo 

4  Cf.  pp.  37,  41,  45  ;  Lange,  130,  sepulchri '    (Wiirzburg,    thirteenth 

155;  '  officium  sepulchri/ '  officium  century),  'Ordo  ad  suscipiendum 

peregrinorum/  '  officium  pastorum/  peregrinum '     (Beauvais),     '  Ordo 

'officium    regum    trium,     'stellae  stellae '  (Laon,  thirteenth  century), 

officium' (Rouen, eleventh  century-  *  C.do  [stellae]1  (Bilsen,  eleventh 

fifteenth  century) ;    '  resurrectionis  century),  '  Ordo  Rachaelis '  (Frei- 

domini    aguntur  officia*    (Prague,  sing,    eleventh    century),     'Ordo 

fourteenth    century).    At  Melk  in  Prophetarum1     (Laon,    thirteenth 

1517,    'acturus    officium    angeli f  century),    'Ordo    creacfonis,    etc.' 

(Lange,  no), 'officium1  has  rather  (Regensburg,    1194),   'Ordo,  sive 

the  sense  of '  part/  registrum    de    Passione    domini ' 

'  Cf.pp. 37,48,49,53,71,77;  Lange,  (Frankfort,  fourteenth  century). 


104  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

a  title  derived  from  their  subject,  such  as  Visitatio  Sepulchri1, 
or  Suscitatio  Lazari*.  Or  they  are  introduced  in  terms 
which  cannot  be  said  to  have  a  technical  signification  at  all, 
ad  f attendant  similitudinem  3,  ad  suscipiendum  4,  ad  repraesen- 
tandum 5.  Similitude  I  do  not  find  outside  Fleury,  nor  the 
corresponding  exemplum  outside  the  Benedictbeuern  manu- 
script 6.  From  ad  repraesentandum^  however,  a  technical  term 
does  arise,  and  repraesentatio  must  be  considered,  more  than 
any  other  word,  as  the  mediaeval  Latin  equivalent  of 'dramatic 
performance  V  This  the  Italian  vernacular  preserves  as  rappre- 
sentazione.  A  synonym  for  repraesentatio,  which  naturally 
came  into  use  when  the  intention  of  recreation  began  to 
substitute  itself  for  devotion,  is  Indus,  with  its  vernacular 
renderings,  all  in  common  use,  of  jeu>  Spiel,  '  play/  But 
ludus>  as  already  pointed  out 8,  is  a  generic  term  for  '  amuse- 
ment/ and  the  special  sense  of  'dramatic  play'  is  only  a 
secondary  one 9.  c  Clerks'  play '  as  a  variant  for  miracle-play 
is  occasionally  found  I0.  Yet  another  synonym  which  makes 
its  appearance  in  the  twelfth  century,  is  miraculum ;  and  this, 
originally  a  mere  convenient  shorthand  for  repraesentatio  mira- 
culi,  came,  especially  in  England,  to  stand  for 'religious  play'  in 
general11.  Mysttre>  or  'mystery/  on  the  other  hand,  is  not 

1  See  last  note.  rum  .  .  .  resurreccionis  .  .  .  pere- 

3  Cf.  p.  58.  grinorum'  (Lichfield,  tiiQo). 

3  Cf.pp.  36, 37, 47;  Lange,  160  'ad  8  Cf.  vol.  i.  p.  393. 
faciendum    similitudinem    domini  9  Cf.  pp.  63,  73,   'ludus    super 
sepulchri,'  *  ad  faciendam  similitu-  iconia    Sancti   Nicolai'    (Hilarius, 
dinem  domini  appantioms*  (Fleury,  twelfth  century) ;  cf.  the  Antichrist 
thirteenth  century),  'versus  ad  stel-  and  Benedictbeuern  Nativity,  and 
lam    faciendam >   (Nevers,   tio6o),  note  n  below. 

'  fiunt  peregrini '  (Saintes,  thirteenth  10  Cf.  pp.  140,  202. 

century).  n  Cf.  vol.  i.  p.  91  ;  vol.  ii.  pp.  60, 

4  Cf.  p.  103,  n.  5  above.  380;  'miraculum  deSanctoNicolao' 
8  Cf.pp.  58,60;  Lange,  157;  cad  (Fleury,   thirteenth   century),   're- 

repraesentandum  quomodo  sanctus  praesentationes  miraculorum '  (Fitz- 

Nicolaus*  (Fleury,  thirteenth  cen-  Stephen,     tii8o),   '  miraculum    in 

turyj/historiade  Daniel  repraesen-  nocte  Paschae*  (Lichfield,  fugo; 

tanda'  (Hilarius,  twelfth  century),  cf.  note  7    above),  'ludum   .   .    . 

*  si  Mariae  debearit  repraesentari  *  quern  Miracula  vulgariter  appella- 

(Coutances,  fifteenth  century).  mus'   (Matthew  Paris,    thirteenth 

*  Cf.  pp.  37,  39.  century), '  ludos  quos  vocant  mira- 

7  Cf.  pp.  45, 107 ;  Lange,  136 ; '  in  cula '    (Grosseteste,     1244).      The 

resurrcctione domini  repraesentatio'  vernacular  'miracles/  'myraclis,'  is 

(Cwidale,  fourteenth  century),  *  re-  found  in  the  Handlyng  Synnt,  and 

praesentatio  trium  Regutn f  (Rouen,  the  Tretise  of  miraclis  pleyinge. 
1507,  1521),  '  repraesentacio  pasto- 


THE  SECULARIZATION  OF  THE  PLAYS    105 

English  at  all,  in  a  dramatic  sense *,  and  in  France  first  appears 
as  misterie  in  the  charter  given  by  Charles  VI  in  1402  to 
the  Parisian  confrtrie  de  la  Passion  2.  This  term  also  acquires 
a  very  general  signification  by  the  end  of  the  fifteenth  century. 
Its  radical  meaning  is  still  matter  of  dispute.  Probably  it  is 
derived  from  ministerium,  should  be  spelt  misttre>  and  is  spelt 
mystire  by  a  natural  confusion  with  the  derivative  of  jmvor^pioi;. 
Even  then  the  question  remains,  what  sort  of  ministeriumt 
M.  Petit  de  Julleville  would  explain  it  as  a  'religious  functiori,1 
and  thus  equate  it  precisely  with  officium*.  Only  it  does  not 
appear  in  connexion  with  the  liturgical  plays  4,  and  perhaps 
it  is  more  plausible  to  regard  it  as  denoting  the  '  function ' 
of  the  guild  of  actors,  just  as  its  doublet  menestrie,  the  English 
'  minstrelsy/  denotes  the  '  function  '  of  the  minstrels 5,  or  its 
doublet  metier,  which  in  English  becomes  in  fact  *  mystery/ 
denotes  the  '  function '  of  the  craft  guilds.  Perhaps  the 
theory  of  M.  de  Julleville  finds  a  little  support  from  the  term 
actioy  which  appears,  besides  its  meaning  in  connexion  with 
the  Mass 6,  to  be  once  at  least  used  for  a  play 7.  At  any  rate 
actus  is  so  used  as  a  Latin  equivalent  of  the  Spanish  auto 8. 

1  Pollard,  xix;  Ward,  i.  41.    The     des  sainctes.' 

first     English    use    of    the     term  s  Julleville,  Les  Myst.  i.  189. 

*  mystery  '  is  in  the  preface  to  Dods-  4  Except  after  its  dramatic  sense 

ley's  Select  Collection  of  Old  Plays  was  already  well  established  ;    cf. 

(1744).      The  distinction  between  pp.  42, 65, 'mysterium  in  die  Ascen- 

4  mysteries '  which  *  deal  with  Gos-  sionis'   (Lille,    1416),     'misterium 

pel  events    only'    and   *  miracles/  Pastorum'  (Rouen,  1457). 

which   *  are  more   especially  con-  6  Cf.  Appendix  B. 

cerned  with  incidents  derived  from  6  Walafridus    Strabo,    de    rebus 

the  legends  of    the  Saints  of  the  eccles^  c.  22,  in  the  ninth  century, 

Church '  is  a  not  very  happy  inven-  gives    the    name    *actio'   to    the 

tion  of  the  literary  historians.  *  canon  '   or  unchangeable  portion 

2  Julleville,    Les    Myst.    i.    417  of   the     Mass    (Maskell,    Ancient 
'Licence  de  faire  et  jouer  quelque  Liturgy  of  the  Church  of  England > 
Misterre  que  ce  soit,  soit  de.la  dicte  1 12). 

Passion,  et  Re'surreccion,  ou  autre  7  ^Representations^.**.  Shipton. 
quelconque  tant  de  saincts  comme  *  Cf.  supra,  p.  102,  note  I. 


CHAPTER  XXI 

GUILD  PLAYS  AND  PARISH  PLAYS 

S  Bibliographical  Note. —  The  English  miracle  play  has  been  often, 
y,  and  admirably  studied  from  the  point  of  view  of  dramatic  literature  ; 
perhaps  less  so  from  that  of  stage  history.  The  best  accounts  are  those 
of  B.  Ten  Brink,  History  of  English  Literature,  bk.  v,  chs.  2-6  (trans. 
W.  C  Robinson,  vol.  ii,  1893) ;  A.  W.  Ward,  History  of  English  Dramatic 
Literature  (2nd  ed.,  1899),  vol.  i,  ch.  I ;  W.  Creizenach,  Geschichte  des 
neueren  Dramas ,  vol.  i  (1893) ;  an(*  ^e  introduction  to  A.  W.  Pollard, 
English  Miracle  Plays,  Moralities  and  Interludes  (3rd  ed.,  1898).  These 
supersede  J.  P.  Collier,  History  of  English  Dramatic  Poetry  (2nd  ed., 
1879),  vol.  ii,  and  J.  L.  Klein,  Geschichte  des  englischen  Dramas  (1876), 
vol.  i.  Other  useful  books  are  J.  A.  Symonds,  Shakspere's  Predecessors 
in  the  English  Drama  (1884),  ch.  3  ;  K.  L.  Bates,  The  English  Religious 
Drama  (1893),  and  J.  J.  Jusserand,  Le  Thtdtre  en  Angleterre  (1881),  ch.  2. 
The  substance  of  this  last  is  incorporated  in  the  same  writer's  Literary 
History  of  the  English  People,  vol.  i  (1895),  bk« ">»  c^«  6.  W.  J.  Courthope, 
History  of  English  Poetry,  vol.  i  (1895),  ch.  10,  should  also  be  consulted, 
as  well  as  the  valuable  detailed  investigations  of  A.  Hohlfeld,  Die 
altenglischen  Kollektivmisterien,™  Anglia,vQ\.x\  (1889), andC.  Davidson, 
Studies  in  the  English  Mystery  Plays  (1892).  I  do  not  think  that  S.  W. 
Clarke,  The  Miracle  Play  in  England  (n A.),  and  C.  Hastings,  Le  Thtdtre 
fran$ais  et  anglais  (1900,  trans.  1901),  add  very  much.  A.  Ebert,  Die 
englischen  My sterien,  vcijahrbuchfurromanischeund  englische  Literatur, 
vol.  i  (1859),  is  an  early  manifestation  of  German  interest  in  the  subject, 
and  the  still  earlier  native  learning  may  be  found  in  T.  Warton,  History 
of  English  Poetry  (ed.  W.  C.  Hazlitt,  1871),  §§  6,  33  ;  E.  Malone, 
Historical  Account  of  the  English  Stage,  in  Variorum  Shakespeare  (1821), 
vol.  iii;  W,  Hone,  Ancient  Mysteries  Described  ( 1823).  The  antiquarianism 
of  T.  Sharp,  Dissertation  on  the  Pageants  or  Dramatic  Mysteries  Anciently 
Performed  at  Coventry  (1825),  is  still  a  mine  of  material  on  the  Realien  of 
the  stage. — The  four  great  cycles  have  been  edited  as  follows,  in  most 
cases  with  important  introductions :  the  Chester  Plays  by  T.  Wright 
(Shakespeare Society,  1843-7)  and  by  H.  Deimling  (E.E.T.S.,  part  only 
issued  in  1893) ;  the  York  Plays  by  L.  T.  Smith  (1885) ;  the  Towneley  or 
Wakefield  Plays  by  an  uncertain  editor  (Surtees  Society ',  1836),  and  by 
G.  England  and  A-  W.  Pollard  (E.E.  T.S.  1897) ;  the  Ludus  Coventriae, 
by  J.  O.  Halliwell  [-Phillipps]  (Shakespeare  Society,  1841).  A  miscel- 
laneous collection  of  l&te  plays  from  one  of  the  Bodleian  Digby  MSS.  has 
been  printed  by  T.  Sharp  (Abbotsford  Club,  1835),  and  F.  J.  Furnivall 
(New  Shakespeare  Society^  1882,  E.E.T.S.  1896).  The  Cornish  cycle 
is  in  E.  Norris,  The  Ancient  Cornish  Drama  (1859).  Good  selections  of 
typical  plays  are  in  A.  W.  Pollard's  book,  and  J.  M.  Manly,  Specimens  of 
the  Pre-Shakespearean  Drama  (1897),  vol.  i.  Older  books  of  the  same 
kind  are  J.  P.  Collier,  Five  Miracle  P/ays,  or  Scriptural  Dramas  (1836), 
and  W.  Marriott,  A  Collection  of  English  Miracle  Play$  or  Mysteries 


GUILD  PLAYS  AND  PARISH  PLAYS        107 

(Basle,  1838).  The  bibliographies  given  by  Miss  Bates  and  by  F.  H. 
Stoddard,  References  for  Students  of  Miracle  Plays  and  Mysteries  (1887), 
may  be  supplemented  from  my  Appendices  of  Representations  and  Texts, 
which  I  have  tried  to  make  as  complete  as  possible.] 

THERE  is  no  reason  to  doubt  that  England  had  its  full 
share  in  the  earlier  development  of  the  religious  drama.  Texts 
of  the  liturgical  period  are,  indeed,  rare.  The  tenth-century 
version  of  the  Quern  quaeritis  from  Winchester  and  the 
fourteenth-century  version  from  Dublin  stand,  at  least  for 
the  present,  alone.  But  the  wholesale  destruction  of  liturgical 
books  at  the  Reformation  is  sufficient  to  account  for  such 
a  sparseness,  and  a  few  stray  notices  gathered  from  the 
wreckage  of  time  bear  sufficient  witness  to  the  presence  in 
this  country  of  several  amongst  the  more  widespread  types 
of  liturgical  play.  The  Lichfield  statutes  (1188-98)  pro- 
vide for  repraesentationes  of  the  Pastores>  the  Resurrectio>  the 
Peregrini\  those  of  York  (tI^55)  for  the  Pastor  es  and  the 
Tres  Reges  ;  a  Salisbury  inventory  of  1323  includes  *  crowns'  or 
more  probably '  stars '  (coronae)  ad  repraesentationes  faciendas\ 
while  Lincoln  account  books  of  the  early  fifteenth  century 
appear  to  add  the  Annuntiatio  and  the  Prophetae,  a  visus 
called  Rubum  quern  viderat  in  1420  perhaps  forming  a  Moses 
scene  in  the  latter.  So  late  as  1518  the  Quern  quaeritis  was 
performed  in  Magdalen  College  chapel,  and  plays  of  the 
Nativity  and  the  Resurrection  by  the  clerks  of  the  chapel 
are  contemplated  at  about  the  same  date  in  the  household 
regulations  of  the  Earl  of  Northumberland  at  Leconfield. 
Nor  were  dramatic  versions  of  the  legends  of  saints  unknown. 
I  do  not  trace  a  St.  Nicholas  cycle  in  England,  although 
Hilarius,  in  whose  repertory  a  St.  Nicholas  play  is  included, 
is  thought  to  have  been  an  Englishman  by  birth.  But  the 
memory  of  a  play  of  St.  Catherine  prepared  by  Geoffrey 
the  Norman  at  Dunstable  early  in  the  twelfth  century  was 
preserved,  owing  to  the  accident  which  led  to  Geoffrey 
ultimately  becoming  abbot  of  St.  Albans ;  and  towards  the 
close  of  the  same  century  William  Fitzstephen  records 
the  representations  of  the  miracles  of  holy  confessors  and  the 
passions  of  martyrs  which  took  the  place  of  minstrelsy  in 
London.  For  the  most  part  such  early  plays  are  found 


108  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

in  close  connexion  with  the  cathedrals  and  great  monasteries. 
But  a  document  of  about  1220,  the  interpretation  of  which 
must,  however,  be  considered  doubtful,  would  seem  to  suggest 
that  plays  (actiones)  were  habitually  given  at  no  less  than  five 
chapelries  within  the  single  parish  of  Shipton  in  Oxfordshire, 
and  that  the  profits  thereof  formed  an  .appreciable  part  of  the 
income  derived  from  that  living  by  the  prebendaries  of  Salisbury 
cathedral. 

Examples  of  the  transitional  forms  by  which  the  liturgical 
drama  grew  into  the  popular  religious  drama  of  the  great 
cycles  can  also  be  found  in  England.  At  Beverley  a  Resur- 
rection play  is  described  as  taking  place  in  the  graveyard  of 
the  minster  about  1220.  The  intrusion  of  the  vernacular  is 
represented  by  the  curious  bilingual  text  of  a  single  actor's 
parts  in  the  Pastores>  Quern  quaeritis  and  Peregrini>  printed 
by  Professor  Skeat  from  a  manuscript  found  at  Shrewsbury. 
These  are  probably  still  liturgical  in  character,  and  it  is  to 
be  observed  that  their  subjects  are  precisely  those  of  the  three 
plays  known  to  have  been  used  in  the  neighbouring  cathedral 
of  Lichfield.  It  must  remain  a  moot  point  whether  the 
religious  drama  passed  directly,  in  this  country,  from  Latin 
to  English,  or  whether  there  was  a  period  during  which  per- 
formances were  given  in  Norman- French.  Scholars  are 
inclined  to  find  an  Anglo-Norman  dialect  in  that  very 
important  monument  of  the  transition,  the  Repraesentatio  Adae, 
as  well  as  in  an  early  example  of  the  expanded  Easter  play. 
But  even  if  the  authors  of  these  were,  like  Hilarius,  of  English 
birth,  it  hardly  follows  that  their  productions  were  acted  in 
England.  Nor  do  the  probable  borrowings  of  the  Chester 
and  other  cycles  from  French  texts  much  affect  the  question1. 
That  the  disfavour  with  which  the  austerer  section  of  the 
clergy  looked  upon  the  vernacular  religious  plays  had  its 
spokesmen  in  England,  was  sufficiently  illustrated  in  the 
last  chapter. 

The  English  miracle-play  reaches  its  full  development  with 
the  formation  of  the  great  processional  cycles  almost  imme- 
diately after  the  establishment  of  the  Corpus  Christi  festival 
in  1311.  The  local  tradition  of  Chester,  stripped  of  a  certain 

1  Cf.  p.  146. 


GUILD  PLAYS  AND  PARISH  PLAYS        109 

confusion  between  the  names  of  two  distinct  mayors  of  that 
city  which  has  clung  about  it,  is  found  to  fix  the  foundation 
of  the  Chester  plays  in  1328.      The  date  has  the  authority 
of  an  official   municipal   document,  forms   part  of  a  quite 
consistent  story,  several  points  in  which  can  be  independently 
corroborated,  and  is  on  a  priori  grounds  extremely  plausible. 
Unfortunately,  owing  to  the  comparative  scarcity  of  archives 
during  this  period,  the  first   fifty  years  of  the   history  of 
municipal  drama  are  practically  a  blank.    A  mention,  about 
1350,  of  a  ludus  filiorum  Israelis,  in  connexion  with  a  guild 
of  Corpus  Christi  at  Cambridge,  spans  a  wide  gulf.     There 
is  no   actual  record  of  plays   at   Chester  itself  until   1462. 
Those  of  Beverley  are  first  mentioned  in  1377,  those  of  York 
in  1378,  and  those  of  Coventry  in  1392.   But  it  must  be  added 
that  the  Beverley  plays  were  an  antiqua  consuetude  in  1390, 
and  that  those  of  York  were  to  take  place  at  stations  anti- 
quitus  assignatis  in   1394.      It  is  in   1378  that  the  earliest 
notice    of   plays    Jn    London,   since   the    days    of    William 
Fitzstephen,  comes  to  light.     The  fuller   records  which  are 
from   this   time   onward   available   reveal,   during   the   next 
hundred  and  fifty  years,  a  vigorous  and  widespread  dramatic 
activity   throughout  the    length   and   breadth   of   the    land. 
It  manifests  itself  at  such  extreme  points  as  the  Cinque  Ports 
in  the  east,  Cornwall  in  the  west,  and  Newcastle  in  the  north. 
It   penetrates   to   Aberdeen   and  to   Dublin.      And   though 
naturally  it  finds  its  fullest  scope  in  the  annually  repeated 
performances  of  several  amongst  the  greater  cities,  yet  it  is 
curious  to  observe  in  what  insignificant  villages  it  was  from 
time  to  time  found  possible  to  organize  plays.      Performers 
from  thirteen  neighbouring  places,  many  of  them  quite  small, 
made  their  way  to  New  Romney  between  1399  and  1508; 
whilst  the  churchwardens  of  Chelmsford,  in  the  twelve  years 
after  their  own  play  in  1562,  reaped  a  profit  by  hiring  out  their 
stock  of  garments  to  the  men   of  some  seventeen   aspiring 
parishes.     On  the  other  hand,  there  were  several  important 
towns  in  which,  so  far  as  we  can  judge  from  documents,  such 
as  craft  ordinances,  which  would  almost  certainly  have  referred 
to  the  plays  of  the  crafts,  if  these  had  existed,  the  normal 
type  of  municipal  drama  failed  to  establish  itself.     London 


110  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

is  one,  although  here  the  want  was  supplied  in  another  way ; 
others  are  Northampton,  Nottingham,  Bristol,  Oxford,  and 
Reading.  And  occasionally  plays,  which  had  once  been 
annual,  were  allowed  to  fall  into  desuetude  and  decay.  The 
corporation  of  Canterbury,  for  instance,  called  upon  the  crafts 
about  1500  to  revive  a  Corpus  Christi  play  which  for  some  time 
had  been  'left  and  laid  apart/  Certainly,  by  the  sixteenth 
century,  if  there  was  still  pride  and  interest  taken  in  many 
of  the  municipal  plays,  signs  were  not  wanting  that  they  were 
an  institution  which  had  almost  outlived  its  day.  A  reason  for 
this  need  hardly  be  sought  beyond  the  Zeitgeist.  No  doubt 
the  plays  were  a  financial  burden  upon  the  poorer  crafts  and 
the  poorer  members  of  crafts.  There  was  much  grumbling 
at  Beverley  in  1411  because  certain  well-to-do  persons 
(generosi\  who  did  not  practise  any  trade  or  handicraft, 
had  hitherto  escaped  the  payment  of  contributions  to  the 
civic  function ;  and  municipal  authorities  were  constantly 
called  upon  to  adjust  and  readjust  the  responsibility  for  this 
and  that  pageant  with  the  fluctuations  of  prosperity  amongst 
the  various  occupations.  But  on  the  other  hand,  the  plays 
were  the  cause  of  much  and  profitable  resort  to  those  fortu- 
nate towns  which  possessed  them.  The  mercers'  guild  at 
Shrewsbury  found  it  necessary  to  impose  a  special  fine  upon 
those  of  its  members  whose  business  avocations  required 
them  '  to  ride  or  goe  to  Coventrie  Faire '  at  Corpus  Christi 
tide,  and  so  to  miss  the  procession  of  guilds  at  home 1.  And 
although  the  mayor  of  Coventry  wrote  to  Thomas  Cromwell, 
in  1539,  that  the  poor  commoners  were  put  to  such  expense 
with  their  plays  and  pageants  that  they  fared  the  worse  all 
the  year  after,  yet  against  this  may  be  set  the  statement 
made  to  Dugdale  by  'some  old  people  who  had  in  their 
younger  days  been  eye-witnesses  of  these  pageants '  that '  the 
confluence  of  people  from  farr  and  neare  to  see  that  shew  was 
extraordinary  great,  and  yeilded  noe  small  advantage  to  this 
cittye.'  Moreover  the  levy  upon  individuals  was  a  trifling 
one ;  the  whole  of  the  company  of  smiths  at  Coventry  only 
paid  3^.  4^.  amongst  them  for  'pagent  pencys'  in  1552. 
A  leitourgia  is  always  an  unpopular  institution,  and  these 
1  Trans,  of  Shropshire  Antiq.  Soc.  viii.  2731 


GUILD  PLAYS  AND  PARISH  PLAYS        111 

complaints  resemble  nothing  so  much  as  the  groans  of  an 
opulent  London  tradesman  in  the  twentieth  century  over 
an  extra  penny  on  the  education  rate.  In  the  smaller 
places  it  is  clear  that  plays,  far  from  being  a  source  of  expense, 
were  a  recognized  method  of  raising  funds  for  public  purposes. 
Even  in  1220  the  emolumentum  actionum  from  the  chapelries  of 
Shipton  went  to  swell  the  purses  of  the  Salisbury  prebendaries. 
In  1505  the  churchwardens  of  Kingston-on-Thames  made  £4 
towards  their  new  steeple  by  getting  up  a  play  for  which 
they  secured  the  patronage  of  royalty.  At  Braintree,  in  Essex, 
funds  were  similarly  raised  by  Nicholas  Udall  and  others, 
between  1523  and  1534,  for  the  repair  of  the  church.  I  have 
little  doubt  that  when  the  mayor  of  Coventry  said  economy 
he  meant  Protestantism,  just  as  when,  under  Elizabeth,  the 
corporation  of  London  wished  to  make  a  Puritanic  attack 
upon  the  theatres,  they  were  always  smitten  with  a  terrible 
dread  of  the  infection  of  the  plague  ** 

Certainly  the  spirit  of  Protestantism,  although  it  came  to 
be  willing  to  use  the  religious  drama  for  its  own  purposes 2, 
was  inclined  to  see  both  profanity  and  superstition  in  the 
ordinary  miracle-plays3.  Here,  as  elsewhere,  it  inherited 
the  hostile  tradition  which  such  reforming  clerics  as  Gerhoh 
of  Reichersberg  in  the  twelfth  century  and  Robert  Grosseteste 
in  the  thirteenth  had  handed  down  to  Wycltf  and  his  Lollards. 
At  Bungay  in  1514  certain  ill-disposed  persons  'brake  and 
threw  down  five  pageants '  usually  borne  about  the  town  on 
Corpus  Christi  day.  One  may  fairly  suspect,  even  at  this 
early  date,  a  Lollardist  intention  in  the  outrage,  and  perhaps 
also  in  the  interposition  of  the  authority  of  the  warden  of  the 
Cinque  Ports  to  suppress  the  play  of  New  Romney  in  1518. 
With  the  progress  of  the  new  ideas  the  big  cycles  began  to  be 
irregularly  performed  or  to  undergo  textual  modification. 
The  plays  of  York,  for  example,  were  shorn  in  1548  of  the 
pageants  representing  the  Death,  Assumption,  and  Coronation 

1  Analytical  Index  to  Remem-  of  Abuse,  1579  (ed.  Arbcr) ;    W. 
brancia  of  City  of  London^  330  sqq. ;  Prynne,  Histriomastix  (1633),  with 
350  sqq.  the  authorities  there  quoted ;  and 

2  Cf.  ch.  xxv.  the  tracts  in  W.  C.  Hazlitt,   The 
.    *  For  the  general  Puritan  attitude  English  Drama  and  Stage. 

to  the  stage,  see  S.  Gosson,  School* 


112  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

of  the  Virgin.  On  the  other  hand,  religious  plays  sometimes 
became  a  rallying-point  for  those  who  favoured  the  old  order 
of  things.  There  is  extant  a  letter  from  Henry  VIII  to  the 
justices  of  York,  in  which  he  refers  to  a  riot  promoted  by 
certain  papists  at  a  play  of  St.  Thomas  the  Apostle,  and 
warns  them  not  to  suffer  upon  such  occasions  any  language 
likely  to  tend  to  a  breach  of  the  peace.  The  brief  Marian 
reaclion  led  to  the  resumption  of  the  plays  in  more  than  one 
town  which  had  dropped  them.  The  Lincoln  corporation 
ordered  '  St.  Anne's  Gild  with  Corpus  Cristi  play '  to  be 
brought  forward  again  in  1554  and  1555.  In  London  Henry 
Machyn  records  during  1557  a  Passion  play  at  the  Grey  Friars, 
and  another  in  the  church  of  St.  Olave's,  Silver  Street, 
on  the  festival  of  the  patron.  The  New  Romney  play  was 
elaborately  revived,  after  forty-two  years'  interval,  in  1560. 
But  the  process  of  decay  soon  set  in  again.  Even  where 
the  plays  survived,  they  were  Protestantized,  and  as  Corpus 
Christi  day  was  no  longer  observed,  the  performances  had  to 
be  transferred  to  some  other  date.  At  York  the  text  of  the 
Corpus  Christi  play  was  '  perused  and  otherwise  amended f 
in  1568.  In  1569  it  was  acted  upon  Whit-Tuesday.  Then 
it  lay  by  untir  1579,  when  the  book  was  referred  to  the 
archbishop  and  dean  for  further  revision,  and  apparently 
impounded  by  them.  The  Creed  play  was  suppressed,  by 
advice  of  the  dean,  in  1568,  as  unsuitable  to  'this  happie  time 
of  the  gospell.'  The  Paternoster  play  was  revised  and  played 
in  1573.  Then  this  text  also  fell  into  the  hands  of  the 
archbishop,  and  the  corporation  seem  to  have  been  unable 
to  recover  it.  So  ended  the  religious  drama  in  York.  In 
Chester  the  municipal  authorities  stood  out  gallantly  for 
their  plays.  John  Hankey  and  Sir  John  Savage,  mayors  in 
1572  and  1575  respectively,  were  called  before  the  privy 
council  for  sanctioning  performances  in  spite  of  ihhibitions 
from  the  archbishop  of  York  and  other  persons  of  authority. 
They  had  revised  the  text,  and  had  a  new  and  Protestant 
version  of  the  preliminary  *  banns'  prepared.  Copies  of  the 
text  appear  to  have  been  got  ready  for  yet  another  perform- 
ance in  1600,  but  the  local  annalists  record  that  Henry 
Hardware,  then  mayor,  'would  not  suffer  anv  Playes.'  In 


GUILD  PLAYS  AND  PARISH  PLAYS        US 

one  or  two  cities,  new  plays,  dealing  with  apocryphal  or  other 
merely  semi- religious  themes,  were  substituted  for  the  old 
ones.  Thus  at  Lincoln  a  Standing  play*  of  the  story  of 
Tobit  was  given  in  1564  and  1567  ;  and  in  Coventry,  where 
the  old  cycle  had  been '  laid  down '  in  1580,  an  Oxford  scholar 
was  hired  in  1584  to  write  a  semi-religious  semi-historical 
drama  of  the  Destruction  of  Jerusalem.  In  1591,  the  Conquest 
of  the  Danes  and  the  History  of  King  Edward  the  Confessor 
were  proposed  as  alternatives  for  this.  By  the  end  of  the 
sixteenth  century  all  the  cycles  of  which  most  is  known  had 
come  to  an  end  The  smaller  places— Chelmsford  in  1574, 
Braintree  in  1579,  Bungay  in  1591 — had  sold  off  their  stock 
of  playing-garments.  For  such  dramatie  entertainment  as  the 
provinces  were  still  to  get,  they  must  look  to  travelling  com- 
panies taking  their  summer  vacation  from  the  metropolis. 
Miracle-plays  during  the  seventeenth  century  were  a  mere 
survival.  They  lingered  in  distant  Cornwall  and  at  Kendal  in 
the  hill  country  of  the  north ;  and  had  been  replaced  by  morals, 
themselves  almost  equally  obsolete,  at  Manningtree.  The 
last  religious  play  recorded  in  England  is  a  quite  exceptional 
one,  given  at  the  end  of  James  Ts  reign  before  Gondomar, 
the  Spanish  ambassador,  and  an  audience  which  numbered 
thousands  at  Ely  Place  in  Holborn. 

In  giving  some  account  of  the  distribution  of  the  various 
types  of  religious  play  throughout  England  during  the 
fifteenth  and  sixteenth  centuries,  I  am  dispensed  from  any 
obligation  to  be  exhaustive  by  the  fact  that  the  greater 
municipal  dramas  at  least  have  already  been  the  subject  of 
more  than  one  fairly  adequate  discussion.  All  I  shall  attempt 
will  be  a  brief  general  summary  of  the  main  points  which 
emerge  from  the  more  or  less  detailed  local  notices  collected 
in  a  lengthy  appendix. 

The  characteristic  English  type  of  play  was  the  long  cycle 
given  annually  under  the  superintendence  of  the  corporation 
or  governing  body  of  an  important  city  and  divided  into 
a  number  of  distinct  scenes  or '  pageants/  each  of  which  was 
the  special  charge  of  one  or  more  of  the  local  *  crafts/  '  arts/ 
or  'occupations.'  Such  cycles,  organized  upon  very  similar 
lines,  can  be  studied  in  the  records  available  from  Chester, 

CHAMBERS      II  T 


114  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

York,  Beverley,  Coventry,  Newcastle,  Lincoln,  and  Norwich  ; 

and  the  same  general  model  is  known    or   conjectured — 

sometimes,  it  is  true,  on  the  slightest  indication — to  have 

been  followed  in  the  plays  of  Lancaster,  Preston,  Kendal, 

Wakefield,  Leicester,  Worcester,  Louth,  Bungay,  Canterbury, 

Dublin,  and  Aberdeen.      As  in  all  matters   of   municipal 

custom,  the  relative  functions  of  the  corporations  and  the 

crafts  were  nicely  adjusted.     The  direction  and  control  of 

the  plays  as  a  whole  were  in  the  hands  of  the  corporations. 

They  decided  annually  whether  the  performance  should  be 

given,  or   whether,  for  war,  pestilence,  or  other  reason,  it 

should  be  withheld.    They  sent  round  their  officers  to  read 

the  proclamation  or  c banns'  of  the  play.     They  kept  an 

official  version  of  the  text,  at  Chester  an  *  original/  at  York 

a  'register*  copied  from  the  'originals'  belonging  to  the  crafts. 

Agreements  and  disputes  as  to  the  liability  of  this  or  that 

craft  to  maintain  or  contribute  to  a  particular  pageant  were 

entered  or  determined  before  them.    They  maintained  order 

at  the  time  of  the  play  and  inflicted  fines  on  the  turbulent,  or 

upon    crafts  neglectful-  or  unskilful  in    carrying    out  their 

responsibilities.     In   particular    they  required  the  provision 

of  properly  qualified  actors.     Thus  Robert  Greene  and  others 

were  admonished  before  the  leet  of  Coventry  in   1440,  that 

they  should  play  bene  et  sufficienter  so  as  not  to  cause  a 

hindrance  in  any  iocus.     Similarly,  Henry  Cowper, c  webster/ 

was  fined  by  the  wardens  of  Beverley  in  1452,  quod  nesciebat 

ludum  suum.    An  order  at  York,  in  1476,  directed  the  choice 

of  a  body  of  *  connyng,  discrete,  and  able  players '  to  test  the 

quality  of  all  those    selected  as    actors.      All   'insufficiant 

personnes,  either  in  connyng,  voice  or  personne*  they  were 

to  Discharge,  ammove,  and  avoide ' ;  and  no  one  was  to  perform 

more  than  twice  in  the  course  of  the  day.     Sometimes  the 

actual   oversight    of   the  plays  was   delegated   to    specially 

appointed    officer's.      At   Beverley  the  wardens    themselves 

1  governed '  the  Corpus  Christi  plays,  but  the  Paternoster  play 

was  in  the  hands  of '  aldermen  of  the  pageants/   At  Aberdeen 

the  Haliblude  play  was  undertaken  in  1440  by  the  local  lord 

of  misrule,  known  as  the  Abbot  of  Bon  Accord ;  for  the 

Candlemas  play  'bailyes*  represented  the  corporation.     At 


GUILD  PLAYS  AND  PARISH  PLAYS        115 

Lincoln  the  '  graceman '  of  the  guild  of  St.  Anne  was  respon- 
sible, and  had  the  aid  of  the  mayor.  At  Leicester  a  number 
of  'overseers'  with  two  'bedalls1  were  chosen  to  have  the 
'gydyng  and  rule1  of  the  play. 

The  corporations  do  not  appear  to  have  themselves  incurred 
much  expenditure  over  the  performances.  They  provided 
sitting-room  and  refreshments  for  their  own  members,  and  for 
distinguished  guests.  Richard  II  was  elaborately  entertained 
with  a  special  fagina  when  he  visited  York  on  Corpus  Christi 
day,  1397.  Sixty  years  later  a  collation,  including  *ij  cofyns 
of  counfetys  and  a  pot  of  grene  gynger/  was  made  ready  for 
Queen  Margaret  on  her  visit  to  Coventry.  At  York  and 
Beverley,  but  not  at  Coventry,  the  corporations  paid  the 
minstrels,  and  occasionally  made  a  special  contribution  to 
the  funds  of  a  particularly  poor  pageant.  At  York  the 
corporation  could  well  afford  to  do  this,  for  they  claimed 
the  right  to  fix  certain  'stations*  at  which,  as  well  as  at  two 
or  three  traditional  ones,  the  plays  should  be  given,  and 
they  made  a  considerable  annual  profit  out  of  payments  by 
well-to-do  citizens  who  aspired  to  have  one  of  these  at  their 
doors.  The  stations  were  marked  by  banners  broidered  with 
the  arms  of  the  city.  At  Leicester  the  'playyng  germands' 
seem  to  have  belonged  to  the  corporation.  At  Beverley  in 
1391  they  owned  all  the  c  necessaries/  pageant  garments  and 
properties,  of  the  play  of  Paradise,  and  lent  the  same  upon 
security  to  the  craft  charged  therewith.  The  pageants  may 
also  have  been  originally  corporation  property  in  York,  for 
it  was  stipulated  in  1432  that  one  of  them,  like  the  banners  at 
the  stations,  should  bear  the  arms  of  the  city,  to  the  exclusion 
of  those  of  the  craft. 

As  a  rule,  the  cost  of  the  plays  fell  almost  wholly  upon  the 
crafts.  The  ordinances  of  the  craft-guilds  provide  for  their 
maintenance  as  a  leitourgia  or  fraternal  duty,  in  the  same 
way  as  they  often  provide  for  a  t  serge '  or  light  to  be  burnt 
in  some  chapel  or  carried  in  the  Corpus  Christi  procession, 
or,  at  Beverley,  for  the  castellum  in  which  the  craft  sat  to  do 
honour  to  the  procession  of  St.  John  of  Beverley  in  Rogation 
week.  At  Coventry,  where  the  burden  upon  the  crafts  was 
perhaps  heaviest,  they  were  responsible  for  the  provision, 

I  2 


116  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

repairing,  ornamenting,  cleaning,  and  strewing  with  rushes 
of  the  pageant,  for  the  c  ferme '  or  rent  of  the  pageant  house, 
for  the  payment  of  actors,  minstrels,  and  prompter,  for  the 
revision  of  play-book  and  songs  and  the  copying  of  parts,  for 
the  '  drawing '  or  c  horsing '  of  the  pageant  on  the  day  of  the 
performance,  for  costumes  and  properties,  and  above  all  for 
copious  refreshments  before  and  after  the  play,  at  the  stations, 
and  during  the  preliminary  rehearsals.  The  total  cost  of  the 
smiths'  pageant  in  1490  was  £3  js.  $\d.  In  1453  ^7  ^a<^ 
contracted  with  one  Thomas  Colclow  to  have  'the  rewle  of 
the  pajaunt'  for  twelve  years  at  an  annual  payment  of 
£%  6s.  8d.y  and  other  examples  of '  play  lettine*  can  be  traced 
at  Newcastle  and  elsewhere.  But  it  was  more  usual  for  the 
crafts  to  retain  the  management  of  the  pageants  in  their  own 
hands ;  at  York  each  guild  appointed  its  c  pageant-masters ' 
for  this  purpose.  The  expense  to  the  craft  primarily  in  charge 
of  a  pageant  was  sometimes  lightened  by  fixed  contributions 
from  one  or  more  minor  bodies  affiliated  to  it  for  the  purpose. 
Part  of  it  was  probably  met  from  the  general  funds  of  the 
craft;  the  rest  was  raised  by  various  expedients.  A  levy, 
known  as  'pagent  pencys'  at  Coventry  and  as  'pajaunt 
silver*  at  York,  was  made  upon  every  member.  The  amount 
varied  with  the  numbers  of  the  craft  and  the  status  of  the  crafts- 
man. At  York  it  ranged  from  id.  to  %d.  At  Beverley  the 
journeymen  paid  8rf.  to  light,  play,  and  castle,  and  6d.  only 
in  years  when  there  was  no  play.  At  Coventry  the  ordinary 
members  of  more  than  one  craft  paid  is. ;  others  apparently 
less.  To  the  proceeds  of  the  levy  might  be  added  fines  for 
the  breach  of  craft  ordinances,  payments  on  the  taking  out  of 
freedom  by  strangers  and  the  setting  up  of  shop  or  indenturing 
of  apprentices  by  freemen.  At  York,  the  mercers  are  found 
granting  free  admission  to  a  candidate  for  their  fraternity  on 
condition  of  his  entering  into  a  favourable  contract  for  the 
supply  of  a  new  pageant  At  Coventry,  in  1517,  one  William 
Pisford  left  a  scarlet  and  a  crimson  gown  to  the  tanners  for 
their  plays,  together  with  $s.  ^d.  to  every  craft  charged  with 
the  maintenance  of  a  pageant.  Besides  the  levy,  certain 
personal  services  were  binding  upon  the  craftsmen.  They 
had  to  attend  upon  the  play,  to  do  it  honour  •  the  Coventry 


GUILD  PLAYS  AND  PARISH  PLAYS        117 

cappers  expected  their  journeymen  to  do  the  horsing'  of  the 
pageant. 

In  some  cities,  the  crafts  received  help  from  outside.  At 
Coventry,  in  1501,  the  tilers'  pageant  got  a  contribution  of  5s. 
from  the  neighbouring  tilers  of  Stoke.  At  Chester,  vestments 
were  borrowed  from  the  clergy;  at  Lincoln  from  the  priory 
and  the  local  gentry.  A  'gathering1  was  also  made  in  the 
surrounding  districts.  The  only  trace  of  any  charge  made 
to  the  spectators,  other  than  the  fees  for  '  stations '  at  York, 
is  at  Leicester,  where,  in  1477,  the  players  paid  over  to  the 
pachents '  certain  sums  they  had  received  for  playing. 

The  majority  of  the  crafts  in  a  big  city  were,  of  course, 
already  formed  hito  guilds  for  ordinary  trade  purposes,  and  in 
their  case  the  necessary  organization  for  the  plays  was  to  hand . 
But  no  citizen  could  wholly  escape  his  responsibility  in  so 
important  a  civic  matter.  At  Coventry  it  was  ordered  in  1494 
that  every  person  exercising  any  craft  must  become  con- 
tributory to  some  pageant  or  other.  At  York  the  innholders, 
who  do  not  appear  to  have  been  a  regular  guild,  were  organized 
in  1483  for  the  purposes  of  a  pageant  on  the  basis  of  a  yearly 
contribution  of  4^?.  from  each  man.  The  demand  at  Beverley 
in  1411  for  the  appropriation  of  a  play  to  the  generosi  has 
already  been  alluded  to.  In  a  Beverley  list  of  1520  the 
c  Gentylmen '  are  put  down  for  the  *  Castle  of  Emaut.'  It  may 
be  suspected  that  some  of  the  other  crafts  named  in  the  same 
list,  such  as  the  '  Husbandmen '  and  the  '  Labourers/  were  not 
regular  guilds  ;  not  to  speak  of  the  *  Prestes/  who  played  the 
'  Coronacion  of  Our  Lady.'  This  participation  of  religious 
bodies  in  the  craft  plays  can  be  paralleled  from  other  towns. 
At  York  the  hospital  of  St.  Leonard  took  the  Purification  in 
1415;  at  Lincoln  the  cathedral  clergy,  like  the  priests  at 
Beverley,  were  responsible  for  the  Coronation  or  Assumption 
of  the  Virgin,  a  play  which  at  Chester  was  given  by  the 
'worshipfull  wyves  of  this  town/  and  at  York  by  the  inn- 
holders.  Both  at  York  and  Chester  this  scene  was  dropped 
at  the  Reformation.  Possibly  its  somewhat  exceptional 
position  may  be  accounted  for  by  its  having  been  a  compara- 
tively late  addition  in  all  four  cycles.  Some  endeavour  after 
dramatic  appropriateness  is  visible  in  the  apportioning  of  the 


118  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

other  plays  amongst  the  crafts.  Thus  Noah  is  given  to  the 
shipwrights  (York,  Newcastle),  the  watermen  (Beverley, 
Chester),  the  fishers  and  mariners  (York) ;  the  Magi  to  the 
goldsmiths  (Beverley,  Newcastle,  York);  the  Disputation  in 
the  Temple  to  the  scriveners  (Beverley),  the  Last  Supper  to 
the  bakers  (Beverley,  Chester,  York) ;  the  Harrowing  of  Hell 
to  the  cooks  (Beverley,  Chester). 

A  somewhat  anomalous  position  is  occupied  amongst  towns 
in  which  the  plays  were  in  the  hands  of  the  crafts  by  Lincoln. 
Here  the  task  of  supervision  was  shared  with  the  corporation 
by  a  special  guild,  religious  and  social  rather  than  industrial 
in  character1,  of  St.  Anne.  Perhaps  this  guild  had  at  one  time 
been  solely  responsible  for  the  plays,  and  there  had  been 
a  crisis  such  as  took  place  at  Norwich  in  1527.  Before  that 
date  the  charge  of  the  plays  had  been  borne,  fittingly  enough, 
by  the  guild  of  St.  Luke,  composed  of  painters  and  metal- 
workers. But  in  1527  this  guild  was  '  almost  fully  decayed/ 
and  upon  the  representation  of  its  members  the  corporation 
agreed  that  in  future  the  pageants  should  be  distributed 
amongst  the  various  crafts  as  was  customary  elsewhere.  The 
Lincoln  plays  were  on  St.  Anne's  day,  but  one  does  not  find 
a  position  comparable  to  that  of  the  St.  Anne's  guild  held  by 
Corpus  Christi  guilds  in  other  towns.  As  a  rule  such  guilds 
concerned  themselves  with  the  Corpus  Christi  procession,  but 
not  with  the  plays.  At  Ipswich,  indeed,  the  Corpus  Christi 
guild  had  the  whole  conduct  of  the  plays,  and  the  craft-guilds 
as  such  were  not  called  upon  ;  but  this  Ipswich  guild  arose 
out  of  a  reorganization  of  the  old  merchant-guild,  included 
all  the  burgesses,  and  was  practically  identical  with  the 
corporation.  Other  towns,  in  which  the  corporation  managed 
the  plays  itself,  without  the  intervention  of  the  craft-guilds, 
are  Shrewsbury,  New  Romney,  and  Lydd. 

On  the  other  hand,  where  neither  the  corporation  nor  the 
crafts  undertook  plays,  it  was  no  uncommon  thing  for  a 
guild  of  the  religious  or  social  type  to  step  into  the  breach. 
A  series  of  London  plays  recorded  in  1384,  1391, 1409,  and 
1411  may  all  be  not  unreasonably  ascribed  to  a  guild  of 

1  On  such  guilds  cf.Cutts,  Parish  Gasquet,  The  Eve  of  the  Rcforma- 
Priests,  476 ;  Rock,  ii.  395  ;  F.  A.  tion,  351. 


GUILD  PLAYS  AND  PARISH  PLAYS        119 

St.  Nicholas,  composed  of  the  '  parish  clerks '  attached  to  the 
many  churches  of  the  city.  At  a  later  date  the  performances 
of  this  guild  seem  to  have  become  annual  and  they  are  trace- 
able, with  no  very  great  certainty,  to  the  beginning  of  the 
sixteenth  century.  They  were  cyclical  in  character,  but  not 
processional,  and  took  place  hard  by  the  well  known  indiffer- 
ently as  Skinners1  well  or  Clerkenwell,  amongst  the  orchards 
to  the  north  of  London.  Chaucer  says  of  his  '  parish  clerk/ 
the  '  joly  Absolon,'  that 

'  Somtyme,  to  shewe  his  lightnesse  and  maistrye, 
He  pleyeth  Her6des,  on  a  scaffold  hye  V 

These  London  plays  may  have  had  some  original  con- 
nexion with  the  great  fair  of  the  neighbouring  priory  of 
St.  Bartholomew  upon  August  24 ;  but  they  are  recorded  at 
various  dates  during  the  summer,  and  extended  over  four, 
five,  or  even  seven  days.  Whether  the  guild  of  St.  Nicholas 
bore  any  relation  to  the  clerks  of  St.  Paul's,  who  petitioned 
Richard  II  in  1378  against  the  rivalry  of  certain  'unexpert 
people '  in  the  production  of  an  Old  Testament  play,  must  be 
matter  for  conjecture.  The  performance  contemplated  at 
St.  Paul's  was  to  be  at  Christmas.  The  Cambridge  guild 
of  Corpus  Christi  was  responsible  for  a  Indus  Filiorum  Israelis 
about  1350,  and  this  is  more  likely  to  have  formed  part 
of  a  cycle  than  to  have  stood  alone.  An  unverified  extract 
of  Warton's  from  a  Michael- House  computus  suggests  that 
some  of  the  Cambridge  colleges  may  have  assisted  in 
dramatic  undertakings.  At  Abingdon  the  hospital  of  Christ 
held  their  feast  on  Holy  Cross  day  (May  3),  1445,  'with 
pageantes  and  playes,  and  May  games.'  At  Sleaford,  in  1480, 
a  play  of  the  Ascension  was  performed  by  the  guild  of  the 
Holy  Trinity.  At  Wymondham  a  guild  seems  to  have 
existed  in  the  sixteenth  century  for  the  express  purpose  of 
holding  a  'watch  and  play '  at  Midsummer.  The  proceedings 
were  directed  by  officers  designated  'husbands.'  The  one 
example  of  an  isolated  play  under  the  management  of  a  craft- 
guild  is  at  Hull.  Here  an  annual  play  of  Noah,  with  a  ship 
or  ark  which  went  in  procession,  was  in  the  hands  of  the 

1  C.  Tales,  3383  (Millers  Tale). 


120  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

Trinity  House,  a  guild  of  master  mariners  and  pilots.  The 
records  extend  from  1431  to  1529.  There  is  no  sign  of 
a  dramatic  cycle  at  Hull.  The  Noah  play  was  given  on 
Plough  Monday,  and  it  is  possible  that  one  may  trace  here 
a  dramatized  version  of  just  such  a  ship  procession  as  may 
be  found  elsewhere  upon  the  coasts  in  spring1.  After  the 
performance  the  *  ship '  was  hung  up  in  the  church.  The  text 
of  the  play  was  perhaps  borrowed  from  that  of  the  watermen 
of  the  neighbouring  city  of  Beverley. 

Where  there  were  craft-plays,  social  and  religious  guilds 
sometimes  gave  supplementary  performances.  The  'schaft1 
or  parochial  guild  of  St.  Dunstan's,  Canterbury,  owned  a  play 
of  Abraham  and  Isaac  in  1491.  This  may  have  been  merely 
a  contribution  towards  the  craft-cycle  on  Corpus  Christi  day. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  play  of  St.  George,  contemplated  by 
the  guild  of  that  saint  at  New  Romney  in  1490,  was  probably 
an  independent  undertaking.  The  town  play  here  was  a 
Passion  play.  At  York  there  were  two  rivals  to  the  Corpus 
Christi  plays.  One  was  the  Paternoster  play,  for  the  pro- 
duction of  which  a  guild  of  the  Lord's  Prayer  was  in  existence 
at  least  as  early  as  1378.  By  1488  this  guild  was  absorbed 
into  the  Holy  Trinity  guild  of  the  mercers,  and  in  the  year 
named  the  play  was  given,  apparently  at  the  charges  of  the 
mercers,  instead  of  the  ordinary  cycle.  All  the  crafts  con- 
tributed to  similar  performances  in  1558  and  1572.  But 
by  this  time  the  supervision,  under  the  corporation,  of  the 
play  had  passed  to  one  of  the  few  religious  guilds  in  York 
which  had  escaped  suppression,  that  of  St.  Anthony.  The 
other  extraordinary  York  play  was  a  Creed  play,  bequeathed 
to  the  guild  of  Corpus  Christi  in  1446.  This  was  stationary, 
and  was  acted  decennially  about  Lammas-tide  (August  i) 
at  the  common  hall.  In  1483,  it  was  '  apon  the  cost  of  the 
most  onest  men  of  every  parish/  who  were,  it  may  be 
supposed,  members  of  the  guild.  In  1535  the  crafts  paid 
for  it  instead  of  their  usual  cycle.  Upon  the  suppression  of 
the  guild,  the  play-book  passed  into  the  custody  of  the 
hospital  of  St.  Thomas.  • 

In  the  same  way  there  are  instances  in  which  the  clergy, 
1  Cf.  vol.  i.  p.  121. 


GUILD  PLAYS  AND  PARISH  PLAYS        121 

who  elsewhere  lent  help  to  the  craft-plays,  gave  independent 
exhibitions  of  their  own.  At  Chester,  before  the  Reformation, 
they  eked  out  the  Whitsun  cycle  by  a  supplementary  perform- 
ance on  Corpus  Christi  day.  The  priors  of  St.  John  of 
Jerusalem,  Holy  Trinity,  and  All  Saints  contributed  their 
share  to  the  somewhat  incongruous  blend  of  religious  and 
secular  entertainments  provided  by  the  traders  of  Dublin  for 
the  earl  of  Kildare  in  1538.  The  so-called  Ludus  Coventriae 
has  often  been  supposed  to  be  the  play- book  of  a  cycle  acted 
by  the  Grey  Friars  or  Franciscans  of  Coventry.  This  theory 
hardly  survives  critical  examination.  But  in  1557,  during  the 
Marian  reaction,  a  Passion  play  was  given  at  the  Grey  Friars 
in  London,  and  the  actors  were  possibly  restored  brethren. 
Miracle-plays  must  often  have  been  performed  in  choir  schools, 
especially  upon  their  traditional  feast-days  of  St.  Nicholas, 
St.  Catherine,  and  the  Holy  Innocents.  But  there  are  only 
two  examples,  besides  that  of  St.  Paul's  in  1378,  actually  upon 
record.  In  1430  the  fueri  eleemosynae  of  Maxstoke  acted  on 
Candlemas  day  in  the  hall  of  Lord  Clinton's  castle ;  and 
in  1486  those  of  St.  Swithin's  and  Hyde  abbeys  combined 
to  entertain  Henry  VII  with  the  Harrowing  of  Hell  as  he  sat 
at  dinner  in  Winchester. 

Many  minor  plays,  both  in  towns  and  in  country  villages, 
were  organized  by  the  clergy  and  other  officials  of  parish 
churches,  and  are  mentioned  in  the  account  books  of  church- 
wardens. At  London,  Kingston,  Oxford,  Reading,  Salisbury, 
Bath,  Tewkesbury,  Leicester,  Bungay,  and  Yarmouth,  such 
parochial  plays  can  be  traced,  sometimes  side  by  side  with 
those  provided  by  craft  or  other  guilds.  The  parochial 
organization  was  the  natural  one  for  the  smaller  places, 
where  the  parish  church  had  remained  the  centre  of  the 
popular  life1.  The  actiones  in  the  chapelries  of  Shipton  in 
Oxfordshire  during  the  thirteenth  century  may  have  been 
plays  of  this  type.  The  municipal  records  of  Lydd  and  New 
Romney  mention  visits  of  players  to  the  towns  between  1399 
and  1508  from  no  less  than  fourteen  neighbouring  places  in 

1  On  the  economics  of  a  mcdi-      Churchwarden^  Accounts^  xi  (So- 
aeval  parish  and  the  functions  of     merset  Record  Soc.)« 
the  churchwardens   cf.  Hobhouse, 


122  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

Kent  and  Sussex,  many  of  which  must  have  been  then,  as 
they  are  now,  quite  insignificant.  They  are  Hythe,  Wittersham, 
Herne,  Ruckinge,  Folkestone,  Appledore,  Chart,  Rye,  Wye, 
Brookland,  Halden,  Bethersden,  Ham,  and  Stone.  A  few 
other  village  plays  are  to  be  traced  in  the  fifteenth  century. 
In  the  sixteenth  century  they  are  fairly  numerous,  especially 
in  the  eastern  counties.  In  Essex  they  are  found  at  Chelms- 
ford,  Braintree,  Halstead,  Heybridge,  Maiden,  Saffron  Walden, 
Billericay,  Starford,  Baddow  (by  'children'),  Little  Baddow, 
Sabsford,  Boreham,  Lanchire,  Witham,  Brentwood,  Nayland, 
Burnham,  High  Easter,  Writtle,  Woodham  Walter,  and  Han- 
ningfield ;  in  Cambridgeshire  at  Bassingbourne ;  in  Lincolnshire 
at  Holbeach;  in  Norfolk  at  Harling,  Lopham,  Garboldisham, 
Shelfhanger,andKenninghall;  in  Suffolk  atBoxford,Lavenham, 
and  Mildenhall ;  in  Leicestershire  at  Foston ;  in  Somersetshire 
at  Morebath ;  and  in  Kent  once  more  at  Bethersden.  The 
latest  instance  is  a '  Kynge  play '  at  Hascombe  in  Surrey  in  1579. 
Parochial  plays,  whether  in  town  or  country,  appear  to 
have  been  in  most  cases  occasional,  rather  than  annual. 
Sometimes,  as  at  Kingston  and  Braintree,  they  became 
a  means  of  raising  money  for  the  church,  and  even  where 
this  object  is  not  apparent,  the  expenses  were  lightened  in 
various  ways  at  the  cost  of  neighbouring  villages.  'Banns' 
were  sent  round  to  announce  the  play ;  or  the  play  itself  was 
carried  round  on  tour.  Twenty-seven  villages  contributed 
to  a  play  at  Bassingbourne  in  1511.  The  Chelmsford  play 
of  1562  and  1563  cost  about  £50,  of  which  a  good  proportion 
was  received  from  the  spectators.  The  play  was  given  at 
Maiden  and  Braintree  as  well  as  at  Chelmsford,  and  for  years 
afterwards  the  letting  out  of  the  stock  of  garments  proved 
a  source  of  revenue  to  the  parish.  This  same  practice  of 
hiring  garments  can  be  traced  at  Oxford,  Leicester,  and  else- 
where. The  parochial  plays  were  always,  so  far  as  can  be 
seen,  stationary.  *  At  Leicester,  Braintree,  Halstead,  and 
Heybridge  they  were  in  the  church.  That  of  Harling  was 
*  at  the  church  gate/  that  of  Bassingbourne  in  a  '  croft ' ;  that 
of  Chelmsford  in  a  'pightell/  At  Reading  performances  in 
the  market-place  and  in  an  open  piece  of  ground  called  (then 
and  now)  the  'Forbury'  are  mentioned. 


GUILD  PLAYS  AND  PARISH  PLAYS        123 

There  remain  a  certain  number  of  plays  as  to  the  organiza- 
tion of  which  nothing  definite  can  be  said.  Such  are  the 
minor  plays,  on  the  legends  of  saints,  recorded  by  the  annalists 
of  London,  Coventry,  and  Lincoln ;  those  referred  to  in  the 
corporation  accounts  of  King's  Lynn,  as  given  by  unspecified 
players  between  1385  and  1462 ;  and  those  which  took  place,  as 
late  as  the  seventeenth  century,  in  *  rounds '  or  amphitheatres 
at  St.  Just,  Perranzabulo,  and  elsewhere  in  Cornwall* 


CHAPTER   XXII 
GUILD  PLAYS  AND  PARISH  PLAYS  (continued) 

THE  last  chapter  occupied  itself  mainly  with  the  diffusion 
of  the  vernacular  religious  plays  in  England,  with  their 
organization,  and  with  their  part  in  municipal  and  village 
life.  That  study  must  be  completed  by  at  least  the  outline 
of  another,  dealing  with  the  content  and  nature  of  the  per- 
formances themselves.  Here  again  it  is  variety  rather  than 
uniformity  which  requires  attention  ;  for  the  records  and  texts 
of  the  fifteenth  and  sixteenth  centuries  bear  witness  to  the 
effective  survival  of  all  the  diverse  types  of  play,  to  which  the 
evolution  of  the  dramatic  instinct  gave  birth  in  its  progress 
from  liturgical  office  to  cosmic  cycle. 

The  term  of  the  evolution — the  cosmic  cycle  itself — is 
represented  by  five  complete  texts,  and  one  fragment  suf- 
ficiently substantial  to  be  ranked  with  these.  There  are  the 
plays  of  the  York  and  Chester  crafts.  The  manuscript  of 
the  former  dates  from  the  middle  of  the  fifteenth  century; 
those  of  the  latter  from  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  and 
beginning  of  the  seventeenth:  but  in  both  cases  it  may  be 
assumed  that  we  possess  the  plays>  with  certain  modifications, 
additions,  and  omissions,  as  they  were  given  in  the  palmy 
days  of  their  history.  There  are  also,  in  a  fifteenth-century 
manuscript,  the  so-called  '  Towneley '  plays,  as  to  whose  origin 
the  most  likely  theory  is  that  they  are  the  craft-plays  of 
Wakefield.  There  is  the  Ludus  Coventriae,  also  of  the 
fifteenth  century,  which  has  probably  nothing  to  do  with 
Coventry,  but  is  either,  as  scholars  generally  hold,  the  text 
of  a  strolling  company,  or,  as  seems  to  me  more  probable, 
that  of  a  stationary  play  at  some  town  in  the  East  Midlands 
not  yet  identified.  If  I  am  right,  the  Ludus  Coventriae 
occupies  a  midway  position  between  the  three  northern  craft 
cycles,  which  are  all  processional  plays,  split  up  into  a  number 


GUILD  PLAYS  AND  PARISH  PLAYS        125 

of  distinct  pageants,  and  the  fifth  text,  which  is  Cornish. 
This  is  probably  of  the  fourteenth  century,  although  extant 
in  a  fifteenth-century  manuscript,  and  doubtless  represents 
a  stationary  performance  in  one  of  the  *  rounds'  still  to  be 
seen  about  Cornwall.  The  fragment,  also  Cornish,  is  not  a 
wholly  independent  play,  but  a  sixteenth-century  expansion 
of  part  of  the  earlier  text 

A  study  of  the  table  of  incidents  printed  in  an  appendix 
will  show  the  general  scope  of  the  cyclical  plays1.  My 
comments  thereon  must  be  few  and  brief.  The  four  northerly 
cycles  have  a  kernel  of  common  matter,  which  corresponds 
very  closely  with  just  that  dramatic  stuff  which  was  handled 
in  the  liturgical  and  the  earliest  vernacular  dramas.  It  in- 
cludes the  Fall  of  Lucifer,  the  Creation,  Adam  and  Eve, 
Cain  and  Abel;  then  the  Annunciation  and  the  group  of 
scenes,  from  the  Pastores  to  the  Massacre  of  the  Innocents, 
which  went  to  make  up  the  Stella ;  then  the  Passion  in  the 
narrower  sense,  centring  in  the  planctus  Mariae  and  ex- 
tending from  the  Conspiracy  of  the  Jews  to  the  Descent  from 
the  Cross  ;  then  the  Resurrection  scenes,  centring  in  the 
Quern  quaeritis  and  ending  with  the  Peregrini  and  Incredulity 
of  Thomas  ;  then  the  Ascension,  the  Pentecost,  and  finally  the 
Indicium  or  Doomsday.  Almost  equally  invariable  is  some- 
thing in  the  way  of  a  Prophetae.  But  at  York  this  is  thrown 
into  narrative  instead  of  dramatic  form  ;  and  at  Chester  the 
typical  defile  of  prophets,  each  with  his  harangue,  is  deferred 
to  almost  the  close  of  the  cycle  (Play  xxiii),  and  in  its  usual 
place  stand  two  independent  episodes  of  Balaam  and  of  Octavian 
and  the  Sibyl.  Two  other  groups  of  scenes  exhibit  a  larger 
measure  of  diversity  between  the  four  cycles.  One  is  that 
drawn  from  the  history  of  the  Old  Testament  Fathers,  out 
of  which  the  Deluge  and  the  Sacrifice  of  Isaac  are  the  only 
incidents  adopted  by  all  four.  The  other  is  the  series  taken 
from  the  missionary  life  of  Christ,  where  the  only  common 
scenes  are  the  Raising  of  Lazarus  and  the  Feast  in  the  House 
of  Simon  the  Leper,  both  of  which  can  be  traced  back  to  the 
liturgical  drama 2. 

1  Cf.  Appendix  T.  *  Cf.  pp.  58,  60. 


126  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

The  principal  source  of  the  plays  belonging  to  this  common 
kernel  is,  of  course,  the  biblical  narrative,  which  is  followed, 
so  far  as  it  goes,  with  considerable  fidelity,  the  most  remark- 
able divergence  being  that  of  the  Ludus  Coventriae,  which 
merges  the  Last  Supper  with  the  scene  in  the  House  of 
Simon.  But  certain  embroideries  upon  scripture,  which  found 
their  way  into  the  religious  drama  at  an  early  stage  of  its 
evolution,  are  preserved  and  further  elaborated.  Thus  each 
of  the  four  cycles  has  its  Harrowing  of  Hell,  which  links  the 
later  scenes  with  the  earlier  by  introducing,  as  well  as  the 
devils,  such  personages  as  Adam  and  Eve,  Enoch  and  Elijah, 
John  the  Baptist  and  others1.  Similarly  the  Suspicion  of 
Joseph  and  the  obstetrices  at  the  Virgin  Birth  finds  a  place  in 
all  four 2,  as  does  the  Healing  of  Longinus,  the  blind  knight, 
by  the  blood-drops  from  the  cross8.  Other  apocryphal  or 
legendary  elements  are  confined  to  one  or  more  of  the  cycles  4. 
The  Chester  plays,  for  example,  have  a  marked  development 
of  the  eschatological  scenes.  Not  only  is  the  Indicium  itself 
extremely  long  and  elaborate,  but  it  is  preceded  by  two 
distinct  plays,  one  a  section  of  the  split-up  Propketae  ending 
with  the  Fifteen  Signs,  the  other  an  Antichrist,  in  which, 
as  in  the  Tegernsee  Antickristus*>  Enoch  and  Elijah  appear 
as  disputants.  The  most  legendary  of  the  northerly  cycles  is 
without  doubt  the  Ludus  Coventriae.  It  has  the  legend  of 
Veronica,  which  is  only  hinted  at  in  the  corresponding  York 
play.  And  it  has  so  long  a  series  of  scenes  drawn  from  the 
legends  of  the  Virgin  as  to  make  it  probable  that,  like  the 
Lincoln  plays  and  another  East  Midland  cycle  of  which 

1  Cf.  p.  73.  chief  earlier  sources  are  probably 

*  Cf.  p.  41.  the  Evangelism  Pseudo-Matthaei 

8  Cf.  p.  75.  and  the  Evangelium  Nicodemi  (in- 

4  I  can  only  give  the  most  genera]  eluding  the  Gesta  Pilati  and  the 

account  of  the  legendary  content  Descensus    Christi    ad    In/eros), 

of  the  plays.    For  full  treatment  of  both    in    Tischendorf,    Evangelia 

this  in  relation  to  its  sources  cf.  Apocrypha,  and  the  Transitus  Ma- 

the  authorities  quoted  in  the  biblio-  riae  in    Tischendorf,  Apocalypses 

graphical  note  to  chapter  xxi,  and  Apocrypha*.      The    later   sources 

especially  L.  T.  Smith,  York  Plays,  include  the  Legenda  Aurea  of  Ja- 

xlvii;  P.  Kamann,  \i\Anglia,  x.  189;  cobus  de  Voragme  (t  1275)  and  the 

A.   Hohlfeld,  in  Anglia^  xi.   285.  Cursor  Mundi  (ed.  R.  Morris  for 

Much   still   remains  to   be  done,  E.E.T.S.),  a  Northumbrian  poem 

especially  for   the   Chester   plays  of  the  early  fourteenth  century. 

and  the  Ludus  Coventriae.     The  *  Cf.  p.  63. 


GUILD  PLAYS  AND  PARISH  PLAYS        127 

a  fragment  is  extant,  it  was  performed  not  on  Corpus  Christi 
day  but  on  that  of  St.  Anne.  Before  the  Annunciation  it 
inserts  the  episodes  of  Joachim  and  Anne,  Mary  in  the 
Temple,  and  the  Betrothal  of  Mary,  To  the  common  episode 
of  the  Suspicion  of  Joseph  it  adds  the  Purgation  of  Mary.  In 
the  Resurrection  scene  is  a  purely  legendary  Apparition  of 
Christ  to  the  Virgin ;  while  the  Death,  Burial,  Assumption, 
and  Coronation  of  Mary  intervene  between  the  Pentecost 
and  the  Indicium.  This  matter  from  the  after-history  of  the 
Virgin  belongs  .also  to  the  York  plays,  which  add  the  Appari- 
tion to  St.  Thomas  of  India. 

The  Cornish  plays,  although  in  many  respects  they  are 
parallel  to  those  of  the  north,  have  yet  some  very  marked 
features  of  their  own.  They  have  episodes  of  the  miraculous 
Release  of  Nicodemus  and  Joseph  of  Arimathea  from  Prison, 
and  of  the  Death  of  Pilate  and  the  Interview  of  Veronica 
with  Tiberius1.  But  their  most  remarkable  legendary  addi- 
tion is  an  elaborate  treatment  of  the  history  of  the  Holy 
Rood,  which  provides  the  motives  for  the  scenes  dealing  with 
Seth,  Moses,  David,  Solomon,  Maximilla,  and  the  Bridge 
upon  Cedron2.  On  the  other  hand  the  Cornish  plays  close 
with  the  Ascension  and  entirely  omit  the  sub-cycle  of  the 
Nativity,  passing  direct,  but  for  the  Holy  Rood  matter,  from 
the  Sacrifice  of  Isaac  to  the  Temptation. 

1  Cf.  the  Mors  Pilati  in  Tischen-  ses  cut  the  rods,  and  did  miracles 

dorf,  Evang.  Apocr.  456.  with  them.  At  his  death  they  were 

*  The  '  Holy  Rood '  episodes  are  planted  in  Mount  Tabor.  An  angel 

those  numbered  6,  13,  14,  16-20,  in  a  dream  sent  David  to  fetch 

6 1  in  the  table.  The  fullest  ac-  them.  They  grew  into  one  tree,  in 

counts  of  the  legend  in  its  varied  the  shade  of  which  David  repented 

literary  forms  are  given  by  W.  of  his  sin  with  Bathsheba.  When 

Meyer,  Die  Geschichte  des  Kreuz-  the  Temple  was  building,  a  beam 

holzes  vor  Christus  (Abhandlungen  was  fashioned  from  the  tree,  but  it 

der  k.  bayer.  Akad.  der  IViss.  I.  would  not  fit  and  was  placed  in  the 

Cl.  xvi.  2.  103,  Munich,  1881),  and  Temple  for  veneration.  The  woman 

A.  S.  Napier,  History  of  the  Holy  Maximilla  incautiously  sat  upon  it 

Rood-tree (TL&rtS.  1894).  Roughly,  and  her  clothes  caught  fire.  She 

the  story  is  as  follows :  Seth  went  prophesied  of  Christ,  and  the  Jews 

to  Paradise  to  fetch  the  oil  of  mercy,  made  her  the  first  martyr.  The 

An  angel  gave  him  three  pips  from  beam  was  cast  into  the  pool  of 

the  tree  of  knowledge.  These  were  Siloam,  to  which  it  gave  miraculous 

laid  beneath  the  tongue  of  Adam  properties,  and  was  finally  made  into 

at  his  burial,  and  three  rods,  signi-  a  bridge.  At  the  Passion,  a  portion 

lying  the  Trinity,  sprang  up.  Mo-  of  it  was  taken  for  the  Rood. 


128  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

It  is  not  improbable  that  the  majority  of  the  Corpus  Christi 
and  other  greater  English  plays  reached  the  dimensions  of 
a  cosmic  cycle.  But  in  only  a  few  cases  is  any  definite 
evidence  on  the  point  available.  Complete  lists  are  preserved 
from  Beverley  and  Norwich.  The  Beverley  series  seems  to 
have  been  much  on  the  scale  of  the  four  extant  cycles.  It 
extended  in  thirty-six  pageants  from  the  Fall  of  Lucifer  to 
Doomsday.  Like  the  Cornish  cycle,  it  included  the  episode 
of  Adam  and  Seth ;  and  it  presented  an  exceptional  feature 
in  the  insertion  of  a  play  of  the  Children  of  Israel  after  the 
Flight  into  Egypt.  The  Norwich  cycle,  which  began  with 
the  Creation  and  ended  with  Pentecost,  was  a  short  one  of 
twelve  pageants1.  The  small  number  is  due,  partly  to  the 
grouping  of  several  episodes  in  a  single  play,  partly  to  the 
omission  of  the  Passion  proper.  The  Resurrection  followed 
immediately  upon  the  Baptism.  Of  other  plays,  the  chroniclers 
record  that  in  1391  the  London  performance  covered  both 
the  Old  and  New  Testament,  that  in  1409  it  went  from  the 
Creation  to  the  Day  of  Judgement,  and  that  in  1411  it  was 
'from  the  begynnyng  of  the  worlde.'  The  fragmentary 
indications  of  the  records  preserved  show  that  the  Chelmsford 
play  stretched  at  least  from  the  Creation  to  the  Crucifixion, 
the  Newcastle  play  at  least  from  the  Creation  to  the  Burial  of 
the  Virgin  2,  the  Lincoln  play  at  least  from  the  Deluge  to  the 
Coronation  of  the  Virgin.  On  the  other  hand  the  range  of 
the  Coventry  plays  can  only  be  shown  to  have  been  from  the 
Annunciation  to  Doomsday,  although  it  may  be  by  a  mere 
accident  that  no  Old  Testament  scenes  are  here  to  be 
identified 3. 

Examples,  though  unfortunately  no  full  texts,  can  also  be 
traced  of  the  separate  Nativity  and  Easter  cycles,  the  merging 
of  which  was  the  most  important  step  in  the  formation  of  the 
complete  Corpus  Christi  play.  Both,  if  I  read  the  evidence 
aright,  existed  at  Aberdeen.  There  was  a  *  Haliblude '  play 

1  The  Norwich  play  of  the  Fall  tant,  the  Shearmen  and   Taylors' 

is  extant  in  two  sixteenth-century  play,  extending  from  the  Annun- 

versions.  elation  to  the  Massacre  of  the  Inno- 

*  The  Newcastle    play    of    the  cents,  and  the  Weavers*  play  of  the 
Building  of  the  Ark  is  extant.  Purification    and    Christ    in    the 

*  Two  Coventry  plays  are    ex-  Temple. 


GUILD  PLAYS  AND  PARISH  PLAYS        12» 

on  Corpus  Christi  day,  which  I  conceive  to  have  been  essen- 
tially a  Passion  and  Resuitection,  and  a  play  at  Candlemas, 
which  seems  to  have  included,  as  well  as  the  Purification, 
a  Stella,  a  Presentation  in  the  Temple,  and  something  in  the 
way  of  a  Prophetae.  There  were  performances  of  Passions  in 
Reading  in  1508,  in  Dublin  in  1528,  at  Shrewsbury  in  1567, 
and  in  London  in  1557  and  as  late  as  between  1613  and  1632. 
I  do  not  suppose  that  in  any  of  these  cases  c  Passion '  excludes 
c  Resurrection/  The  New  Romney  town  play,  also,  seems  to 
have  been  a  Passion  in  the  wider  sense.  The  records  of 
Easter  plays  at  Bath  (1482),  Leicester  (1504-7),  Morebath 
(1520-74),  Reading  (1507,  1533-5),  and  Kingston  (1513-65), 
are  too  slight  to  bear  much  comment.  They  may  relate  to 
almost  anything  from  a  mere  Latin  Quern  quaeritis  to  a  full 
vernacular  Passion  and  Resurrection. 

One  interesting  text  falls  to  be  considered  at  this  point. 
This  is  a  fifteenth-century  Burial  and  Resurrection  of  northern 
provenance.  It  is  very  lyrical  in  character,  and  apparently  the 
author  set  out  to  write  a  *  treyte  '  to  be  read,  and  shortly  after 
the  beginning  changed  his  mind  and  made  a  play  of  it.  There 
are  two  scenes.  The  first  is  an  elaborate  planctus,  '  to  be 
playede  on  gud-friday  after- none/  The  second,  intended  for 
'  Esterday  after  the  resurrectione,  In  the  morowe '  is  a  Quern 
quaeritis.  An  Ascension  play  was  performed  by  the  Holy 
Trinity  guild  at  Sleaford  in  1480.  A  c  Christmasse  play '  is 
recorded  at  Tintinhull  in  1451.  How  much  it  included  can 
hardly  be  guessed.  But  the  Stella  maintained  its  independent 
position,  and  is  found  at  Yarmouth  (1462-1512),  Reading 
(1499,  J539)>  Leicester  (i547)>  Canterbury  (1503),  Holbeach 
(1548),  and  Hascombe  (1579)  *• 

The  plays  just  enumerated  may  be  regarded  as  of  pre- 
cyclical  types.  But  there  are  a  few  others  which,  although 
they  occur  independently,  would  have  their  more  natural 
position  in  cycles  of  less  or  greater  range.  In  some  of  these 
cases  it  is  probable  that  the  independence  is  only  apparent, 

1  Probably  these  smaller  plays,  chapel  and  the  Resurrection  play 

chiefly  Paschal,  were  in  English,  in  Magdalen  College  chapel  may 

The    Nativity    and    Resurrection  have  been  in  Latin  (cf.  p.  107). 
plays   in    Lord  Northumberland's 


CHAMBERS.    It 


130  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

a  mere  matter  of  incomplete  evidence.  There  are  two  fifteenth- 
century  plays,  both  on  the  subject  of  Abraham  and  Isaac, 
one  of  which  is  preserved  in  the  *  Book  of  Brome '  from 
Suffolk,  the  other  in  a  manuscript  now  at  Dublin,  but  probably 
of  South  Midland  provenance.  It  is  of  course  not  impossible 
that  these  represent  isolated  performances,  but  it  is  on  the 
whole  more  likely  that  they  are  fragments  of  lost  cycles. 
A  third  play,  of  Midland  origin,  preserved  in  the  Digby 
manuscript,  occupies  an  exceptional  position.  It  deals  with 
the  Massacre  of  the  Innocents  and  the  Purification,  and 
allusions  in  a  prologue  and  epilogue  make  it  clear  that  it 
belonged  to  a  cycle  in  which  it  was  preceded  by  a  Pastores 
and  a  Magi,  and  followed  by  a  Christ  in  the  Temple.  This 
cycle,  however,  was  not  played  all  at  once,  but  apportion  was 
given  year  by  year  on  St.  Anne's  day.  One  of  the  groups  of 
plays  brought  together  in  the  Ludus  Coventriae  was  evidently 
intended  for  performance  under  similar  conditions.  It  is 
probable  that  the  ludus  Filiorum  Israelis  of  the  Cambridge 
Corpus  Christi  guild  about  1350,  the  Abraham  and  Isaac  of 
the  'schaft1  of  St.  Dunstan's,  Canterbury,  between  1491  and 
1520,  and  the  Adam  and  Eve  (1507)  and  '  Cayme's  pageaunt ' 
I5I^~5)  of  St.  Lawrence's,  Reading,  formed  parts  of  Corpus 
Christi  cycles  given  in  those  towns. 

Isolated  performances  of  plays  picked  out  of  a  cycle,  or 
upon  subjects  usually  treated  in  a  cycle,  are,  however,  not 
unknown.  One  or  more  of  the  Chester  plays  occasionally 
formed  part  of  the  civic  entertainment  of  a  royal  or  noble 
personage.  When  Henry  VII  visited  Winchester  in  1486,  the 
schoolboys  of  the  two  great  abbeys  of  Hyde  and  St.  Swithin's 
gave  a  Christi  Descensus  ad  Inferos  before  him  at  dinner. 
At  York  the  acting  of  an  'interlude  of  St.  Thomas  the 
Apostle*  on  a  St  Bartholomew's  eve  towards  the  end  of  the 
reign  of  Henry  VIII  became  the  occasion  for  a  papist  de- 
monstration. Thi?  might  have  been  either  the  Incredulity  of 
Thomas  (Play  xlii)  or  the  Apparition  of  the  Virgin  to  St. 
Thomas  in  India  (Play  xlvi)  from  the  Corpus  Christi  cycle. 
At  York,  also,  there  was,  in  the  hands  of  a  Corpus  Christi 
guild,  a  distinct  play,  frequently  performed  between  1446  and 
the  Reformation,  called  the  Creed  play.  This  was  apparently 


GUILD  PLAYS  AND  PARISH  PLAYS        131 

an  expansion  of  a  motive  found  in  the  Pentecost  scene  at 
Chester  and  probably  at  Coventry,  but  not  at  York  itself, 
wherein,  after  the  coming  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  each  of  the 
apostles  in  turn  enunciates  one  of  the  articles  of  the  so-called 
Apostles'  creed.  At  Hull,  where  I  find  no  trace  of  a  cycle, 
the  Trinity  guild  of  sea-faring  men  had  their  play  of  Noah. 
At  Lincoln,  a  play  of  Tobit,  which  does  not  actually,  so  far 
as  I  know,  form  part  of  the  Old  Testament  section  of  any 
English  cycle x,  was  substituted  for  the  regular  Corpus  Christi 
play  after  the  Reformation.  Naturally  such  exceptional  per- 
formances became  more  common  in  the  decadence  of  the 
religious  drama  2.  Thus  the  very  scratch  series  of  plays  shown 
before  the  earl  of  Kildare  at  Dublin,  in  the  Christmas  of 
1528,  included,  besides  other  contributions  both  sacred  and 
secular,  an  Adam  and  EVQ  by  the  tailors  and  a  Joseph  and 
Mary  by  the  carpenters.  The  choice  of  these  subjects  was 
evidently  motived  by  their  appropriateness  to  the  craft  re- 
presenting them.  Similarly,  when  John  Bale  was  bishop  of 
Ossory  in  1553,  he  had  performed  at  the  market-cross  of 
Kilkenny,  on  the  day  of  the  proclamation  of  Queen  Mary, 
a  short  fragment  of  a  cycle  consisting  ot&Prophetae,  a  Baptism, 
and  a  Temptation.  One  fancies  that  this  strange  protagonist 
of  the  Reformation  must  have  had  in  his  mind  some  quaint 
verbal  analogy  between  *  John  Bale  *  and  *  John  Baptist/  for 
he  states  that  he  also  wrote  a  dramatic  Vita  JD.  loannis 
Baptistae  in  fourteen  books.  Nor  is  this  the  only  example 
of  the  treatment  of  a  subject,  merely  episodic  in  the  Corpus 
Christi  cycles,  in  a  distinct  and  elaborate  play.  The  invaluable 
Digby  manuscript  contains  a  similar  expansion,  from  the  East 
or  West  Midlands,  of  the  story  of  Mary  Magdalen.  It  follows 
the  narrative  of  the  Golden  Legend,  and  introduces  the  familiar 
scenes  of  the  Raising  of  Lazarus,  the  Feast  in  the  House  of 
Simon  the  Leper,  the  Quern  quaeritis^  and  the  Hortulanus, 
preceding  these  with  episodes  of  the  life  of  the  Magdalen 
in  g audio  y  and  following  them  with  the  Conversion  of  the 

1  'Thobie*  is   included   in    the  *  On  the  way  in  which  the  later 

French    collection     of    mysteries  local  miracle-play  and  the  scriptural 

known    as    the     Viel    Testament  interlude  merge  into  each  other, 

(Julleville,  Les  Myst.  ii.  354,  370).  cf.  p.  191. 

K  3 


182  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

King  and  Queen  of  Marseilles,  and  of  Mary's  Life  in  the 
Wilderness  and  Death.  As  offshoots  from  the  Corpus  Christi 
cycle  may  also  be  regarded  the  Deaths  of  the  Apostles  played 
in  the  Dublin  series  of  1528,  Thomas  Ashton's  Julian  the 
Apostate  at  Shrewsbury  in  1565,  and  the  Destruction  of 
Jerusalem^  written  by  John  Smith  in  1584  to  take  the  place 
of  the  traditional  plays  at  Coventry  *. 

The  Mary  Magdalen  and  the  rest  of  the  group  just  de- 
scribed ^may  be  considered  as  standing  halfway  between  the 
plays  of  and  akin  to  the  Corpus  Christi  cycle  and  those  founded 
on  the  legends  of  saints.  Of  regular  saint-plays  there  are 
unfortunately  only  two  texts  available  from  these  islands. 
The  Digby  manuscript  contains  an  East  Midland  Conversion 
of  St.  Paul,  which,  however,  is  almost  wholly  biblical  and  not 
legendary.  It  will  be  remembered  that  the  subject  was  one 
known  even  to  the  liturgical  drama  2.  There  is  also  a  Cornish 
play  of  St.  Meriasek  or  Mereadocus,  the  patron  saint  of 
Camborne,  written  at  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth  century. 
Other  such  plays  are,  however,  upon  record.  It  is  perhaps 
curious  that  no  mention  should  be  found  of  any  English 
parallel  to  either  the  Saint  Nicholas  plays  or  the  Miracles  de 
Nostre  Dame  of  France.  It  can  hardly  be  doubted  that  the 
former  at  least  existed  in  connexion  with  the  widespread 
revel  of  the  Boy  Bishop  3.  The  most  popular  English  saint 
for  dramatic  purposes  appears  to  have  been  St.  George. 
A  play  of  St.  George  was  maintained  by  the  town  of  Lydd, 
and  was  probably  copied  by  a  neighbouring  guild  at  New 
Romney.  Another,  on  an  elaborate  scale,  was  given  by 
a  group  of  villages  at  Bassingbourne  in  1511.  These  seem 
to  have  been  genuine  dramas,  and  not  mere  '  ridings '  or  folk- 
plays  such  as  occur  elsewhere  4.  A  St.  George  play,  described 
by  Collier  at  Windsor  in  1416,  can  be  resolved  into  a  cake. 

1  The  Destruction  of  Jerusalem,  Mercacte  (11414).  A  representation 

together  with  the  Visit  of  Veronica  of  a  Vengeance,  following  close  on 

to  Tiberius  and  the  Death  of  Pilate,  one  of  a  Passion,  is  recorded  at 

which  are  scenes  in  the  Cornish  Metz  in  1437,  and  there  are  several 

cycle,  forms  the  subject-matter  of  later  examples  (Julie vitte,  Lts  Mysf. 

a  French  Vengeance  de  Nostre  Sei-  ii.  12,  175,  415,  451). 

gneur>  printed  in  1491.    Another  a  Cf.  p.  61. 

Vengeance  de  Nostre  Seigneur  is  8  Cf.  p.  97. 

attached  to  the  Passion  of  Eustache  4  Cf.  vol.  i.  p.  22* 


GUILD  PLAVS  AND  PARISH  PLAYS  183 
St.  Thomas  of  Canterbury  was  only  Honoured  with  a  dumb 
show  in  his  own  city,  but  there  was  a  play  upon  v\[m  at  King's 
Lynn  in  1385.  Of  quite  a  number  of  other  saint-play^  *v»e 
barest  notices  exist.  London  had  hers  on  St.  Catherine ; 
Windsor  on  St.  Clotilda ;  Coventry  on  St.  Catherine  and  St. 
Crytyan;  Lincoln  on  St.  Laurence,  St.  Susanna,  St.  Clara, 
and  St.  James ;  Shrewsbury  on  St.  Feliciana  and  St.  Sabina ; 
Bethersden  in  Kent  on  St.  Christina  ;  Braintree  in  Essex  on 
St.  Swithin,  St.  Andrew,  and  St.  Eustace.  The  Dublin  shoe- 
makers contributed  a  play  on  their  patron  saints  Crispin  and 
Crispinian  to  the  Dublin  festival  of  1528.  In  London,  the 
plays  on  the  days  of  St.  Lucy  and  St.  Margaret  at  St. 
Margaret's,  Southwark,  may  have  been  on  the  stories  of  those 
saints ;  and  during  the  Marian  reaction  a  '  goodly '  stage-play 
was  given  at  St.  Olave's  church  on  St.  Olave's  day. 

Quite  unique,  as  dealing  with  a  contemporary  '  miracle/ 
is  the  play  of  the  Blessed  Sacrament,  performed  at  one  of 
the  many  places  bearing  the  name  of  Croxton,  in  the  latter 
half  of  the  fifteenth  century.  According  to  the  manuscript, 
the  event  upon  which  it  was  based,  the  marvellous  conversion 
of  a  Jew  who  attempted  an  outrage  upon  a  host,  took  place 
at  Heraclea  in  Spain,  in  1461.  There  is,  curiously  enough, 
a  late  French  play,  quite  independent  of  the  English  one, 
upon  an  exactly  parallel  miracle  assigned  to  Paris  and  the 
thirteenth  century  *. 

The  variation  in  the  types  of  English  miracle-plays  naturally 
implies  some  variation  also  in  the  manner  of  representation. 
The  normal  craft  cycles  of  the  greater  towns  were  processional 
in  character.  They  were  not  played  throughout  by  a  single 
body  of  actors  and  upon  a  single  stage ;  but  the  action  was 
divided  into  a  number  of  independent  scenes,  to  each  of  which 
was  assigned  its  own  group  of  performers  and  its  own  small 
movable  stage  or  *  pageant.1  And  each  scene  was  repeated 
at  several  '  stations '  in  different  parts  of  the  city,  pageant 
succeeding  pageant  in  regular  order,  with  the  general  effect 
of  a  vast  procession  slowly  unrolling  itself  along  the  streets  2. 

1  Jullcville,  Les  Myst.  ii.  574.  Plays^  xix)  '  They  first  bcgannc  at 

2  Archdeacon  Rogers   thus   de-      y*  Abbaye  gates ;  &  when  the  firste 
scribes  the  Chester  plays  (Digby     pagiente  was  played  at  y®  Abbaye 


134  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

This  method  of  &*r***S  was  convenient  to  the  distribution 
of  the  lei*^rg*a  among  the  guilds,  and  was  adopted  in  all 
those  places,  Chester.  York,  Beverley,  and  Coventry,  from 
which  our  records  happen  to  be  the  fullest.  But  it  was  not  the 
primitive  method  and,  as  has  been  pointed  out  in  a  previous 
chapter,  it  probably  arose  from  an  attempt  about  the  begin- 
ning of  the  fourteenth  century  to  adapt  the  already  existing 
miracle-plays  to  the  distinctive  feature  of  the  festival  of 
Corpus  Christi.  To  this  point  it  will  be  necessary  to  recur  *, 
The  processional  play  was  rare  outside  England,  and  even  in 
England  it  at  no  period  became  universal.  Two  at  least  of 
the  great  cycles  that  survive,  the  Cornish  one  and  the  Ludus 
Coventriae^  as  well  as  several  smaller  plays,  can  be  clearly 
shown  from  internal  evidence  to  have  been  intended  for 
stationary  performance.  They  do  not  naturally  cleave  asunder 
into  distinct  scenes.  The  same  personages  appear  and  re- 
appear :  the  same  properties  and  bits  of  scenery  are  left  and 
returned  to,  often  at  considerable  intervals.  Moreover  sta- 
tionary performances  are  frequently  implied  by  the  records. 
At  Lincoln,  after  the  suppression  of  the  old  visus  of  St.  Anne's 
processional  play,  the  corporation  ordered  the  performance  of 
a  c  standing '  play  '  of  some  story  of  the  Bible.'  At  Newcastle, 
although  pageants  of  the  plays  went  in  the  procession,  the 
actual  performance  seems  to  have  been  given  in  a  '  stead.' 
This  arrangement  is  exactly  parallel  to  that  of  the  Florentine 
rappresentazioni  on  St.  John's  day  in  1454 2.  Elsewhere 
there  was  commonly  enough  no  *  pageant '  at  all.  The  *  stand- 
ing' plays  may  be  traced  at  various  removes  from  their 
original  scene,  the  floor  of  the  church  3.  Indeed,  the  exam- 
ples of  Braintree  in  1523  and  1525,  of  Halstead  in  1529,  of 
Heybridge  in  1532,  seem  to  show  that,  quite  apart  from  the 
survival  of  ritual  plays  proper,  the  miracle-play,  even  at  the 
very  moment  of  t  its  extinction,  had  not  been  always  and 
everywhere  excluded  from  the  church  itself.  The  Beverley 

gates,  then  it  was  wheeled  from  ye  Bridge-streete,  and  soe  all,  one 

thence  to  the  pentice  at  y«  highe  after  an  other,  tell  all  y*  pagiantes 

crosse  before  y«  Mayor  ;  and  before  weare  played.' 

that  was  donne,  the  seconde  came,  *  Cf.  pp.  95,  160. 

and  y*  firste  wente  in-to  the  water-  f  D'Ancona,  i.  228. 

gate  streete,  and  from  thence  vnto  '  Cf.  p.  83. 


GUILD  PLAYS  AND  PARtSH  PLAYS        135 

repratsentatio  dominicae  resurrtctionis  about  1220  had  got  as 
far  as  the  churchyard.  At  Bungay  in  1566  they  played  in 
the  churchyard,  and  at  Harling  in  1452  '  at  the  cherch  gate.1 
The  latest  of  all  the  village  plays,  that  of  Hascombe  in  1579, 
was  at,  but  perhaps  not  in  the  church.  The  next  step 
brought  the  plays  to  the  market-place,  which  itself  in  many 
towns  lay  just  outside  the  church  door.  At  Louth  the 
Corpus  Christi  play  was  in  the  '  markit-stede,1  and  so  were 
some  at  least  of  the  Reading  plays.  A  neighbouring  field 
might  be  convenient ;  the  Bassingbourne  play  was  in  a  *  croft/ 
that  of  Chelmsford  in  a  c  pightell.'  Certain  places  had  a  bit 
of  waste  ground  traditionally  devoted  to  the  entertainment 
of  the  citizens.  Such  were  the  '  Forbury '  at  Reading  and 
the  '  Quarry '  at  Shrewsbury.  The  Aberdeen  Haliblude  play 
took  place  apud  ly  Wyndmylhill.  Edinburgh  constructed  its 
'playfield*  in  the  Greenside  at  considerable  cost  in  1554, 
while  in  Cornwall  permanent  amphitheatres  were  in  use. 
A  writer  contemporary  with  the  later  performances  describes 
these  as  made  of  earth  in  open  fields  with  an  enclosed  '  playne  ' 
of  some  fifty  feet  in  diameter.  If  they  are  correctly  identified 
with  the  '  rounds '  of  St.  Just  and  Perranzabulo,  these  examples 
at  least  were  much  larger.  The  St.  Just  round  is  of  stone, 
with  seven  tiers  of  seats,  and  measures  126  feet  in  diameter  ; 
the  earthen  one  at  Perranzabulo  is  130  feet,  and  has  a  curious 
pit  in  the  centre,  joined  to  the  edge  by  a  trench.  The  dis- 
position of  these  rounds  at  the  time  of  performance  can  be 
studied  in  the  diagrams  reproduced  from  the  fifteenth-century 
manuscript  of  the  plays  by  Mr.  Norris.  Within  a  circular 
area  is  arranged  a  ring  of  eight  spots  which  probably  represent 
structures  elevated  above  the  general  surface  of  the  '  playne/ 
They  have  labels  assigning  them  to  the  principal  actors. 
Thus  for  the  Origo  Mundi  the  labels  are  Celum,  Tortores> 
Infernum^  Rex  Pharao,  Rex  Dauidy  Rex  Sa1\pmon\  Abraham^ 
Ortus.  From  the  stage  directions  it  would  appear  that  the 
raised  portions  were  called  pulpita  or  tenti,  and  by  Jordan 
at  a  later  date  *  rooms  ' ;  that  the  '  playne '  was  the  platea ; 
and  that  the  action  went  on  partly  on  the  pulpita,  partly 
on  the  platea  between  them.  Except  that  it  is  circular 
instead  of  oblong,  the  scheme  corresponds  exactly  to  that 


136  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

of  the  continental  plays  shown  in  an  earlier  chapter  to  have 
been  determined  by  the  conditions  of  performance  within 
a  church l.  Those  plays  also  had  their  platea ;  and  their 
domus,  loca,  or  sedes  answer  to  the  pulpita  and  tenti  of  Corn- 
wall. Judging  by  the  somewhat  scanty  indications  available, 
the  disposition  of  other  English  '  standing '  plays  must  have 
been  on  very  similar  lines.  In  some  cases  there  is  evidence 
that  the  level  platea  was  replaced  by  a  raised  'platform/ 
4  scaffold/  or  *  stage.'  Thus  Chaucer's  '  joly  Absolon  '  played 
Herod  *  on  a  scaffold  hye  V  But  the  '  stages '  or  '  scaffolds  ' 
mentioned  in  accounts  are  sometimes  merely  for  the  spectators 
and  sometimes  equivalent  to  the  loca  of  leading  actors.  In 
the  Digby  play  of  St.  Mary  Magdalen,  a  practicable  ship 
moves  about  t\it  platea.  Possibly  a  similar  bit  of  realism  was 
used  elsewhere  for  the  ever  popular  '  Noy  schippe/  and,  if  so, 
this  may  explain  the  pit  and  trench  of  the  Perranzabulo '  round  V 
As  to  the  '  pageant '  or  movable  stage  of  the  processional 
plays,  a  good  deal  of  information  is  preserved.  Dugdale 
describes  it  at  Coventry  as  a  *  Theater  .  .  .  very  large  and 
high,  placed  upon  wheels ' ;  Rogers  at  Chester  as  '  a  highe 
place  made  like  a  howse  with  ij  rowmes,  beinge  open  on 
ye  tope :  the  lower  rowme  they  apparelled  and  dressed  them 
selues ;  and  in  the  higher  rowme  they  played ;  and  they 
stood  vpon  6  (v.l.  4)  wheeles.'  According  to  an  inventory 
of  1565  the  grocers'  pageant  at  Norwich  was  'a  Howse  of 
Waynskott  paynted  and  buylded  on  a  Carte  w*  fowre 
whelys/  It  had  a  square  top  or  canopy ;  on  it  were  placed 
a  gilt  griffin  and  two  large  and  eighty-three  small  vanes  ;  and 
about  it  were  hung  three  painted  cloths.  Similar  adornments 
of  the  pageant  were  in  use  at  Coventry.  At  York  it  bore 
the  arms  of  the  city  or  of  the  guild.  M.  Jusserand  has 
unearthed  from  a  Bodleian  manuscript  two  fourteenth-century 
miniatures  which  apparently  represent  pageants.  These  have 
draperies  covering  the  whole  of  the  lower  4  room '  down  to  the 

1  Cf.  p.  83.  Reading,  Dublin. 

1  C  T.  3384  (MilleSs  Tale).  *  Cf.  M.  Jusserand,  in  Furnivall 

This  'scaffold'  may  have  .been  Miscellany,  186,  and  the  pit  for  La 

merely  a  throne  or  sedes  for  Herod.  Mer  on  the  1547  Valenciennes  Pas- 

But  plays  on  platforms  or  scaffolds  sion  play  stage  figured  in  his  Shake- 

are  found  at  Chelmsford,  Kingston,  speare  in  France^  63. 


GUILD  PLAYS  AND  PARISH  PLAYS        187 

ground  and  resemble  nothing  so  much  as  the  ambulant  theatre 
of  a  Punch  and  Judy  show l.  The  pageants  were  probably 
arranged  so  that  the  action  might  be  visible  from  every  side. 
The  scenery  would  therefore  be  simple — a  throne,  a  house. 
Certain  plays,  however,  necessitate  a  divided  scene,  such  as 
the  inside  and  outside  of  a  temple2.  For  the  'hell/  the 
traditional  monstrous  head  on  a  lower  level,  with  practicable 
chains  and  fire,  was  required  3.  The  pageant  used  for  the 
Flood  scene  was  doubtless  shaped  like  an  ark,  '  The  c  shipp  ' 
belonging  to  the  Trinity  guild  of  Hull  cost  £5  8j.  ^d.  The 
ordinary  pageant  may  have  been  less  expensive.  That  of 
the  Doom  at  York  was  made  '  of  newe  substanciale  *  for  seven 
marks,  the  old  pageant  and  a  free  admission  into  the  guild. 
At  Lincoln  three  times  as  much  was  charged  for  housing  the 
ship  as  for  any  other  pageant. 

The  origin  of  the  pageant  is  capable  of  a  very  easy  explana- 
tion4.    Like  the  edifizio  of  the   Italian  rappresentazioni,  it 


1  Furnivall  Miscellany y  192, 194, 
from  BodL  MS.  264,  if.  54*,  76*. 

8  The  directions  to  the  Coventry 
Weavers*  play  refer  to  the  *  for  pa- 
gand '  and  the  '  upper  part ' ;  those 
of  the  Grocers'  play  at  Norwich  to 
the 'nether  parte  of  ye  pageant/  For 
the  purposes  of  the  dramas  these 
are  distinct  localities. 

8  Cf.  p.  86.  The  Digby  St.  Mary 
Magdalen  play  has  the  stage  direc- 
tion, 'a  stage,  and  Helle  ondyr- 
neth  that  stage.'  At  Coventry  the 
Cappers  had  a  '  hell-mouth '  for  the 
Harrowing  of  Hell  and  the 
Weavers  another  for  Doomsday. 

*  Every  conceivable  spelling  of 
the  word  '  pageant '  appears  in  the 
records.  The  Promptorium  Parvu- 
lorum^  ii.  377  (f  1440,  ed.  A.  Way 
for  Camd.  Soc.),  has  '  Pagent,  Pa- 
ginaj  and  this  is  the  usual  Latin 
spelling,  although  pagenda  and 
pagentes  (ace.  pi. )  occur  at  Beverley. 
The  derivation  is  from  pagina  *a 
plank.'  The  Catholicon  Anglicum 
(1483,  ed.  S.  J.  H.  Heritage  for 
E.  E.  T.  S.)  has  •  A  Paiande ;  luso* 
riumj  and  there  can  be  little  doubt- 
that  '  playing-place,'  '  stage  *  is  the 
primary  sense  oi  the  word,  although 


as  a  matter  of  fact  the  derivative 
sense  of  'scene'  or  'episode'  is  the 
first  to  appear.  Wyclif  so  uses  it, 
speaking  of  Christmas  in  his  Ave 
Maria  (English  Works,  E,  E.  T.  S. 
206) '  he  that  kan  best  pleie  a  pagyn 
of  the  deuyl,  syngynge  songis  of 
lecherie,  of  batailis  and  of  lesyngis 
...  is  holden  most  merie  mon.'  In 
Of  Prelates  (loc.  cit.  99)  he  says  that 
false  teachers  'comen  in  viserid 
deuelis*  and  'pleien  the  pagyn  of 
scottis/  masking  under  St.  George's 
'skochen.'  The  elaborate  pageants 
used  in  masks  and  receptions  (cf. 
p.  176,  and  vol.  i.  p.  398)  led  to  a 
further  derivative  sense  of  'mechan- 
ical device.'  This,  as  well  as  the 
others,  is  illustrated  in  the  passages 
quoted  by  the  editors  of  the  Prompt. 
Parv.  and  the  Cath.  Angl.  from  W. 
Herman,  author  of  Vulgaria  (1519) 
'  Alexander  played  a  payante  more 
worthy  to  be  wondred  vpon  for  his 
rasshe  aduenture  than  for  his  man- 
hede  . . .  There  were  v  coursis  in 
the  feest  and  as  many  paiantis  in 
the  pley.  I  wyll  haue  made  v  stag; 
or  bouthis  in  this  playe  (scenas). 
I  wolde  haue  a  place  in  the  middyl 
of  the  pley  (orchestra)  that  I  myght 


138  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

is  simply  the  raised  locus,  sedes>  or  domus  of  the  stationary 
play  put  upon  wheels.  Just  as  the  action  of  the  stationary 
play  took  place  partly  on  the  various  sedes,  partly  in  the 
platea,  so  Coventry  actors  come  and  go  to  and  from  the 
pageant  in  the  street.  €  Here  Erode  ragis  in  the  pagond  &  in 
the  strete  also/  says  a  stage  direction.  It  should  be  observed 
that  the  plays  at  Coventry  were  exceptionally  long,  and  that 
scaffolds  seem  to  have  been  attached  to  the  pageant  proper  in 
order  to  get  sufficient  space. 

The  number  of  '  stations '  at  which  the  plays  were  given 
varied  in  the  different  towns.  At  York  there  were  from 
twelve  to  sixteen ;  at  Beverley  six ;  at  Coventry  not  more 
than  three  or  four  can  be  identified.  The  many  scenes  and 
frequent  repetitions  naturally  made  the  processional  plays 
very  lengthy  affairs.  At  Chester  they  were  spread  over  three 
days ;  at  York  they  were  got  through  in  one,  but  playing 
began  at  half-past  four  in  the  morning.  At  Newcastle,  on  the 
other  hand,  the  plays  were  in  the  afternoon.  The  banns  of 
the  Ludus  Coventriae  promise  a  performance  'at  vj  of  the 
belle,'  but  whether  in  the  morning  or  evening  is  not  stated. 

The  normal  occasion  for  the  greater  plays  was  the  feast 
of  Corpus  Christi  on  the  Thursday  after  Trinity  Sunday. 
A  few  exceptions  are,  however,  to  be  noted.  At  Chester, 
Norwich,  New  Romney,  and  apparently  Leicester,  the  date 
chosen  was  Whitsuntide.  Yet  at  Chester  the  play  is  called 
the  '  Corpus  Christi  play '  in  craft  documents  of  the  fifteenth 
century,  and  even  in  the  municipal  *  White  Book '  of  the 
sixteenth;  from  which  it  must  be  inferred  either  that  the 
term  was  used  of  all  cyclical  plays  without  regard  to  their 
date,  or,  more  probably,  that  at  Chester  a  performance 
originally  given  on  Corpus  Christi  day  had  been  for  some 
reason  transferred  to  Whitsuntide.  The  motive  may  have 
been  a  desire  to  avoid  clashing  between  the  plays  and  the 
great  Corpus  Christi  procession  in  which  the  crafts  everywhere 

se  euery  paiaunt.    Of  all  the  crafty  'cariadge'  (Chester)  and  <karref 

and  subtyle  paiantis  and  pecis  of  (Beverley);  in  the  sense  of ' scene,1 

warke  made  by  mannys  wyt,  to  go  iocus  (Coventry),  visus  (Lincoln), 

or  moue  by  them  selfe,  the  clocke  processus  or  'processe*  (Towneley 

is  one  of  the  beste.1    Synonyms  for  andDigby  plays,  Croxton  Sacra****/ 

'  pageant '  in  the  sense  of €  stage f  are  and  Med*,vall's  morality  of  Nature). 


GUILD  PLAYS  AND  PARISH  PLAYS        189 

took  a  prominent  part.  A  difficulty  arose  on  this  score  at 
York  in  1436,  and  a  Franciscan  preacher,  one  William  Melton, 
tried  to  induce  the  citizens  to  have  the  plays  on  the  day 
before  Corpus  Christi.  Ultimately  the  alternative  was  adopted 
of  having  the  procession  on  the  day  after.  At  Lincoln  the 
plays  were  on  St.  Anne's  day  (July  36)  and  the  last  pageant 
was  acted  by  the  clergy  in  the  nave  of  the  cathedral.  At 
Aberdeen  there  appear  to  have  been  two  cycles,  a  pro-> 
cessional  Nativity  at  Candlemas  and  a  Haliblude  play  on 
Windmill  Hill  at  Corpus  Christi. 

The  oversight  of  the  actors  was,  as  pointed  out  in  the  last 
chapter,  an  important  element  in  the  civic  control  of  the 
craft-plays.  The  mention  at  York  of  a  commission  of 
'connyng,  discrete  and  able  players'  must  not  be  taken  to 
imply  that  these  were  in  any  sense  professionals.  All 
the  actors  received  fees,  on  a  scale  proportionate  to  the 
dignity  of  their  parts.  Thus  at  Coventry  one  Fawston  got 
4d.  c  for  hangyng  Judas/  and  4^.  more  '  for  coc  croyng.1 
The  payment  to  the  performer  of  God  was  y.  ^d,  A 
'sowle,'  whether  'savyd*  or  'dampnyd,'  got  2o</.,  and  a 
'  worme  of  conscyence  *  only  &/.  At  Hull,  Noah  was  generally 
paid  is.,  God  and  Noah's  wife  a  trifle  less.  But  there  is 
nothing  to  show  that  the  performers  were  drawn  from  the 
minstrel  class :  they  were  probably,  like  *  joly  Absolon,'  mem- 
bers of  the  guilds  undertaking  the  plays.  The  Chester  men 
describe  themselves  in  their  banns  as  not  *  playeres  of  price  * 
but  *  Craftes  men  and  meane  men.1  The  epilogue  to  the 
Conversion  of  St.  Paul?  in  the  Digby  manuscript  similarly 
deprecates  unkindly  criticism  of  folk  'lackyng  lytturall 
scycns  .  .  .  that  of  Retoryk  haue  non  intellygens.'  A  char- 
acteristic of  the  acting  which  greatly  impressed  the  imagina- 
tion of  the  audience  seems  to  have  been  the  rant  and  bombast 
put  from  very  early  times  in  the  mouths  of  such  royal  or 
pseudo-royal  personages  as  Herod  and  Pilate.1  In  the  Chester 
1  Cf.  p.  90,  and  Hamlet,  iii.  2.  able  dumb-shows  and  noise:  I 
9  '  O,  it  offends  me  to  the  soul  to  would  have  such  a  fellow  whipped 
hear  a  robustious  peri  wig-pate  d  for  o'erdoing  Termagant;  it  out- 
fellow  tear  a  passion  to  tatters,  to  herods  Herod/  The  Miller  in 
very  rags,  to  split  the  ears  of  the  Cant.  Tales,  3124,  cries  out  'in  Pi- 
groundlings,  who  for  the  most  part  lates  vois.'  The  torturers  also  seem 
are  capable  of  nothing  but  inexplic-  to  have  been  favourite  performers ; 


140  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

plays  fragments  of  French,  as  in  a  liturgical  play  frag- 
ments of  gibberish x,  are  used  to  enhance  this  effect.  In  the 
Cornish  plays,  as  in  the  modern  music  hall,  each  performer 
at  his  first  appearance  displays  himself  in  a  preliminary  strut 
about  the  stage.  Hie  pompabit  Abraham,  or  Moses >  or  David, 
say  the  stage  directions.  As  is  usually  the  case  with 
amateurs,  the  function  of  the  prompter  became  an  exceed- 
ingly important  one.  If  the  Cornish  writer  Richard  Carew 
may  be  trusted,  the  local  players  did  not  learn  their  parts 
at  all,  but  simply  repeated  them  aloud  after  the  whispers  of 
the  *  ordinary  V  Probably  this  was  exceptional ;  it  certainly 
was  not  the  practice  at  Beverley,  where  there  is  a  record  of 
an  actor  being  fined  quod  nesciebat  ludum  suum.  But  it  may 
be  taken  for  granted  that  the  *  beryng  of  the  boke/  which  is 
so  frequently  paid  for  in  the  accounts,  was  never  a  sinecure. 
Another  functionary  who  occasionally  appears  is  the  stage- 
manager.  In  the  later  Cornish  plays  he  is  called  the  ccon- 
veyour/  The  great  Chelmsford  performance  of  1562  was 
superintended  by  one  Buries  who  was  paid,  with  others,  for 
'  suing '  it,  and  who  probably  came  from  a  distance,  as  he  and 
his  boy  were  boarded  for  three  weeks. 

The  professional  assistance  of  the  minstrels,  although  not 
called  in  for  the  acting,  was  welcome  for  the  music.  This 
was  a  usual  and  a  considerable  item  in  the  expenses.  At  the 
Chelmsfoni  performance  just  mentioned  the  waits  of  Bristol 
and  no  less  than  forty  other  minstrels  were  employed.  There 
is  no  sign  of  a  musical  accompaniment  to  the  dialogue  of 
the  existing  plays,  which  was  spoken,  and  not,  like  that  of 
their  liturgical  forerunners,  chanted.  But  the  York  and 
Coventry  texts  contain  some  noted  songs,  and  several  plays 
have  invitations  to  the  minstrels  to  strike  up  at  the  conclusion 
or  between  the  scenes.  Minstrels  are  also  found  accom- 
panying the  proclaimers  of  the  banns  or  preliminary 
announcements  of1  plays.  These  banns  seem  to  have  been 

cf.  the  Poem  on  the  Evil  Times  of  *  In  Jean  Fouquet's  miniature 

Edward  II  (T.  Wright,  Political  representing  the  French  mystery  oi 

Soqgs,  C.  S.  336) :  St.  Apollonia  (cf.  p.  85)  a  priest, 

'Hh  ben  degised  as  turmentours  with  a  book  in  one  hand  and  a  wand 

that  comen  from  cierkes  plei.'  in  the  other,  appears  to  be  conduct- 

1  Cf.  p.  48.  ing  the  play. 


GUILD  PLAYS  AND  PARISH  PLAYS        141 

versified,  like  the  plays  themselves.  They  are  often  men- 
tioned, and  several  copies  exist.  Those  of  Chester  were 
proclaimed  by  the  city  crier  MI  St.  George's  day ;  those  of 
theCroxton  play  and  the  Ludus  Coventriae  were  carried  round 
the  country-side  by  vexillatores  or  banner-bearers.  Minstrelsy 
was  not  the  only  form  of  lighter  solace  provided  for  the 
spectators  of  the  plays.  Two  of  those  in  the  Digby  manu- 
script were  accompanied  with  dances.  At  Bungay  a  *  vyce  \ 
was  paid  '  for  his  pastyme  before  the  plaie,  and  after  the 
plaie.'  There  were  *  vices '  too  at  Chelmsford,  and  '  fools/ 
by  which  is  meant  the  same  thing  \  at  Heybridge  and  New 
Romney.  But  these  examples  are  taken  from  the  decadence 
of  the  miracle-play,  rather  than  from  its  heyday. 

The  accounts  of  the  Bassingbourne  play  in  1511  include 
a  payment  to  'the  garnement  man  for  garnements  and 
propyrts  and  playbooks.'  This  was  an  occasional  and  not 
an  annual  play,  and  apparently  at  the  beginning  of  the  six- 
teenth century  such  plays  were  sufficiently  frequent  to  render 
the  occupation  of  theatrical  outfitter  a  possible  one.  Certainly 
those  lucky  parishes,  such  as  Chelmsford  or  St.  Peter's,  Oxford, 
which  possessed  a  stock  of  *  game  gear/  found  a  profit  in 
letting  it  out  to  less  favoured  places.  The  guilds  respon- 
sible for  the  greater  plays  naturally  preserved  their  own 
costumes  and  "properties  from  year  to  year,  supplementing 
these  where  necessary  by  loans  from  the  neighbouring  gentry 
and  clergy.  The  Middle  Ages  were  not  purists  about 
anachronism,  and  what  was  good  enough  for  an  English 
bishop  was  good  enough  for  Annas  and  Caiaphas.  The 
hands  of  the  craftsmen  who  acted  were  discreetly  cased 
in  the  gloves,  without  which  no  ceremonial  occasion  was 
complete,  and  sometimes,  at  least,  vizors  or  masks  were 
worn.  But,  as  a  rule,  the  stage  setting  left  a  good  deal  to 
the  imagination.  The  necessaries  for  the  play  of  Paradise 
at  Beverley  in  1391  consisted  of  the  'karre*  or  pageant, 
eight  hasps,  eighteen  staples,  two  vizors,  a  pair  of  wings  for 
the  angel,  a  fir-spar  (the  tree  of  knowledge),  a  worm  (the 
serpent),  two  pairs  of  linen  breeches,  two  pairs  of  shifts,  and 
one  sword.  For  a  similar  play  the  Norwich  grocers  possessed 

1  Cfc  p.  203. 


142  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

in  1565,  besides  the  pageant  and  its  fittings,  sufficient  '  cotes 
and  hosen '  for  all  the  characters,  that  of  the  serpent  being 
fitted  with  a  tail,  a  '  face '  and  hair  for  the  Father,  hair  for 
Adam  and  Eve,  and — 'a  Rybbe  colleryd  Red.'  A  few  other 
interesting  details  can  be  gathered  from  various  records.  At 
Canterbury  the  steeds  of  the  Magi  were  made  of  hoops  and 
laths  and  painted  canvas.  In  the  Doomsday  scene  at 
Coventry  the '  savyd  '  and '  dampnyd  '  souls  were  distinguished 
by  their  white  or  black  colour 1.  The  hell  mouth  was  pro- 
vided with  fire,  a  windlass,  and  a  barrel  for  the  earthquake. 
There  were  also  three  worlds  to  be  set  afire,  one,  it  may  be 
supposed,  at  each  station.  The  stage  directions  to  Jordan's 
Cornish  Creation  of  the  World  are  full  of  curious  information. 
The  Father  appears  in  a  cloud  and  when  he  speaks  out  of 
heaven,  'let  ye  levys  open/  Lucifer  goes  down  to  hell 
*  apareled  fowle  wth  fyre  about  hem '  and  the  plain  is  filled 
with  *  every  degre  of  devylls  of  lether  and  spirytis  on  cordis.' 
In  Paradise  a  fountain  and  *  fyne  flowers  '  suddenly  spring  up, 
and  a  little  later  *  let  fyshe  of  dyuers  sortis  apeare  &  serten 
beastis.'  Lucifer  becomes  *  a  fyne  serpent  made  wth  a  virgyn 
face&  yolo we  heare  upon  her  head.'  Adam  and  Eve  depart- 
ing from  Paradise  *  shewe  a  spyndell  and  a  dystaff.'  For  the 
murder  of  Abel,  according  to  old  tradition,  a  c  chawbone  ' 
is  needed  2,  and  for  the  ark,  timber  and  tools,  including  '  a 
mallet,  a  calkyn  yren,  ropes,  masstes,  pyche  and  tarr.'  I  have 
not  space  to  dwell  further  on  these  archaeological  minutiae. 
One  point,  however,  seems  to  deserve  another  word.  Many 
writers  have  followed  Warton  in  asserting  that  Adam  and 
Eve  were  represented  on  the  stage  in  actual  nakedness 3, 

1  Hen.    V,  ii.   3.  42    'Do  you  their  nakedness:  this  very  pertinent- 
lot  remember,  a*  saw  a  flea  stick  ly  introduces   the  next  scene,  in 
ipon  Bardolph's  nose,  and  a9  said  which  they  have  coverings  of  fig* 
t  was  a  black  soul  burning  in  hell*  leaves.    This    extraordinary  spec* 
ire?'  tacle  was  beheld  by  a  numerous 

2  Hamlet,  v.  I.  85  ( Cain's  jaw-  assembly  of  both  sexes  with  great 
x>ne,  that  did  the  first  'murder.1  composure :  they  had  the  authority 

8  Warton,  ii.  223  ( In  these  Mys-  of  scripture  for  such  a  representa- 

eries  I  have  sometimes  seen  gross  tion,  and  they  gave  matters  just  as 

md  open  obscenities.    In  a  play  of  they  found  them  in  the  third  chap- 

The  Old  and  New  Testament^  Adam  tcr  of  Genesis.    It  would  have  been 

md  Eve  are  both  exhibited  on  the  absolute  heresy  to  have  departed 

»tage  naked,  and  conversing  about  from  the  sacred  text  in  personating 


GUILD  PLAYS  AND  PARISH  PLAYS        148 

The  statement  is  chiefly  based  upon  a  too  literal  interpretation 
of  the  stage  directions  of  the  Chester  plays l.  There  is  a  fine 
a  priori  improbability  about  it,  and  as  a  matter  of  fact  there  can 
be  very  little  doubt  that  the  parts  were  played,  as  they  would 
have  been  on  any  other  stage  in  any  other  period  of  the 
world's  history,  except  possibly  at  the  Roman  Floralia*>  in 
fleshings.  Jordan  is  quite  explicit  Adam  and  TLve  are  to  be 
4  aparlet  in  whytt  lether,'  and  although  Jordan's  play  is  a  late 
one,  I  think  it  may  be  taken  for  granted  that  white  leather  was 
sufficient  to  meet  the  exigencies  even  of  mediaeval  realism. 

The  accounts  of  miracle-plays  frequently  contain  entries  of 
payments  for  providing  copies  of  the  text  used.  When  the 
sto'ck  of  the  Chelmsford  play  was  dispersed  in  1574,  the 
copies  were  valued  at  £4.  Such  copies  were  naturally  of  more 
than  one  kind.  There  was  the  authoritative  text  kept  for 
reference  by  the  guild  or  other  body  of  presenters.  This  is 
sometimes  called  the  '  play-book '  or  €  game-book.1  The 
Cornish  term  is  ordinale,  a  derivative  from  the  ordo  of  the 
liturgical  drama  8.  That  in  use  elsewhere  is  more  commonly 
'  original/  which  appears  in  a  variety  of  quaint  spellings  4.  In 
the  great  towns  where  plays  were  given  by  the  crafts  under 
the  general  supervision  of  the  corporation,  each  craft  held  the 
*  original '  of  its  own  play,  but  approved  transcripts  of  these 
were  also  in  the  hands  of  the  corporation  officers.  At  Chester 
this  transcript  was  itself  called  the  '  original ' ;  at  York  it  was 
the  registrant.  Most  of  the  extant  manuscripts  of  plays 
appear  to  be  of  the  nature  of  'originals.'  From  York  and 
probably  from  Wakefield  we  have  registra.  The  Chester 
texts  are,  however,  late  transcripts  due  to  the  zeal  of  local 
antiquaries,  perhaps  in  view  of  some  frustrated  revival. 
Specimens  exist  also  of  two  other  kinds  of  copy.  There  are 
single  plays  from  both  Chester  and  York  which  have  all  the 
appearance  of  having  been  folded  up  for  the  pocket  of  a 

the  primitive  appearance  of  our  or  prompter  (p.  140)  is  the  man  in 

first  parents,  whom  the  spectators  charge  of  the  ordinals. 

so  nearly  resembled  in  simplicity.'  4  *  Oreginale  de  S.  Maria  Ma$da- 

1  Deimling,  i.  30  'Statim  nudi  lena*     (Digby    MS.)\     'originall 

sunt  .. .  Tune  Adam  et  Eva  co-  booke,'  'regenall,'  'rygynall,'  *or- 

operiant  genitalia  sua  cum  foliis.'  raginall '    (Chester) ;      '  oxygynall,' 

*  Cf.  vol.  i.  p.  5.  'rygenale'  (Coventry) ;   ' 

'  Cf.  p.  103.    So  the  'ordinary9  (Louth);  'ryginall'  (SI 


144  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

prompter.  And  the  nature  of  the  '  parts '  prepared  for  in- 
dividual actors  may  be  seen  from  the  transition  example 
edited  by  Professor  Skeat  from  a  manuscript  found  at  Shrews- 
bury. They  contained  the  actors'  own  speeches,  with  the 
'cues'  or  closing  words  of  the  preceding  speeches  which 
signalled  to  him  that  his  turn  was  at  hand  *. 

Indications  of  the  authorship  of  plays  are  very  scanty. 
John  Bale  has  preserved  a  list  of  his  own  plays,  some  at 
least  of  which  were  acted  in  mediaeval  fashion.  It  may 
perhaps  be  assumed  that  Nicholas  Udall,  afterwards  author 
of  Ralph  Roister  Doister^  wrote  the  play  performed  at  Brain- 
tree  in  1534,  while  he  was  vicar  there.  At  Bassingbourne 
in  1511  one  John  Hobarde,  'brotherhood  priest,1  was  paid 
1  for  the  play-book/  In  this  and  in  several  of  the  following 
cases  it  is  impossible  to  determine  whether  an  author  or 
merely  a  copying  scribe  is  in  question.  The  corporation  of 
Beverley  employed  Master  Thomas  Bynham,  a  friar  preacher, 
to  write  '  banis '  for  their  plays  in  1423.  At  Reading  we  find 
Mr.  Laborne  *  reforming '  the  Resurrection  play  about  1533. 
The  later  Cornish  play  of  the  Creation  of  the  World  was 
'  wryten'  by  William  Jordan  in  1611,  and  that  of  St.  Meriasek 
by  '  dominus  Hadton '  in  1504.  At  Bungay  William  Ellys  was 
paid  in  1558  '  for  the  interlude  and  game-book2,  and  Stephen 
Prewett,  a  priest  at  Norwich,  for  some  labour  about  the  matter 
of  a  game-book  in  1536.  This  same  Stephen  Prewett  had 
a  fee  from  the  Norwich  grocers  *  for  makyng  of  a  new  ballet ' 
in  1534*  One  of  the  extant  Coventry  plays  was  'nevly 
correcte'  and  the  other  'nevly  translate'  by  Robert  Croo  in 
1535-  The  name  *  Thomas  Mawdycke '  and  the  date  1591  are 
written  at  the  head  of  some  songs  belonging  to  the  former. 
In  1566  Thomas  Nycles  set  a  song  for  the  drapers.  Robert 
Croo  or  Crowe  seems  to  have  made  himself  generally  useful 
in  connexion  with  the  Coventry  plays.  In  1563  the  smiths 
paid  him  for  *ij  leves  of  our  pley  boke.'  In  1557  he  wrote 
the '  boke '  for  the  drapers,  and  between  1556  and  1562  further 
assisted  them  by  playing  God,  mending  the  €  devell's  cottes,1 

*  Cf.  p.  90.  bought,  from  which  the  'partes/ 

1  As  the   price  paid  was  only     at  a  cost  of  MjV  were  written;  cf. 
iiij* '  a  printed  play  was  probably     p.  192. 


GUILD  PLAYS  AND  PARISH  PLAYS       146 

and  supplying  <iij  worldys*  for  burning  and  a  hat  for  the 
Pharisee.  A  later  Coventry  playwright  was  John  Smith  of 
St.  John's  College,  Oxford,  who  wrote  the  *  new  play  *  of  the 
Destruction  of  Jerusalem  in  1584  for  a  sum  of  ^13  6s.  &/. 
The  fifteenth-century  Croxton  play  has  the  initials  '  R.  C.' 
One  of  the  plays  in  the  Digby  manuscript  *  Ihon  Parfre  ded 
wryte.1  The  three  others  have  the  initials  *  M.  B./  and  against 
the  Poeta  of  the  prologue  to  one  of  them  a  later  hand  has 
written  in  the  margin  c  Myles  Blomfylde.'  I  repeat  the  caution 
that  some  at  least  of  these  names  may  be  those  of  mere 
copyists.  Miles  Blomfield  has  been  identified  with  a  monk 
of  Bury  of  that  name.  As  he  was  born  in  1525  he  obviously 
was  not  the  original  author  of  the  Digby  plays,  which  are 
probably  of  the  fifteenth  century.  A  much  greater  monk  of 
Bury,  John  Lydgate,  has  been  claimed  as  the  author  oftheLudus 
Coventriae>  but  there  does  not  seem  to  be  any  real  evidence 
for  this l.  On  the  other  hand  I  see  no  reason  to  doubt  the 
old  Chester  tradition  which  connects  the  plays  of  that  city 
with  the  name  of  Randulph  Higden,  author  of  tiitPolychronicon. 
The  story  is  very  fairly  coherent,  and  the  date  (1328)  which 
it  assigns  for  the  plays  falls  within  the  period  of  Higden's 
monastic  life  at  St.  Werburgh's  abbey. 

It  must,  of  course,  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  notion  of  author- 
ship is  only  imperfectly  applicable  to  the  miracle-plays.  The 
task  of  the  playwrights  was  one  less  of  original  composition 
than  of  adaptation,  of  rewriting  and  rearranging  existing 
texts  so  as  to  meet  the  needs  of  the  particular  performances 
in  which  they  were  interested.  Obviously  this  was  a  process 
that  could  be  carried  out  with  more  or  with  less  individuality. 
There  were  slavish  adapters  and  there  were  liberal  adapters. 
But  on  the  whole  the  literary  problem  of  the  plays  lies  in 
tracing  the  evolution  of  a  form  rather  than  in  appreciating 
individual  work.  Even  when  written,  the  plays,  if  periodically 
performed,  were  subject  to  frequent  revision,  motived  partly 
by  the  literary  instinct  for  furbishing  up,  partly  by  changing 
conditions,  such  as  the  existence  of  a  varying  number  of  craft- 

1  Ritson,    BibL    Poet.   79,    in-  tified.    On  the '  Procession  of  Coi> 

eluded  in  his  list  of  Lydgate's  works  pus  Christi,'  which  follows  in  the 

a  *  Procession  of  pageants  from  the  fist,  cf.  p.  161. 
creation9  which  has  not  teen  iden- 

CHAMBKlg.   11  L 


146  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

guilds  ready  to  undertake  the  responsibility  for  a  scene1. 
Further  alterations,  on  theological  rather  than  literary  grounds, 
were  naturally  called  for  at  the  Reformation.  Thus  Jordan's 
Cornish  Creation  of  the  World  is  clearly  based  upon  the  older 
play  printed  by  Mr.  Norris.  The  book  of  the  Norwich  grocers 
contains  twb  versions  of  their  play  of  Paradise,  the  later  of  which, 
1  newely  renvid  accordynge  unto  ye  Skrypture,'  was  substituted 
for  the  earlier  in  1565.  The  Towneley  manuscript  has  two  alter- 
native versions  of  the  Pastor es.  That  of  York  has  a  fragmentary 
second  version  of  the  Coronation  of  the  Virgin,  and  when  read 
with  the  records  affords  much  evidence  of  the  dropping,  in- 
sertion, and  rearrangement  of  scenes,  and  of  doctrinal  revision 
during  the  sixteenth  century.  At  Coventry  the  local  annals 
mention  '  new  playes '  in  1520,  fifteen  years  before  the  existing 
texts  were  *  nevly  correcte '  and  '  translate '  by  Robert  Crowe. 
The  determination  of  the  relations  in  which  the  plays  stand 
towards  one  another  is  a  field  in  which  literary  scholars, 
delayed  by  the  want  of  trustworthy  critical  texts,  are  only 
just  beginning  to  set  foot.  The  question  lies  outside  the  scope 
of  these  pages.  But  I  may  call  attention  to  Mr.  Pollard's 
analysis  of  the  various  strata  in  the  Towneley  plays  2,  and  to 
the  studies  by  Professor  Hohlfeld 3  and  Professor  Davidson 4 
upon  the  greater  cycles  in  general  and  especially  upon  the 
influence  exercised  by  York  over  the  Towneley  and  other 
plays,  as  excellent  examples  of  what  may  be  looked  for.  The 
Ludus  Coventriae  will  afford  a  good  subject  for  investigation, 
when  the  manuscript  has  been  properly  re-edited.  It  is 
evidently  a  patchwork  cycle,  roughly  put  together  and  in 
parts  easy  to  break  up  into  its  constituent  elements.  The 
problem  is  not  confined  to  English  literature.  The  Chester 
tradition  represents  Higden's  work  as  an  affair  rather  of 
translation  than  of  anything  else.  It  is  not  quite  clear  whether 
translation  from  the  Latin  or  from  the  Norman- French  is 
intended.  In  any  case  it  is  probable  that  the  earlier  English 
playwrights  made  use  of  French  models,  and  certain  parallels 

1  Ten  Brink,  ii.  235  'An  inces-  drama  generally/ 

sant  process  of  separating  and  unit-  *  Towneley  Play v(E.  E.  T.  S-X  *iv. 

ing,  of  extending  and   curtailing,  *  Anglia,  xi.  253. 

marks  the  history  of  the  liturgical  *  Davidson,  252. 
drama,  and  indeed  of  the  mediaeval 


GUILD  PLAYS  AND  PARISH  PLAYS        147 

have  already  been  traced  between  English  plays  and  others 
to  be  found  in  the  French  collection  known  as  the  Viel 
Testament.  Here,  as  elsewhere,  the  international  solidarity  of 
mediaeval  literature  is  to  be  taken  into  account. 

Two  chapters  back  I  defined  the  change  which  took  place 
in  the  character  of  the  religious  drama  of  western  Europe 
during  the  thirteenth  century  as  being,  to  a  large  extent, 
a  process  of  secularization.  c  Out  of  the  hands  of  the  clergy/ 
I  said, €  in  their  naves  and  choirs,  the  drama  passed  to  those 
of  the  laity  in  their  market-places  and  guild-halls.'  And 
I  pointed  to  the  natural  result  of  these  altered  conditions  in 
'the  reaction  of  the  temper  of  the  folk  upon  the  handling  of 
the  plays,  the  broadening  of  their  human  as  distinct  from  their 
religious  aspect  V  A  study  of  the  texts  and  records  of  the 
fully  developed  miracle-play  as^it  existed  in  these  islands  from 
the  fourteenth  to  the  sixteenth  century  can  only  confirm  this 
view.  I  have  indeed  shown,  I  hope,  in  the  course  of  this 
imperfect  summary,  that  the  variety  of  mediaeval  theatrical 
organization  was  somewhat  greater  than  a  too  exclusive 
attention  to  the  craft-cycles  of  the  great  towns  has  always 
allowed  scholars  to  recognize.  But,  with  all  qualifications  and 
exceptions,  it  is  none  the  less  true  that  what  began  as  a  mere 
spectacle,  devised  by  ecclesiastics  for  the  edification  of  the 
laity,  came  in  time  to  appeal  to  a  deep-rooted  native  instinct 
of  drama  in  the  folk  and  to  continue  as  an  essentially  popular 
thing,  a  ludus  maintained  by  the  people  itself  for  its  own 
inexhaustible  wonder  and  delight 2.  Literary  critics  have  laid 
stress  upon  the  emergence  of  the  rude  humour  of  the  folk, 
with  its  love  of  farce  and  realism,  in  somewhat  quaint  juxta- 
position to  the  general  subject-matter  of  the  plays.  I  only 
desire  to  add  here  that  the/instinct  which  made  the  miracle- 
plays  a  joy  to  the  mediaeval  burgher  is  the  same  instinct 
which  the  more  primitive^peasant  satisfied  in  a  score  of  modes 
of  rudimentary  folk-drama  3.  The  popularity  and  elaboration 

1  Cf.  p.  69.  8  There  is  but   little    of  direct 

1  Thus    at   York,    the    Corpus  merging  of  the  plays  with  folk-cus- 

Christi  procession  which  the  plays  toms.  At  Aberdeen  the  *  Haliblude ' 

were  originally  designed  to  magnify,  play  was  under  the  local  lord  of 

had  become  by  1420  a  hindrance  to  misrule.    At  Norwich  the  play  watf 

them ;  c£  p.  139.  on  Whit- Monday;  the  lord  of  misrule 


148  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

of  the  devil  scenes  in  the  plays  is  the  most  striking  manifesta- 
tion of  this  identity l.  For  your  horned  and  blackened  devil 
is  the  same  personage,  with  the  same  vague  tradition  of  the 
ancient  heathen  festival  about  him,  whether  he  riots  it  through 
the  cathedral  aisles  in  the  Feast  of  Fools,  or  hales  the  Fathers 
to  limbo  and  harries  the  forward  spectators  in  the  market- 
place of  Beverley  or  Wakefield. 

One  must  not  look  for  absolute  breaches  of  continuity,  even 
in  a  literary  evolution.  That  the  liturgical  types  of  religious 
drama  continued  to  exist  side  by  side  with  their  popular 
offshoots,  that  here  the  clergy  continued  to  present  plays,  and 
in  spite  of  a  certain  adverse  current  of  ascetic  feeling,  to  assist 
the  lay  guilds  in  divers  ways,  has  already  been  there  shown. 
It  is  to  be  added  that  the  texts  of  the  plays  bear  traces  to  the 
end  of  their  liturgical  origin.  The  music  used  is  reminiscent 
of  church  melodies 2.  The  dialogue  at  critical  moments  follows 
the  traditional  lines  and  occasionally  even  reverts  to  the 
actual  Latin  of  the  repraesentationes.  More  than  one  play — 
the  Towneley  Tuditium,  the  Croxton  Sacrament,  the  Digby 
St.  Mary  Magdalen — closes  with  the  Te  Deum  which  habitually 
ended  Matins  when  the  dramatic  interpolation  of  the  office 
was  over.  And  what  are  the  Expositor  of  the  Ludus  Coventriae^ 
the  Doctor  of  the  Brome  play,  or  even  Balaeus  Prolocutor 
himself,  but  the  lineal  descendants,  through  the  dramatized 
St.  Augustine,  of  certain  German  plays  and  the  appellatores 
or  vocatores  of  the  Prophetae,  of  the  priest  who  read  the 
pseudo-Augustinian  Christmas  lectio  from  which  the  Prophetae 
sprang?  Survivals  such  as  these  impress  upon  the  student 
the  unity  of  the  whole  religious  drama  of  the  Middle  Ages, 
from  trope  to  Corpus  Christi  cycle, 

held  revel  on  Whit-Tuesday.  At  the  delight  taken  by  the  spectators 
Reading  there  were  plays  on  May-  in  the  devils  of  the  Cornish  plays. 
day.  At  Chelmsford  and  Wymond-  Collier,  ii.  187,  quotes  a  jest  about 
ham  they  were  attached  to  the  the  devil  in  a  Suffolk  stage-play 
Midsummer  'watch'*  or  'show/  from  C.  Mery  Talys  (1*1533).  In 
Typically  'folk*  personages,  the  the  Conversion  of  St.  Paul  of  the 
1  wodmen '  (cf.  vol.  i.  p.  185),  appear  Digby  MS.,  a  later  hand  has  care- 
in  the  Aberdeen  Candlemas  proces-  fully  inserted  a  devil  scene.  On 
sion,  and  at  Hull  the  'hobby-ship1  the  whole  subject  of  the  represen- 
(cf.  vol.  i.  p.  12 1)  becomes  the  centre  tation  of  devils  in  the  plays,  cf. 
of  a  play.  Cushman,  16;  Eckhardt,  53. 
1  Richard  Carew  lays  stress  on  *  York  Plays,  524. 


CHAPTER  XXIII 
MORALITIES,  PUPPET-PLAYS,  AND  PAGEANTS 

[Bibliographical  Note. — The  English  moralities  are  well  treated  from 
a  literary  point  of  view  in  the  books  by  Ten  Brink,  Ward,  Creizenach, 
Pollard,  Collier,  Klein,  Symonds,  Bates,  Jusserand,  and  Court  hope,  named 
in  the  bibliographical  note  to  Chapter  xxi,  and  also  in  the  Introduction  to 
A.  Brandl,  Quellen  des  weltlichen  Dramas  in  England  vor  Shakespeare 
(1898).  Some  texts  not  easily  available  elsewhere  are  given  in  the  same 
book ;  others  are  in  Dodsley's  A  Select  Collection  of  Old  English  Plays 
(ed.  W.  C.  Hazlitt,  1874-6),  vol.  i,  and  J.  M.  Manly,  Specimens  of  the 
Pre-Shakespearean  Drama  (1897),  vol.  i.  Extracts  are  given  by  Pollard. 
Lists  both  of  popular  moralities  and  of  moral  interludes  will  be  found  in 
Appendix  X.  The  French  plays  of  a  similar  type  are  dealt  with  by 
L.  Petit  de  Julleville,  La  Comtdie  et  les  Mceurs  en  France  au  Moyen  Age 
(1886)  and  Repertoire  du  Thtdtre  comique  en  Frante  au  Moyen  Age 
(1886). — On  puppet-plays,  C.  Magnin,//fr/0*>0  des  Marionnettes  en  Europe 
(1852),  and  A.  Dietcnch,  Pulcinella  (1897),  may  be  consulted.  The 
traditional  text  of  the  stock  English  play  is  printed,  with  illustrations  by 
G.  Cruikshank,  in  J.  P.  Collier,  Punch  and  Judy  (1870).  English 
pageants  at  the  Corpus  Christi  feast  and  at  royal  entries  are  discussed  by 
C.  Davidson,  English  Mystery  Plays  (1892),  §  xvii,  and  Sir  J.  B.  Paul,  in 
Scottish  Review ',  xxx  (1897),  217,  and  the  corresponding  French  my  stores 
mimts  by  L.  Petit  de  Julleville,  Les  Mysttres  (1880).] 

I  HAVE  endeavoured  to  trace  from  its  ritual  origins  the  full 
development  of  that  leading  and  characteristic  type  of  mediaeval 
drama,  the  miracle-play.  I  now  propose  to  deal,  very  briefly, 
with  certain  further  outgrowths  which,  in  the  autumn  of  the 
Middle  Ages,  sprang  from  the  miracle-play  stock ;  and  a  final 
book  will  endeavour  to  bring  together  the  scattered  threads 
of  this  discursive  inquiry,  and  to  touch  upon  that  transforma- 
tion of  the  mediaeval  into  the  humanist  type  of  drama,  which 
prepared  the  way  for  the  great  Elizabethan  stage. 

The  miracle-play  lent  itself  to  modification  in  two  directions: 
firstly,  by  an  extension  of  its  subject-matter ;  and  secondly, 
by  an  adaptation  of  its  themes  and  the  methods  to  other 
forms  of  entertainment  which,  although  mimetic,  were  not,  in 
the  full  sense  of  the  term,  dramatic.  There  are  a  few  plays 


150  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

upon  record  which  were  apparently  represented  after  the 
traditional  manner  of  miracles,  but  differ  from  these  in  that 
they  treat  subjects  not  religious,  but  secular.  Extant  examples 
must  be  sought  in  the  relics,  not  of  the  English,  but  of  the 
continental  drama.  The  earliest  is  the  French  Estoire  de 
Griselidis,  a  version  of  the  story  familiar  in  Chaucer's  Clerkes 
Tale,  which  was  written  and  acted,  according  to  the  manu- 
script, in  1395*.  Slightly  later  is  a  Dutch  manuscript  which 
contains,  amongst  other  things,  probably  the  repertoire  of 
some  compagnie  joyeuse>  three  plays  on  the  subjects  respec- 
tively of  Esmoreit,  Gloriant  of  Brunswick,  and  Lanseloet  and 
Sanderijn2.  Both  the  French  and  Dutch  plays  belong  to 
what  may  be  called  the  wider  circle  of  chivalric  romance. 
An  obvious  link  between  such  pieces  and  the  ordinary  miracle- 
play  is  to  be  found  in  those  of  the  Miracles  de  Nostre  Dame 
which,  like  Amis  et  Amiles  or  Robert  le  Diable>  also  handle 
topics  of  chivalric  romance,  but  only  such  as  are  brought 
technically  within  the  scope  of  the  miracle-play  by  the 
intervention  of  the  Virgin  at  some  point  of  the  action3. 
Similarly,  another  French  play,  dating  from  about  1439,  on 
the  subject,  drawn  not  from  romance  but  from  contemporary 
history,  of  the  Siege  of  Orleans,  may  be  explained  by  the 
sanctity  already  attributed  in  the  national  imagination  to  Joan 
of  Arc,  who  is  naturally  its  leading  figure  4.  But  the  usual  range 

1  Ed.    Groeneveld    (1888) ;     cf.  noute,    Ronchevale,     Florys    und 

Creizenach,  i.  362  ;  Julleville,  Les  Blancheflor,  Gryselle    (Griseldis) ; 

My st.  i.  1 80,  ii.  342.  cf.  Creizenach,  i.  372. 

*  I  do  not  think  that  these  Dutch  s  Julleville,  LesMyst.  ii.  284, 310. 

plays  have  been  printed.    The  MS.,  4  Ed.  F.  Guessard  et  E.  de  Cer- 

m  the  Royal  Library  at  Brussels,  is  tain  (1862)  in  Collection  des  docu- 

described  by  Hoffmann  von  Fallers-  ments  historiques ;  cf.  Creizenach,  i. 

leben,  Horae  Belgicae^  vi,  xxix ;  cf.  372 ;  Julleville,  Les  Myst.  ii.  576 ; 

Creizenach,   i.  366.      Besides  the  H.  Tivier,  Etude  sur  le  Myst.  du 

three  chivalric  plays,  it   contains  Stige  #0.  (1868).    The  play  may 

a    dramatized    estrif  of    Summer  have  been  designed  for  performance 

and  Winter  (cf.  vol.  i.  p.  187)  in-  at  the  festival  held  at  Orleans  in 

eluded  with  them  under  the  general  memory  of  the  siege  on   May  8. 

*itle  of  'abele  Spelen,'  and  also  The    passage    quoted    from    Sir 

a  long  farce  or  *  Boerd.'    To  each  Richard  Morrison  on  p.  221,  sug- 

of  the    five  plays,    moreover,    is  gests  that  a  similar  commemoration 

attached  a  short  farcical  after-piece,  was  held  in  the  sixteenth  century 

A  few  notices  of  other  fifteenth-  by  the  English  at    Calais  of  the 

century  Dutch  chivalric  plays  are  battle  of  Agincourt  in  1415. 
preserved.    The  subjects  are  Ar- 


MORALITIES,  PUPPET-PLAYS,  PAGEANTS  151 

of  subject  was  certainly  departed  from  when  Jacques  Millet, 
a  student  at  Orleans,  compiled,  between  1450  and  1453,  an 
immense  mysttre  in  30,000  lines  on  the  Istoire  de  la  destruction 
de  Troye  la  grant  \  In  England,  the  few  examples  of  the 
mingling  of  secular  elements  with  the  miracle-plays  which 
present  themselves  during  the  sixteenth  century  can  hardly 
be  regarded  as  mediaeval2.  The  only  theme  which  need 
be  noticed  here  is  that  of  King  Robert  of  Sicily.  A  play 
on  this  -hero,  revived  at  the  High  Cross  at  Chester  in  1529, 
is  stated  in  a  contemporary  letter  to  have  been  originally 
written  in  the  reign  of  Henry  VII.  But  a  still  earlier  Indus 
de  Kyng  Robert  of  Cesill  is  recorded  in  the  Lincoln  Annales 
under  the  year  1453. 

Far  more  important  than  this  slight  secular  extension  of 
miracle-plays  is  another  development  in  the  direction  of 
allegory,  giving  rise  to  the  c  moral  plays '  or  *  moralities/  as 
they  came  to  be  indifferently  called 3,  in  which  the  characters 
are  no  longer  scriptural  or  legendary  persons,  but  wholly,  or 
almost  wholly,  abstractions,  and  which,  although  still  religious 
in  intention,  aim  rather  at  ethical  cultivation  than  the  stab- 
lishing  of  faith.  The  earliest  notices  of  morals  are  found 
about  the  end  of  the  fourteenth  century,  at  a  time  when  the 
influence  of  the  Roman  de  la  Rose  and  other  widely  popular 
works  was  bringing  every  department  of  literature  under  the 
sway  of  allegory 4.  That  the  drama  also  should  be  touched 
with  the  spirit  of  the  age  was  so  inevitable  as  hardly  to  call 
for  comment.  But  it  will  be  interesting  to  point  out  some 
at  least  of  the  special  channels  through  which  the  new 
tendency  established  itself.  In  the  first  place  there  is  the 
twelfth-century  Latin  play  of  Antichristus.  In  a  sense  the 
whole  content  of  this  may  be  called  allegorical,  and  the  allegory 
becomes  formal  in  such  figures  as  Heresis  and  Ypocrisis, 

1  Ed.Stengei(i883);cf.Creizenach,     la  Vigne  (Julleville,  Rtp.  com.  73) 

comes  nearest.  But  its  leading 
episode,  the  siege  of  the  fortress  of 
Danger,  is  reflected  in  the  siege 
'  morality '  a '  recent '  one,  but  it  was  of  the  Castle  of  Perseverance  and 
used  in  1503 :  cf.  p.  201.  that  of  the  Castle  of  Maudleyn  in 

*  There  is  not  much  direct  imita-  the  Mary  Magdalen  of  the  Digby 
tion  of  the  Roman  de  la  Rose  in  the  MS.  On  the  general  place  of  aJle- 
moralities.  Perhaps  the  French  gory  in  contemporary  literature  ct 
Honneur  des  Dames  of  Andrieu  de  Courthope,  i.  341. 


152  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

lustitia  and  Misericordia>  and  in  those  of  Ecclesia>  Synagoga, 
and  Gentilitas,  suggested  to  the  clerkly  author  by  a  well- 
known  disputatio.  The  same  theme  recurs  in  more  than 
one  later  play 1.  Secondly,  there  is  the  theme  of  the  Recon- 
ciliation of  the  Heavenly  Virtues,  which  is  suggested  by  the 
words  of  the  eighty-fifth  Psalm  :  '  Mercy  and  Truth  are  met 
together:  Righteousness  and  Peace  have  kissed  each  other.' 
This  is  treated  in  two  unprinted  and  little  known  French  plays, 
also  of  the  twelfth  century,  which  I  have  not  as  yet  had  occasion 
to  mention  and  of  which  I  borrow  the  following  analysis  from 
Dr.  Ward  :  'These  four  virtues  appear  personified  as  four  sisters, 
who  meet  together  after  the  Fall  of  Man  before  the  throne  of 
God  to  conduct  one  of  those  disputations  which  were  so  much 
in  accordance  with  the  literary  tastes  of  the  age ;  Truth  and 
Righteousness  speak  against  the  guilty  Adam,  while  Mercy 
and  Peace  plead  in  his  favour.  Concord  is  restored  among 
the  four  sisters  by  the  promise  of  a  Saviour,  who  shall  atone 
to  Divine  Justice  on  behalf  of  man.'  One  of  these  pieces  is 
ascribed  to  the  Anglo-Norman  poet,  Guillaume  Herman 
(11^7-70),  the  other  to  Stephen  Langton,  afterwards  arch- 
bishop of  Canterbury.  They  are  generally  spoken  of  as 
literary  exercises,  not  intended  for  representation2.  But  it 
is  obvious  that  they  might  very  well  find  their  places  in 
miracle-play  cycles,  as  links  between  the  scenes  dealing 
respectively  with  the  Fall  and  the  Redemption.  Further, 
precisely  such  an  episode,  in  precisely  such  a  position,  does 
occur,  three  hundred  years  later,  in  the  English  cycle  known 
as  the  Ludus  Coventriae.  Nor  is  this  the  only  allegorical 
element  which  distinguishes  a  certain  part  of  this  patchwork 
cycle  from  nearly  all  the  other  English  plays 3.  It  is  not, 
perhaps,  of  great  importance  that  in  the  Assumption  scene  the 

1  Cf.  pp.  63,  77.  of  the  fourteenth  century  (R.  F. 

*  Ward,  i.   105 ;    Arckaeologia^  Weymouth,    The  Castel  of  Love* 

xiii.  232.    A  (Ubat  on^  precisely  this  273)  the  passage  begins — 

theme  is  introduced  into  the  Chas-  *  For  now  I  chul  tellen  of  J>e  stryf 
teau  <T  Amour,  a  theological  work  pat  a-mong  £e  foure  sustren  lib.' 
in  the  form  of  a  romance,  ascribed  s  No  stress  is  of  course  to  be  laid 

to  Robert  Grosseteste  (1175-1253),  upon  the  late  introduction  of  Dolor 

on  which  cf.  F.  S.  Stevenson,  Life  and  Myserye  into  the  Grocers'  play 

of  Grosseteste,  38 ;  Jusserand,  Eng.  at  Norwich,  when  the  text  was  re- 

Lit.  i.  214.    In  the  English  version  written  in  1565. 


MORALITIES,  PUPPET-PLAYS,  PAGEANTS    158 

risen  Christ  receives  the  name  of  Sapientta,  or  that  Con- 
templatio  is  the  'exposytour  in  doctorys  wede,'  by  whom 
several  other  scenes  are  introduced.  But  there  is  a  striking 
passage  at  the  end  of  the  Slaughter  of  the  Innocents,  where 
1  Dethe,  Goddys  masangere,'  intervenes  to  make  an  end  of  the 
tyrannic  Herod  \  and  here,  I  think,  may  clearly  be  traced  yet 
a  third  stream  of  allegorical  tendency  making  its  way  into  the 
drama  from  that  singular  danse  macabre  or  c  Dance  of  Death/ 
which  exercised  so  powerful  a  fascination  on  the  art  of  the 
Middle  Ages.  Death  hobnobbing  with  pope  and  king  and 
clown,  with  lord  and  lady,  with  priest  and  merchant,  with 
beggar  and  fool,  the  irony  is  familiar  in  many  a  long  series 
of  frescoes  and  engravings.  Nor  are  cases  lacking  in  which 
it  was  directly  adapted  for  scenic  representation.  An  alleged 
example  at  Paris  in  1424  was  probably  only  a  painting.  But 
in  1449  a  certain  jeu,  histoire  et  moralitt  sur  le  fait  de  la 
danse  macabre  was  acted  before  Philip  the  Good  at  Bruges, 
and  a  similar  performance  is  recorded  at  Besan9on  in  1453 2- 

The  process  of  introducing  abstractions  into  the  miracle- 
plays  themselves  does  not  seem  to  have  been  carried  very 
far.  On  the  other  hand,  the  moralities,  if  God  and  the  Devil 
may  be  regarded  as  ab5tractions,  admit  of  nothing  else.  Two 
at  least  of  the  motives  just  enumerated,  the  Dance  of  Death 
and  the  Reconciliation  of  the  Heavenly  Virtues,  recur  in 
them.  But  both  are  subordinate  to  a  third,  which  may  be 
called  the  Conflict  of  Vice  and  Virtue.  This  dktfdtf-like  theme 
is  of  course  familiar  in  every  branch  of  allegorical  literature. 
Prof.  Creizenach  traces  one  type  of  it,  in  which  the  conflict  is 
conceived  under  the  symbols  of  siege  or  battle,  to  the  Psycho- 
machia  of  Prudentius3,  and  perhaps  even  further  to  the 
passage  about  the  *  whole  armour  of  God*  in  St.  Paul's 
epistle  to  the  Ephesians  4.  For  the  purposes  of  the  stage  it 

1  Ludus  Cov.  106  (play  xi,  Vir-  Totentdnze  des  Mittelalters  (Jahrb. 

tutes))  70,  79,  89,  105,  124,   129,  d.  Vereinsf.mederdeutscheSprach- 

289  (plays  viii-xiii,  xxix,  Content-  forschung,  xvii.  i).    A  bibliography 

placio),  184  (play  xix,  Mors\  386  of  the  Dance  of  Death  is  given  by 

(play  xli,  Sapientia) ;  cf.  Hohlfeld,  Goedeke,  i.  322  (bk,  iii.  §  92). 

in  Anglia,  xi.  278.  8   Prudentius,         Psychomachia 

*  Jusserand,  Tktdtre,  123  ;  Pear-  {t  400  P.  L.  be.  n) ;  cf.  Creizenach, 

son,  i.  2 ;  Creizenach,  i.  461 ;  Cap-  L  463. 

tain  Cox,  clxvi ;  W.  Seelmann,  Die  *  Ephesians,  vi.  II. 


154  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

is  eminently  suitable,  both  because  it  lends  itself  to  many  and 
various  modes  of  representation,  and  because  conflict  is  the 
very  stuff  out  of  which  drama  is  wrought 

As  the  earliest  notices  of  moralities  are  found  in  English 
records  and  as  this  particular  development  of  the  drama  is 
thoroughly  well  represented  in  English  texts,  I  may  save 
space  by  confining  my  attention  to  these,  merely  noting  as 
I  pass  the  contemporary  existence  of  precisely  parallel  records 
and  texts  on  the  continent  and  particularly  in  France  l.  The 
first  English  moralities  seem  to  have  been  known  as  Pater- 
noster plays.  Such  a  play  is  mentioned  by  Wyclif  about 
1378  as  existing  at  York,  and  at  some  date  previous  to  1389 
a  special  guild  Orttionis  Domini  was  founded  in  that  city 
for  its  maintenance.  The  play,  however,  survived  the  guild, 
and  was  acted  from  time  to  time  as  a  substitute  for  the 
ordinary  Corpus  Christi  plays  up  to  1572.  Similarly,  at 
Beverley  a  Paternoster  play  was  acted  by  the  crafts,  probably 
in  emulation  of  that  of  York,  in  1469,  while  a  third  is  mentioned 
in  Lincoln  documents  as  played  at  various  dates  from  1397  to 
15^1.  Although  all  these  Paternoster  plays  are  lost,  their 
general  character  can  be  made  clear.  In  that  of  York  *  all 
manner  of  vices  and  sins  were  held  up  to  scorn  and  the 
virtues  were  held  up  to  praise/  while  an  incidental  entry  in 
a  computus  shows  that  one  division  of  it  was  known  as  the 
Indus  accidiae.  The  information  to  be  derived  from  Beverley 
is  even  more  explicit.  There  were  eight  pageants.  One  was 
assigned  to  *  Vicious,'  probably  a  typical  representative  of  frail 
humanity,  the  other  seven  to  the  seven  deadly  sins  which 
beset  him,  'Pryde:  Invy:  Ire:  Avaryce:  Sleweth  (or  Accidie): 
Glotony  :  Luxuria.'  The  Paternoster  play  seems,  therefore, 
to  have  been  in  some  fashion  a  dramatization  of  the  struggle 
of  the  vices  and  the  corresponding  virtues  for  the  soul  of  man, 

1  Creizenach,  i.  470;  Julleville,  name,  somewhat  later  in  date,  is 

La    Com.  44,    78.     The    earliest  a  morality.     Other  early  French 

French  notice  is  that  of  the  '  Gieux  morals    on     a     large    scale    are 

des  sept  vertuz  et  des  sept  pechiez  L'Homme  juste  et  FHomme  mon- 

mortelz'    at  Tours   in   1390.      A  dam  (1508)  and  LHomme  picheur 

'  myst&re  de    Bien-Avisl  et  Mai*  (t  1494)  (Julleville,  Rty.  com.  39, 

6 


'  is  said  to  have  been  played  67,  72).  All  these  are  on  variants 
in  1396  (Julleville,  Rtp.  com.  of  the  Contrast  of  Vice  and  Virtue 
324).  The  extant  play  of  that  theme. 


MORALITIES,  PUPPET-PLAYS,  PAGEANTS  155 

and  the  name  given  to  it  may  be  explained  by  the  mediaeval 
notion  that  each  clause  of  the  Lord's  Prayer  was  of  specific 
merit  against  one  of  the  deadly  sins1.  Here  then  is  one 
version  of  just  that  theme  of  the  Conflict  of  Vice  and  Virtue 
noted  as  dominant  in  the  moralities. 

Of  the  half  dozen  extant  English  moralities  which  can  with 
any  plausibility  be  assigned  to  the  fifteenth  century,  two  are 
based  upon  a  motive  akin  to  that  of  the  Dance  of  Death. 
These  are  the  fragmentary  Pride  of  Life,  which  is  the  earliest 
of  the  group,  and  Everyman^  which  is  by  far  the  finest a.  In 
the  former  Death  and  Life  contend  for  the  soiil  of  Rex  Vivus> 
the  representative  of  humanity,  who  is  only  saved  from  the 
fiends  by  the  intervention  of  the  Virgin.  In  the  latter,  God 
sends  Death  to  summon  Everyman,  who  finds  to  his  dismay 
that  of  all  his  earthly  friends  only  Good  Deeds  is  willing  to 
accompany  him.  The  Conflict  of  Vice  and  Virtue  is  resumed 
in  the  moral  of  Mundus  et  Infans  and  in  the  three  morals  of 
the  Macro  manuscript,  the  Castle  of  Perseverance,  Mind,  Will 
and  Understanding^  and  Mankind.  In  all  four  plays  the 
representative  of  humanity,  Infans  or  Humanum  Genus  or 
Anima  or  Mankind,  is  beset  by  the  compulsion  or  swayed 
this  way  and  that  by  the  persuasion  of  allegorized  good  and 
bad  qualities.  At  the  end  of  the  Castle  of  Perseverance  the 
motive  of  the  Reconciliation  of  the  Heavenly  Virtues  is 
introduced  in  a  scene  closely  resembling  that  of  the  Ludus 
Coventriae  or  the  earlier  essays  of  Guillaume  Herman  and 
Stephen  Langton, 

A  somewhat  unique  position  between  miracle-play  and 
morality  is  occupied  by  the  Mary  Magdalen  drama  con- 
tained in  the  Digby  manuscript  The  action  of  this,  so  far 
as  it  is  scriptural  or  legendary,  has  already  been  summarized3; 
but  it  must  now  be  added  that  the  episodes  of  the  secular 
life  of  the  Magdalen  in  gaudio  are  conceived  in  a  wholly 
allegorical  vein.  The  'kyngs  of  the  world  and  the  flesch* 
and  the  'pry rise  of  dylles'  are  introduced  with  the  seven 

1  Creizenach,  t.  465,  quoting  a  original  or  a   translation   of  the 

thirteenth-century  German  sermon.  Dutch  Elckerlijk,  or  whether  the 

*  Cf.  p.  201  and  Texts  (ii).    It  two  plays  have  a  common  source, 

is  not    quite    clear    whether   the  *  Cf.  p.  131. 
English  play  of  Everyman  is  the 


156  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

deadly  sias  and  a  good  and  a  bad  angel.  The  castle  of 
Magdala,  like  the  castle  of  Perseverance,  is  besieged.  The 
Magdalen  is  led  into  a  tavern  by  Luxuria  and  there  betrayed 
by  Curiosity,  a  gallant.  We  have  to  do  less  with  a  mystery 
beginning  to  show  morality  elements  than  with  a  deliberate 
combination  effected  by  a  writer  familiar  with  both  forms  of 
drama. 

The  manner  of  presentation  of  the  fifteenth-century  morali- 
ties did  not  differ  from  that  of  the  contemporary  miracle-plays. 
The  manuscript  of  the  Castle  of  Perseverance  contains  a 
prologue  delivered  by  vexillatores  after  the  fashion  of  the 
Ludus  Coventriae  and  the  Croxton  Sacrament.  There  is  also, 
as  in  the  Cornish  mysteries  published  by  Mr.  Norris,  a 
diagram  showing  a  circular  'place'  bounded  by  a  ditch  or 
fence,  with  a  central  'castel'  and  five  'skaffoldys'  for  the 
principal  performers.  Under  the  castle  is  'Mankynde,  is 
bed '  and  near  it c  Coveytyse  cepbord/  The  scaffolds  are  the 
now  familiar  loca  or  sedes.  The  scantier  indications  of  more 
than  one  of  the  other  moralities  proper  suggest  that  they 
also  were  performed  in  an  outdoor  'place'  with  sedes,  and 
a  similar  arrangement  is  pointed  to  by  the  stage  directions  of 
the  Mary  Magdalen.  Nor  could  the  moralities  dispense  with 
those  attractions  of  devils  and  hell-fire  which  had  been  so 
popular  in  their  predecessors.  Belial,  in  the  Castle  of  Per- 
severance, is  to  have  gunpowder  burning  in  pipes  in  his  hands 
and  ears  and  other  convenient  parts  of  his  body ;  Anima,  in 
Mind>  Will  and  Understanding,  has  little  devils  running 
in  and  out  beneath  her  skirts ;  and  in  Mary  Magdalen,  the 
*  prynse  of  dylles '  enters  in  '  a  stage,  and  Helle  ondyr-neth 
^that  stage/  The  later  moralities,  of  which  the  sixteenth 
century  affords  several  examples,  were  presented  under  some- 
what different  conditions,  which  will  be  discussed  in  another 
chapter  \  Allusions  to  the  '  morals  at  Manningtree,'  however, 
in  the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth  century,  suggest  that 
moralities  may  have  continued  in  out-of-the-way  places  to 
hold  the  open-air  stage,  just  as  miracle-plays  here  and  there 
did,  to  a  comparatively  late  date.  Actual  examples  of  the 
more  popular  type  of  morality  from  the  sixteenth  century 

1  Cf.  p.  199. 


MORALITIES,  PUPPET-PLAYS,  PAGEANTS  157 

are  afforded  by  Skelton's  Magnificence  and  by  Sir  David 
Lyndsay's  Satyre  of  the  Thrie  Estaitis>  shown  successively 
at  Linlithgow  in  1540,  on  the  Castle-hill  at  Cupar  of  Fife  in 
*552,  and  in  the  Greenside  at  Edinburgh  about  1554.  This 
remarkable  piece  differs  in  many  ways  from  the  English 
moralities.  The  theme  consists  of  the  arraignment  of  the 
estates  of  the  realm  before  Rex  Humanitas.  Various  *  vycis ' 
and  allegorical  personages  appear  and  plead,  and  the  action 
is  enlivened  by  farcical  interludes  for  the  amusement  of  the 
vulgar,  and  wound  up  by  a  sermon  of  '  Folie,1  which  points 
rather  to  French  than  to  English  models1.  The  flight  of 
time  is  also  shown  by  the  fact  that  the  Satyre  aims  less  at 
the  moral  edification  with  which  the  fifteenth-century  plays 
contented  themselves,  than  at  the  introduction  of  a  sharp 
polemic  against  abuses  in  church  and  state.  Skelton's 
Magnificence  had  also,  not  improbably,  some  political  bearing. 
To  this  matter  also  I  return  in  another  chapter 2. 

Miracle-plays  and  moralities  ranked  amongst  the  most 
widespread  and  coloured  elements,  century  after  century,  of 
burgher  and  even  of  village  life.  It  is  not  surprising  that 
their  subjects  and  their  methods  exercised  a  powerful  influence 
upon  other  manifestations  of  the  mediaeval  spirit.  The  share 
which  their  vivid  and  sensuous  presentations  of  religious  ideas 
had  in  shaping  the  conceptions  of  artists  and  handicraftsmen 
is  a  fascinating  topic  of  far  too  wide  a  scope  to  be  even 
touched  upon  here 3.  But  a  few  pages  must  be  devoted  to 
indicating  the  nature  of  their  overflow  into  various  pseudo- 
dramatic,  rather  than  strictly  dramatic,  forms  of  enter- 
tainment. 

One  of  these  is  the  puppet-show.  It  has  been  pointed  out, 
in  speaking  of  the  liturgical  drama,  that  the  use  of  puppets 
to  provide  a  figured  representation  of  the  mystery  of  the 
Nativity,  seems  to  have  preceded  the  use  for  the  same 
purpose  of  living  and  speaking  persons ;  and  further,  that  the 
puppet-show,  in  the  form  of  the  'Christmas  crib/  has  outlived 
the  drama  founded  upon  it,  and  is  still  in  use  in  all  Catholic 

1  Cf.  vol.  i.  p.  381.  interesting    study   of    P.   Weber, 

*  Cf.  p.  218.  Geistliches  Schauspiel  und  kirch- 

8  See  Pearson,  ii.  260,  and  the     liche  Kunst  (1894). 


158  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

countries l.  An  analogous  custom  is  the  laying  of  the  crucifix 
in  the  'sepulchre'  during  the  Easter  ceremonies,  and  there 
is  one  English  example  of  a  complete  performance  of  a 
Resurrection  play  by  'certain  smalle  puppets,  representinge  the 
Persons  of  Christe,  the  Watchmen,  Marie  and  others/  This 
is  described  by  a  seventeenth-century  writer  as  taking  place 
at  Witney  in  Oxfordshire '  in  the  dayes  of  ceremonial  religion,' 
and  one  of  the  watchmen,  which  made  a  clacking  noise,  was 
1  comorily  called  Jack  Snacker  of  Wytney  V  This  points  to 
the  use  of  some  simple  mechanical  device  by  jvhich  motion 
was  imparted  to  some  at  least  of  the  puppets.  A  similar 
contrivance  was  produced  by  Bishop  Barlow  to  point  a  sermon 
against  idolatry  at  Paul's  Cross  in  1547  and  was  given  after- 
wards to  the  boys  to  break  into  pieces3.  More  elaborate 
representations  of  miracle-plays  by  means  of  moving  puppets 
or  marionnettes  make  their  appearance  in  all  parts  of  Europe 
at  a  period  when  the  regular  dramatic  performances  of  similar 
subjects  were  already  becoming  antiquated,  nor  can  they  be 
said  to  be  even  yet  quite  extinct 4.  Most  of  them  belong  to 
the  repertory  of  the  professional  showmen,  and  it  will  be 
remembered  that  some  form  or  other  of  marionnette  seems 
to  have  been  handed  down  continuously  amongst  the  minstrel 
class  from  Roman  times5.  In  England  the  puppet-shows 
were  much  in  vogue  at  such  places  as  Bartholomew  Fair,  where 
they  became  serious  rivals  of  the  living  actors 6.  The  earliest 
name  for  them  was  'motions7/  Italian  players  brought  'an 
instrument  of  strange  motions 'to  London  in  1574 8.  Autolycus, 
in  The  Winters  Tale,  amongst  his  other  shifts  for  a  living, 

1  Cf.  p.  42.  1900). 

1  W.    Lambarde,    Alphabetical  *  Cf.  vol.  i.  p.  71. 

Description  of  the  Chief  Places  in  '  Morley,  passim  ;    Hone,  229  ; 

England  and  Wales  (1730,  written  Strutt,  164;  T.  Frost,  Old  Showmen 

in  the  sixteenth  century),  459,  s.v.  and 'Old 'London Fait -^(1874);  W.B. 

Wvrtney.  Boultpn,  Amusements  of  Old  Lon- 

*  Gairdner,  253,  quoting  an  un-  don,  ii.  49,  224. 
named  chronicler,  *  a  picture  of  the  7  The  term  *  motion '  is  not,  how- 
Resurrection  of  Our* Lord  made  ever,  confined  to  puppet-plays, 
with  vices,  which  put  out  his  legs  of  Bacon,  Essay  xxxvii,  uses  it  of 
sepulchre,  and  blessed  with  his  the  dumb-shows  of  masquers,  and 
hand  and  turned  his  head.'  Jonson,  Tale  of  a  Tub,  v.  I,  of 

4  Magnin, Marionnettes ;  J.  Feller,  shadow-plays. 

Le  Bethltem  veruittois  (Bull  de  la  '  P.  C.  Acts%  viii.  131. 
Soc.  vervittoise  fArch.  et  tfHist. 


MORALITIES,  PUPPET-PLAYS,  PAGEANTS  159 

'compassed  a  motion  of  the  Prodigal  Son  V  Ben  Jonson,  in 
Bartholomew  Fair,  introduces  one  Lanthorn  Leatherhead,  a 
puppet-showman,  who  presents  in  his  booth  a  curious  rigmarole 
of  a  motion  in  which  Hero  and  Leander,  Damon  and  Pythias, 
and  Dionysius  are  all  mixed  up 2.  It  would  appear  to  have 
been  customary  for  the  showman,  like  his  brethren  of  the  modern 
Punch  and  Judy,  to  '  interpret '  for  the  puppets  by  reciting  a 
suitable  dialogue  as  an  accompaniment  to  their  gestures3. 
The  repertory  of  Lanthorn  Leatherhead  contained  a  large 
proportion  of  '  motions '  on  subjects  borrowed  from  the 
miracle-play.  Similar  titles  occur  in  the  notices  of  later  per- 
formances at  Bartholomew  Fair 4  and  of  those  given  by  the 
popular  London  showman,  Robert  Powell,  during  the  reign  of 
Queen  Anne 6.  In  more  recent  times  all  other  puppet-shows 
have  been  outdone  by  the  unique  vogue  of  Punch  and  Judy6. 
The  derivation  of  these  personages  from  the  Pontius  Pilate 
and  Judas  Iscariot  of  the  miracle-plays  is  the  merest  philo- 
logical whimsy.  Punch  is  doubtless  the  Pulcinella 7,  who  makes 


1  Winters  Tale,  iv.  3.  102. 

a  Bartholomew  Fair,  v.  3 ;  cf,  v. 
I.  8  'O,  the  motions  that  I,  Lan- 
thorn Leatherhead,  have  given  light 
to  in  my  time,  since  my  master  Pod 
died!  Jerusalem  was  a  stately 
thing,  and  so  was  Nineveh,  and  the 
City  of  Norwich,  and  Sodom  and 
Gomorrah,  with  the  rising  of  the 
prentices  and  pulling  down  the 
bawdy-houses  there  upon  Shrove- 
Tuesday ;  but  the  Gunpowder  Plot, 
there  was  a  get-penny!  I  have 
presented  that  to  an  eighteen  or 
twenty  pence  audience,  nine  times 
in  an  afternoon';  also  Every  Man 
out  of  His  Humour,  Induction: 
'  Will  show  more  several  motions  in 

his  face 

Than  the  new  London,  Rome,  or 
Nineveh.' 

8  Lanthorn  Leatherhead  says 
of  his  puppets,  *  I  am  the  mouth  of 
them  all';  cf.  Hamlet,  iii.  2.  256 
1 1  could  interpret  between  you  and 
your  love,  if  I  could  see  the  puppets 
dallying '  ;  Two  Gentlemen  of 
Verona,  n.  I.  100  *O  excellent 
motion  1  O  exceeding  puppet!  Now 


will  he  interpret  to  her.' 

4  Morley,  179,  187, 190,  247,  261, 

273,    304,    321,   records   'Patient 

Grisel '    (1655,    l&77)>    *  Susanna* 

J655),    'Sodom   and   Gomorrah* 

1656),  'Judith  and  Holophernes' 

1664),    rjephtha's     Rash     Vow' 

1697, 1698, 1701, 1704, 1733), 'The 

Creation  of  the  World  '  (1701). 

6  Powell's  performances  of  the 
'Creation  of  the  World'  at  Bath 
and  '  Susanna '  at  Covent  Garden 
are  referred  to  in  the  Tatler  for 
May  14,  1709,  and  the  Spectator 
for  March  16, 1711. 

*  Hone,  230,  describes  a  'gal- 
lantee  show '  of  the  Prodigal  Son 
and  of  Noah's  Ark  with  a  scene  of 
'Pull  Devil,  Pull  Baker,'  showing 
the  judgement  upon  a  baker  who 
gave  short  weight  (cf.  the  cut  in 
Morley,  356)1  seen  by  him  in  London 
in  1818.  This  was  an  exhibition  of 
ombres  chinoises  rather'than  a  pup- 
pet-play proper. 

1  A.  Dieterich,  Pulcinella,  234, 
considers  Pulcinella  a  descendant 
of  Maccus,  derives  the  name  from 
pullicenus,  puldnus,  pullus,  and 


160  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

his  appearance  about  1600  as  a  stock  figure  in  the  impromptu 
comedy  of  Naples.  Under  other  names  his  traditions  may, 
for  all  one  knows,  go  back  far  beyond  the  miracle-plays  to 
the  fabulae  Atellanae.  But  the  particular  drama  in  which 
alone  he  now  takes  the  stage,  although  certainly  not  a 
mincle-play,  follows  closely  upon  the  traditional  lines  of  the 
moralities  *. 

Another  kind  of  religious  dumb-show,  at  once  more  ancient 
and  more  important  than  that  of  the  puppets,  was  presented  by 
living  persons  in  the  'ridings'  or  processions  which  formed 
an  integral  part  of  so  many  mediaeval  festivals.  Like  the 
miracle-plays  themselves,  these  tableaux  reached  their  highest 
point  of  elaboration  in  connexion  with  the  ceremonies  of 
Corpus  Christi  day;  and,  in  order  to  understand  their  relation 
to  the  regular  dramas,  it  is  necessary  to  return  for  a  moment 
to  the  early  history  of  the  great  feast.  It  has  already  been 
suggested  that  the  processional  character  of  the  great  English 
craft-cycles,  with  their  movable  pageants  and, their  'stations,' 
may  be  explained  on  the  hypothesis,  that  the  performances 
were  at  one  time  actually  given  during  the  'stations'  or 
pauses  before  temporary  street  altars  of  the  Corpus  Christi 
procession  itself.  The  obvious  inconveniences  of  such  a 
custom,  if  it  really  existed,  might  not  unnaturally  lead  to  its 
modification.  Except  at  Draguignan,  where  the  dialogue 
was  reduced  to  the  briefest  limits,  no  actual  traces  of  it  are 
left2.  In  England  the  difficulty  seems  to  have  been  solved 
at  Newcastle  by  sending  the  ^pageants  round  with  the  pro- 
connects  the  fowl-masks  of  Italian  tion  of  the  World.  Punch  was  also 
comedy  with  the  cockscomb  of  the  amongst  the  dramatis  personae  of 
English  fool  (cf.  vol.  i.  p.  385).  Robert  Powell.  The  nature  of  these 

1  Collier,  Punch  and  Judy  ( 1 870),  earlier  Punch  plays  is  unknown. 
1 1  sqq. ;  Frost,  The  Old  showmen  That  now  traditional  in  England 
and  the  Old  London  Fairs^  29.  is  implied  by  the  ballad  of  Punch's 
The  earliest  English  notice  of  Pranks  (^  1790).  Collier,  who  prints 
Punch  in  England  is  in  the  over-  it  as  given  by  one  Piccini  in  Drury 
seers'  books  of  St.  Martin's-in-the-  Lane,  with  cuts  by  Cruikshank, 
Fields  for  1666  and  1667,  'Re^of  considers  it  to  be  derived  from 
Punchinello,  y6 I  talianpopet  player,  Don  Juan.  But  it  seems  to  me  to 
for  his  booth  at  Charing  Cross/  come  still  nearer  to  the  morality 
In  a  Bartholomew  Fair  playbill  of  plays.  French  Punch  plays  have 
the  early  eighteenth  century,  '  the  many  other  themes, 
merry  conceits  of  Squire  Punch  *  Julleville,  Les  Myst.  ii.  208; 
and  Sir  John  Spendall'  were  attach-  cf.  p.  95. 
ed  to  the  poppet-show  of  the  Crea- 


MORALITIES,  PUPPET-PLAYS,  PAGEANTS  161 

cession  in  the  early  morning  and  deferring  the  actual  plays 
until  the  afternoon.  At  Coventry  representatives  of  the 
dramatis  personae  appear  to  have  ridden  in  the  procession, 
the  cumbrous  pageants  being  left  behind  until  they  were 
needed.  Herod,  for  instance,  rode  on  behalf  of  the  smiths. 
At  other  places,  again,  the  separation  between  procession  and 
play  was  even  more  complete.  The  crafts  which  produced 
the  plays  were  as  a  rule  also  burdened  by  their  ordinances 
with  the  duties  of  providing  a  light  and  of  walking  or  riding 
in  honour  of  the  host ;  but  the  two  ceremonies  took  place  at 
different  hours  on  the  same  day,  and  there  was  no  external 
relation,  so  far  as  the  evidence  goes,  between  them.  Even  so 
there  was  still  some  clashing,  and  at  York,  after  an  un- 
successful attempt  on  the  part  of  the  clergy  in  1426  to  get 
the  plays  put  off,  the  procession  itself  appears  to  have  been 
transferred  to  the  following  day. 

On  the  other  hand  the  difficulty  seems  to  have  been  met 
in  certain  towns  by  suppressing  the  plays  and  reducing  them 
to  dumb-show  *  pageants'  carried  in  the  procession.  Lists 
are  extant  of  such  pageants  as  they  were  assigned  to  the 
crafts  at  Dublin  in  1498  and  at  Hereford  in  1503,  and 
although  it  is  not  of  course  impossible  that  there  were  to  be 
plays  later  in  the  day,  there  is  no  proof  that  this  was  the  case. 
For  a  similar  procession  of  tableaux  held  in  London,  in  the 
earlier  part  of  the  fifteenth  century,  a  set  of  descriptive  verses 
was  written  by  John  Lydgate,  and  the  adoption  of  this 
method  of  'interpreting*  the  dumb-show  seems  to  put  the 
possibility  of  a  regular  dramatic  performance  out  of  court  * 

1  Printed   by    Halliwell,  Minor  piece  is  n°.  153  in  the  list  of  Lyd- 

Poems  of  Lydgate    (Percy    Soc.),  gate's  works  given  by  Ritson,  Bibl. 

95,fromShirle/s//ar/.225i,f.  293,  Poet*    79.      It   may    be    doubted 

as  a  Processioune  of  Corpus  Cristi,  whether  Ritson's  n°.  152  *  A  Proces- 

with  a  note  at  the  end  that  'Shirley  sion  of  pageants  from  the  creation' 

kowde  fynde  no  more.1    It  is  also,  is  really  distinct  Lydgate  describes 

with  the  same  note,in  Shirley's  Trin.  to  his  hearers  '  figures  shewed  in 

Coll.  Camb.  A/IS".  R.  3.  20,  f.  348,  your    presence'     which    embody 

with  the  heading,  *  Ordenaunce  of  *  gracious    mysteries  grounded  in 

a  p'cessyoun  of  the  feste  of  Cor-  Scripture.'    Of  course  'mysteries' 

pus  Cristi,  made    in   London  by  has  no  technical   dramatic  sense 

Daun  John  Lydegate  *  (E.  P.  Ham-  here.    Lydgate's  method  of '  inter- 

mond,  in  Anglia,  xxii.  364),  and  is  preting '  may  have  been  based  on 

copied  thence  by  John   Stowe  in  the  incorrect  mediaeval  notion  of 

B.  M.  Add.  MS.  29,729,  f.  166.  The  the  methods  of  the  classical  stage, 

M 


162  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

There  were  pageants  also  in  the  Corpus  Christ!  processions 
at  Bungay  and  at  Bury  St.  Edmunds,  but  the  notices  are  too 
fragmentary  to  permit  of  more  than  a  conjecture  as  to  whether 
they  were  accompanied  by  plays.  The  tableaux  shown  at 
Dublin,  Hereford,  and  London  were  of  a  continuous  and 
cyclical  character,  although  at  Hereford  St.  Catherine,  and  at 
Dublin  King  Arthur,  the  Nine  Worthies,  and  St.  George's 
dragon  were  tacked  on  at  the  tail  of  the  procession1.  A 
continental  parallel  is  afforded  by  the  twenty-eight  remon- 
trances^  making  a  complete  cycle  from  the  Annunciation  to 
the  Last  Judgement,  shown  at  B&hune  in  1549  2.  But  else- 
where, both  in  England  and  abroad,  the  shows  of  the  Corpus 
Christi  procession  were  of  a  much  less  systematic  character, 
and  Dublin  was  not  the  only  place  where  secular  elements 
crept  in3.  At  Coventry,  in  addition  to  the  representative 
figures  from  the  craft-plays,  the  guild  of  Corpus  Christi  and 
St.  Nicholas,  to  which,  as  to  special  Corpus  Christi  guilds 
elsewhere,  the  general  supervision  of  the  procession  fell, 
provided  in  1539  a  Mary  and  a  Gabriel  with  the  lily,  Saints 
Catherine  and  Margaret,  eight  Virgins  and  twelve  Apostles. 


which  he  adopts  in  his  Troy  Book  tiQnofN&ogzQTgbs9  Popish  Kingdom 

(cf.  p.    208).     The  '  figures  f   re-  (1553)?  >v-  699  (Stubbes,  i.  337)  : 

presented     twenty-seven     persons  *  Chnstes  passion  here  derided  is, 

whose     utterances     revealed    the  with  sundriemaskes  and  playes; 

mystery  of  the  Mass.    There  were  Faire  Ursley  with  hir  maydens 

eight  patriarchs,  the  Ecclesiast  ,  four  all,  doth  passe  amid  the  wayes  : 

prophets,  the  Baptist,  four  evan-  And  valiant  George,  with  speare 

gelists,  St.  Paul,  and  seven  Chris-  t  hou  ki  lies  t  the  dread  full  dragon 

tian  doctors.  here  ; 

1  Sharp,  172,  quotes  from  aeon-  The  deuil's  house  is  drawne  about, 

temporary  writer  a  passage  showing  wherein  there  doth  appere 

that    the  Dublin  procession,  like  A    wondrous    sort    of    damned 

those  of  Coventry  and  Shrewsbury,  sprites,  with  foule  and  fearefull 

lasted    to    a   recent  date:    'The  looke; 

Fringes  was  a  procession  of  the  Great  Christopher  doth  wade  and 

trades  and  corporations,  performed  passe   with  Christ  amid   the 

in  Ireland  on  Corpus  Christi  day,  brooke: 

even  within  the  author's  recolleo  Sebastian  full  of  feathred  shaftes, 

tion.     King   Solomon,    Queen    of  the  dint  of  dan  doth  feele  ; 

Sheba,  with  Vulcan,  «  Venus,  and  There  walketh  Kathren  with  hir 

Cupid,  were  leading  persons  upon  sworde  in  hande,  and  cruell 

this  occasion.1  wheele  : 

1  Julleville,  Les  Myst.  ix.  21  1;  The  Challis  and  the  singing  Cake, 

Davidson,  219,  with  Barbara  is  led, 

9  The  following  is  from  an  account  And    sundrie    other    Pageants 

of  a  continental  Corpus  Christi  pro-  playde  in  worship  of  this  bred, 

cession  in  Baraabe  Googe's  transla-  &c/ 


MORALITIES,  PUPPET-PLAYS,  PAGEANTS  163 

The  Coventry  procession,  it  may  be  added,  outlived  the 
Corpus  Christi  feast.  In  the  seventeenth  century  Godiva  had 
been  placed  in  it  and  became  the  most  important  feature. 
By  the  nineteenth  century  the  wool-combers  had  a  shepherd 
and  shepherdess,  their  patron  saint  Bishop  Blaize,  and  Jason 
with  the  Golden  Fleece  \  At  the  Shrewsbury  '  Show/  which 
also  until  a  recent  date  continued  the  tradition  of  an  older 
Corpus  Christi  procession,  Saints  Crispin  and  Crispinian  rode 
for  the  shoemakers.  At  Norwich  the  grocers  sent  the 
1  griffin '  from  the  top  of  their  pageant  and  a  c  tree '  which  may 
have  been  the  tree  of  knowledge  from  their  Whitsun  play  of 
Paradise,  but  which  was  converted  by  festoons  of  fruit  and 
spicery  into  an  emblem  of  their  trade  2. 

Aberdeen  seems  to  have  been  distinguished  by  having  two 
great  mimetic  processions  maintained  by  the  guilds.  The 
interpretation  of  the  data  is  rather  difficult,  but  apparently 
the  'Haliblude'  play,  which  existed  in  1440  and  1479,  had 
given  way  by  1531  to  a  procession  in  which  pageants  of  the 
Crucifixion,  the  Resurrection,  and  the  Coronation  of  the  Virgin 
were  eked  out  by  others  of  Saints  Sebastian,  Laurence, 
Stephen,  Martin,  Nicholas,  John,  and  George.  The  other  pro- 
cession seems  originally  to  have  been  introduced  as  an  episode 
in  a  play  of  the  Presentation  in  the  Temple  on  Candlemas  day. 
Its  'personnes'  or  *  pageants'  are  such  as  might  furnish  out 
the  action  of  a  short  Nativity  cycle,  together  with  'honest 
squiares '  from  each  craft,  '  wodmen,'  and  minstrels.  But  in 
this  case  also  the  play  seems  to  have  vanished  early  in  the 
sixteenth  century,  while  the  procession  certainly  endured  until 
a  much  later  date. 

There  are  no  other  English  religious  dumb-shows,  outside 
those  of  Corpus  Christi  day,  so  elaborate  as  the  Aberdeen 
Candlemas  procession.  On  the  same  day  at  Beverley  the 
guild  of  St.  Mary  carried  a  pageant  of  the  Virgin  and  Child 
with  Saints  Joseph  and  Simon  and  two  angels  holding  a  great 

1  Sharp,  217,  records  a  play  of  the  in  1522  (cf.  p.  165). 

Golden  Fleece  provided  by  Robert  *  Cf.  the  Paradise  show,  at  the 

Crowe  for  the  Cappers'  Candlemas  London  reception  of  Henry  VI  in 

Dinner  in  1 525  ;  the  London  drapers  1432  (p.  170). 
had  a  pageant  with  the  same  title 

M  a 


164  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

candlestick1.  The  guild  of  St.  Helen,  on  the  day  of  the 
Invention  of  the  Cross  (May  3),  had  a  procession  with  a  boy 
to  represent  the  saint,  and  two  men  bearing  a  cross  and  a 
shovel2.  The  guild  of  St.  William  of  Norwich  paraded 
a  knave-child  between  two  men  holding  candles  in  honour 
of  the  youthful  martyr 8.  In  the  Whitsuntide  procession  at 
Leicester  walked  the  Virgin  and  Saint  Martin,  with  the  twelve 
Apostles 4.  More  interesting  is  the  pageant  of  St.  Thomas 
the  Martvr  on  December  29  at  Canterbury,  with  the  saint 
on  a  cart  and  knights  played  by  children  and  an  altar  and 
a  device  of  an  angel  and  a  'leder  bag  for  the  blodeV 
Probably  this  list  could  be  largely  increased  were  it  worth 
while6.  The  comparatively  modern  elements  in  the  Corpus 
Christi  pageantry  of  Coventry,  Shrewsbury,  and  Dublin  may 
be  paralleled  from  the  eighteenth-century  festival  of  the 
Preston  guild  merchant  on  or  near  St.  John  Baptist's  day 
with  its  Crispin  and  Crispinian,  Bishop  Blaize,  Adam  and 
Eve,  Vulcan,  and  so  forth 7,  or  the  nineteenth-century  wool 
trade  procession  on  St.  Blasius'  day  (February  3),  at  Bradford, 
in  which  once  more  Bishop  Blaize,  with  the  Jason  and  Medea 
of  the  Golden  Fleece,  appears 8.  It  is  noticeable  how,  as  such 
functions  grow  more  civic  and  less  religious,  the  pageants 
tend  to  become  distinctively  emblematic  of  the  trades 
concerned.  The  same  feature  is  to  be  observed  in  the  choice 
of  subjects  for  the  plays  given  by  way  of  entertainment  to 
the  earl  of  Kildare  at  Dublin  in  1528. 

The  dumb-show  pageants,  which  in  many  cities  glorified 
the  'ridings'  on  the  day  of  St.  George  (April  23),  have  been 

1  Toulmin  Smith,  English  Guilds,     <  rolle  of  velom,  cou'ed  with  a  golde- 

14?'Tt_...       0                .  skyn'  in    J463   (Hone,  81),  were 

!  [Did.  148.               »  Ibid.  30.  probably  not,  as    Davidson,  224, 

Kelly,  7,  1 1.  thinks,  *  a  description  and  represen- 

0  Cf.  Representations,  s.  v.  Can-  tation  of  the  pageants  which  were 

terbury.  carried  in  procession  by  the  guild/ 

The  'pagent's  paynted  and  but  illuminated  pages  (paginae). 

lemenyd  with  gold '  of  the  Holy  For  a  similar  misunderstanding  cf. 

Trinity,  Saints  Fabian,  Sebastian,  p.4oi,n.  i.  Abp.Thoresby  ^1357) 

and  Botulph, '  and  the  last  pagent  circulated  a  '  tretys  in  Englisce  . . . 

of  the  terement,  &  gen'all  obyte,  of  in  smale  pagynes1  (Shirley,  Fasd- 

the  brether'n  and  suster'n,  that  be  culi  Zizaniorum,  xiii). 

passed  to  God/  which  the  London  7  Representations,  s.  v.  Preston. 

guild  of  the  Holy  Trinity  had  on  a  8  Dyer,  60. 


MORALITIES,  PUPPET-PLAYS,  PAGEANTS  165 

described  in  an  earlier  chapter1.  These  *  ridings/  of  curiously 
mingled  religious  and  folk  origin,  stand  midway  between  the 
processions  just  mentioned  and  such  seasonal  perambulations 
as  the  'shows'  and  'watches'  of  Midsummer.  Even  in  the 
latter,  elements  borrowed  from  the  pageants  of  the  miracle- 
plays  occasionally  form  an  odd  blend  with  the  *  giants '  and 
other  figures  of  the  <  folk '  tradition  2.  The  c  wache  and  playe ' 
went  together  at  Wymondham,  and  also  apparently  at  Chelms- 
ford,  in  the  sixteenth  century.  At  York  we  find  the  pageants 
of  some  of  the  crafts  borrowed  for  a  play,  though  apparently 
a  classical  and  not  a  religious  one,  at  the  Midsummer  show 
of  1585.  At  Chester,  when  the  Whitsun  plays  were  beginning 
to  fall  into  desuetude,  the  crafts  were  regularly  represented  in 
the  Midsummer  show  by  some  of  their  dramatis  personae> 
who,  however,  rode  without  their  pageants.  The  smiths  sent 
€  the  Doctors  and  little  God/  the  butchers  sent '  the  divill  in 
his  fethers/  the  barbers  sent  Abraham  and  Isaac,  the  brick- 
layers sent  Balaam  and  the  Ass,  and  so  forth.  These  with 
the  giants,  a  dragon,  a  man  in  woman's  clothes,  naked  boys, 
morris-dancers  and  other  folk  elements,  made  up  a  singular 
cavalcade. 

In  London,  pageants  were  provided  for  the  Midsummer 
show  by  the  guilds  to  which  the  lord  mayor  and  sheriffs  for 
the  year  belonged.  Thus  the  drapers  had  a  pageant  of  the 
Golden  Fleece  in  1522,  and  pageants  of  the  Assumption  and 
Saint  Ursula  in  1523  3.  To  a  modern  imagination  the  type 
of  civic  pageantry  is  the  annual  procession  at  the  installation 
of  the  lord  mayor  in  November,  known  familiarly  as  the  lord 
mayor's  show.  This  show  was  important  enough  from  the 
middle  of  the  sixteenth  century,  and  the  pens  of  many  goodly 
poets,  Peele,  Dekker,  Munday,  Middleton,  and  others,  were 
employed  in  its  service4.  But  its  history  cannot  be  taken 
much  further  back,  and  it  is  exceedingly  probable  that  when 
the  Midsummer  show  came  to  an  end  in  1538,  the  pageants 
were  transferred  to  the  installation  procession,  'the  earliest 

1  Cf.  vol.  i.  p.  221.  (1837) ;     F.    W.    Fairholt,    Lord 

a  Cf.  vol.  i.  pp.  1 1 8,  120,  Mayor's  Pageants  (1843-4,   Percy 

1  Qi.  Representations^, v.  London.  Soc.  nci.  38,  43),  and  The  Civic 

4  J.  G.  Nichols,  London  Pageants  Garland  (Percy  Soc.  1845). 


166  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

clear  notice  is  in  1540,  when  a  pageant  of  the  Assumption, 
perhaps  that  which  had  already  figured  at  the  Midsummer 
show  of  1523,  was  used l.  The  ironmongers  had  a  pageant 
when  the  lord  mayor  was  chosen  from  their  body  in  1566. 
It  was  arranged  by  James  Peele,  father  of  the  dramatist,  and 
there  were  two  'wodmen '  in  it,  but  unfortunately  it  is  not 
further  described2.  In  1568,  Sir  Thomas  Roe,  merchant 
tailor,  had  a  pageant  of  John  the  Baptist 3.  William  Smith, 
writing  an  account  of  city  customs  in  1575,  mentions,  as  a 
regular  feature  of  the  procession,  cthe  Pagent  of  Triumph 
richly  decked,  whereupon,  by  certain  figures  and  writings, 
some  matter  touching  Justice  and  the  office  of  a  Magistrate 
is  represented4.'  And  about  ten  years  later  the  series  of 
printed  '  Devices '  of  the  pageants  begins. 

The  influence  of  miracle-plays  and  moralities  is  also  to  be 
looked  for  in  the  municipal '  shows '  of  welcome  provided  at  the 
state  entries  of  royal  and  other  illustrious  visitors.  A  large 
number  of  these,  chiefly  at  coronations,  royal  marriages  and 
the  like,  are  recorded  in  chronicles  of  London  origin,  and  with 
the  London  examples  in  their  chronological  order  I  will  briefly 
deal.  The  earlier  features  of  such  ceremonies  include  the 
riding  of  the  mayor  and  corporation  to  meet  the  king  at  some 
place  outside  the  gates,  such  as  Blackheath,  or,  in  the  case  of 
a  coronation,  at  the  Tower,  and  the  escorting  of  him  with 
joyous  tripudium  or  carole  to  the  palace  of  Westminster,  the 
reading  of  loyal  addresses  and  the  giving  of  golden  gifts, 
the  decking  of  walls  and  balconies  with  costly  robes  and 
tapestries,  the  filling  of  the  conduits  with  wine,  white  and 
red,  in  place  of  the  accustomed  water6.  The  first  example 

1  Herbert,    i.    457.     The  same  *  Herbert,  i.  199. 

writer    quotes    a    payment    from  4  W.  Smith,  A  breffe  description 

the  drapers'   accounts  of   1516  of  oj 'the  Roy 'all  Citie  of 'London  (1575), 

/ 1 3  4^.7^  for ' Sir  Laurens  Aylmer's  quoted  by  Nichols,  95. 

PagjeKuU.1    But  thjs   cannot   have  *  The     Annales    Londonienses 

been  intended  for  a  lord  mayor's  record  at  the  visit  of  the  Emperor 

show,  IOT  Aylmer's  only  mayoralty  Otho  to  King  J[ohn  in  1207  >* tola 

was  in  1507-8,  and  a  grocer,  not  a  civitas    Londpniae    indui*   solem- 

draper,  was  mayor  in  1515-6  and  pnitatem  pallis  et  aliis  ornamentis 

in  1516-7*  circumornata,'  and  at  the  entry  of 

*  Malcolm,  Londinium  Redivi-  Edward  II  after  his  marriage  in 

MM,  11.42;  W.  C.  Hazlitt,  Livery  1308  'tapeti  aurei*  and  the   city 

Companies  (ityz),  310.  dignitaries  'corpi  rege  et  regina 


MORALITIES,  PUPPET-PLAYS,  PAGEANTS  167 

of  pageantry  in  the  proper  sense  occurs  about  the  middle  of 
the  thirteenth  century,  in  certain  '  devices  and  marvels  *  shown 
at  the  wedding  of  Henry  III  to  Eleanor  of  Provence  in 
1236 l.  These  are  not  described  in  detail ;  but  when  Edward  I 
returned  to  London  after  the  defeat  of  William  Wallace  at 
Falkirk  in  1298,  it  is  recorded  by  a  chronicler,  quoted  in 
Stowe's  Annals,  that  the  crafts  made  '  great  and  solemne 
triumph '  and  that  the  fishmongers  in  particular  *  amongst 
other  pageantes  and  shewes '  had,  as  it  was  St.  Magnus's  day, 
one  of  the  saint  accompanied  by  a  thousand  horsemen,  and 
preceded  by  four  gilded  sturgeons,  four  salmons  on  horseback 
and  '  sixe  and  fourtie  knights  armed,  riding  on  horses  made 
like  luces  of  the  sea  V  It  was  the  fishmongers  again  who  on 
the  birth  of  Edward  III  in  1313  went  in  a  chorea  to  West- 
minster with  an  ingeniously  contrived  ship  in  full  sail,  and 
escorted  the  queen  on  her  way  to  Eltham  3.  At  the  coronation 
of  Richard  II  in  1377  an  elaborate  castle  was  put  up  at  the 
head  of  Cheapside.  On  the  four  towers  of  this  stood  four 
white-robed  damsels,  who  wafted  golden  leaves  in  the  king's 
face,  dropped  gilt  models  of  coin  upon  him  and  his  steed,  and 
offered  him  wine  from  pipes  laid  on  to  the  structure.  Between 
the  towers  was  a  golden  angel,  which  by  a  mechanical  device 
bent  forward  and  held  out  a  crown  as  Richard  drew  near4. 
Similar  stages,  with  a  coelicus  ordo  of  singers  and  boys  and 
maidens  offering  wine  and  golden  crowns,  stood  in  Cheapside 
when  Richard  again  rode  through  the  city  in  1392,  in  token 

karolantes '     (Chronicles    of    the  rity  quoted  in  the  margin  is  *  Chro. 

Reigns  of  Edw.  I  and  Eaw.  If,  Dun./  which  I  cannot  identify.    It 

R.  S.  i.  13,  152).     At  the  corona-  is  not  the  Dunsiable  Annals  in  the 

tion  of  Henry  IV  in  1399  was  an  Annales  monastici  (R.S.),  vol.  Hi. 
'equitatio     magnifica'     (Annales        *  Annales  Londonienses  (Chron. 

Hen.  IV,  R.  S.  294),  and  the  streets  of  Edw.  I  and  Ediv.  II,  R.  S.),  i. 

were  hung  with  'paremens,1  and  221     'quaedam     navis,     quodam 

there  were  '  noeuf  broucherons   a  mirabili  ingenio  operata,  cum  malo 

maniere   de    fontaines    en  Cep  a  et  veto  erectis,  *t  depictis  de  supra- 

Londres,    courans    par    plusieurs  dictis    armis    [of    England    and 

conduits,  jettans  vin  blanc  et  ver-  France]  et  varietate  plurima ' ;   cf. 

meil '  (Froissart,  Chroniques,   ed.  H.  T.  Riley,  Memorials  of  London, 

Kervyn  de  Lettynhove,  xvi.  205).  107,  from  Corporation  Letter  Book 

1  M.    Paris,    Chronica    Maiora  D.  f.  168. 

(R.  S.),  iii.  336  'quibusdam  pro-        *  T.  Walsingham,  Hist.  Anglica 

digiosis  ingenris  et  portends.'  (R.  S.),  i.  331. 

*  Stowe,  Annals,  207.  Theautho- 


168  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

of  reconciliation  with  the  rebellious  Londoners.  And  at 
St.  Paul's  was  a  youth  enthroned  amongst  a  triple  circle  of 
singing  angels;  and  at  Temple  Bar  St.  John  Baptist  in  the 
desert  surrounded  by  all  kinds  of  trees  and  a  menagerie  of 
strange  beasts l.  No  similar  details  of  pageantry  are  recorded 
at  the  coronations  of  Henry  IV  or  Henry  V.  But  when  the 
latter  king  returned  to  London  after  the  battle  of  Agincourt 
in  1415  there  was  a  very  fine  show  indeed.  The  procession 
came  to  the  city  from  Eltham  and  Blackheath  by  way  of 
London  Bridge.  Upon  the  tower  masking  the  bridge  stood 
two  gigantic  figures,  one  a  man  with  an  axe  in  his  right  hand 
and  the  city  keys  in  his  left,  the  other  a  woman  in  a  scarlet 
mantle.  Beyond  this  were  two  columns  painted  to  resemble 
white  marble  and  green  jasper,  on  which  were  a  lion  and  an 
antelope  bearing  the  royal  arms  and  banner.  Over  the  foot 
of  the  bridge  was  a  tower  with  a  figure  of  St.  George,  and  on 
a  house  hard  by  a  number  of  boys  representing  the  heavenly 
host,  who  sang  the  anthem  Benedictus  qui  venit  in  nomine  Dei. 
The  tower  upon  the  Cornhill  conduit  was  decked  with  red  and 
had  on  it  a  company  of  prophets,  who  sent  a  flight  of  sparrows 
and  other  birds  fluttering  round  the  king  as  he  passed,  while 
the  prophets  chanted  Cantate  Domino  canticum  novum.  The 
tower  of  the  great  Cheapside  conduit  was  green,  and  here  were 
twelve  Apostles  and  twelve  Kings,  Martyrs  and  Confessors  of 
England,  whose  anthem  was  Benedic,  animay  Domino,  and  who, 
even  as  Melchisedek  received  Abraham  with  bread  and  wine, 
offered  the  king  thin  wafers  mixed  with  silver  leaves,  and 
a  cup  filled  from  the  conduit  pipes.  On  Cheapside,  the 
cross  was  completely  hidden  by  a  great  castle,  in  imitation 
white  marble  and  green  and  red  jasper,  out  of  the  door  of 
which  issued  a  bevy  of  virgins,  with  timbrel  and  dance  and 
songs  of *  Nowell,  Nowell,'  like  unto  the  daughters  of  Israel 
who  danced  before  David  after  the  slaying  of  Goliath.  On 
the  castle  stood  boys  feathered  like  angels,  who  sang  Te  Deum 
and  flung  down  gold  coins  and  boughs  of  laurel.  Finally,  on 
the  tower  of  the  little  conduit  near  St.  Paul's,  all  blue  as  the  sky, 

1  Fabyan,  538;  H.  Knighton,  regent  Ricardum  II  et  civitatem 
Chronicon  (R.  S.),  ii.  320  ;  Richard  London  (Political  Poems>  R.  S.  i. 
Maydiston,  De  concordia  inter  282). 


MORALITIES,  PUPPET-PLAYS,  PAGEANTS  169 

were  more  virgins  who,  as  when  Richard  II  was  crowned, 
wafted  golden  leaves  out  of  golden  cups,  while  above  were 
wrought  angels  in  gold  and  colours,  and  an  image  of  the  sun 
enthroned1.  The  details  of  the  reception  of  Henry  and 
Catherine  of  France,  six  years  later,  are  not  preserved  2.  Nor 
are  those  of  the  London  coronation  of  Henry  VI  in  1429. 
But  there  was  a  grand  dumb-show  at  the  Paris  coronation  in 
1431 3,  and  it  was  perhaps  in  emulation  of  this  that  on  his 
return  to  London  in  the  following  year  the  king  was  received 
with  a  splendour  equal  to  that  lavished  on  the  victor  of 
Agincourt.  There  is  a  contemporary  account  of  the  pro- 
ceedings by  John  Carpenter,  the  town  clerk  of  London  4.  As 
in  1415  a  giant  greeted  the  king  at  the  foot  of  London  Bridge. 
On  the  same  *  pageant 6 '  two  antelopes  upbore  the  arms  of 
England  and  France.  On  the  bridge  stood  a  magnificent 
'fabric/  occupied  by  Nature,  Grace,  and  Fortune,  who  gave 
the  king  presents  as  he  passed.  To  the  right  were  the  seven 
heavenly  Virtues,  who  signified  the  seven  gifts  of  the  Holy 
Ghost,  by  letting  fly  seven  white  doves.  To  the  left,  seven 
other  virgins  offered  the  regalia.  Then  all  fourteen,  clapping 
their  hands  and  rejoicing  in  tripudia,  broke  into  songs  of 
welcome.  In  Cornhill  was  the  Tabernacle  of  Lady  Wisdom, 
set  upon  seven  columns.  Here  stood  Wisdom,  and  here  the 
seven  liberal  Sciences  were  represented  by  Priscian,  Aristotle, 
Tully,  Boethius,  Pythagoras,  Euclid,  and  Albumazar.  On 
the  conduit  was  the  Throne  of  Justice,  on  which  sat  a  king 
surrounded  by  Truth,  Mercy,  and  Clemency,  with  two  Judges 
and  eight  Lawyers.  In  Cheapside  was  a  Paradise  with  a  grove 
full  of  all  manner  of  foreign  fruits,  and  three  wells  from  which 

1  Full  contemporary  accounts  in         8  Cf.  p.  174. 

Gesta  Henrici  Quinti  (Eng.  Hist.  *  Printed  from  Corp.  Letter  Book 

Soc.),  61,  and  a  set  of  verses  by  K.  f.  103*,  by  H.  T.  Riley,  Liber 

John  Lydgate  printed   in  London  <d/6us(R.S.),  iii.457;  cf.  descriptive 

Chronicle,    214,    and  H.   Nicolas,  verses  by  Lydgate,  Minor  Works 

Hist,  of  Agincourt  (1833),    326;  (Percy  Soc.),  2  ;  London  Chronicle, 

more  briefly  in  London  Chronicle^  no;  Fabyan,  603  •*  Gregory,  173. 

103  ;  T.  Walsingham,  Hist.  Anglic.  *  Carpenter  uses  the  termpagina, 

(R.  S.),  ii.  314  ;  cf.  C.  L.  Kingsford,  which  here  occurs  for  the  first  time 

Henry  V,  156.  in  connexion  with    these  London 

2  T.  Walsingham,  Hist.  Anglica  receptions.     Mr.    Riley  quite    un- 
(R.  S.),  ii.  336  'ludicis    et  vario  necessarily  proposes  to  read  ma- 
apparatu.'  china. 


170  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

gushed  out  wine,  served  by  Mercy,  Grace,  and  Pity.  Here  the 
king  was  greeted  by  Enoch  and  Elijah  x.  At  the  cross  was 
a  castle  of  jasper  with  a  Tree  of  Jesse,  and  another  of  the 
royal  descent ;  and  at  St.  Paul's  conduit  a  representation  of 
the  Trinity  amongst  a  host  of  ministering  angels.  In  1445 
Margaret  of  Anjou  came  to  London  to  be  crowned.  Stowe 
records  '  a  few  only '  of  the  pageants.  She  entered  by  South- 
wark  bridge  foot  where  were  Peace  and  Plenty.  On  the 
bridge  was  Noah's  ship ;  in  Leadenhall,  '  madam  Grace 
Chancelor  de  Dieu ' ;  on  the  Tun  in  Cornhill,  St.  Margaret ; 
on  the  conduit  in  Cheapside,  the  Wise  and  Foolish  Virgins ; 
at  the  Cross,  the  Heavenly  Jerusalem  ;  and  at  Paul's  Gate, 
the  General  Resurrection  and  Judgement 2. 

The  rapid  kingings  and  unkingings  of  the  wars  of  the  Roses 
left  little  time  and  little  heart  for  pageantries,  but  with  the 
advent  of  Henry  VII  they  begin  again,  and  continue  with 
growing  splendour  throughout  the  Tudor  century.  Space 
only  permits  a  brief  enumeration  of  the  subjects  chosen  for 
set  pageants  on  a  few  of  the  more  important  occasions. 
Singing  angels  and  precious  gifts,  wells  of  wine  and  other 
minor  delights  may  be  taken  for  granted 3.  As  to  the  details 
of  Henry  VII's  coronation  in  1485  and  marriage  in  1486 
the  chroniclers  are  provokingly  silent,  and  of  the  many 
6 gentlemanlie  pageants'  at  the  coronation  of  the  queen  in 
1487  the  only  one  specified  is  'a  great  redde  dragon  spouting 
flames  of  fyer  into  the  Thames,'  from  the  '  bachelors'  barge ' 

1  A  pun  was  concealed  here,  for  her  Crownacion  of   the  reign    of 

John  de  Welles,  grocer,  was  mayor,  Henry  VI I  (Antiquarian Repertory, 

and  the  *  oranges,  almonds,  and  the  i.  302)  has  the  following  direction 

pomegranade '  on  the  'trees  were  for  the  riding  from  the  Tower  to 

the  grocers'  wares.     Cf.  the  tree  of  Westminster,    *  at    the    condit    in 

the  Norwich  grocers  in  the  Corpus  Cornylle  ther  must  be  ordined  a 

Christi  procession  (p.  163).  sight    w*   angelles    singinge   and 

*  Stowe, Annals^  385;  cf. London  freche    balettes    y'on    in    latene, 

Chronicle,     134     'goodly     sights  engliche  and  ffrenche,  mad  by  the 

ayenst  her  coming';  Fabyan,  617  wyseste  docturs  of  this  realme ;  and 

4  sumptuous  and  costly  pagentes,  the  condyt  of  Chepe  in  the  same 

and  resemblaunce  of  dyuerse  olde  wyse ;    and  the  condit  must   ryn 

hystoryes ' ;   Gregory,   186  *  many  bothe  red  wyn  and  whit  wyne  ;  and 

notabylle   devysys    in   the   cytte.'  the  crosse  in  Chepe  muste  be  araid 

According  to  Stowe,  Lydgate  wrote  in  ye  most  rialle  wyse  that  might 

verses  for  these  pageants.  be  thought ;  and  the  condit  next 

9  A  memorandum  of  ceremonial  Poules  in  the  same  wyse.' 
Asfforthe  ressavnge  off  a  Quen*  and 


MORALITIES,  PUPPET-PLAYS,  PAGEANTS  171 

of  the  lord  mayor's  company  as  she  passed  up  the  river  from 
Greenwich  to  the  Tower1.  At  the  wedding  of  Prince  Arthur 
to  Katharine  of  Aragon  in  1501,  *vi  goodly  beutiful  page- 
auntes  '  lined  the  way  from  London  Bridge  to  St.  Paul's*  The 
contriver  is  said  to  have  been  none  other  than  Bishop 
Foxe  the  great  chancellor  and  the  founder  of  Corpus  Christi 
College  in  Oxford.  The  subject  of  the  first  pageant  was  the 
Trinity  with  Saints  Ursula  and  Katharine  ;  of  the  second,  the 
Castle  of  Portcullis,  with  Policy,  Nobleness,  and  Virtue  ;  of 
the  third,  Raphael,  the  angel  of  marriage,  with  Alphonso, 
Job,  and  Boethius  ;  of  the  fourth,  the  Sphere  of  the  Sun ;  of 
the  fifth,  the  Temple  of  God  ;  and  of  the  sixth,  Honour  with 
the  seven  Virtues2.  As  to  Henry  VIII's  coronation  and 
marriage  there  is,  once  more,  little  recorded.  In  1523  came 
Charles  V,  Emperor  of  Germany,  to  visit  the  king,  and  the 
city  provided  eleven  pageants  'very  faire  and  excellent  to 
behold3/  The  '  great  red  dragon '  of  1487  reappeared  in  1533 
when  yet  another  queen,  Anne  Boleyn,  came  up  from  Green- 
wich to  enjoy  her  brief  triumph.  It  stood  on  a  *  foist '  near 
the  lord  mayor's  barge,  and  in  another  '  foist '  was  a  mount, 
and  on  the  mount  Anne's  device,  a  falcon  on  a  root  of  gold 
with  white  roses  and  red.  The  pageants  for  the  progress  by 
land  on  the  following  day  were  of  children  *  apparelled  like 
merchants/  of  Mount  Parnassus,  of  the  falcon  and  mount  once 
more,  with  Saint  Anne  and  her  children,  of  the  three  Graces, 
of  Pallas,  Juno,  Venus,  and  Mercury  with  the  golden  apple,  of 
three  ladies,  and  of  the  Cardinal  Virtues  4.  The  next  great 
show  was  at  the  coronation  of  Edward  VI  in  1547,  and 
included  Valentine  and  Orson,  Grace,  Nature,  Fortune  and 
Charity,  Sapience  and  the  seven  Liberal  Sciences,  Regality 
enthroned  with  Justice,  Mercy  and  Truth,  the  Golden  Fleece, 
Edward  the  Confessor  and  St.  George,  Truth,  Faith,  and 

1  Contemporary  account  in  Le-  8  Stowe,  Annals,  517 ;  Hall, 

land,  Collectanea  (ed.  Hearnc),  iv.  638  ;  cf.  Representations  (London). 
218,  and  J.  Ives,  Select  Papers  4  Minutely  detailed  contem- 

(1773),  127-  porary  account  in  Antiquarian 

*  Minutely  detailed  contemporary  Repertory,  ii.  232;  Hall,  801 ; 

account  in  Antiquarian  Repertory,  Collier, ii.  353.  Leland's  and  Udall's 

it.  248;  cf.  Stowe,  Annals,  483;  verses  for  the  pageants  are  \nBallads 

Hazlitt-Warton,  iii.  160,  from  MSS.,  i.  378  (Ballad  Soc.). 


172  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

Justice.  There  was  also  a  cunning  Spanish  rope-dancer,  who 
performed  marvels  on  a  cord  stretched  to  the  ground  from 
the  tower  of  St.  George's  church  in  St.  Paul's  churchyard l. 
Mary,  in  1553,  enjoyed  an  even  more  thrilling  spectacle  in 
c  one  Peter  a  Dutchman/  who  stood  and  waved  a  streamer  on 
the  weathercock  of  St.  Paul's  steeple.  She  had  eight  pageants, 
of  which  three  were  contributed  by  the  Genoese,  Easterlings, 
and  Florentines.  The  subjects  are  unknown,  but  that  of  the 
Florentines  was  in  the  form  of  a  triple  arch  and  had  on  the 
top  a  trumpeting  angel  in  green,  who  moved  his  trumpet  to 
the  wonder  of  the  crowd  2.  There  were  pageants  again  when 
Mary  brought  her  Spanish  husband  to  London  in  1554.  At 
the  conduit  in  Gracechurch  Street  were  painted  the  Nine 
Worthies.  One  of  these  was  Henry  VIII,  who  was  represented 
as  handing  a  bible  to  Edward ;  and  the  unfortunate  painter 
was  dubbed  a  knave  and  a  rank  traitor  and  villain  by  Bishop 
Gardiner,  because  the  bible  was  not  put  in  the  hands  of  Mary3. 
At  the  coronation  of  Elizabeth  in  1559,  w^  which  this  list 
must  close,  it  was  Time  and  Truth  who  offered  the  English 
bible  to  the  queen.  The  same  pageant  had  representations 
of  a  Decayed  Commonwealth  and  a  Flourishing  Common- 
wealth, while  others  figured  the  Union  of  York  and  Lancaster, 
the  Seat  of  Worthy  Governance,  the  Eight  Beatitudes,  and 
Deborah  the  Judge.  At  Temple  Bar,  those  ancient  palladia 
of  London  city,  the  giants  Gotmagot  and  Corineus,  once 
more  made  their  appearance  4. 

I  do  not  wish  to  exaggerate  the  influence  exercised  by  the 
miracle-plays  and  moralities  over  these  London  shows.  London 
was  not,  in  the  Middle  Ages,  one  of  the  most  dramatic  of 
English  cities,  and  such  plays  as  there  were  were  not  in  the  hands 
of  those  trade-  and  craft-guilds  to  whom  the  glorifying  of  the 
receptions  naturally  fell.  The  functions  carried  out  by  the 
fishmongers  in  1298  and  1313  are  much  of  the  nature  of 
masked  ridings  or  *  disguisings,'  and  must  be  held  to  have 
a  folk  origin.  The  ship  of  1313  suggests  a  'hobby  ship5.' 

1  Contemporary  account  in  Le-  *  Holinshed,  iii.  1121. 

land,  Collectanea  (ed.  Hearne),  iv.  *  Contemporary  account  in  Ni- 

311.  chols,  Progresses  of  ElizoJ>eth%  i.  38. 

f  Stowe,  Annals,  616 ;  cf.  Texts*  5  Cf.  vol  i.  p.  121. 
s.v.John  Hey  wood. 


MORALITIES,  PUPPET-PLAYS,  PAGEANTS  173 

Throughout  the  shows  draw  notions  from  many  heterogeneous 
sources.  The  giants  afford  yet  another  *  folk '  element.  The 
gifts  of  gold  and  wine  and  the  speeches  of  welcome l  need  no 
explanation.  Devices  of  heraldry  are  worked  in.  The  choirs 
of  boys  and  girls  dressed  as  angels  recall  the  choirs  perched  on 
the  battlements  of  churches  in  such  ecclesiastical  ceremonies 
as  the  Palm  Sunday  procession1.  The  term  ' pageant* 
(pagina),  which  first  appears  in  this  connexion  in  1432  and 
is  in  regular  use  by  the  end  of  the  century,  is  perhaps  a  loan 
from  the  plays,  but  the  structures  themselves  appear  to  have 
arisen  naturally  out  of  attempts  to  decorate  such  obvious 
architectural  features  of  the  city  as  London  Bridge,  the 
prison  known  as  the  Tun,  and  the  conduits  which  stood  in 
Cornhill  and  Cheapside3.  It  is  chiefly  in  the  selection  of 
themes  for  the  more  elaborate  mimetic  pageants  that  the 
reflection  of  the  regular  contemporary  drama  must  be  traced. 
Such  scriptural  subjects  as  John  the  Baptist  of  1392  or  the 
Prophets  and  Apostles  of  1415  pretty  obviously  come  from 
the  miracle-plays.  The  groups  of  allegorical  figures  which 
greeted  Henry  VI  in  1432  are  in  no  less  close  a  relation  to 
the  moralities,  which  were  at  that  very  moment  beginning 
to  outstrip  the  miracle-plays  in  popularity.  And  in  the  reign 
of  Henry  VII  the  humanist  tendencies  begin  to  suggest 
subjects  for  the  pageants  as  well  as  to  transform  the  drama 
itself. 

Certainly  one  does  not  find  in  London  or  in  any  English 
city  those  mysttres  mim£s  or  cyclical  dumb-shows,  with  which 
the  good  people  of  Paris  were  wont  to  welcome  kings,  and 
which  are  clearly  an  adaptation  of  the  ordinary  miracle-play 
to  the  conditions  of  a  royal  entry  with  its  scant  time  for 
long  drawn-out  dialogue.  The  earliest  of  these  upon  record 
was  in  1313  when  Philip  IV  entertained  Edward  II 
and  Isabella.  It  is  not  quite  clear  whether  this  was 

1  Warton,    iii.    158,    says    that  them,  and  read  or  not  read  aloud 

1  Speakers  seem  to  have  been  ad-  when  the  visitor   approached,  as 

mitted  into  our  pageants  about  the  might  be  convenient, 

reign  of   Henry   VI.1    But    there  rCf.  p.  5. 

were  songs,  and  for  all  we  know,  8  Wheatley-Cunnjngham,Z^*fc&» 

speeches  also  in   1377  and    1415.  Past  and  Present,  i.  373,  458;  iii. 

Verses  such  as  Lydgate  wrote  for  409. 
pageants  were  often   fastened  on 


174  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

a  procession  like  the  disguising  called  the  procession  du 
renard  which  accompanied  it,  or  a  stationary  dumb-show 
on  pageants.  But  there  is  no  doubt  about  the  moult  piteux 
mystere  de  la  Passion  de  Nostre  Seigneur  au  vif  given  before 
Charles  VI  and  Henry  V  after  the  treaty  of  Troyes  in  1420, 
for  this  is  said  to  have  been  on  eschaffaulx  and  to  have  been 
modelled  on  the  bas-reliefs  around  the  choir  of  Notre-Dame. 
Very  similar  must  have  been  the  moult  bel  mystere  du  Vieil 
testament  et  du  Nouvel  which  welcomed  the  duke  of  Bedford 
in  1424  and  which  fut  fait  sans  parler  ne  sans  signer •,  comme 
ce  feussent  ymaiges  enlevez  contre  ung  mur.  Sans  parler, 
again,  was  the  mysttre  which  stood  on  an  esckaffault  before 
the  church  of  the  Trinity  when  Henry  VI  was  crowned,  only 
a  few  weeks  before  the  London  reception  already  mentioned  *. 
It  may  be  added  that  in  many  provincial  towns  the  pageants 
used  at  royal  entries  had  a  far  closer  affinity  to  the  miracle- 
plays  proper  than  was  the  case  in  London.  The  place  most 
often  honoured  in  this  sort  was  Coventry.  In  1456  came 
Queen  Margaret  and  poor  mad  Henry  VI.  One  John 
Wedurley  of  Leicester  seems  to  have  been  employed  to 
organize  a  magnificent  entertainment.  At  Bablake  gate, 
where  stood  a  Jesse,  the  royal  visitors  were  greeted  by 
Isaiah  and  Jeremiah.  Within  the  gate  was  a  '  pagent '  with 
Saint  Edward  the  Confessor  and  St.  John  the  Evangelist. 
On  the  conduit  in  Smithford  Street  were  the  four  Cardinal 
Virtues.  In  the  Cheaping  were  nine  pageants  for  the  Nine 
Worthies.  At  the  cross  there  were  angels,  and  wine  flowed, 
and  at  another  conduit  hard  by  was  St.  Margaret  'sleyng' 
her  dragon  and  a  Company  of  angels.  The  queen  was  so 
pleased  that  she  returned  next  year  for  Corpus  Christi  day. 
It  appears  from  the  smiths'  accounts  that  the  pageants  used 
at  the  reception  were  those  kept  by  the  crafts  for  the  plays. 
The  smiths'  pageant  was  had  out  again  in  1461,  with  Samson 
upon  it,  when  Edward  IV  came  after  his  coronation,  and  in 
1474  when  the  young  prince  Edward  came  for  St.  George's 
feast.  The  shows  then  represented  King  Richard  II 
and  his  court,  Patriarchs  and  Prophets,  St.  Edward  the  Con- 
fessor, the  Three  Kings  of  Cologne  and  St.  George  slaying 
1  Jullcville,  L*s  Myst.  \.  196;  ii.  186. 


MORALITIES,  PUPPET-PLAYS,  PAGEANTS  175 

the  dragon.  Prince  Arthur,  in  1498,  saw  the  Nine  Worthies, 
the  Queen  of  Fortune,  and,  once  more,  Saint  George.  For 
Henry  VIII  and  Katharine  of  Aragon  in  1511  there  were 
three  pageants:  on  one  the  ninefold  hierarchy  of  angels, 
on  another  ( divers  beautiful  damsels,'  on  the  third  '  a  goodly 
stage  play.1  The  mercers'  pageant  *  stood '  at  the  visit  of  the 
Princess  Mary  in  1525,  and  the  tanners',  drapers',  smiths',  and 
weavers'  pageants  at  that  of  Queen  Elizabeth  in  1565.  I  do 
not  know  whether  it  is  legitimate  to  infer  that  the  subjects 
represented  on  these  occasions  were  those  of  the  Corpus 
Christi  plays  belonging  to  the  crafts  named1. 

York  was  visited  by  Richard  III  in  1483,  and  there  were 
pageants,  the  details  of  which  have  not  been  preserved,  as 
well  as  a  performance  of  the  Creed  play2.  It  was  also 
visited  by  Henry  VII  in  1486,  and  there  exists  a  civic  order 
prescribing  the  pageants  for  that  occasion.  The  first  of  these 
was  a  most  ingenious  piece  of  symbolism.  There  was  a 
heaven  and  beneath  it  c  a  world  desolaite,  full  of  treys  and 
floures.'  Out  of  this  sprang  *  a  roiall,  rich,  rede  rose '  and  *  an 
othre  rich  white  rose,'  to  whom  all  the  other  flowers  did  c  lowte 
and  evidently  yeve  suffrantie.'  Then  appeared  out  of  a  cloud 
a  crown  over  the  roses,  and  then  a  city  with  citizens  with 
'Ebrauk'  the  founder,  who  offered  the  keys  to  the  king. 
The  other  pageants  represented  Solomon  and  the  six  Henries, 
the  Castle  of  David,  and  Our  Lady.  There  were  also  devices 
by  which  a  rain  of  rose-water  and  a  hailstorm  of  comfits  fell 
before  the  king8.  During  the  same  progress  which  took 
Henry  to  York,  he  also  visited  Worcester,  where  there  were 
pageants  and  speeches, '  whiche  his  Grace  at  that  Tyme  harde 
not'  but  which  should  have  represented  Henry  VI  and  a 
lanitor  ad  lanuam.  Thence  he  went  to  Hereford,  and  was 
greeted  by  St  George,  King  Ethelbert,  and  Our  Lady ;  thence 
to  Gloucester,  where  the  chronicler  remarks  with  some  surprise 
that  '  ther  was  no  Pageant  nor  Speche  ordeynede ' ;  and 
finally  to  Bristol,  where  were  King  Bremmius,  Prudence, 
Justice,  'the  Shipwrights  Pageannt,'  without  any  speech, 

1  Sharp,  145.  (Suttees  Soc.,  vol.  Ixxxv),  53,  from 

1  Davies,  162,  171,  282.  Corporation  House  Book,  vi.  15. 

9  J.  Raine,  English  Miscellanies 


176  RELIGIOUS  DRAMA 

and  a  '  Pageannte  of  an  Olifaunte,  with  a  Castell  on  his  Bakk ' 
and  '  The  Resurrection  of  our  Lorde  in  the  highest  Tower  of 
the  same, with  certeyne  Imagerye  smytyng  Bellis,  and  all  wente 
by  Veights,  merveolously  wele  done  V  In  1503  Henry  VII's 
daughter  Margaret  married  James  IV  of  Scotland,  and  was 
received  into  Edinburgh  with  pageants  of  the  Judgement  of 
Paris,  the  Annunciation,  the  Marriage  of  Joseph  and  Mary, 
and  the  Four  Virtues2.  Eight  years  later,  in  1511,  she 
visited  Aberdeen,  and  the  'pleasant  padgeanes*  included 
Adam  and  Eve,  the  Salutation  of  the  Virgin,  the  Magi,  and 
the  Bruce  3. 

The  facts  brought  together  in  the  present  chapter  show 
how  'pageant'  came  to  have  its  ordinary  modern  sense  of 
a  spectacular  procession.  How  it  was  replaced  by  other 
terms  in  the  sense  of €  play '  will  be  matter  for  the  sequel.  It 
may  be  added  that  the  name  is  also  given  to  the  elaborate 
structures  of  carpenters'  and  painters'  work  used  in  the  early 
Tudor  masks4.  These  the  masks  probably  took  over  from 
the  processions  and  receptions.  On  the  other  hand,  the  recep- 
tions, by  an  elaboration  of  the  spoken  element,  developed  into 
the  Elizabethan  'Entertainments,1  which  are  often  classified 
as  a  sub-variety  of  the  mask  itself.  This  action  and  reaction 
of  one  form  of  show  upon  another  need  not  at  this  stage  cause 
any  surprise.  A  sixteenth-century  synonym  for  '  pageant '  is 
'triumph/  which  is  doubtless  a  translation  of  the  Italian 
trionfo,  a  name  given  to  the  edifizio  by  the  early  Renascence, 
in  deliberate  reminiscence  of  classical  terminology  5. 

1  Contemporary  account  in  Le-  T.  S.),  $. 

land,  Collectanea  (ed.  Hearne),  iv.  *  Leknd,  Collectanea,  iv.  263. 

185.    A  description  of  an  earlier  8  Cf.  Representations,  s.v.  Aber- 

reception  of  Edward  IV  at  Bristol  deen. 

with '  Wylliam  conquerour/  'a  greet  4  Cf.  vol.  i.  p.  398. 

Gyaunt  delyueryng  the  Keyes,'  and  *  Symonds,  Renaissance  in  Italy, 

St.  George  is  in  Furnivall,  Political,  iv.  338. 
Religious,  and  Love  Poems  (£.  £. 


BOOK  IV 

THE    INTERLUDE 


Patronage  cannot  kill  art :  even  in  kings'  palaces  the  sudden 
flower  blooms  serene. 

MODERN  PLAY. 


CHAMBERS.    II 


CHAPTER   XXIV 
PLAYERS   OF  INTERLUDES 

[Bibliographical  Note. — The  Annals  of  the  Stage  in  J.  P.  Collier, 
History  of  English  Dramatic  Poetry  (new  ed.  1879),  although  ill  ar- 
ranged and  by  no  means  trustworthy,  now  become  of  value.  They  may 
be  supplemented  from  the  full  notices  of  Tudor  spectacula  in  E.  Hall, 
The  Union  of  Lancaster  and  York,  1548,  ed.  1809,  and  from  the  various 
calendars  of  State  papers,  of  which  J.  S.  Brewer  and  J.  Gairdner,  Letters 
and  Papers  of  the  Reign  of  Henry  VII I  ( 1862- 1903),  including  the  Revels 
Accounts  and  the  Kings  Books  of  Payments,  is  the  most  important. 
Some  useful  documents  are  in  W.  C.  Hazlitt,  The  English  Drama  and 
Stage  (1869).  The  French  facts  are  given  by  L.  Petit  de  Julleville,  Let 
Come'diens  en  France  au  Moyen  Age  (1889).] 

THE  closing  section  of  this  essay  may  fitly  be  introduced 
by  a  brief  retrospect  of  the  conclusions  already  arrived  at. 
The  investigation,  however  it  may  have  lingered  by  the  way, 
has  not  been  altogether  without  its  logos  or  rational  frame- 
work. The  first  book  began  with  a  study  of  the  conditions 
under  which  the  degenerate  stage  of  the  Roman  Empire 
ceased  to  exist.  The  most  important  of  these  were  the 
indifference  of  the  barbarians  and  the  direct  hostility  of  the 
Church.  A  fairly  clean  sweep  was  made.  Scarcely  a  thread 
of  dramatic  tradition  is  to  be  traced  amongst  the  many 
and  diverse  forms  of  entertainment  provided  by  mediaeval 
minstrelsy.  But  the  very  existence  of  minstrelsy,  itself  a 
singular  blend  of  Latin  and  barbaric  elements,  is  a  proof  of 
the  enduring  desire  of  the  western  European  peoples  for 
something  in  the  nature  of  spectacula.  In  the  strength  of  this 
the  minstrels  braved  the  ban  of  the  Church,  and  finally  won 
their  way  to  at  least  a  partial  measure  of  toleration  from  their 
hereditary  foes.  In  the  second  book  it  was  shown  that  the 
instinct  for  spectacula  had  its  definitely  dramatic  side.  The 
ludi  of  the  folk,  based  upon  ancient  observances  of  a  forgotten 
natural  religion,  and  surviving  side  by  side  with  minstrelsy, 

N  3 


180  THE  INTERLUDE 

broke  out  at  point  after  point  into  mimesis.  Amongst  the 
villages  they  developed  into  dramatic  May-games  and  dra- 
matic sword-dances:  in  their  bourgeois  forms  they  overran 
city  and  cathedral  with  the  mimicries  of  the  Feast  of  Fools 
and  the  Boy  Bishop;  they  gave  birth  to  a  special  type  of 
drama  in  the  mask ;  and  they  further  enriched  Tudor  revels 
with  the  characteristic  figures  of  the  domestic  fool  or  jester 
and  the  lord  of  misrule.  Upon  the  folk  ludi,  as  upon  the 
spectacula  of  the  minstrels,  the  Church  looked  doubtfully. 
But  the  mimetic  instinct  was  irresistible,  and  in  the  end  it 
was  neither  minstrels  nor  folk,  but  the  Church  itself,  which 
did  most  for  its  satisfaction.  The  subject  of  the  third  book 
is  a  remarkable  growth  of  drama  within  the  heart  of  the 
ecclesiastical  liturgy,  which  began  in  the  tenth  century,  and 
became,  consciously  or  unconsciously,  a  powerful  counterpoise 
to  the  attraction  of  ludi  and  spectacula.  So  popular,  indeed, 
did  it  prove  that  it  broke  the  bonds  of  ecclesiastical  control ; 
and  about  the  thirteenth  century  a  process  of  laicL  atton  set 
in,  which  culminated  during  the  fourteenth  in  the  great 
Corpus  Christi  cycles  of  the  municipal  guilds.  The  subject- 
matter,  however,  remained  religious  to  the  end,  an  end  which, 
in  spite  of  the  marked  critical  attitude  adopted  by  the 
austerer  schools  of  churchmen,  did  not  arrive  until  that 
attitude  was  confirmed  by  successive  waves  of  Lollard  and 
Protestant  sentiment.  Nor  was  the  system  substantially 
affected  by  certain  innovations  of  the  fifteenth  century,  a 
tendency  to  substitute  mere  spectacular  pageantry  for  the 
spoken  drama,  and  a  tendency  to  add  to  the  visible  present- 
ment of  the  scriptural  history  an  allegorical  exposition  of 
theological  and  moral  doctrine. 

It  is  the  object  of  the  present  book  briefly  to  record  the 
rise,  also  in  the  fifteenth  century,  of  new  dramatic  conditions 
which,  after  existing  for  a  while  side  by  side  with  those  of 
mediaevalism,  were  destined  ultimately  to  become  a  substitute 
for  these  and  to  lead  up  directly  to  the  magic  stage  of 
Shakespeare.  The  change  to  be  sketched  is  primarily  a  social 
rather  than  a  literary  one.  The  drama  which  had  already 
migrated  from  the  church  to  the  market-place,  was  to  migrate 
still  further,  to  the  banqueting-hall.  And  having  passed  from 


PLAYERS  OF  INTERLUDES  181 

the  hands  of  the  clergy  to  those  of  the  folk,  it  was  now  to 
pass,  after  an  interval  of  a  thousand  years,  not  immediately 
but  ultimately,  into  those  of  a  professional  class  of  actors. 
Simultaneously  it  was  to  put  off  its  exclusively  religious 
character,  and  enter  upon  a  new  heritage  of  interests  and 
methods,  beneath  the  revivifying  breath  of  humanism. 

A  characteristic  note  of  the  new  phase  is  the  rise  of  the 
term  interludium  or  '  interlude.'  This  we  have  already  come 
across  in  the  title  of  that  fragmentary  Interludium  de  Clerico 
et  Puella  which  alone  amongst  English  documents  seemed  to 
bear  witness  to  a  scanty  dramatic  element  in  the  repertory  of 
minstrelsy  *.  The  primary  meaning  of  the  name  is  a  matter 
of  some  perplexity.  The  learned  editors  of  the  New  English 
Dictionary  define  it  as  'a  dramatic  or  mimic  representation, 
usually  of  a  light  or  humorous  character,  such  as  was  com- 
monly introduced  between  the  acts  of  the  long  mystery-plays 
or  moralities,  or  exhibited  as  part  of  an  elaborate  entertain- 
ment/ Another  recognized  authority,  Dr.  Ward,  says 2 :  '  It 
seems  to  have  been  applied  to  plays  performed  by  pro- 
fessional actors  from  the  time  of  Edward  IV  onwards.  Its 
origin  is  doubtless  to  be  found  in  the  fact  that  such  plays 
were  occasionally  performed  in  the  intervals  of  banquets  and 
entertainments,  which  of  course  would  have  been  out  of  the 
question  in  the  case  of  religious  plays  proper/  I  cannot 
say  that  I  find  either  of  these  explanations  at  all  satisfactory. 
In  the  first  place,  none  of  the  limitations  of  sense  which 
they  suggest  are  really  borne  out  by  the  history  of  the 
word.  So  far  as  its  rare  use  in  the  fourteenth  century  goes, 
it  is  not  confined  to  professional  plays  and  it  does  not 
exclude  religious  plays.  The  Interludium  de  Clerico  et  Puella 
is,  no  doubt,  a  farce,  and  something  of  the  same  sort  appears 
to  be  in  the  mind  of  Huchown,  or  whoever  else  was  the 
author  of  Sir  Gawain  and  the  Green  Knight^  when  he  speaks  of 
laughter  and  song  as  a  substitute  for  'enterludez '  at  Christmas  3. 

1  Cf.  vol.  i.  p.  86.  term  into  literary  nomenclature.    I 

9  Ward,  i.  1 08.    The  limitation  do  not  so  limit  the  word. 

by  Collier,  ii.  299,  of  *  what  may  be  8  Gawain  and  the  G.  K.  472 : 

properly,  and  strictly,  called  Inter-  cWel  bycommes  such  craft  vpon, 

ludes '  to  farces  of  the  type  affected  cristraasse, 

by  John  Heywopd  has  introduced  Laykyng  of  enterludez,  to  laje  & 

a  most  inconvenient  semi-technical  to  syng.' 


182  THE  INTERLUDE 

But  on  the  other  hand,  Robert  Mannyng  of  Brunne,  at 
the  very  beginning  of  the  century,  classes  '  entyrludes ' 
with  'somour  games'  and  other  forbidden  delights  of  the 
folk1,  while  the  Wyclifite  author  of  the  Tretise  on  Miriclis 
at  its  close,  definitely  uses  *  entirlodies '  as  a  name  for  the 
religious  plays  which  he  is  condemning2.  In  the  fifteenth 
century,  again,  although  *  interlude '  is  of  course  not  one  of 
the  commonest  terms  for  a  miracle-play,  yet  I  find  it  used 
for  performances  probably  of  the  miracle-play  type  at  New 
Romney  in  1426  and  at  Harling  in  1452,  while  the  jurats  of 
the  former  place  paid  in  1463  for '  the  play  of  the  interlude 
of  our  Lord's  Passion  V  The  term,  then,  appears  to  be  equally 
applicable  to  every  kind  of  drama  known  to  the  Middle  Ages. 
As  to  its  philological  derivation,  both  the  New  English 
Dictionary  and  Dr.  Ward  treat  it  as  a  ludus  performed  in 
the  intervals  of  (inter)  something  else,  although  they  do  not 
agree  as  to  what  that  something  else  was.  For  the  perform- 
ance of  farces  '  between  the  acts  of  the  long  miracle-plays ' 
there  is  no  English  evidence  whatever  4.  The  farcical  episodes 
which  find  a  place  in  the  Towneley  plays  and  elsewhere  are  in 
no  way  structurally  differentiated  from  the  rest  of  the  text. 
There  are  some  French  examples  of  combined  performances 
of  farces  and  miracles,  but  they  do  not  go  far  enough  back  to 
explain  the  origin  of  the  word 6.  A  certain  support  is  no  doubt 

1  Cf.  vol.  i.  p.  93.  Representations,  s.v.  King's  Lynn. 

2  Hazlitt,    E.  D.  S.    80    'How  *  A'vyce'  made  pastime  before 
thanne  may  a  prist  pleyn  in  en-  and  after  a  play  at  Bungay,  but 
tirlodies?'      In    Baroour,    Bruce  this  was  not  until  1566. 

(t  1375),  x.  145  *  now  may  je  heir ...  6  Julleville,  Les  Com.  97.    These 

Interludys  and  iuperdys,  )>at  men  performances  were  known  as  les 

assayit  on  mony  vis  Castellis  and  pots  piUs  and    began  about  the 

pelis  for  till  ta,'  the  sense  is  meta-  middle  of  the  fourteenth  century, 

phorical,  as  in  'ioculando  et  talia  The     Anglo  -  French     entr elude y 

verba  asserendo  interludia  fuisse  asterisked    by  the  N.  E.   D.,   is 

vanitatis'  quoted  by  Ducange  from  found  in  1427  (cf.  p.  186).   Collier's 

Vit.  Abb.  S.  Alb.\,  i.e.  probably  theory  receives  some  support  from 

Thomas  Walsingham  (t  1422),  not  the  Spanish  use  of  the  term  entre- 

Matthew  Paris  (t  1249).    The  read-  mes  for  a  comic  piece  played  in 

ing  is  doubtful  in  Anastasius  Biblio-  conjunction  with  a  serious  auto. 

thecarius  (9th  cent.),  Hist.  Ponttf.  But  the  earlier  sense  of  entremes 

(P.  /,.  Ixxx.  1352), '  quern  iussit  sibi  itself  Appears  to  be  for  an  hide- 

praesentari  in  interlude  noctu  ante  pendent  farce  played  at  banquets 

templum  Palladis.'  (Ticknor,  Hist,  of  Span.  Lit.  (ed. 

5  For  probable  1385  cases,  cf.  1888),  i.  231 ;  ii.  449). 


PLAYERS  OF  INTERLUDES  183 

given  to  the  theory  of  the  New  English  Dictionary  by  the 
'  mirry  interludes '  inserted  in  Sir  David  Lyndsay's  morality 
Ane  Satyre  of  the  Thrie  Estaits,  but,  once  more,  it  is  difficult 
to  elucidate  a  term  which  appears  at  the  beginning  of  the 
fourteenth  century  from  an  isolated  use  in  the  middle  of 
the  sixteenth.  Dr.  Ward's  hypothesis  is  perhaps  rather  more 
plausible.  No  doubt  plays  were  performed  at  court  and 
elsewhere  between  the  banquet  and  the  'void'  or  cup  of 
spiced  drink  which  followed  later  in  the  evening,  and  possibly 
also  between  the  courses  of  the  banquet  itself1.  But  this  fact 
would  not  differentiate  dramatic  ludi  from  other  forms  of 
minstrelsy  coming  in  the  same  intervals,  and  the  fact  that 
miracle-plays  are  called  interludes,  quite  as  early  as  anything 
else,  remains  to  be  accounted  for.  I  am  inclined  myself  to 
think  that  the  force  of  inter  in  the  combination  has  been 
misunderstood,  and  that  an  interludium  is  not  a  Indus  in  the 
intervals  of  something  else,  but  a  ludus  carried  on  between 
(inter)  two  or  more  performers ;  in  fact,  a  ludus  in  dialogue. 
The  term  would  then  apply  primarily  to  any  kind  of  dramatic 
performance  whatever. 

In  any  case  it  is  clear  that  while  '  interlude '  was  only 
a  subordinate  name  for  plays  of  the  miracle-type,  it  was  the 
normal  name,  varied  chiefly  by  c  play '  and  *  disguising/  for 
plays  given  in  the  banqueting-halls  of  the  great2.  These 

1  Cf.  the  accounts  in  Leland,  Col-         *  For  a  curious  distinction,  prob- 

lectanea,  iv.  228, 236,  of  the  court  of  ably  neither  original  nor  permanent, 

Henry  VII.     Douglas,  Palace  of  drawn  about  1530  between  *  stage 

Honour •,   ii.  410  'At  eis  they  eit  playes '(presumably  out  of  doors)  m 

with  interludis  betwene,'  dates  from  the  summer  and  '  interludes '  (pre- 

1501.    Herman,    Vulgaria  (1519),  sumably  indoors)  in  the  winter,  cf.  the 

quoted  on  p.  137,  speaks  of  the  document  sprinted  by  H.  R.  Plomer, 

4  paiantis '  of  a  play  as  correspond-  in  Trans *of  Bibliographical  Society, 

ing  in  number  to  the  courses  of  a  iv  (1898),  153,  and  A.  W.  Pollard  in 

feast.       Much    earlier   Raoul   de  Fifteenth  Century  Prose  and  Verse, 

Presles  (tl374)  in  his  Exposicion  to  305,  about  a  suit  between  John  Ras- 

Augustine,  de  Civ.  Dei,  ii.  8  (Abbe-  tell,  lawyer,  printer,  and  playwright, 

ville,    1486),  says   that   comedies  and  one  Henry  Wai  ton.  Rastell,  going 

*  sont    proprement    apellez   inter-  on  a  visit  to  France  about  1 525,  had 

ludia,  pour  ce  quilz  se  font  entre  left  with  Walton  a  number  of  players1 

les  deux  mengiers.'    But  the  use  of  garments.  These  are  fully  described. 

interludere  by  Ausonius,  Idyll,  x.  They  were  mostly  of  say  or  sarcenet, 

76,  *  interludentes,  examina  lubrica,  and  the  tailor,  who  with  the  help 

pisces,'  and  Ambrose,  Epist.  xlvii.  of  RastelPs  wife  had  made  them, 

4, '  interludamus  epistolis,'  supports  valued  them  at  2os.  apiece.  Walton 

my  view*  failed  to  restore  them,  and  for  some 


184  THE  INTERLUDE 

begin  to  claim  attention  during  the  fifteenth  century.  Dr. 
Ward's  statement  that  religious  plays  could  not  have  been 
the  subject  of  such  performances  does  not  bear  the  test  of 
comparison  with  the  facts.  A  miracle  of  St.  Clotilda  was 
played  before  Henry  the  Sixth  at  Windsor  Castle  in  1429,  a 
Christi  Descensus  ad  Inferos  before  Henry  the  Seventh  during 
dinner  at  Winchester  in  1486 ;  nor  is  it  probable  that  the 
play  performed  by  the  boys  of  Maxstoke  Priory  in  the  hall 
of  Lord  Clinton  at  Candlemas,  1430,  was  other  than  religious 
in  character l.  The  records  of  the  miracle-plays  themselves 
show  that  they  were  often  carried  far  from  home.  There  was 
much  coming  and  going  amongst  the  villages  and  little  towns 
round  about  Lydd  and  New  Romney  from  1399  to  1508. 
One  at  least  of  the  existing  texts,  that  of  the  Croxton  Sacra- 
ment, appears  to  be  intended  for  the  use  of  a  travelling  troupe, 
and  that  such  troupes  showed  their  plays  not  only  in  market- 
places and  on  village  greens  but  also  in  the  houses  of 
individual  patrons,  is  suggested  by  entries  of  payments  to 
players  of  this  and  that  locality  in  more  than  one  computes  2. 

years  let  them  on  hire,  to  his  own  ment,  and  had  a  counter-claim  for 

profit.    Evidence  to  this  effect  was  40?.  balance  of  a  bill  for  50^.  costs 

given  by  John  Redman,  stationer,  '  in  making  of  stage  for  player  in 

and  by  George  Mayler,  merchant  RestalPs  grounde  beside  Fyndes- 

tailor,  and  George  Birche,  coriar,  bury,  in   tymbre,    bourde,    nayle, 

two  of  the  king's  players.    These  lath,  sprigge    and    other  thyngs.' 

men  had  played  in  the  garments  He  held  the  clothes  against  pay- 

themselves  and  had  seen  them  used  ment  of  this  amount,  which  Rastell 

in  '  stage  pleyes '  when  the  king's  challenged. 

banquet  was  at  Greenwich  [in  1527  ;         1  In  1503  a  Afap*  was  given  in 

cf.  vol.  i.  p.  400].    They  had  been  Canterbury  guildhall.    Some  of  the 

used  at  least  twenty  times  in  stage  crafts  of  Coventry  (1478-1568)  and 

plays  every  summer  and  twenty  Newcastle  (1536)  had  plays  at  their 

times  in  interludes  every  winter,  guild  feasts.    The  indoor  perfdrm- 

and  Walton   had   taken,   as   the  ances  of  Chester  plays  in  1 567  and 

*  common  custume '  was,  at  a  stage  1 576  are  late  and  exceptional, 
play  '  sumtyme  xld.,  sometyme  5j8.,         *  Cf.  Appendix  E,  ii  (Maxstoke), 

as  they  couth  agree,  and  at  an  inter-  iii   (Thetford),  vii   (Howard),  viii 

lude  viijd  for  every  tyme.'    Rastell  (Tudor  Court).  *  Moleyn's  wedding ' 

had  brought  a  previous  suit  in  the  attended  by  Lord  Howard,  is  the 

mayor's  court,  but  could  only  re-  first  of  many  at  which  the  players  are 

ceive  35^.  9^.,  at  which  the  goods  recorded  to  have  made  the  mirth, 

had  been  officially  appraised.    But  Some  of  the  entries  may  imply 

they  were  then  ( rotten  and  tome/  visits  to  the  plays,  rather  than  of 

whereas  Rastell  alleged  that  they  the  plays,  ana  this  I  suppose  to  be 

were  nearly  new  when  delivered  to  the  case  with  Henry  Vll's  payment 

Walton  and  worth  20  marks.    Wai-  '  to  the  players  at  Myles  End.'    It 

ton  relied  on  the  official  appraise-  is    perhaps  a  little    arbitrary   to 


PLAYERS  OF  INTERLUDES  185 

Thus  Maxstoke  Priory,  between  1422  and  1461,  entertained 
lusores l  from  Nuneaton,  Coventry,  Daventry,  and  ColeshiU  ; 
while  Henry  the  Seventh,  between  1492  and  1509,  gave 
largess,  either  at  court  or  abroad,  to  'pleyers*  from  Essex, 
Wimborne  Minster,  Wycombe,  London,  and  Kingston.  The 
accounts  of  the  last-named  place  record  an  ordinary  parochial 
play  in  the  very  year  of  the  royal '  almasse.' 

It  is  obvious  that  this  practice  of  travelling  must  have 
brought  the  local  players  into  rivalry  with  those  hereditary 
gentlemen  of  the  road,  the  minstrels.  Possibly  they  had 
something  to  do  with  provoking  that  querelosa  insinuatio 
against  the  rudes  agricolae  et  artifices  diversarum  misterarum 
which  led  to  the  formation  of  the  royal  guild  of  minstrels 
in  1469.  If  so,  the  measure  does  not  seem  to  have  been 
wholly  successful  in  suppressing  them.  But  the  minstrels 
had  a  better  move  to  make.  Their  own  profession  had  fallen, 
with  the  emergence  of  the  trouvtre  and  the  spread  of  printing, 
upon  evil  days.  And  here  were  the  scanty  remnants  of  their 
audiences  being  filched  from  them  by  unskilled  rustics  who 
had  hit  upon  just  the  one  form  of  literary  entertainment 
which,  unlike  poetry  and  romance  in  general,  could  not  dis- 

assume,  as  I  have  done,  that  players  is  often  demonstrably  correct  and 
locally  named  are  never  professional,  never  demonstrably  incorrect,  ex- 
Thus  the  lusores  de  Writhill  paid  cept  that  when  Colet  in  his  Oratio 
by  the  duke  of  Buckingham  on  adClerum  of  1511  quotes  the  canon 
Jan.  6,  1508)  are  almost  certainly  'ne  sit  publicus  lusor'  he  seems 
identical  with  the  lusores  Dni  de  to  use  the  term  in  its  canonical  sense 
Wrisell  (his  brother-in-law,  the  of 'gambler.'  The  English  version 
earl  of  Northumberland)  paid  by  (1661)  has  *  common  gamer  or 
him  at  Xmas,  1507  (Archaeologiay  player.'  A  similar  ambiguity  is,  I 
xxV'  3!8»  324)>  although  it  happens  think,  the  only  one  which  attaches 
curiously  enough  that  the  Chelms-  itself  to  '  player1  where  it  is  a  tech- 
ford  wardrobe  was  drawn  upon  by  nical  term  after  the  middle  of  the 
players  of  Writtle  in  1571-2.  The  fourteenth  century.  Lydgate  in  his 
local  designation  of  members  of  Interpretacyon  of  the  names  of 
the  minstrel  class  is  exceptional;  Goddys  and  Goddesses  (quoted  by 
but  cf.  the  York  example  in  the  Collier,  i.  31)  uses  it  of  an  actor, 
next  note.  The  locally  named  lusores  although  an  older  sense  is  preserved 
may,  however,  sometimes  have  acted  by  the  Promptorium  Parvulorum 
not  a  miracle,  but  a  May-game  or  (1440), '  Bordyoure  or  pleyere,  iocu- 
sword-dance ;  e.g.,  at  Winchester  lator.9  The  sense  of  ludentes,  \ 
College  in  1400  when  they  came  think,  is  wide.  The  ludentes  ' de 
1  cum  tripudio  suo '  < App.  E,  iv).  Donyneton '  and  '  de  Wakefield* 
1  I  have  taken  lusores  in  the  paid  by  the  York  corporation 
computi  as  always  meaning  per-  in  1446  (York  Plays,  xxxviii)  are 
formers  of  a  dramatic  ludus.  This  more  likely  to  have  been  minstrels 


186 


THE  INTERLUDE 


pense  with  the  living  interpreter1.  What  could  they  do 
better  than  develop  a  neglected  side  of  their  own  art  and 
become  players  themselves  ?  So  there  appear  in  the  computi> 
side  by  side  with  the  local  lusores,  others  whose  methods  and 
status  are  precisely  those  of  minstrels2.  The  generosity 
of  Henry  the  Sixth  at  the  Christmas  of  1427  is  called  forth 
equally  by  the  entreludes  of  the  jeweis  de  Abyndon  and  the 
jeuues  et  entreludes  of  Jakke  Travail  et  ses  compaignons.  By 
1464  '  players  in  their  enterludes  '  were  sufficiently  recognized 
to  be  included  with  minstrels  in  the  exceptions  of  the  Act  of 
Apparel  3.  Like  other  minstrels,  the  players  put  themselves 
under  the  protection  of  nobles  and  persons  of  honour.  The 
earliest  upon  record  are  those  of  Henry  Bourchier,  earl  of 
Essex,  and  those  of  Richard,  duke  of  Gloucester,  afterwards 
Richard  the  Third.  Both  companies  were  rewarded  by  Lord 
Howard  in  1482.  The  earls  of  Northumberland,  Oxford, 
Derby,  and  Shrewsbury,  and  Lord  Arundel,  all  had  their 
players  before  the  end  of  the  century  4.  The  regulations  of 
the  Northumberland  Household  Book,  as  well  as  entries  in 


whom  the  corporation  did  provide 
for  the  plays  than  actors  whom 
they  did  not.  On  the  other  hand 
about  inter ludentes&h&  interlusores^ 
neither  of  them  very  common  terms, 
there  can  be  no  doubt.  Lusiatores 
occurs  as  a  synonym  for  lusores  at 
Shrewsbury  only.  Mimi  and  hi" 
striones  I  have  uniformly  treated  as 
merely  minstrels.  At  a  late  date 
they  might,  I  suppose,  be  actors, 
but  it  is  impossible  to  differ- 
entiate. 

1  Plays  were  sometimes  read, 
even  in  the  fifteenth  century.  The 
prologue  of  The  Burial  and  Resur- 
rection has  'Rede  this  treyte,'  al- 
though it  was  also  converted  into 
'a  play  to  be  playede';  and  the 
epilogue  of  the  Digby  St.  Mary 
Magdalen  has  '  I  desyer  the  redars 
to  be  my  frynd.'  Thomas  Wylley  in 
1537  describes  some  of  his  plays  to 
Cromwell  as  *  never  to  be  seen,  but 
of  your  Lordshyp's  eye.'  Prynne, 
834,  asserts  that  'Bernardinus 
Ochin  his  Tragedy  of  Freewil, 
Plessie  Morney  his  Tragedie  of 


Jeptha  his  daughter,  Edward  the 
6  his  Comedie  de  meretrice  Ba- 
bilonica,  lohn  Bale  his  Comedies 
de  Christo  et  de  Lazaro,  Skelton's 
Comedies,  de  Virtute,  de  Magni- 
ficentia,  et  de  bono  Ordine,  Nicho- 
laus  Grimoaldus,  de  Archiprophetae 
Tragedia  .  .  .  were  penned  only 
to  be  read,  not  acted ' ;  but  this  is 
incorrect  as  regards  Bale  and  Skel- 
ton  and  probably  as  regards  others. 
The  earliest  printed  plays  are  per- 
haps Mundus  et  Infans  (1522)  and 
Hickscomer  (n.  d.)  both  by  Wynkyn 
de  Worde  (1501-35),  Everyman 
(n.  d.)  by  Richard  Pynson  (1509- 
27),  If  a  Nigramansir,  by  Skelton, 
was  really,  as  Warton  asserts, 
printed  by  Wynkyn  de  Worde  in 
1504,  it  might  take  precedence. 

2  Cf.  Appendix  E. 

8  3  Edw.  Jlf,  c.  5  ;  cf.  vol.  i.  p.  45. 
This  was  continued  by  I  Hen .  VII  1^ 
c.  14,  6  Hen.  VIII^  c.  I,  and  24 
Hen.  VIII,  c.  13. 

4  Cf.  Appendix  E ;  Hist.  MSS. 
v.  548. 


PLAYERS  OF  INTERLUDES  187 

many  computi,  show  that  by  the  reign  of  Henry  the  Eighth  the 
practice  was  widespread1.  Naturally  it  received  a  stimulus 
when  a  body  of  players  came  to  form  a  regular  part  of  the 
royal  household.  Whether  Richard  the  Third  retained  his 
company  in  his  service  during  his  brief  reign  is  not  upon 
record.  But  Henry  the  Seventh  had  four  lusores  regis,  alias> 
in  lingua  Anglicana,  les  pleyars  of  the  Kyngs  enter luds  at 
least  as  early  as  1494.  These  men  received  an  annual  fee 
of  five  marks  apiece,  together  with  special  rewards  when  they 
played  before  the  king.  When  their  services  were  not  re- 
quired at  court,  they  took  to  the  road,  just  as  did  the  minstrels, 
ioculator,  and  ursarius  of  the  royal  establishment  In  1503 
they  were  sent,  under  their  leader  John  English,  in  the  train 
of  Margaret  of  Scotland  to  her  wedding  with  James  the 
Fourth  at  Edinburgh,  and  here  they  *  did  their  devoir ' 
before  the  Scottish  court2.  Henry  the  Eighth  increased  their 
number  to  eight,  and  they  can  be  traced  on  the  books  of  the 
royal  household  through  the  reigns  of  Edward  the  Sixth  and 
Mary,  and  well  into  that  of  Elizabeth  3. 

1  Percy,  N.  H.  B.  22,  158,  339.  In  1488  occurs  a  payment  to  'Pat- 

An  estimate  for  1511-12  includes  rik  Johnson  and  the  playaris  of 

'  for  rewardes  to  Players  for  Playes  Lythgow  that  playt  to  the  King,' 

playd  in  Christynmas  by  Stranegers  and  in  1489  one  to  ( Patrick  Johnson 

in  my  house  after  xxd  every  play  and  his  fallowis  that  playt  a  play 

by    estimacion.      Somme    xxxiij8  to  the  kyng  in  Lythqow.'     This 

iiijd.'    Another  of  1514-15  has  'for  Johnson  or  Johnstone,  celebrated 

Rewards  to  Players  in  Cristynmas  m  Dunbar's  Lament  for  the  Ma- 

IxxijV    By  1522-3  the  customary  karis>  seems  to  have  held  some 

fee  had  largely  grown,  for  a  list  of  post,  possibly  as  a  minstrel,  at  court 

'  Al  maner  of  Rewardis '  of  about  (L.  H.  T.  Accts.  i.  c,  cxcviii,  ccxliv, 

that  date  has  'Item.    My  Lorde  91,  118  ;  ii.  131;   Dunbar,  Poems 

usith  and  accustometh  to  gif  yerely  (ed.  S.  T.  S.),  i.  ccxxxvii). 

when  his  Lordshipp  is  at  home  to  *  Collier,  i. 44 and  passim;  Henry, 

every  Erlis  Players  that  comes  to  Hist.  ofBritain^  454 ;  cf.  Appendix 

his  Lordshipe  bitwixt  Cristynmas  E,  viii.    The  Transactions  of  the 

ande    Candelmas    If    he   be    his  New  Shakspere  Soc.  (1877-9),  4*5i 

8peciall  Lorde  and   Frende  ande  contain  papers  about  a  dispute  in 

Kynsman,  xxs  .  . .  to  every  Lordis  1 529  between  one  of  the  company 

Players,  x".'  George  Mailer,  glazier,  and  his  ap- 

*  Leland,        Collectanea       (ed.  prentice,  who  left  him  and  went 

Hearne),  iv.  265.    The  computi  of  travelling    on    his    own   account. 

James  IV  (L.  H.  T.Accts.u.  131,  From  these  it  appears  that  'the 

387;   iii.  361)  contain  entries  for  Kinge's  plaierz '  wore  '  the  Kinge's 

plays  before  him  by  '  gysaris '  in-  bage.1    George  Mailer  is  the  same 

eluding  one  at  this  wedding ;  but  player  who  appeared  as  a  witness 

there  is  no  evidence  of  a  regular  in    the  Rastell  suit    (cf.  p.  184). 

royal  company  at  the  Scottish  court  There  he  is  described  as  a  merchant 


188  THE  INTERLUDE 

The  new  conditions  under  which  plays  were  now  given 
naturally  reacted  upon  the  structure  of  the  plays  themselves. 
The  many  scenes  of  the  long  cyclical  miracles,  with  their 
multitudinous  performers,  must  be  replaced  by  something 
more  easy  of  representation.  The  typical  interlude  deals 
with  a  short  episode  in  about  a  thousand  lines,  and  could 
be  handled  in  the  hour  or  so  which  the  lord  might  reasonably 
be  expected  to  spare  from  his  horse  and  his  hounds1. 
Economy  in  travelling  and  the  inconvenience  of  crowding 
the  hall  both  went  to  put  a  limit  on  the  number  of  actors. 
Four  men  and  a  boy,  probably  in  apprenticeship  to  one 
of  them,  for  the  women's  parts,  may  be  taken  as  a  normal 
troupe*  In  many  of  the  extant  interludes  the  list  of  dramatis 
fersonae  is  accompanied  by  an  indication  as  to  how,  by  the 
doubling  of  parts,  the  caste  may  be  brought  within  reasonable 
compass 2.  The  simplest  of  scenic  apparatus  and  a  few 
boards  on  trestles  for  a  stage  had  of  course  to  suffice.  But 
some  sort  of  a  stage  there  probably  was,  as  a  rule,  although 
doubtless  the  players  were  prepared,  if  necessary,  to  perform, 
like  masquers,  on  the  floor  in  front  of  the  screen,  or  at  best 
upon  the  dais  where  the  lord  sat  at  meals 3.  The  pleasure- 
loving  monks  of  Durham  seem  as  far  back  as  1465  to  have 
built  at  their  cell  of  Finchale  a  special  player-chamber  for  the 

tailor ;  here  as  a  glazier.    That  a  ...  and  then  it  will  not  be  past 

king's  player  should  have  a  handi-  three  quarters  of  an  hour  of  length.' 

craft,  even  if  it  were  only  nominal,  J  This  method  begins  with  the 

at  all,  looks  as  if  the  professional  Croxton    Sacrament^    which    has 

actors  were  not  invariably  of  the  twelve  parts,  but '  ix  may  play  it  at 

minstrel  type.  Perhaps  the  glamour  ease.'     Bale's  Three  Laws  claims 

of   a    royal    'bage'    made    even  to  require  five  players  and  Lusty 

minstrelsy    respectable.      Arthur,  Juyentusfovn.    Several  of  the  early 

prince  of  Wales,  had  his  own  com-  Elizabethan  interludes  have  similar 

pany  in  1498  (Black  Book  of  Lin-  indications. 

coln'slnn,\.  119),  and  Henry,  prince  3  A .Winchester  computes  of  1 579 

of  Wales,  his  by  1506.  (Hazlitt-Warton,  ii.  234)  has  'pro 

1  Medwall's  Nature  is  divided  diyersis  expensis  circa  Scaffoldam 

into  two  parts,  for  performance  on  erigendam  et  deponendam,  et  pro 

different  days.    But  Medwall  was  domunculis  de  novo  compositis  cum 

a  tedious  person.    Another  inter-  carriagio  et  recarriagio  ly  joystes 

lude  of  his  played  in  1514  was  so  et  aliorum  mutuatorum  ad  eandem 

longand  dull  that  Henry  VIII  went  Scaffoldam,  cum  vj  linckes  et  j° 

out  before  the  end.     The  Four  Ele-  duodeno  candelarum,  pro  lumine 

-ments  was  intended  to  take  an  hour  expensis,  tribus  noctibus  in  ludis 

and  a  half  'but  if  you  list  you  may  cpmediarum  et  tragediarum  xxv* 

leave  out  much  of  the  said  matter  viijV 


PLAYERS  OF  INTERLUDES 


189 


purposes  of  such  entertainments l.  Henry  the  Eighth,  too, 
in  1527  had  a  'banket-house '  or  *  place  of  plesyer,'  called  the 
c  Long  house/  built  in  the  tiltyard  at  Greenwich,  and  decor- 
ated by  none  other  than  Hans  Holbein 2.  But  this  was 
designed  rather  for  a  special  type  of  disguising,  half  masque 
half  interlude,  and  set  out  with  the  elaborate  pageants  which 
the  king  loved,  than  for  ordinary  plays,  A  similar  banquet- 
ing-house  Mike  a  theatre'  had  been  set  up  at  Calais  in  1520, 
but  unfortunately  burnt  down  before  it  could  be  used3. 
Another  characteristic  of  the  interlude  is  the  prayer  for 
the  sovereign  and  sometimes  the  estates  of  the  realm  with 
which  it  concludes,  and  which  often  helps  to  fix  the  date 
of  representation  of  the  extant  texts 4. 

Like  the  minstrels,  the  interlude  players  found  a  welcome 
not  only  in  the  halls  of  the  great,  but  amongst  the  bourgeois 
and  the  village  folk.  In  the  towns  they  would  give  their 
first  performance  before  the  municipality  in  the  guild-hall  and 
take  a  reward 6.  Then  they  would  find  a  profitable  pitch  in 
the  courtyard  of  some  old-fashioned  inn,  with  its  convenient 


1  Appendix  E  (i). 
1  Brewer,  iv.  1390,  1393,  1394; 
Hall,  723 ;  Collier,  i.  98. 
8  Stowe,  Annals,  511. 

4  The  miracle-plays  and  popular 
morals  have  a  more  general  prayer 
for   the    spiritual   welfare    of   the 
4  sofereyns,'   '  lordinges,'   and    the 
rest  of  their  audience. 

5  Willis,    Mount    Tabor    (1639, 
quoted  Collier,  ii.  196),  describing 
the  morality  of  The  Castle  of  Se- 
curity seen  by  him  as  a  child,  says 
'  In  the  city  of  Gloucester  the  man- 
ner is  (as  I  think  it  is  in  other  like 
corporations)  that  when  Players  of 
Enterludes   come   to  towne,  they 
first  attend  the  Mayor,  to  enforme 
him  what  noble-mans  servants  they 
are  and  so  to  get  licence  for  their 
publike  playing :  and  if  the  Mayor 
like   the  Actors,  or  would    show 
respect  to  their  Lord  and  Master, 
he  appoints  them  to  play  their  first 
play  before  himselfe  and  the  Alder- 
men and  Common  Counsell  of  the 
City ;  and  that  is  called  the  Mayor's 


play,  where  every  one  that  will 
comes  in  without  money,  the 
Mayor  giving  the  players  a  rewaid 
as  hee  thinks  fit,  to  show  respect 
unto  them.  At  such  a  play,  my 
father  tooke  me  with  him,  and 
made  mee  stand  betweene  his  leggs, 
as  he  sate  upon  one  of  the  benches, 
where  we  saw  and  heard  very  well.1 
In  Histriomastix,  a  play  of  1590- 
1610  (Simpson,  School  of  Shake- 
spearey  ii.  i),  a  crew  of  tippling 
mechanicals  call  themselves  'Sir 
Oliver  Owlet's  men  and  proclaim 
at  the  Cross  a  play  to  be  given  in 
the  townhouse  at  3  o'clock.  They 
afterwards  throw  the  town  over  to 
play  in  the  hall  of  Lord  Mavortius. 
In  Sir  Thomas  More  (t  1590,  ed. 
A.  Dyce,  for  Shakespeare  Society, 
1844) '  my  Lord  CardinalTs  players,9 
four  men  and  a  boy,  play  in  the 
Chancellor's  hall  and  receive  ten 
angels.  For  similar  scenes  cf.  the 
Induction  to  The  Taming  of  the 
Shrew,  and  Hamlet,  ii.  2 ;  ill  2. 


190 


THE  INTERLUDE 


range  of  outside  galleries1.  It  is,  however,  rather  surprising 
to  find  that  Exeter,  like  Paris  itself2,  had  its  regular  theatre 
as  early  as  1348,  more  than  two  centuries  before  anything 
of  the  kind  is  heard  of  in  London.  This  fact  emerges  from 
two  mandates  of  Bishop  Grandisson ;  one,  already  quoted 
in  the  previous  volume,  directed  against  the  secta  or  or  do, 
probably  a  socittt  joyeuse^  of  Brothelyngham 8,  the  other 
inhibiting  a  satirical  performance  designed  by  the  youth  of 
the  city,  in  disparagement  of  the  trade  and  mystery  of  the 
cloth-dressers.  In  both  cases  the  '  theatre '  of  the  city  was  to 
be  the  locality  of  the  revels  *.  Much  later,  in  1538,  but  still 
well  in  anticipation  of  London,  the  corporation  of  Yarmouth 


1  The  earliest  record  of  plays  at 
inns  which  I  have  noticed  is  in  1557, 
when   some   Protestants  were  ar- 
rested and  their  minister  burnt  for 
holding  a  communion   service   in 
English  on  pretence  of  attending  a 
play  at  the  Saracen's  Head,  Isling- 
ton (Foxe,  Acts  and  Monuments^ 
ed.  Cattley,  viii.  444). 

2  Eustace  Deschamps   (ti4is), 
Miroir  de  Mariage  (CEuvres,  in 
Anc.   Textes  franc,  vol.  ix),  3109 
(cf.  Julleville,  La  Com.  40) : 

Mais  assez  d'autres  femmes  voy, 
Qui  vont  par  tout  sanz  nul  convoy 
Aux  festes,  aux  champs,  au  theatre, 
Pour  soulacier  et  pour  esbatre : 

Elles  desirent  les  cit^s, 
Les  douls  mos  a  euls  recites, 
Festes,  marches,  et  le  theatre, 
Lieux  de  delis  pour  euls  esbatre. 

This  theatre  was  probably  one 
established  towards  the  end  of  the 
fourteenth  century  by  the  confrMe 
de  la  Passion.  From  about  1402 
they  performed  in  the  Hdpital  de  la 
Trinit£\  cf.  Julleville,  Les  Com. 
6 1,  La  Com.  40. 

8  Cf.  vol.  i.  p.  383.  * 

4  Register  of  Bishop  Grandisson 
(ed.  Hmgeston-Randolph),  ii.  1120. 
The  letter,  unfortunately  too  long- 
winded  to  quote  in  full,  was  written 
on  Aug.  9,  1352,  to  the  archdeacon 
of  Exeter  or  his  official.  Grandisson 
says : — '  Sane,  licet  artes  mechani- 


cas,  ut  rerum  experiencia  continue 
nos  informat,  mutuo,  necessitate 
quadam,oporteatse  iuvare;  pridem, 
tamen,  intelleximus  quod  nonnulli 
nostrae  Civitatis  Exoniae  inpruden- 
tes  filii,  inordinate  lasciviae  dediti,  fa- 
tue  contempnentes  quae  ad  ipsorum 
et  universalis  populi  indigenciam 
fuerunt  utiliter  adinventa,  quendam 
Ludum  noxium  qui  culpa  non  caret, 
immo  verius  ludibrium,  in  contu- 
meliam  et  opprobrium  allutariorum, 
necnon  eorum  artificii,  hac  instant! 
Die  Dominica,  in  Theatro  nostrae 
Civitatis  predictae  publice  peragere 
proponunt,  ut  inter  se  statuerunt  et 
mtendunt;  ex  quo,  ut  didicimus, 
inter  praefatos  artifices  et  dicti  Ludi 
participes,  auctores  pariter  et  fau- 
tores,  graves  discord iae,  rancores, 
et  rixae,  cooperante  satore  tarn  exe- 
crabilis  irae  et  invidiae,  vehementer 
pululant  et  insurgunt.'  The  ludus 
is  to  be  forbidden  under  pain  of 
the  greater  excommunication.  At 
the  same  time  the  allutarii  are  to 
be  admonished,  since  they  them- 
selves, 'in  mercibus  suis  distra- 
hendis  plus  iusto  precio,  modernis 
temporibus,'  have  brought  about  the 
trouble,  'ne  exnunc,  m  vendendo 
quae  ad  eos  pertinent,  precium  per 
Excellentissimum  Principem  et  Do- 
minum  nostrum,  Angliae  et  Franciae 
Regemillustrem,etConsilium  suum, 
pro  utilitate  publica  limitatum,  exi- 
gant  quovis  modo.' 


PLAYERS  OF  INTERLUDES  191 

appear  to  have  built  a  'game-house'  upon  the  garden  of 
the  recently  surrendered  priory1. 

In  the  villages  the  players  probably  had  to  content  them- 
selves with  a  stage  upon  the  green  ;  unless  indeed  they  could 
make  good  a  footing  in  the  church.  This  they  sometimes  did 
by  way  of  inheritance  from  the  local  actors  of  miracles.  For 
while  the  great  craft-cycles  long  remained  unaffected  by  the 
professional  competition  and  ultimately  came  to  their  end 
through  quite  different  causes,  it  was  otherwise  in  the  smaller 
places.  If  the  parson  and  the  churchwardens  wanted  a  miracle 
in  honour  of  their  patron  saint  and  could  readily  hire  the 
services  of  a  body  of  trained  actors,  they  were  not  likely 
to  put  themselves  to  the  trouble  of  drilling  bookless  rustics 
in  their  parts.  And  so  the  companies  got  into  the  churches 
for  the  purpose  of  playing  religious  interludes,  but,  if  the 
diatribes  of  Elizabethan  Puritans  may  be  trusted,  remained 
there  to  play  secular  ones  2.  The  rulers  of  the  Church  con- 
demned the  abuse3,  but  it  proved  difficult  to  abolish,  and 
even  in  1602  the  authorities  of  Syston  in  Leicestershire  had 
to  buy  players  off  from  performing  in  the  church  4. 

Even  where  the  old  local  plays  survived  they  were  probably 

1  L.  G.  Bolingbroke,  Pre-Eliza-  134)  'Such  like  men,  vnder  the 

bethan  Plays  and  Players  in  Nor-  title  of  their  maisters   or  as    re- 

folk  (Norfolk  Archaeology,  xi.  336).  teiners,  are   priuiledged  to  roaue 

The  corporation  gave  a  lease  of  the  abroad,  and  permitted  to  publish 

*  game-house '  on  condition  that  it  their  raametree  in  euerie  Temple  of 

should  be  available  'at   all  such  God,  and  that  through  England, 

times  as  any  interludes  or  plays  vnto  the  horrible  contempt  of  praier. 

should  be  ministered  or  played.'  So  that  now  the  Sanctuane  is  become 

John  Rastell's  505-.  stage  in  Fins-  a  plaiers  stage,  and  a  den  of  theeues 

bury    about    1520-5    (cf.   p.  184),  and  adulterers.'    Possibly  only  the 

although  not  improbably  used  for  publication  of  the  banns  of  plays  in 

public  representations,  is  not  known  church  is  here  complained  of.  Cf.also 

to  have  been  permanent.  Fuller,  Church  History  (1655),  391. 

*  At  Rayleigh,  Essex  (1550),  2or.  *  Bonnets  Injunctions,  17,  of 
from  the  produce  of  church  goods  April,  1542  (Wilkins,  iii.  864),  for* 
was  paid  to  stage-players  on  Trinity  bade  '  common  plays  games  or 
Sunday  (Archaeologia,  xlii.  287).  interludes '  in  churches  or  chapels. 
An  Answer  to  a  Certain  Libel  Violent  enforcers  of  them  were  to 
(1572,  quoted  Collier,  ii.  72)  ac-  be  reported  to  the  bishop's  officers ; 
cuses  the  clergy  of  hurrying  the  cf.  the  various  injunctions  of  Eliza- 
service,  because  there  is  '  an  enter-  bethan  bishops  in  Ritual  Contmis- 
lu^e'tobe  played,  and  if  no  place  sion,  409,  411,  417,  424,  436,  and 
else  can  be  gotten,  it  must  be  doone  the  88th  Canon  of  1604. 
in  the  church ' ;  cf.  S.  Gosson,  Third  4  Kelly,  1 6 '  Paid  to  Lord  Morden's 
Blast  of  Retrait  from  Plates  and  players  because  they  should  not 
^Theaters y  1580  (Hazlitt,  E.  D.  S.  play  in  the  church,  xijd.' 


192  THE  INTERLUDE 

more  or  less  assimilated  to  the  interlude  type.  It  was  cer- 
tainly so  with  those  written  by  John  Bale  and  played  at 
Kilkenny.  It  was  probably  so  with  the  play  of  Placidas  or  St. 
Eustace  given  at  Braintree  in  1534,  if,  as  is  most  likely,  it  was 
written  by  Nicholas  Udall,  who  was  vicar  of  Braintree  at  the 
time.  And  when  we  find  the  wardens  of  Bungay  Holy 
Trinity  in  1558  paying  fourpence  for  an  'interlude  and  game- 
booke  *  and  two  shillings  for  writing  out  the  parts,  the  con- 
jecture seems  obvious  that  what  they  had  done  was  to  obtain 
a  copy  of  one  of  the  printed  interludes  which  by  that  time 
the  London  stationers  had  issued  in  some  numbers.  On  the 
other  hand  the  example  of  the  travelling  companies  sometimes 
stirred  up  the  folk,  with  the  help,  no  doubt,  of  Holophernes 
the  schoolmaster,  to  attempt  performances  of  secular  as  well 
as  religious  plays  on  their  own  account.  The  rendering  of 
Pyramus  and  Thisbe  by  the  mechanicals  of  Athens,  which 
is  Stratford-upon-Avon,  is  the  classical  instance.  But  in 
Shropshire  the  folk  are  said  to  have  gone  on  playing  debased 
versions  of  Dr.  Faustus  and  other  Elizabethan  masterpieces, 
upon  out-of-door  stages,  until  quite  an  incredibly  late  date  \ 

I  return  to  the  atmosphere  of  courts.  It  must  not  be 
supposed  that,  under  the  early  Tudors,  the  professional  players 
had  a  monopoly  of  interludes.  On  the  contrary,  throughout 
nearly  the  whole  of  the  sixteenth  century,  it  remained  doubt- 
ful whether  the  future  of  the  drama  was  to  rest  in  professional 
or  amateur  hands.  The  question  was  not  settled  until  the 
genius  of  Marlowe  and  of  Shakespeare  came  to  the  help  of 
the  players.  Under  the  pleasure-loving  Henries  accomplish- 

1  Jackson-Burne,  493,  citing  Sir  of  presenter  or  chorus,  playing  '  all 

Offley    Wakeman    in    Shropshire  manner  of  megrims 'ana 'going  on 

Archaeological   Transactions^   vii.  with  his  manoeuvres  all  the  time.' 

383.    Such  plays  were  performed  I  have  not  been  able  to  see  a  paper 

on  wagons   at  Shropshire  wakes  on  Shropshire  Folk-play s\*y].¥.M. 

within    the    last    century.      The  Dovaston.  G.  Borrow,  Wild  Wales, 

'  book '  seems  to  have  J>een  adapted  chh.  lix,  Ix  (ed.  1901,  p.  393),  de- 

from  the  literary  drama,  if  one  may  scribes    similar  Welsh   interludes 

judge  by  the  subjects  which  in-  which  lasted  to  the  beginning  of 

eluded  *  St.  George,' c  Prince  Muci-  the  nineteenth  century.    The  titles 

dorus,'  *  Valentine  and  Orson/  and  named    suggest    moralities.      He 

'Dr.  Forster'  or  'Faustus.'    But  analyses  the  Riches  and  Poverty 

a  pan  was  always  found  for  a  Fool  of  Thomas  Edwards.    This,  like 

in  a  hareskin  cap,  with  balls  at  his  the  Shropshire  interludes,  has  its 

knees.    He  is  described  as  a  sort  'fool.' 


PLAYERS  OF  INTERLUDES 


198 


ment  in  the  arts  of  social  diversion  was  as  likely  a  road  to 
preferment  as  another.  Sir  Thomas  More  won  a  reputation 
as  a  page  by  his  skill  in  improvising  a  scene  *.,  John  Kite 
stepped  almost  straight  from  the  boards  to  the  bishopric 
of  Armagh.  His  performances,  not  perhaps  without  some 
scandal  to  churchmen,  were  given  when  he  was  subdean  of 
the  Chapel  Royal2.  This  ancient  establishment,  with  its 
thirty-two  gentlemen  and  its  school  of  children,  proved  itself 
the  most  serious  rival  of  the  regular  company.  Both  gentle- 
men and  children,  sometimes  together  and  sometimes  separ- 
ately, took  part  in  the  performances,  the  records  of  which 
begin  in  1506  8.  The  rather  exceptional  nature  of  the  reper- 
tory will  be  considered  presently.  Few  noblemen,  of  course, 
kept  a  chapel  on  the  scale  of  the  royal  one.  But  that  of  the 
earl  of  Northumberland  was  of  considerable  size,  and  was 
accustomed  about  1523  to  give,  not  only  a  Resurrection  play 
at  Easter  and  a  Nativity  play  at  Christmas,  but  also  a  play 
on  the  night  of  Shrove-Tuesday.  The  functionary  to  whom 
it  looked  for  a  supply  of  interludes  was  the  almoner  4. 


1  Roper,  Life  and  Death  of  Sir 
Thomas  More  (t  1 577,  J.  R.  Lumby, 
More*s  Utopia,  vi)  *  would  he  at 
Christmas  tyd  sodenly  sometymes 
stepp  in  among  the  players,  and 
never  studinge  for  the  matter,  make 
a  parte  of  his  owne  there  presently 
amonge  them';  Erasmus,  Epist. 
ccccxlvii  'adolescens  comoediolas  et 
scripsit  et  egit.1  Bale,  Scriptores 
(1557 J,  i.  655,  ascribes  to  him  'co- 
moedias  iuveniles.  Lib.  I.'  In 
the  play  of  Sir  Thomas  More  (cf. 
p.  189)  he  is  represented,  even 
when  Chancellor,  as  supplying  the 
place  of  a  missing  actor  with  an 
improvised  speech.  Bale,  ii.  103, 
says  that  Henry  Parker,  Lord  Mor- 
ley  (1476-1556)  'in  Anglicasermone 
edidit  comoedias  et  tragoedias, 
libros  plures.' 

*  The  Revels  Account  for  1511 
(Brewer,  ii.  1496)  notes  an  interlude 
in  which  'Mr.  Subdean,  now  my 
Lord  of  Armykan '  took  part  In 
his  Oratio  ad  Clerum  of  the  same 
year  Colet  criticizes  the  clerics  who 
'  se  ludis  et  iocis  tradunt '  (Collier, 

CRAMBOS,    n  { 


i.  64).  A  Sermo  exhortatorius  can- 
cellarii  Eboracensis  his  qui  ad  sa- 
cros  ordines  petunt  promoveri 
printed  by  Wynkyn  de  Worde 
about  1525  also  calls  attention  to 
the  canonical  requirement  that  the 
clergy  should  abstain  'a  ludis 
theatralibus'  (Hazlitt,  Bibl.  Coll. 
and  Notes,  3rd  series  (1887),  274). 

8  Collier,  i.  46  and  passim ;  Ber- 
nard Andrew,  Annales  Hen.  VII 
in  Gairdner,  Memorials  of  Henry 
VII  (R.  S.),  103;  Hall,  518,  583, 
723;  Kempe,62;  Revels  Accounts, 
&c.,  in  Brewer,  passim ;  cf.  Ap- 
pendix £  (viii).  The  Chapel 
formed  part  of  the  household  of 
Henry  I  about  1135  (Red  Book  of 
Exchequer,  R.  S.  Hi.  cclxxxvii,  807); 
for  its  history  cf.  Household  Ordi- 
nances, 10,  17,  35,  49;  £.  F.  Rim- 
bault,  The  Old  Cheque  Book  of  the 
Chapel  Royal  (C.  S.) ;  F.  J.  Furni- 
vall,  Babees  Book  (E.  E.  T.  S.),  Ixxv. 

*  Percy,  N.  H.  B.  44,  254. 
345.  In  household  lists  for  1511 
and  1520  comes  the  entry  'The 
Almonar,  and  if  he  be  a  maker  of 


194  THE  INTERLUDE 

The  gentlemen  of  the  Inns  of  Courts  were  always  ready  to 
follow  in  the  wake  of  courtly  fashion.  Their  interludes  were 
famous  and  important  in  the  days  of  Elizabeth,  but,  although 
Lincoln's  Inn  entertained  external  lusores  in  1494  and  1498  *, 
Gray's  Inn  is  the  only  one  in  which  amateur  performances 
are  recorded  before  1556.  A  *  disguising '  or  '  plaie '  by  one 
John  Roo  was  shown  here  in  1526,  and  got  the  actors  into 
trouble  with  Wolsey,  who  found,  or  thought  that  he  found, 
in  it  reflections  on  his  own  administration  2.  All  '  comedies 
called  enterludes'  were  stopped  by  an  order  of  the  bench 
in  1550,  except  during  times  of  solemn  Christmas 8.  In  1556 
an  elaborate  piece  for  performance  by  all  the  Inns  was  in 
preparation  by  William  Baldwin4. 

There  were  interludes,  moreover,  at  universities  and  in 
schools.  The  earliest  I  have  noted  are  at  Magdalen  College, 
Oxford,  where  they  occur  pretty  frequently  from  1486  onwards. 
They  were  given  in  the  hall  at  Christmas,  and  overlap  in 
point  of  time  the  performances  of  the  Quern  quaeritis  in  the 
chapel6.  There  was  a  play  at  Cardinal's  College  in  1530*. 
Nicholas  Grimald's  Christus  Redivivus  was  given  at  Erase- 
nose  about  1542.  Possibly  his  Archipropheta  was  similarly 
given  about  1546  at  Christ  Church,  of  which  he  had  then 
become  a  member.  Beyond  these  I  do  not  know  of  any 
other  Oxford  representations  before  1558.  But  in  1512  the 
University  granted  one  Edward  Watson  a  degree  in  grammar 
on  condition  of  his  composing  a  comedy 7.  At  Cambridge 

Interludys  than  he  to  have  a  Ser-  court,  distinct  from  the  '  Abbot  of 

vaunt  to  the  intent  for  Writynge  of  Miserewll '  (vol.  i.  p.  418). 

the  Parts  and  ells  to  have  non.'  *  Black  Books  of  Lincolffs  Jnn, 

There  were  nine  gentlemen  and  six  i.  104,  119. 

children  of  the  chapel.    The  1522-  f  Hall,  719  ;  Collier,  i.  103. 

3  list  of  '  Rewardes '  has  '  them  of  *  R.  I.  Fletcher,  Pension  Book 

his  Lordship  Chappell  and  other  of  Gray  s  Inn,  xxxjx,  496. 

his  Lordshipis  Servaunts  that  doith  *  Hist.  MSS.  vii.  613.    The  play 

play  the  Play  befor  his  Lordship  was  to  comprehend  a  'discourse 

uppon  Shroftewsday  at  night,  x",'  of  the  world/  to  be  called  Love 

and  again,  '  Master  of  the  Re  veils  and  Life,  and  to  last  three  hours. 

.  .  .  yerly  for  the  overseyinge  and  There  were  to  be  sixty-two  dramatis 

prdennge  of  his  Lordschip's  playes  persona*,   each   bearing   a   name 


*  X1J 

days  of  Xmas,  xxV    This  latter         7  Boase,   Register  of  the  Uni- 
officer  seems  to  have  been,  as  at     wrsity  of  Oxford J$.  H.  S.),  L  298. 


PLAYERS  OF  INTERLUDES 


195 


the  pioneer  college  was  St.  John's,  where  the  Plutus  of 
Aristophanes  was  given  in  Greek  ir\  1536  *.  Christ's  College 
is  noteworthy  for  a  performance  of  the  antipapal  Pammachius 
in  1545  2,  and  also  for  a  series  of  plays  under  the  management 
of  one  William  Stevenson  in  1550-3,  amongst  which  it  is 
exceedingly  probable  that  Gammer  Gurtorfs  Needle  was 
included8.  Most  of  these  university  plays  were  however, 
probably,  in  Latin.  The  Elizabethan  statutes  of  Trinity 
College4  and  Queens1  College6  both  provide  for  plays,  and 
in  both  cases  the  performances  really  date  back  to  the  reign 
of  Henry  VIII.  At  Trinity  John  Dee  seems  to  have  pro- 
duced the  Pax  of  Aristophanes,  with  an  ingenious  contrivance 
for  the  flight  of  the  Scarabaeus  to  Zeus,  shortly  upon  his 
appointment  as  an  original  fellow  in  1546°. 

The  Westminster  Latin  play  cannot  be  clearly  shown  to  be 
pre-Elizabethan 7,  and  the  Westminster  dramatic  tradition  is, 


1  Mullingcr,  Hist,  of  Cambridge, 
ii.  73.  Ascham,  Epist.  (1581),  f. 
I26V,  writing  tiSSo  (quoted  Hazlitt- 
Warton,  Hi.  304)  says  that  Antwerp 
excels  all  other  cities  '  quemadmo- 
dum  aula  lohannis,  theatrali  more 
ornata,  seipsam  post  Natalem  su- 
perat/  Speaking  in  The  Schole- 
master(etii.  Mayor,  1863),  168,  of  his 
contemporaries  at  St.  John's  (t  1 530- 
54),  Ascham  highly  praises  the 
Absalon  of  Thomas  Watson,  which 
he  puts  on  a  level  with  Buchanan's 
Jephthah*  Watson,  however, 
'  would  never  suffer  it  to  go  abroad/ 
This  play  apparently  exists  in 
manuscript ;  cf.  Texts  (iy).  Ascham 
himself,  according  to  his  Epistles, 
translated  the  Philoktetes  into  Latin 
(Hazlitt,  Manual,  179).  In  The 
Scholemaster,  he  further  says,  *  One 
man  in  Cambrige,  well  liked  of 
many,  but  best  liked  of  him  selfe, 
was  many  tymes  bold  and  busie  to 
bryng  matters  upon  stages  which 
he  called  Tragedies/  Ascham  did 
not  approve  of  his  Latin  metre. 
Possibly  he  refers  to  John  Christo- 
pherson,  afterwards  bishop  of 
Chichester,  to  whom  Warton,  iii. 
303;  Cooper,  Athtncu  Cantab,  i. 
1 88;  D.  N.  B.  attribute  a  tragedy 
in  Greek  and  Latin  of,  Jepthes 


(1546).     I  can  find  no  trace  of  this. 
It  is  not  mentioned  by  Bahlmann. 

*  Cf.  p.  220. 

3  J.  Peile,  Christ's  College,  54; 
cf.  p.  216. 

*  Mullinger,  Hist,  of  Cambridge, 
ii.  627.     Statute  24  of  1560,  De 
comoediis  ludisque  in  Natali  Christi 
exhibendis,  requires   that  'novem 
domestic!  lectores  . . .  bini  ac  bini 
singulas    comoedias    tragoediasve 
exhibeant,  excepto  primario  lectore 
quern  per  se  solum  unamcomoediam 
aut  tragoediam  exhibere  volumus/ 
A  fine  is  imposed  on  defaulters,  and 
the  performances  are  to  be ,  in  the 
hall  'privatim  vel  publice'  during 
or  about  the  twelve  nights  of  Christ- 
mas.    On  an  earlier  draft  of  this 
statute  cf.  vol.  i.  p.  413. 

*  Statute  36  (Documents  relating 
to  Cambridge,  iii,  54) ;  cf.  Mullin- 
ger,^. cit.  ii.  73- 

6  Dee,  Cpmpendious  Rehearsall 
(app.  to  Hearne,  loh.  Glastoniensis 
ChronicoHy  501),  after  mentioning 
his  election,  says  '  Hereupon  I  did 
sett    forth    a    Greek    comedy   of 
Aristophanes*  play  named  in  Greek 
Eipqi/ij,  in  Latin  Pax! 

7  J.  Sargeaunt,  Annals  of  West- 
minster  i  49;  Athenaum  (1903),  i. 
220. 


196  THE  INTERLUDE 

therefore,  less  old  than  that  of  either  Eton  or  St  Paul's. 
Professor  Hales  has,  indeed,  made  it  seem  plausible  that 
Udall's  Ralph  Roister  Doister  dates  from  his  Westminster 
(?  1553-6)  and  not  his  Eton  mastership  (1534-41).  But 
the  Eton  plays  can  be  traced  back  to  1525-6  *,  and  were 
a  recognized  institution  when  Malim  wrote  his  Consuetu- 
dinary about  1561 2.  In  1538  the  Eton  boys  played,  under 
Udall,  before  Cromwell3.  A  decade  earlier,  in  1527,  John 
Ritwise  had  brought  the  boys  of  Colet's  new  foundation 
at  St.  Paul's  to  court.  They  acted  an  anti-Lutheran  play 
before  Henry  and  probably  also  the  Menaechmi  before 
Wolsey.  Certainly  they  acted  the  Phormio  before  him  in 
the  following  year4.  The  dramatic  history  of  this  school  is 
a  little  difficult  to  disentangle  from  that  of  its  near  neighbour, 
the  song-school  of  St.  Paul's  cathedral  *.  The  song-school 
probably  provided  the  children  whom  Heywood  brought 
before  the  princess  Mary  in  1538*  and  to  court  in  1553. 
But  some  doubt  has  been  cast  upon  the  bona  fides  of  the 
account  which  Warton  gives  of  further  performances  by  them 
before  the  princess  Elizabeth  at  Hatfield  in  1554 7.  Plays, 

1  Maxwell-Lyte,  Hist,  of  Eton     ofWolsey(*&.  Singer),  201;  Collier, 
($rd  ed.  1899),  118  'pro  expensis      i.  104. 

circa  ornamenta  ad  duos  lusus  in  *  Lupton,  Life  of  Colet,  154. 

aula  tempore  natalis  Domini,  x1/  *  Texts,  s.  v.  Heywood. 

2  Printed  in  E.  S.  Creasy,  Me-  7  Warton  speaks  of  a  play  by 
moirs  of  Eminent  Etonians ,   91  the  'children'  or    'choirboys'  of 
'circiter  festum  D.  Andreae  ludi-  St.  Paul's  at  a  visit  to  Elizabeth  by 
majjpster    eligere    solet    pro    suo  Mary  and  of  another  play  of  Holo- 
arbitrio  scaenicas  fabulas  optimas  phernes   ( perhaps '   by   the    same 
et  quam  accommpdatissimas,  quas  children  later  in  the  year.    But  the 
pueri  feriis  natalitiis  subsequent!-  dates  given  in  his  Hist,  of  Poetry 
bus,  non  sine  ludorum  elegantia,  (ed.  Hazlitt),  ii.  234,  iii.  312,  and 
populo  spectante,  publice  aliquando  his  Life  of  Sir  Thomas  Pope  (ed. 
peragant.    Histrionum  levis  ars  est,  1780),  46,  do  not  agree  together,  and 
ad  actionem   tamen  oratorum  et  the  authority  to  which  he  refers 
gestum  motumque  corporis  decen-  (Machyn's   Diary,  then    in    MS.) 
tern  tantopere  tacit,  ut  nihil  magis.  does  not  bear  him  out.    On  his 
Interdumetiamexhi^etAnglicoser-  bona  fides  cf.  H.  E.  D.  Blakiston, 
mone  contextas  fabulas,  quae  ha-  in  E.  H.  Review,  for  April,  1896. 
beant  acumen  et  leporem.'  Ward,  i.  1 53,  rather  complicates  the 

8  Brewer,  xiv.  2.  334  'Woodall,  matter  by  adding  to  Holophernes 

the  schoolmaster  of  Eton,  for  play-  a  second  play  called  The  Hanging 

ing  before  my  Lord,  ^5.'  of  Antiock,  but  even  in  Warton^ 

1  Brown,  Cat.  of  Venetian  Pa-  account  this  'hanging'  was  only 

pers,  iv.  3.  208,  225  ;  Brewer,  iv.  a  curtain. 
3563 ;  Hall,  735  ;  Cavendish,  Life 


PLAYERS  OF  INTERLUDES 


197 


either  in  English  or  in  Latin,  of  which  Bale  preserves  a  list, 
were  also  acted  in  the  private  school  set  up  in  1538  by  one 
Ralph  Radclif  in  the  surrendered  Carmelite  convent  of 
Hitchin1. 

It  will  be  seen  that  the  non-professional  dramatic  activities 
of  England,  outside  the  miracle-plays,  although  of  some 
importance  in  the  sixteenth  century,  came  late  and  hardly 
extended  beyond  courtly  and  scholastic  circles.  There  is 
nothing  corresponding  to  the  plentiful  production  of  farces 
by  amateur  associations  of  every  kind  which  characterized 
fifteenth-century  France.  Besides  the  scholars  and  the 
Basoche,  which  corresponded  roughly  to  the  Inns  of  Court, 
but  was  infinitely  more  lively  and  fertile,  there  were  the 
Enfants  sans  Scucis  in  Paris,  and  in  the  province  a  host 
of  puys  and  socittts  joyeuses.  All  of  these  played  both 
morals  and  farces,  particularly  the  latter,  for  which  they 
claimed  a  very  free  licence  of  satirical  comment 2.  As  a  result, 


1  Bale,  Scriptores  (1557),  i.  700 
'Radulphus  Radclif,  patna  Ce- 
striensis,  Huchiniae  in  agro  Hart- 
fordiensi,  &  in  coenobio,  quod  paulo 
ante  Carmelitarum  erat,  ludum 
literarium  anno  Domini  1538  ape- 
ruit,  dpcuitque  Latinas  literas. 
Mihi  quidem  aliquot  dies  in  unis  & 
eisdem  aedibus  commoranti,  multa 
arriserunt:  eaque  etiam  laude  di- 
gnissima.  Potissimum  vero  thea* 
trum,  quod  in  inferior!  aedium 
parte  longe  pulcherrimum  extruxit. 
Ibi  solitus  est  quotannis  simul  iu- 
cunda  &  honesta  plebi  edere  spe- 
ctacula,  cum  ob  iuventutis,  suae 
fidei  &  institution!  commissae,  inu- 
tilem  pudorem  exUendum,  turn  ad 
formandum  os  tenerum  &  balbu- 
tiens,  quo  clare,  eleganter,  &  dis- 
tincte  verba  eloqui  &  effari  con- 
suesceret  Plurimas  in  eius  museo 
vidi  ac  legi  tragoedias  &  comoedias 
. . .  Scripsit  de  Nominis  ac  Verbi, 
potentissimorum  regum  in  regno 
Grammatico,  calamitosa  & 

Exitiali  pugnay  Lib.  2  ... 

Depatientia  Grisilidis^  Com.  I ... 

De  Melibaeo  Chauceriano,  Com. 
I  ... 

De    Titi  6-   Gisippi  amicitia, 


Com.  i ... 

De  Sodomae  incendio,  Tra.  I  ... 

De  lo.  Hussi  damnation*,  Tra. 
I  ... 

De  lonae  defectione^  Com.  I  . .  • 

De  Lazaro  ac  diuite>  Com.  i  . . . 

Deludithfortitudine,  Com.  \  ... 

De  lobi  afflictionibuS)  Com.  I  ... 

De  Susannae  liberation*)    Tra. 

I  ... 

Claruit  Raddifus,  anno  a  Christi 
servatoris  ortu  1552  . . .  Nescioque 
an  sub  Antichristi  tyrannide  adhuc 
vivat.'  Bale,  Index,  333,  has  fuller 
titles.  Some  of  Radclif's  plays 
were  almost  certainly  in  Latin,  for 
Bale  gives  in  Latin  the  opening 
words  of  each,  and  as  Herford, 
1 13,  points  out,  those  of  the  Lazarus 
and  the  Griselda  clearly  form 
parts  of  Latin  verses.  But  he 
showed  them  'plebi.'  Professor 
Herford  learnt  'that  no  old  MSS. 
in  any  way  connected  with  Radclif 
now  remain  at  Hitchin,  where  his 
family  still  occupies  the  site  of  his 
school.9 

2  Julleville,  Z*r  Com.,  passim.  A 
collection  of  farces  is  in  E.  L.  N. 
Viollet-le-Duc,  Ancien  TMdtre 
(1854-7).  For  morals 


198  THE  INTERLUDE 

although  salaried  jaueurs  de  personnages  begin  to  make  their 
appearance  in  the  account  books  of  the  nobles  as  early  as 
1392-3  ly  the  professional  actors  were  unable  to  hold  their 
own  against  the  unequal  competition,  ahd  do  not  really 
become  of  importance  until  quite  the  end  of  the  sixteenth 
century  2.  In  England  it  was  otherwise.  The  early  sup- 
pression of  the  Feast  of  Fools  and  the  strict  control  kept 
over  the  Boy  Bishop  afforded  no  starting-point  for  soctitfs 
joyeuses,  while  the  late  development  of  English  as  a  literary 
language  did  not  lend  itself  to  the  formation  of  puys.  We 
hear  indeed  of  satirical  performances  by  the  guild  of 
Brothelyngham  at  Exeter  in  1348,  and  again  by  the  filii 
civitatis  in  1352  3,  but  Bishop  Grandisson  apparently  suc- 
ceeded in  checking  this  development  which,  so  far  as  the 
information  at  present  available  goes,  does  not  seem  to  have 
permanently  established  itself  either  at  Exeter  or  elsewhere. 

and  farces  at  the  Feasts  of  Fools  played  at  the  meetings  of  the  Re- 

and  of  the  Boy  Bishop  abroad,  and  derijkerkammern^    and    the    Ger- 

for  the  satirical  tendency  of  such  man  Fa$tnachtsspiele>  which  d  ^rive 

entertainments,  cf.  vol.  i.  p.   380.  largely  from  folk  ludi,  by  associa- 

In  1427,  after  the  feast  of  St.  Lau-  tions    of  handicraftsmen   (Creize- 

rent,  Jean   Bussteres,  chaplain  of  nach,  i.  404,  407). 

St.  Remi  de  Troyes,  '  emendavit  *  Julleville,  Les  Com.  325. 

quod  fecerat  certum  perconnagium  2  Ibid.  342.    There  is  nothing  to 

rimarum  in  cimiterio  dicte  ecclesie  show  the  character  of  the  French 

Sancti  Remigii ;  de  cjuibus  rimis  players  who  visited    the   English 

fuerat  dyabolus  et    dixerat    plura  court  in  1494  and  1495  (Appenu.x 

vefba  contra  viros  ecclesiasticos '  E,  viii). 

(Inv.   des  Arch,    de  PAube^   sdr.  8  Cf.  p.  190  and  vol.  i.  p.  383. 

G,  i.  243).     The  fifteenth-century  The  only  known  English puy  is  that 

Dutch  farces  appear  to  have  been  of  London  (vol.  i.  p.  376). 


CHAPTER   XXV 
HUMANISM  AND  MEDIAEVALISM 

[Bibliographical  Note. — The  literary  discussions  and  collections  of 
texts  named  in  the  bibliographical  note  to  chap,  xxiii  and  the  material 
on  the  annals  of  the  stage  in  that  to  chap,  xxiv  remain  available. 
W.  Creizenach,  Geschichte  des  neueren  Dramas^  vols.  i-iii  (1893-1903),  is 
the  best  general  guide  on  the  classical  drama  and  its  imitations  during  the 
Middle  Ages  and  the  Renascence.  W.  Cloetta,  Beitrage  zur  Litteratur- 
geschichte  des  Mittelalters  und  der  Renaissance :  i.  Kombdieund  Tragodie 
im  Mittelalter  (1890);  ii.  Die  Anfange  der  Renaissancetragbdie  (1892), 
deals  very  fully  with  certain  points.  C.  H.  Herford,  Studies  in  the  Literary 
Relations  of  England  and  Germany  in  the  Sixteenth  Century  (1886),  has 
an  admirable  chapter  on  The  Latin  Drama.  G.  Saintsbury,  The  Earlier 
Renaissance  (1901 ),  chap,  vi,  may  also  be  consulted.  Useful  books  on  the 
beginnings  of  the  Elizabethan  forms  of  drama  are  R.  Fischer,  Zur  Kunst- 
cntvuiMung  der  englischen  Tragodie  von  ihren  ersten  Anfangen  bis  xu 
Shakespeare  (1893) ;  J.  W.  Cunlitte,  The  Influence  of  Seneca  on  Elizabethan 
Tragedy  (1893) ;  L.  L.  Schiicking,  Studien  uber  die  stoff lichen  Beziehungen 
der  englischen  Kombdie  zur  italienischen  bis  Lilly  (1901) ;  F.  E.  Schellmg, 
The  English  Chronicle  Play  (1902).  The  best  bibliographies  are,  for  the 
Latin  plays,  P.  Bahlmann,  Die  Emeuerer  des  antiken  Dramas  und  ihre 
ersten  dramatischen  Versuche,  1314-1478  (1896),  and  Die  lateinischen 
Dramen  von  Wimphelings  Stylpho  bis  zur  Mitt e  des  sechzehnten  Jahrhun- 
dertS)  1480-1550  (1893) ;  and  lor  English  plays,  W.  W.  Greg,  A  List  of 
English  Plays  written  before  1643  and  printed  before  ijoo  (1900).  This 
may  be  supplemented  from  W.  C.  Hazlitt,  A  Manual  for  the  Collector 
and  Amateur  of  Old  English  Plays  (1892).  A  list  of  early  Tudor  inter- 
ludes will  be  found  in  Appendix  X.] 

THE  dramatic  material  upon  which  the  interlude  was  able 
to  draw  had  naturally  its  points  of  relation  to  and  of 
divergence  from  that  of  the  popular  stage,  whose  last  days 
it  overlapped.  It  continued  to  occupy  itself  largely  with  the 
morality.  The  c  moral  interludes '  of  the  early  Tudor  period 
are  in  fact  distinguished  with  some  difficulty  from  the  popular 
moralities  by  their  comparative  brevity,  and  by  indications  of 
the  mise  en  schte  as  a  *  room*  or  'hall'  rather  than  an  open 
'place1/  The  only  clearly  popular  texts  later  than  those 

1  The  titles  of  the  printed  plays      case  'enterlude'  does  not  exclude 
do  not  help,  as  they  were  probably     a  popular  play, 
added  by  the  printers,  and  in  any 


200  THE  INTERLUDE 

of  the  fifteenth  century,  discussed  in  a  previous  chapter,  are 
Sir  David  Lyndsay's  Scottish  Satyre  of  the  Thrie  Estaitis^ 
and  the  Magnificence^  which  alone  survives  of  several  plays 
from  the  prolific  pen  of  the  'laureate1  poet,  John  Skelton. 
A  somewhat  intermediate  type  is  presented  by  the  Nature 
of  Cardinal  Morton's  chaplain,  Henry  Medwall.  This  was 
certainly  intended  for  performance  as  an  interlude,  but  it 
is  on  the  scale  of  the  popular  moralities,  needing  division 
into  two  parts  to  bring  it  within  the  limits  of  courtly  patience  ; 
and  like  them  it  is  sufficiently  wide  in  its  scope  to  embrace 
the  whole  moral  problem  of  humanity.  The  conditions  of 
the  interlude,  however,  enforced  themselves,  and  the  later 
morals  have,  as  a  rule,  a  more  restricted  theme.  They  make 
their  selection  from  amongst  the  battalions  of  sins  and 
virtues  which  were  wont  to  invade  the  stage  together,  and 
set  themselves  the  task  of  expounding  the  dangers  of 
a  particular  temperament  or  the  advantages  of  a  particular 
form  of  moral  discipline.  Hickscorner  shows  man  led  into 
irreligion  by  imagination  and  freewill.  Youth  concerns  itself 
with  pride,  lechery,  and  riot,  the  specific  temptations  of  the 
young.  The  Nature  of  the  Four  Elements  and  John  Red- 
ford's  somewhat  later  Wit  and  Science  preach  the  importance 
of  devotion  to  study.  The  distinction  between  the  episodic 
and  the  more  comprehensive  moralities  was  in  the  conscious- 
ness of  the  writers  themselves  ;  and  the  older  fashion  did  not 
wholly  disappear.  William  Baldwin  describes  his  play  for 
the  Inns  of  Court  in  1556  as  'comprehending  a  discourse 
of  the  worlde  *  '  ;  and  mention  is  more  than  once  made  of  an 
interesting  piece  called  The  Cradle  of  Security  ',  which  seems 
to  have  had  a  motive  of  death  and  the  judgement  akin  to  that 
found  in  The  Pride  of  Life  and  in  Everyman** 

1  Hist.  MSS.  vii.  613.  Hit   nayle   o'   th'   head,  Impa- 

1  Collier,  ii.  196,  quotes  the  de-  cient  Pouertie, 

scription  by  Willis,  Mount  Tabor         The  play  of  Foure  Pees,  Diues 
(1639),  and  refers  to*  other  notices  and  Lazarus, 

of  the  play.    In  Sir  Thomas  More         Lustie  Juuentus,  and  the  Mariage 

of  Witt  and  Wisedom.' 


ed.  A.  Dyce,  from.  HarL 

S.  7368  for  Shakes.  Soc"  1844)  The  ascription  of  these  plays  to 

*  my  lord  Cardinall's  players  '  visit  Wolsey's    lifetime    must    not    be 

More's  house  and  offer  the  following  pressed  too  literally.    Of  Hit  Nayle 

repertory:  o9   th'    Head  nothing   is    known. 

•  The  Cradle  of  Securitie,  Radclif  (p.  197)  wrote  a  Dives  and 


HUMANISM  AND  MEDIAEVALISM         201 

The  morality  was  not,  perhaps,  quite  such  an  arid  type  of 
drama  as  might  be  supposed,  especially  after  the  dramatists 
learnt,  instead  of  leaving  humanity  as  a  dry  bone  of  conten- 
tion between  the  good  and  evil  powers,  to  adopt  a  biographic 
mode  of  treatment,  and  thus  to  introduce  the  interest  of 
growth  and  development 1.  But  by  the  sixteenth  century 
allegory  had  had  its  day,  and  the  light-hearted  court  of 
Henry  VIII  and  Katharine  of  Aragon  might  be  excused 
some  weariness  at  the  constant  presentation  before  it 
of  argumentative  abstractions  which  occasionally  yielded 
nothing  more  entertaining  than  a  personified  dJbat*.  Cer- 
tainly it  is  upon  record  that  Medwall's  moral  of '  the  fyndyng 
of  Troth/  played  at  the  Christmas  of  1513,  appeared  to  Henry 
so  long,  that  he  got  up  and  '  departyd  to  hys  chambre  V  The 
offenders  on  this  occasion  were  English  and  his  company  of 
household  players.  They  seem  to  have  been  unwisely 
wedded  to  the  old  methods.  They  pursued  the  princess 
Margaret  to  Scotland  with  a  '  Moralite '  in  1503,  and  in  the 
reign  of  Edward  VI  they  were  still  playing  the  play  of 
Self-Love  *.  Perhaps  this  explains  why  they  make  distinctly 

Lazarus.    For  the  rest  cf.  p.  189 ;  vided  for  the  court  a  pageant  of 

Texts  (iv).    The  piece  actually  per-  c  The  Father  of  Hevin '  in  which  a 

formed  in  Sir  Thomas  More  is  called  dialogue,  both  in  English  and  Latin, 

Wit  and  Wisdom^  but  is  really  an  of  riches  and  love,  written  by  John 

adaptation  of  part  of  Lusty  Jim  entus.  Redman,  and  also  a  *  barriers '  were 

A  play  of  Old  Custome,  probably  introduced  (Brewer,  iv.  1394;  Collier, 

a  morality,  was  amongst  the  effects  i.  98  ;  Hall,  723 ;  Brown,  Venetian 

of  John,  earl  of  Warwick,  in  1545-  Papers,  iv.   105).     A  dialogue  of 

50  (Hist.  MSS.  ii.  102).  Riches  and  Youth,  issuing   in    a 

1  Cf.  Brandl,  xl.  The  perform-  *  barriers/  is  described  by  Edward 
ances  of  Everyman  given  in  the  VI  in  1552  (Remains ',  ii.  386).  On 
courtyard  of  the  Charterhouse  in  the  vogue  during  the  Renascence  of 
1 90 1,  and  subsequently  in  more  than  this  dialogue  literature,  which  de- 
one  London  theatre,  have  proved  rives  from  the  mediaeval  dtbats^  cf. 
quite  unexpectedly  impressive.  Herford,  ch.  2. 

*  John  Rastell  printed  ti536  Of  *  Collier,  i.  69.    This  notice  is 

gentylnes  and  nooylyte^  A  dyalogue  said  by  Collier  to  be  from  a  slip  of 

. . .  compilit  in  maner  of  an  enter-  paper   folded    up    in    the   Revels 

lude  with  divers  toys  and  gestis  Account  for    1513-4.      It   is   not 

addyd thereto  to  make  mery  pastyme  mentioned  in  Brewer's  Calendar, 

and  disport  j  cf.  Bibliographica^  ii.  *Leland,CW/££/a#*a(ed.Hearne), 

446.  Hey  wood's  Witty  and  Witless  iv.  265;    Computes  for  1551-6  of 

is  a  similar  piece,  and  a  later  one,  Sir  Thos.  Chaloner  (Lansd.  MS. 

Robin  Conscience,  is  in  W.  C.  Haz-  824,  f.  24)  '  Gevyn  on  Shrove  mon- 

litt,  Early  Popular  Poetry ',  iii.  221.  day  to  the  king's  players  who  playd 

In  1527  Rastell  seems  to  have  pro-  the  play  6f  Self-love  . . .  xx§/ 


202  THE  INTERLUDE 

less  show  in  the  accounts  of  Tudor  revels  than  do  their 
competitors  of  the  Chapel.  Unfortunately  none  of  the  pieces 
given  by  this  latter  body  have  been  preserved.  But,  to  judge 
by  the  descriptions  of  Hall,  many  of  them  could  only  be 
called  interludes  by  a  somewhat  liberal  extension  of  the 
sense  of  the  term.  There  was  perhaps  some  slight  allegorical 
or  mythological  framework  of  spoken  dialogue.  But  the  real 
amusement  lay  in  an  abundance  of  singing,  which  of  course 
the  Chapel  was  well  qualified  to  provide,  and  of  dancing,  in 
which  the  guests  often  joined,  and  in  an  elaborately  designed 
pageant,  which  was  wheeled  into  the  hall  and  from  which  the 
performers  descended.  They  were  in  fact  masques  rather 
than  dramas  in  the  strict  sense,  and  in  connexion  with  the 
origin  of  the  masque  they  have  already  been  considered1. 

The  popular  stage,  as  has  been  said,  had  its  farcical 
elements,  but  did  not,  in  England,  arrive  at  any  notable 
development  of  the  farce.  Nor  is  any  marked  influence  of 
the  overseas  habit  even  now  to  be  traced.  The  name  is  not 
used  in  England,  although  it  is  in  Scotland,  where  at  the 
beginning  of  the  sixteenth  century  the  relations  with  France 
were  much  closer2.  Whether  directly  or  indirectly  through 
French  channels,  the  farce  is  perhaps  the  contribution  of 
minstrelsy  to  the  nascent  interlude.  That  some  dramatic 
tradition  was  handed  down  from  the  mimi  of  the  Empire  to 
the  mimi  of  the  Middle  Ages,  although  not  susceptible  of 
demonstration,  is  exceedingly  likely  3.  That  solitary  mediaeval 
survival,  the  Inter ludium  de  Clerico  et  Puella,  hardly  declares  its 
origin.  But  the  farce,  in  its  free  handling  of  contemporary  life, 
in  the  outspokenness,  which  often  becomes  indecency,  of  its 
language,  in  its  note  of  satire,  especially  towards  the  priest  and 
other  institutions  deserving  of  reverence,  is  the  exact  counter- 

1  Cf.  ch.  xvi.  theatre  une  petite  piece,  une  courte 

*  There  was  a  'farsche'  atEdin-  et    vive   satire  formed  d'e'l&nents 

burgh    in    1554    (Representations ,  vane's  et  souvent  m£le*e  de  divers 

s.  v.).    In  1558  the  Scottish  General  langages  et  de  diffe'rents  dialectes. 

Assembly    forbade    'farseis    and  .  .  .  Plus  tard,  ce   sens   premier 

clerke  playis '  (Christie,  Account  of  s'effaga ;  le  mot  de  farce  n'dveilla 

Parish  Clerks >  64).    Julie ville,  La  plus    d'autre    ide*e    que   celle   de 

Com.  51,  explains  the  term.   Farsa  come'die  tres  rejouissante.'    Farce 

is  the  L.  L.  past  part,  of  farcire  is,  therefore,  in  its  origin,  precisely 

'  to  stuff.*    Besides  its  liturgical  use  equivalent  to  the  Latin  Satura. 

(vol.  i.  p.  277) '  on  appela/ara  au  3  Cf.  vol.  i.  p.  8$. 


HUMANISM  AND  MEDIAEVALISM         203 

part  of  one  of  the  most  characteristic  forms  of  minstrel 
literature,  \hzfabliati.  These  qualities  are  reproduced  in  the 
interludes  of  John  Heywood,  who,  though  possibly  an  Oxford 
man,  began  life  as  a  singer  and  player  of  the  virginals  at 
court,  and  belonged  therefore  to  the  minstrel  class.  He 
grew  quite  respectable,  married  into  the  family  of  Sir  Thomas 
More  and  John  Rastell  the  printer,  and  had  for  grandson 
John  Donne.  He  was  put  in  charge  of  the  singing-school  of 
St.  Paul's,  the  boys  of  which  probably  performed  his  plays. 
Of  the  six  extant,  Wit  and  Folly  is  a  mere  dialogue,  and 
Love  a  more  elaborate  disputation,  although  both  are  pre- 
sented 'in  maner  of  an  enterlude.'  But  the  others,  The 
Pardoner  and  the  Friar,  The  Four  P's,  The  Weather^  and 
John>  Tib  and  Sir  John  are  regular  farces.  And  with  them 
the  farce  makes  good  its  footing  in  the  English  drama. 

Those  congeners  of  the  French  farce  which  took  their 
origin  from  the  Feast  of  Fools,  the  Sottie  and  the  Sermon 
joyeux,  are  only  represented  in  these  islands  by  the  Sermon 
of  'Folie'  in  Sir  David  Lyndsay's  Satyre  of  the  Thrie 
Estaitis^.  But  the  'fool*  himself,  as  a  dramatic  character, 
is  in  Shakespeare's  and  other  Elizabethan  plays,  and  it  :..u:t 
now  be  pointed  out  that  he  is  in  some  of  the  earliest  Tudor 
interludes.  Here  he  has  the  not  altogether  intelligible  name 
of  the  'vice.'  A  recent  writer,  Professor  Cushman  of  the 
Nevada  State  University,  has  endeavoured  to  show  that 
the  vice  came  into  the  interludes  through  the  avenue  of  the 
moralities.  Originally  'an  allegorical  representation  of 
human  weaknesses  and  vices,  in  short  the  summation  of  the 
Deadly  Sins/  he  lost  in  course  of  time  this  serious  quality, 
and  c  the  term  Vice  came  to  be  simply  a  synonym  for 
buffoon2/  This  theory  has  no  doubt  the  advantage  of 

1  Texts,  s.  v.  Lyndsay.    The  only  off  the  Droichis  Pairt  of  the  Play. 

other    fragment   of    the    Scottish  From  internal  evidence  the  piece 

drama  under  James  IV  is  that  as-  is  a  cry  or  banes.    LI.  138-41  show 

cribed  to  Dunbar  ( Works,  ed.  Scot,  that  it  was  for  a  May-game : 

Text  Soc.,  ii.  314).    In  one  MS.  '  je  noble  merchandis  ever  ilkane 

this  is  headed  'Ane  Littill  Interlud  Address  Jow  furth  with  bow  and 

of  the  Droichis  Part  of  the  [Play]  flane 

but  in  another  Heir  followis  the  In  lusty  grene  lufraye, 

maner  of  the  crying  of  ane  playe.  And  follow  furth  on  Robyn  Hude.' 

Both  have  the  colophon.     Finis  s  Cushman,  63,  68. 


204  THE  INTERLUDE 

explaining  the  name.  Unfortunately  it  proceeds  by  dis- 
regarding several  plays  in  which  the  vice  does  occur,  and 
reading  him  into  many  where  there  is  none l.  '  Vicious '  had 
his  pageant  in  the  Beverley  Paternoster  play,  and  vices  in  the 
ordinary  sense  of  the  word  are  of  course  familiar  personages 
in  the  morals,  which  generally  moreover  have  some  one 
character  who  can  be  regarded  as  the  representative  or  the 
chief  representative  of  human  frailty.  But  the  vice  is  not 
found  under  that  name  in  the  text,  list  of  dramatis  personae, 
or  stage  directions  of  any  popular  morality  or  of  any  pre- 
Elizabethan  moral  interlude  except  the  Marian  Respublica. 
The  majority  of  plays  in  which  he  does  occur  are  not  morals, 
even  of  the  modified  Elizabethan  type ;  and  although  in  those 
which  are  he  generally  plays  a  bad  part,  even  this  is  not  an 
invariable  rule.  In  The  Tide  Tarrieth  for  No  Man,  as  in  the 
tragedy  of  Horestes,  he  is  Courage.  Moreover,  as  a  matter 
of  fact,  he  comes  into  the  interludes  through  the  avenue  of 
the  farce.  The  earliest  vices,  by  some  thirty  years,  are  those 
of  Hey  wood's  Love,  in  which  he  is  *  Neither  Loving  nor  Loved/ 
who  mocks  the  other  disputants,  and  plays  a  practical  joke 
with  fireworks  upon  them,  and  The  Weather,  in  which  he  is 
'Merry  Report/  the  jesting  official  of  Jupiter.  And  in  the 
later  plays,  even  if  he  has  some  other  dramatic  function, 
he  always  adds  to  it  that  of  a  riotous  buffoon.  Frequently 
enough  he  has  no  other.  It  must  be  concluded  then  that, 
whatever  the  name  may  mean — and  irresponsible  philology 
has  made  some  amazing  attempts  at  explanation2 — the 
character  of  the  vice  is  derived  from  that  of  the  domestic 
fool  or  jester.  Oddly  enough  he  is  rarely  called  a  fool, 
although  the  description  of  Medwall's  Finding  of  Truth 
mentions  *  the  foolys  part  V  But  the  Elizabethan  writers 

1  No  play  in  the  first  two  sections  so  called. . 

of  the  *  vice-dramas '  tabulated  by  a  Cushman,  68.  It  has  been  de- 
Cushman,  55.  has  a  vice.  Of  the  rived  from  vis  d'dne,  and  from 
eleven  plays  (excluding  King  John,  vis, '  a  mask ' ;  from  the  Latin  vice, 
which  has  none)  that  remain,  eight  because  the  vice  is  the  devil's  re- 
can  be  called  morals.  But  to  these  presentative ;  from  device,  'a  pup- 
must  be  added  Heywood's  Love  pet  moved  by  machinery,1  and 
and  Weather,  Grimald's  Archipro-  finally,  by  the  ingenious  Theobald, 
pheta,  Jack  juggler,  Hester,  Tom  from  <O.  E.  jeck—Gb.  ffcaZ,  i.e. 
Tiler  and  His  Wife,  none  of  which  fiicai  «  feut  «  formal  character.' 
are  morals!  unless  the  first  can  be  '  Cf.  Texts>  s.  v.  Medwall.  In 


HUMANISM  AND  MEDIAEVALISM         206 

speak  of  his  long  coat  and  lathen  sword,  common  trappings 
of  the  domestic  fool1.  Whether  he  ever  had  a  cockscomb, 
a  bauble,  or  an  eared  hood  is  not  apparent.  A  vice  seems 
to  have  been  introduced  into  one  or  two  of  the  later  miracle* 
plays2.  At  Bungay  in  1566  he*  made  pastime  *  before  and 
after  the  play,  as  Tarleton  or  Kempe  were  in  time  to  do  with 
their  '  jigs '  upon  the  London  boards.  And  probably  this  was 
his  normal  function  on  such  occasions. 

From  the  moral  the  interlude  drew  abstractions  ;  from  the 
farce  social  types.  The  possibility  of  vital  drama  lay  in  an 
advance  to  the  portraiture  of  individualities.  The  natural 
way  to  attain  to  this  was  by  the  introduction  of  historical, 
mythical,  or  romantic  personages.  The  miracle-play  had, 
of  course,  afforded  these  ;  but  there  is  little  to  show  that  the 
miracle-play,  during  the  first  half  of  the  sixteenth  centuiy, 
had  much  influence  on  the  interlude8.  The  local  players 
brought  it  to  court,  but,  for  the  present,  it  was  dtmodt*  It 
was,  however,  to  have  its  brief  revival.  The  quarry  of 
romantic  narrative  had  hardly  been  opened  by  the  Middle 
Ages.  An  old  theme  of  Robert  of  Sicily,  once  used  at 
Lincoln,  was  now  remembered  at  Chester.  Robin  Hood 
had  yielded  dramatic  May-games,  and  his  revels  were  popular 
at  Henry  VIII's  court4.  New  motives,  however,  now 
begin  to  assert  themselvfes.  Some  at  least  of  these  were 
suggested  by  the  study  of  Chaucer.  Ralph  Radclif  's  school 
plays  at  Hitchin  included  one  on  Griselda  and  one  on 
Melidoeus5.  Nicholas  Grimald  wrote  one  on  Troilus,  and 
another  had  been  acted  by  the  Chapel  at  court  in  I5i68. 
Radclif  was  also  responsible  for  a  Titus  and  Gisippus,  while 
the  king's  players,  shaking  off  their  devotion  to  the  moral, 
prepared  in  1552  '  a  play  of  Aesop's  Crow,  wherein  the  most 
part  of  the  actors  were  birds7/  An  extant  piece  on  'the 

Misogonos  (t  1560)  Cacurgus,  the  have  played  miracles.     But  they 

Morio,  is  a  character,  and  is  called  may  have  been  merely  praestigia- 

'foole'  and  'nodye'  but  not  'vice/  tores. 

1  Collier,  ii.  191 ;  Cushman,  69;  *  Of.  voL  i.  p.  1 80. 

ct  ch.  xvi.  *  Cf.  p.  197,  n.  I. 

*  Cf.  Representations,  s.  w.  Bun-  *  Cf.  Texts,  s.  v*  Grimald 

gay,  Chelmsford.  7  W.    B[aldwin],   Bell  the  Cat 

8  The  '  pleyers  with  Marvells '  at  (1553). 
court  in  1498  are  conjectured  to 


206  THE  INTERLUDE 

beauty  and  good  properties  of  women '  and  *  their  vices  and 
evil  conditions '  is  really  a  version  through  the  Italian  of  the 
Spanish  Celestina,  one  of  the  first  of  many  English  dramatic 
borrowings  from  South  European  sources. 

So  far  I  have  written  only  of  developments  which  were 
at  least  latent  in  mediaevalism.  But  the  interlude  had  its 
rise  in  the  very  midst  of  the  great  intellectual  and  spiritual 
movement  throughout  Europe  which  is  known  as  humanism  ; 
and  hardly  any  branch  of  human  activities  was  destined  to 
be  more  completely  transformed  by  the  new  forces  than 
the  drama.  The  history  of  this  transformation  is  not,  how- 
ever, a  simple  one.  Between  humanism  and  mediaevalism 
there  is  no  rigid  barrier.  As  at  all  periods  of  transition, 
a  constant  action  and  reaction  established  themselves  between 
the  old  and  new  order  of  ideas.  Moreover,  humanism  itself 
held  elements  in  solution  that  were  not  wholly  reconcilable 
with  each  other.  Many  things,  and  perhaps  particularly  the 
drama,  presented  themselves  in  very  different  lights,  according 
as  they  were  viewed  from  the  literary  or  the  religious  side 
of  the  great  movement  Some  brief  indication  of  the  in- 
and-out  play  of  the  forces  of  humanism  as  they  affected  the 
history  of  the  interlude  during  the  first  half  of  the  sixteenth 
century  is,  therefore,  desirable. 

The  chief  of  these  forces  is,  of  course,  the  influence  of 
classical  comedy  and  tragedy.  These,  as  vital  forms  of 
literature,  did  not  long  survive  the  fall  of  the  theatres,  with 
which,  indeed,  their  connexion  had  long  been  of  the  slightest. 
In  the  East,  a  certain  tradition  of  Christian  book  dramas 
begins  with  the  anti-Gnostic  dialogues  of  St.  Methodius  in 
the  fourth  century  and  ends  with  the  much  disputed  Xptoros 
n<i<rxa>j;  in  the  eleventh  or  twelfth  *.  It  is  the  merest  con- 
jecture that  some  of  these  may  have  been  given  some  kind 
of  representation  in  the  churches 2.  In  the  West  the  Aulu- 

i 

1  Krumbacher,  534, 644, 653, 717,  Theodorus  Prodromus,  but  Krum- 

746j  75 If  766,  775.    The  Xpcorta  bacher  thinks  the  author  unidenti- 

Udcrxw  (ed.  by  J.  G.  Brambs,  1885 ;  fied.    A  third  of  the  text  is  a  cento 

and  in  P.  G.  xxxviii.  131)  was  long  from  extant  plays,  mainly  of  Euri- 

ascribed    to    the    fourth  -  century  pides. 

Gregory  Nazianzen.  Later  scholars  8  Krumbacher,  645. 
have  suggested  Joannes  Tzetzes  or 


HUMANISM  AND  MEDIAEVALISM         207 

laria  of  Plautus  was  rehandled  under  the  title  of  Querolus 
at  the  end  of  the  fourth  century,  and  possibly  also  the 
Amphitruo  under  that  of  Geta\  In  the  fifth,  Magnus,  the 
father  of  Consentius,  is  said  by  Sidonius,  as  Shakespeare 
is  said  by  Ben  Jonson,  to  have  *  outdone  insolent  Greece,  or 
haughty  RomeV  Further  the  production  of  plays  cannot 
be  traced.  Soon  afterwards  most  of  the  classical  dramatists 
pass  into  oblivion.  A  knowledge  of  Seneca  or  of  Plautus, 
not  to  speak  of  the  Greeks,  is  the  rarest  of  things  from  the 
tenth  century  to  the  fourteenth.  The  marked  exception  is 
Terence  who,  as  Dr.  Ward  puts  it,  led  '  a  charmed  life  in 
the  darkest  ages  of  learning/  This  he  owed,  doubtless,  to 
his  unrivalled  gift  of  packing  up  the  most  impeccable  senti- 
ments in  the  neatest  of  phrases.  His  vogue  as  a  school 
author  was  early  and  enduring,  and  the  whole  of  mediaevalism, 
a  few  of  the  stricter  moralists  alone  dissenting,  hailed  him 
as  a  master  of  the  wisdom  of  life3.  At  the  beginning  of 
the  eleventh  century,  Notker  Labeo,  a  monk  of  St.  Gall, 
writes  that  he  has  been  invited  to  turn  the  Andria  into 
German4.  Not  long  before,  Hrotsvitha,  a  Benedictine  nun 
of  Gandersheim  in  Saxony,  had  taken  Terence  as  her  model 
for  half  a  dozen  plays  in  Latin  prose,  designed  to  glorify 
chastity  and  to  celebrate  the  constancy  of  the  martyrs.  The 
dramaturgy  of  Hrotsvitha  appears  to  have  been  an  isolated 
experiment  and  the  merest  literary  exercise.  Her  plays 
abound  in  delicate  situations,  and  are  not  likely  to  have 
been  intended  even  for  cloister  representation5.  Nor  is 
there  much  evidence  for  any  representation  of  the  Terentian 

1  Teuffel,  ii.  372 ;  Cloetta,  i.  3, 70;  Gbttinger gelehrte  Anzeigen  (1835), 

Creizenach,  i.  4,  20,    The  Querolus  911. 

(cd.  L.  Havet,  1880)  was  ascribed  fl  Creizenach,  i.  17;    Cloetta,  i. 

by  the  Middle  Ages  to  Plautus  him-  127;  Ward,  i.  6;  Pollard,  xii;  A. 

self.    The  Geta,  if  it  existed,  is  lost.  Ebert,  Gesch.  d.  Litt.  d.  Mittelalters 

8  Sidonius,  Carm.  xxiii.  134.  (1887),  iii.  314;  W.  H.  Hudson  in 

8  Cloetta,  i.  14 ;  ii.  I ;  Creizenach,  E.  H.  R.  iii.  431.    The  plays  of 

i.  i,  486;  Bahlmann,  Em.  4;  M.  Hrotsvitha  (ed.K.  A.  Barack,  1858  ; 

Manitius,  in  Philologus,  suppl.  vii.  ed.  P.  L.  Winterfeld,  1901)  are  the 

758 ;  Ward,  i.  7,  quoting  Hrotsvitha,  Gallicanus^  Dulcitius^  Callimachus, 

'  sunt  etiam  . . .  Abraham,  Paphnutius,  Safientia. 

qui,  licet  alia  gentilium  spernant,  They  were  discovered  by  Conrad 

Terentii  tamen  fragmenta  frequen-  Celtes  and  edited  in  1501.    It  is 

tius  lectitant.'  not  probable  that  he  forged  them. 

4  Creizenach,  i.  2;  Ward,  i.  8; 


208  THE  INTERLUDE 

comedies  themselves.  A  curious  fragment  known  as  Tertn- 
tius  et  Delusor  contains  a  dialogue  between  the  vetus  poeta 
and  a  persona  delusoris  or  mime.  The  nature  of  this  is 
somewhat  enigmatic,  but  it  certainly  reads  as  if  it  might 
be  a  prologue  or  parade  written  for  a  Terentian  repre- 
sentation. In  any  case,  it  is  wholly  unparalleled *.  In  fact, 
although  the  Middle  Ages  continued  to  read  Terence,  the 
most  extraordinary  ideas  prevailed  as  to  how  his  dramas 
were  originally  produced.  Vague  reminiscences  of  the  panto- 
mimic art  of  later  Rome  led  to  the  mistaken  supposition  that 
the  poet  himself,  or  a  recitator^  declaimed  the  text  from 
a  pulpitum  above  the  stage,  while  the  actors  gesticulated 
voicelessly  below2.  By  a  further  confusion  the  name  of 
Calliopius,  a  third-  or  fourth-century  grammarian  through 
whose  hands  the  text  of  Terence  has  passed,  was  taken  for 
that  of  a  recitator  contemporary  with  the  poet,  and  the  Vita 
Oxoniensis  goes  so  far  as  to  describe  him  as  a  powerful  and 
learned  man,  who  read  the  comedies  aloud  in  the  senate3. 
The  same  complete  ignorance  of  things  scenic  declares  itself 
in  the  notions  attached  to  the  terms  tragoedia  and  comocdia, 

1  Printed  in  Appendix  U.  The  noble  dedes  that  were  hys- 

3  Creizenach,  i.  5 ;  Cloetta,  i.  38.  toryall, 

One  of  the  exceptionally  learned  Of  kynges   &   prynces   for  me- 

men  who  really  knew  something  moryall . . . 

about  the  classical  drama  was  John  All  this  was  tolde  and  red  of  the 

of  Salisbury  (t  1159),  Polycraticus>  Poete, 

i.8'comicisettra£oedisabeuntibus,  And  whyle  that  he  in  the  pulpet 

cum    omnia    levitas    occupaverit,  stode, 

dientes  eorum,  comoedi  videlicet  With  deadly  face  all  deuoyde  of 

et  tragoedj,  exterminati  sunt';  iii.  blode, 

8  'comoedia  est  vita  hominis  super  Synging  his  ditees  with  muses  all 

terrain,  ubi  quisque  sui  oblitus  per-  to  rent, 

sonam   expnmit  alienam '    (P.  L.  Amydthetheatreshrowdedinatent, 

cxcix.  405,  488).    For  the  popular  There  came  out  men  gastfull  of 

notion  cL  Lydgate,  Troy  Book  (ed.  their  cheres, 

I555)>  "•   "»  perhaps  translating  Disfygured  their  faces  with  viseres, 

Guido  delle  Colonne :  Playing  by  sygnes  in  the  peoples 

'  In  the  theatre  there  was  a  smale  syght, 

aulter,  That   the   Poet  songe   hath  on 

Amyddes    sette   that    was    half  heyght, . . . 

Circuler,  And  this  was  done  in  Apryll  and 

Which  into  East  of  custome  was  in  May/ 

directe,  8  Creizenach,  i.  6 ;  Cloetta,  i.  35. 

Upon  the  whiche  a  Pulpet  was  See  the  miniature  reproduced  from 

erecte,  a  fifteenth-century  MS.  of  Terence 

And  therin  stode  an  auncientpoete,  in  P.  Lacroix,  Sciences  et  Lettres 

For  to  reherse  by  rethorykes  swete,  au  Moyen  Age  (1877), 


HUMANISM  AND  MEDIAEVALISM          209 

not  only  vulgarly,  but  in  the  formal  definitions  of  lexico- 
graphers and  encyclopaedists l. 

The  characteristics  which  really  differentiate  the  drama 
from  other  forms  of  literature,  dialogue  and  scenic  representa- 
tion, drop  out  of  account,  the  latter  entirely,  the  former  very 
nearly  so.  Both  tragedy  and  comedy  are  regarded  as  forms 
of  narrative.  Tragedy  is  narrative  which  concerns  persons  of 
high  degree,  is  written  in  a  lofty  style,  and  beginning  happily 
comes  to  a  sad  conclusion.  Comedy,  on  the  other  hand,  con- 
cerns itself  with  ordinary  persons,  Uses  humble  and  everyday 
language,  and  resolves  its  complications  in  a  fortunate  ending  2. 
Even  these  distinctions  are  not  all  consistently  maintained,  and 
the  sad  or  happy  event  becomes  the  only  fixed  and  invariable 
criterion8.  The  origin  of  such  conceptions  is  to  be  found 
partly  in  the  common  derived  classical  use  of  tragoedia  and 
comoedia  to  describe  tragic  and  comic  events  as  well  as  the 
species  of  drama  in  which  these  are  respectively  represented ; 
partly  in  a  misunderstanding  of  grammarians  who,  assuming 
the  dialogue  and  the  representation,  gave  definitions  of  tragedy 
and  comedy  in  relation  to  each  other  *  ;  and  partly  in  the 
solecism  of  the  fifth-century  epic  writer  Dracontius,  who 

1  Cloetta,  i.  14,  has  accumulated  cipe  per  le  corna  e  per  la  barba, 
a  fund  of  learning  on  this  subject ;  e  dietro  e  sozzo  mostrando  le  na- 
cf.  Creizenach,  i.  9.  tiche  nude  e  non  avendo  con  che 

2  Johannes  Januensis,  Catholicon  coprirle,  cosl  la  tragedia  incomincia 
(1286),   quoted    by  Cloetta,   i.    28  dal  principio  con  felicitk  e  poi  ter- 
'differunt  tragoedia  et   comoedia,  mina    in    miseria.'      Krumbacher, 
quia  comedia  privatorum  hominum  646,  describes  the  very  similar  his- 
continet  facta,  tragoedia  regum  et  tory  of   the    terms   rpaya>&a  and 
magnatum.    Item  comoedia  humili  xw/iw&'n  in  Byzantine  Greek. 

stilo    describitur,    tragoedia    alto.          *  Boethius,  who  of  course  under- 

Item  comoedia  a  tristibus  incipit  stood  the  nature  of  comedy  and 

sed  cum  laetis  desinit,  tragoedia  e  tragedy,    says    (Cons.    Phiiosoph. 

contrario.'  ii.  pr.   2.   36)   'quid  tragoediarum 

3  Vincent  of  Beauvais,  Speculum  clamor  aliud  deflet,  nisi  indiscrete 
maius    triplex     (t  1250),    i.     109  ictu  fortunam  felicia  regna  verten- 
c  Comoedia  poesis  exordium  triste  tern  ? '   This  becomes  in  the  para- 
laeto  fine  commutans.    Tragoedia  phrase  of  his  eleventh-century  com- 
vero   poesis  a  laeto  principio    in  mentator  Notker  Labeo  (ed.  Hat- 
tristem  finem  desinens/  The  Dante-  temar, 52**) '  tragoediae  sfnt  luctuosa 
commentator  Francesco  da  Buti,  carmina.   &lso  dfu  sfnt.  dfu  sopho- 
quoted  by  Cloetta  i.  48,  illustrates  cles  scrdib  apud  grecos.    de  euer- 
this  notion  with  an  extraordinary  sionibus  regnorum  et  urbium.    un- 
explanation   of  the  derivation  of  desfntuuidemuartigtiencomoediis. 
tragedia  from    Tpa-yos;    'come    il  in   dien  uuir  fo  geh6ren  laetum 
becco  ha  dinanzi  aspetto  di  prin-  unde  iocundum  exitum/ 


210  THE  INTERLUDE 

seems  to  have  called  his  Orestes  a  tragedy,  merely  because 
it  was  from  tragedies  that  the  material  he  used  was  drawn l. 
The  comoedia  and  tragoedia  of  the  Latin  writers,  thus  defined, 
was  extended  to  all  the  varieties  of  narrative,  in  the  widest 
sense  of  the  word.  The  epics  of  Lucan  and  Statius,  the 
elegies  of  Ovid,  are  tragoediae\  the  epistles  of  Ovid,  the 
pastoral  dialogues  of  Virgil,  are  comoediae;  the  satires  of 
Horace,  Persius,  Juvenal,  are  one  or  the  other,  according 
to  the  point  of  view  2.  It  is  curious  that,  with  all  this  wide 
extension  of  the  terms,  they  were  not  applied  to  the  one  form 
of  mediaeval  Latin  composition  which  really  had  some 
analogy  to  the  ancient  drama ;  namely  to  the  liturgical 
plays  out  of  which  the  vernacular  mysteries  grew.  These 
must  have  been  written  by  learned  writers :  some  of  them 
were  probably  acted  by  schoolboys  trained  in  Terence; 
and  yet,  if  Hrosvitha,  as  she  should  be,  is  put  out  of  the 
reckoning,  no  inward  or  outward  trace  of  the  influence  of 
classical  tragedy  or  comedy  can  be  found  in  any  one  of 
them.  In  the  manuscripts,  they  are  called  officium^  ordo,  ludus, 
miraculum,  repraesentatio  and  the  like,  but  very  rarely  comoedia 
or  tragoedia,  and  never  before  1 204 3.  From  the  Latin  the  medi- 
aeval notions  of  tragedy  and  comedy  were  transferred  to  similar 
compositions  in  the  vernaculars.  Dante's  Divina  Commedia 
is  just  a  story  which  begins  in  Hell  and  ends  in  Paradise4. 

1  Cloetta,  i.  4;   Teuffel,  ii.  506.  of  Innocent  III  and  others  (vol.  i. 

Blossius  Aemilius  Dracontius  was  p.  40 ;   vol.  ii.  p.  99)  seem  to  be 

a  Carthaginian  poet.    The  Orestes  not  miracle-plays,  but  the  Feast  of 

is  printed  in  L.  Baehrens,  Poet.  Lat.  Fools  and  similar  mummings. 
Min.  (BibL  Teub.),  v.  218.    There         4  Dante,  Dedicatio  of  Paradiso 

seems  a  little  doubt  whether  the  to  Can  Grande  (Opere  Latine,  ed. 

title  Orestis  tragoedia  in  the  Berne  Giuliani,  ii.  44)  'est  comoedia  ge- 

MS.  is  due  to  the  author  or  to  a  nus  quod  dam  poeticae  narrationis 

scribe.    The  Ambrosian  MS.  has  .  . .     Differt  ergo  a    tragoedia  in 

Horestis  fabula.  materia  per  hoc  quod  tragoedia  in 

9  Creizenach,  i.  12.  principio  est  admirabilis  et  quieta, 

8  Ibid.  i.  7 ;  Cloetta,  i.  49.    The  in  fine  sive  exitu  est  foetida  et  horri- 

ludus  prophetarum  played  at  Riga  bills  . . .  comoedia  vero  inchoat  as- 

in  1204  (p.  70)   is  called   '  ludus  peritatem    alicuius    rei,    sed    eius 

. . .  quam  Latini  comoediamvocant.'  materia  prospere  terminator.'    P. 

Probably  this  is  a  bit  of  learning  on  Toynbee  (^omania^yxvi.  542)  shows 

the  part  of  the  chronicler;  cf.  the  that  Dante  substantially  owed  these 

Michael-House  instance  (p.  344).  definitions  to  the  Magnat  Derives 

For    scraps    from    non-dramatic  tiones  of  the  late  twelfth-century 

classical  authors  in  liturgical  plays,  writer,  Uguccione  da  Pisa. 
cf.  p.  48.    The  '  theatricales  ludi* 


HUMANISM  AND  MEDIAEVALISM          211 

Boccaccio  *,  Chaucer 2,  and  Lydgate 3  use  precisely  similar 
language.  And,  right  up  to  the  end  of  the  sixteenth 
century,  '  tragedy '  continues  to  stand  for  '  tragical  legend ' 
with  the  authors  of  the  Mirror  for  Magistrates  and  their 
numerous  successors  4.  Long  before  this,  of  course,  human- 
istic research,  without  destroying  their  mediaeval  sense,  had 
restored  to  the  wronged  terms  their  proper  connotation. 
There  is  a  period  during  which  it  is  a  little  difficult  to  say 
what,  in  certain  instances,  they  do  mean.  When  Robert 
Bower,  in  1447,  speaks  of  comoediae  and  tragoediae  on  the 
theme  of  Robin  Hood  and  Little  John,  it  is  a  matter  for 
conjecture  whether  he  is  referring  to  dramatized  May-games 
or  merely  to  ballads 6.  Bale,  in  writing  of  his  contemporaries, 
certainly  applies  the  words  to  plays  ;  but  when  he  ascribes 
tragoedias  vulgar es  to  Robert  Baston,  a  Carmelite  friar  of  the 
time  of  Edward  II,  it  is  probable  that  he  is  using,  or  quoting 
a  record  which  used,  an  obsolescent  terminology 6.  What  the 
comoediae  of  John  Scogan,  under  Edward  IV,  may  have  been, 
must  remain  quite  doubtful 7. 

It  is  in  the  early  fourteenth  century  and  in  Italy  that  a 
renewed  interest  in  the  Latin  dramatists,  other  than  Terence, 
can  first  be  traced.  Seneca  became  the  subject  of  a  commen- 
tary by  the  English  Dominican  Nicholas  Treveth,  and  also 
attracted  the  attention  of  Lovato  de'  Lovati  and  the  scholarly 
circle  which  gathered  round  him  at  Padua.  The  chief  of  these 
was  Albertino  Mussato,  who  about  1314  was  moved  by  indig- 
nation at  the  intrigues  of  Can  Grande  of  Verona  to  write  his 
Ecerinis  on  the  fate  of  that  Ezzelino  who,  some  eighty 

1  Boccaccio's  Ameto  bears   the  2,  78,  to  the  passage  already  quoted 
sub  -  title     Comedia    delle    Nmfe  on  p.  20   ;  and  the  description  of 
fiorentine.  Troilus  in  T.  C.  v.  1786. 

2  Chaucer,     Monk's     Prologue,  8  Lydgate,  Fall  of  Princes,  prol.: 
(C.  T.  13,999):  'My   maister    Chaucer    with    his 
*  Or  elles  first  Tragedies  wol  I  telle  fressh  com  medics, 

Of  whiche  I  have  an  hundred  in  Is    deed,    alas,    chefe    poete    of 

my  celle.  Bretayne : 

Tragedieistoseynacerteynstorie,  That  sometyme  made  full  pitous 

As  olde  bokes  maken  us  memorie,  tragedies.* 

Of  him  that  stood  in  g^eet  pros-  4  W.  F.  Trench,  A  Mirror  for 

peritee  Magistrates;  its  Origin  and  In- 

And  isy-fallen  out  of  heigh  degree  fluence  (1898),  18,  76,  82,  120,  125. 

Into  miserie,  and  endeth  wrecched-  *  Cf.  vol.  i.  p.  177. 

ly.'  6  Bale,  i.  370. 

Cf.  the  gloss  in  his  Boetftius,  ii.  pr.  7  Ibid.  ii.  68. 

P  2 


212  THE  INTERLUDE 

years  before,  had  tyrannized  over  Padua.  This  first  of  the 
Senecan  tragedies  of  the  Renascence  stirred  enthusiasm 
amongst  the  growing  number  of  the  literati.  It  was  read  aloud 
and  Mussato  was  laureated  before  the  assembled  university. 
Two  learned  professors  paid  it  the  tribute  of  a  commentary. 
The  example  of  Mussato  was  followed  in  the  Achilleis  (1390) 
of  Antonio  de*  Loschi  of  Vicenza  and  the  Prague  (fi438)  of 
Gregorio  Corraro  of  Mantua.  Petrarch  was  familiar  not  only 
with  Terence,  but  also  with  Seneca  and  Plautus,  and  his 
Philologia,  written  before  1331  and  then  suppressed,  may 
claim  to  take  rank  with  the  Ecerinis  as  the  first  Renascence 
comedy.  It  was  modelled,  says  Boccaccio,  upon  Terence. 
A  fresh  impulse  was  given  to  the  study  and  imitation  of 
Latin  comedy  in  1427  by  the  discovery  of  twelve  hitherto 
unknown  Plautine  plays,  including  the  Menaechmi  and  the 
Miles  Gloriosus,  and  various  attempts  were  made  to  complete 
the  imperfect  plays.  In  1441  Leonardo  Dati  of  Florence 
introduced  a  motive  from  the  Trinummus  into  his,  not 
comedy,  but  tragedy  of  Hiempsal *. 

It  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  during  these  early  stages 
of  humanism  classical  models  and  neo- Latin  imitations  alike 
were  merely  read  and  not  acted.  There  is  no  sign  whatever 
that  as  yet  the  mediaeval  misconception  as  to  the  nature 
of  Roman  scenic  representation  had  come  to  an  end.  It  was 
certainly  shared  by  Nicolas  Treveth  and  probably  by  both 
Petrarch  and  Boccaccio  2.  It  was  not  indeed  in  these  regular 
dramas  that  the  habit  of  acting  Latin  first  re-established  itself, 
but  in  a  mixed  and  far  less  classical  type  of  play.  It  is 
probable  that  in  schools  the  exercise  of  reciting  verse,  and 
amongst  other  verse  dialogue,  had  never  died  out  since  the 
time  of  the  Empire.  In  the  fourth  century  the  Ludus  Septem 
SapientuM  of  the  Bordeaux  schoolmaster  Ausonius,  which 
consists  of  no  more  than  a  set  of  verses  and  a  *  Plaudite  ! '  for 
each  sage,  was  doubtless  written  for  some  such  purpose3. 
Such  also  may  have  been  the  destiny  of  the  '  elegiac '  and 

1  Cloetta,  ii.  4,  11,  91,  147;  8  The  earliest  printed  text 

Creizenach,  i.  487,  $29,  572  ;  Bahl-  (tl47j)  of  Claudian's  De  Raptu 

maim,  Ern.  9,  13,  15,  30,  40.  Proserpinae  is  from  a  version 

1  Cloetta,  ii.  69, 221;  Creitenach,  arranged  as  two  pseudo-dramas 

i.  490,  510,  580.  (Cloetta,  i.  135). 


HUMANISM  AND  MEDIAEVALISM         213 

'  epic  *  comedies  and  tragedies  of  which  a  fair  number  were 
produced,  from  the  eleventh  century  to  the  thirteenth.  These 
are  comedies  and  tragedies,  primarily,  in  the  mediaeval  sense. 
They  are  narrative  poems  in  form.  But  in  all  of  them  a  good 
deal  of  dialogue  is  introduced,  and  in  some  there  is  hardly 
anything  else.  Their  subject-matter  is  derived  partly  from 
Terence  and  partly  from  the  stock  of  motives  common  to  all 
forms  of  mediaeval  light  literature.  Their  most  careful 
student,  Dr.  Cloetta,  suggests  that  they  were  intended 
for  a  half-dramatic  declamation  by  minstrels.  This  may 
sometimes  have  been  the  case,  but  the  capacity  and  the 
audience  of  the  minstrels  for  Latin  were  alike  limited,  and 
I  do  not  see  why  at  any  rate  the  more  edifying  of  them  may 
not  have  been  school  pieces l.  By  the  fifteenth  century 
it  will  be  remembered,  students,  who  had  long  been  in  the 
habit  of  performing  miracle-plays,  had  also  taken  to  producing 
farces,  morals,  and  those  miscellaneous  comic  and  satiric 
pieces  which  had  their  origin  in  the  folk-festivals.  Many 
of  these  were  in  the  vernaculars ;  but  it  is  difficult  to  avoid 
classing  with  them  a  group  of  Latin  dialogues  and  loosely 
constructed  comedies,  written  in  Terentian  metres  and  pre- 
senting a  curious  amalgam  of  classical  and  mediaeval  themes. 
Of  hardly  any  of  these  can  it  be  said  positively  that  they  were 
intended  to  be  acted.  This  is,  however,  not  unlikely  in  the 
case  of  the  anonymous  Columpnarium>  which  goes  back  to 
the  fourteenth  century.  Pavia  probably  saw  a  performance 
of  Ugolini  Pisani's  Confabulatio  coquinaria  (1435),  which  has 
all  the  characteristics  of  a  carnival  drollery,  and  certainly 
of  Ranzio  Mercurino's  De  False  Hypocrite^  which  is  stated  in 
the  manuscript  to  have  been  ' acta*  there  on  April  15,  1437. 
The  Admiranda  of  Alberto  Carrara  was  similarly  '  acta  ' 
at  Padua  about  1456.  The  exact  way  in  which  these  pieces 
and  others  like  them  were  performed  must  remain  doubtful. 
Acting  in  the  strict  sense  can  only  be  distinctly  asserted 

1  Cloetta,  i,  passim ;  Creizenach,  diae  Elegiacae ( 1 885), and  T.  Wright, 

i.  20;  Peiper,  Di*  pro) rane  Komodie  Early  Mysteries  and  other  Latin 

des  Mittelalters,  in  Archiv  f.  Lit-  Poems  (1844).    Cloetta  gives  refer- 

teraturgeschichte^  v.  497.     Some  of  ences  for  the  rest 
the  texts  are  in  Mullenbach,  Comae- 


214  THE  INTERLUDE 

of  Francesco  Ariosto's  dialogue  of  Isis  which  was  given  ' per 
personates '  at  the  Ferrara  carnival  of  1444 l. 

All  this  pseudo-classic  comedy  was  looked  upon  with  scorn 
by  the  purists  of  humanism.  But  it  made  its  way  over  the 
Alps  and  had  a  considerable  vogue  in  Germany.  In  France 
it  found  an  exponent  in  Jean  Tissier  de  Ravisy  (Ravisius 
Textor),  professor  of  rhetoric  in  the  College  of  Navarre  at 
Paris,  and  afterwards  rector  of  the  Paris  University,  who 
wrote,  in  good  enough  Latin,  but  wholly  in  the  mediaeval 
manner,  a  large  number  of  morals,  farces,  and  dialogues  for 
representation  by  his  pupils 2.  Two  at  least  of  these  were 
turned  into  English  interludes.  The  classical  element  pre- 
dominates in  the  pseudo-Homeric  Thersites,  the  production  of 
which  can  be  fixed  to  between  October  12  and  24,  1537  ;  the 
mediaeval  in  Thomas  Ingelend's  The  Disobedient  Child>  which 
belongs  to  the  very  beginning  of  the  reign  of  Elizabeth. 

It  was  doubtless  the  study  of  Vitruvius  which  awakened  the 
humanists  to  the  fact  that  their  beloved  comedies  had  after  all 
been  acted  after  very  much  the  fashion  so  long  familiar  in 
farces  and  miracle-plays.  Exactly  when  the  knowledge  came 
is  not  clear.  Polydore  Vergil  is  still  ignorant,  and  even 
Erasmus,  at  the  date  of  the  Adagia>  uncertain.  Alberti  put 
a  theatrum  in  the  palace  built  on  the  Vatican  for  Nicholas  V 
about  1452,  but  there  is  no  record  of  its  use  for  dramatic 
performances  at  that  time,  and  the  immediate  successors 
of  Nicholas  did  not  love  humanism.  Such  performances 
seem  to  have  been  first  undertaken  by  the  pupils  of  a  Roman 
professor,  Pomponius  Laetus.  Amongst  these  was  Inghirami, 
who  was  protagonist  in  revivals  of  the  Asinaria  of  Plautus 
and  the  Phaedra  of  Seneca,  These  took  place  about  1485. 
Several  other  representations  both  of  classical  plays  and 
of  neo- Latin  imitations  occurred  in  Italy  before  the  end  of  the 
century;  and  the  practice  spread  to  other  countries  affected 
by  the  humanist  wave,  soon  establishing  itself  as  part  of  the 
regular  sixteenth-century  scheme  of  education.  By  this  time, 
of  course,  Greek  as  well  as  Latin  dramatic  models  were  avail- 

1  Crcizenach,  i.  533, 548, 563, 581 ;      59 ;  Bahlmann,  L.  D.  31 ;  Julleville, 
Bahlmann,  Em.  13,  36,  38,  44,  48.       Les  Com.  298 ;  J.  Bolte,  in  Vahlen- 
9  Creizenach,  i.  569;  ii.  23,  43,     Festschrift  (1900),  ^89. 


HUMANISM  AND  MEDIAEVALISM         215 

able.  The  Latin  translation  of  the  Plutus  of  Aristophanes 
by  Leonardo  Bruni  ($1417)  found  several  successors,  and  the 
play  was  acted  at  Zwickau  in  1521.  The  study  of  Sophocles 
and  Euripides  began  with  Francesco  Filelfo  (fi48i),  but  no 
representations  of  these  authors  are  mentioned  \ 

The  outburst  of  dramatic  activity  in  English  schools  and 
universities  during  the  first  half  of  the  sixteenth  century 
has  already  been  noted.  Wolsey  may  claim  credit  for  an 
early  encouragement  of  classical  comedy  in  virtue  of  the 
performances  of  the  Menaechmi  and  the  Phormio  given  in  his 
house  by  the  boys  of  St.  Paul's  in  1527  and  1528  2.  The 
master  of  St.  Paul's  from  1522  to  1531  was  John  Ritwise, 
who  himself  wrote  a  Latin  play  of  Dido,  which  also  appears 
to  have  been  acted  before  Wolsey 8.  The  Plutus  was  given 
at  St.  John's  College,  Cambridge,  in  1536 ;  the  Pax  at  Trinity 
about  a  decade  later  4.  A  long  series  of  English  translations 
of  classical  plays  begins  with  one  of  the  Andria  printed, 
possibly  by  John  Rastell,  under  the  title  of  Terens  in 
Englysh  6. 

A  more  important  matter  is  the  influence  exercised  by  clas- 
sical models  upon  the  vernacular  interludes.  This  naturally 
showed  itself  in  school  dramas,  and  only  gradually  filtered 
down  to  the  professional  players.  Two  plays  compete  for 
the  honour  of  ranking  as  '  the  first  regular  English  comedy/ 
a  term  which  is  misleading,  as  it  implies  a  far  more  complete 
break  with  the  past  than  is  to  be  discerned  in  either  of  them. 
One  is  Nicholas  Udall's  Ralph  Roister  Doister,  the  per- 

1  Creizenach,  ii.  I,  71,  88,  370,  the  Dido  played  before  Elizabeth 

374;   Heiland,  Dramatische  Auf>  at  Cambridge  in  1564.    But  there 

fuhrungen^  in  K.  A.  Schmid,  Enc.  is  no  reason  to  doubt  the  statement 

d.gesammtenErzichungs-  und  Un-  of  Hatcher's  sixteenth-century  MS. 

terrichtswesens  (2nd  ed.  1876-87).  account  of  King's  College  (tran- 

1  Cf.  p.  196.  script  \nBodl.  1 1,614)  that  the  author 

8  A.  Wood,  Athenae  (ed.  Bliss),  of  this  was  Edward  Halliwell,  who, 

i.  35,  s.  v.  Lilly )  says  that  Ritwise  like  Ritwise,  was  a  fellow  of  the 

'  made  the  Tragedy  of  Dido  out  of  college. 

Virgil ;  and  acted  the  same  with  *  Cf.  p.  195. 

the  scholars  of  his  school  before  *  For    the    translation    of   the 

cardinal   Wolsey  with   great   ap-  Philoktetes  of  Sophocles  by  Roger 

plause.'    The  date  of  this  perform-  Ascham,  cf.  p.  195.    Bale,  Scrip- 

ance  is  given  in  the  D.  N.  JB.,  tores   (1557),  i.   720,   mentions  a 

through  a  confusion  with  the  and-  translation  from  Greek  into  Latin 

Lutheran  play  at  court  (cf.  p.  196),  of  tragoediasqua$damEuripidis\*y 

as  1527.    it  is  often  identified  with  Thomas  Keye  or  Caius  (t  1550). 


216  THE  INTERLUDE 

formance  of  which  can  be  dated  with  some  confidence  in 
1553,  by  which  time  its  author  may  already  have  been 
head  master  of  Westminster ;  the  other  is  Gammer  Gurtoris 
Needle^  which  was  put  on  the  stage  at  Christ's  College, 
Cambridge,  has  been  ascribed  to  John  Still,  afterwards 
bishop  of  Bath  and  Wells,  and  to  John  Bridges,  afterwards 
bishop  of  Oxford,  but  is  more  probably  the  work  of  one 
William  Stevenson,  who  was  certainly  superintending  plays 
at  Christ's  College  in  1550-3.  Both  plays  adopt  the  classical 
arrangement  by  acts  and  scenes.  But  of  the  two  Gammer 
Gurtoris  Needle  is  far  closer  to  the  mediaeval  farce  in  its 
choice  and  treatment  of  subject.  Ralph  Roister  Doister^ 
although  by  no  means  devoid  of  mediaeval  elements,  is  in 
the  main  an  adaptation  of  the  Miles  Gloriosus  of  Plautus. 
A  slighter  and  rather  later  piece  of  work,  Jack  Juggler ',  was 
also  intended  for  performance  by  schoolboys,  and  is  based 
upon  the  Amphitruo.  The  earliest '  regular  English  tragedy' 
on  Senecan  lines,  or  at  least  the  earliest  which  oblivion  has 
spared,  is  the  Gorboduc  or  Ferrex  and  Porrex  of  1561.  This 
falls  outside  the  strict  scope  of  this  chapter.  But  a  frag- 
ment of  a  play  from  the  press  of  John  Rastell  (1516-33) 
which  introduces  'Lucres'  and  Publius  Cornelius,  suggests 
that,  here  as  elsewhere,  the  Elizabethan  writers  were  merely 
resuming  the  history  of  the  earlier  English  Renascence, 
which  religious  and  political  disturbances  had  so  wofully 
interrupted. 

Towards  the  end  of  Henry  VIU's  reign,  the  course  of 
the  developing  interlude  was  further  diverted  by  a  fresh 
wave  of  humanist  influence.  This  came  from  the  wing  of 
the  movement  which  had  occupied  itself,  not  only  with 
erudition,  but  also  with  the  spiritual  stirrings  that  issued 
in  the  Reformation.  It  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  the 
attitude  of  mere  negation  which  the  English  Puritans,  no 
doubt  with  their  justification  in  'antiquity/  came  to  adopt 
towards  the  stage,  was  by  no  means  characteristic  of  the 
earlier  Protestantism,  The  Lutheran  reformers  were  human- 
ists as  well  as  theologians,  and  it  was  natural  to  them  to 
shape  a  literary  weapon  to  their  own  purposes,  rather  than 
to  cast  it  aside  as  unfit  for  furbishing.  About  1530  a  new 


HUMANISM  AND  MEDIAEVALISM         217 

school  of  4ieo-Latin  drama  arose  in  Holland,  which  stood 
in  much  closer  relations  to  mediaevalism  than  that  which 
had  had  its  origin  in  Italy.  It  aimed  at  applying  the 
structure  and  the  style  of  Terence  to  an  edifying  subject- 
matter  drawn  from  the  tradition  of  the  religious  drama. 
The  English  Everyman  belongs  to  a  group  of  related  plays, 
both  in  Latin  and  in  the  vernaculars,  on  its  moral  theme. 
The  Acolastus  (1530,  acted  1529)  of  William  Gnaphaeus  and 
the  Asotus  (1537,  written  fI5°7)  of  George  Macropedius 
began  a  cycle  of  '  Prodigal  Son '  plays  which  had  many 
branches.  The  movement  began  uncontroversially,  but 
developed  Protestant  tendencies.  It  spread  to  Basle,  where 
Sixt  Birck,  who  called  himself  Xystus  Betuleius,  wrote  a 
Susanna  (1537),  an  Eva  (1539),  a  Judith  (1540),  and  to 
France,  where  the  Scotchman  George  Buchanan  added  to 
the  *  Christian  Terence '  a  *  Christian  Seneca '  in  the  Jephthes 
(1554)  and  Baptises  (1564)  performed,  between  1540  and 
1543,  by  his  students  at  Bordeaux.  In  these,  which  are  but 
ft  few  out  of  many  similar  plays  produced  at  this  period,  the 
humanists  drew  in  the  main  upon  such  scriptural  subjects, 
many  of  them  apocryphal  or  parabolic,  as  were  calculated, 
while  no  doubt  making  for  edification,  at  the  same  time  to 
afford  scope  for  a  free  portrayal  of  human  life.  This  on  the 
whole,  in  spite  of  the  treatment  of  such  episodes  as  the 
Magdalen  in  gaudio^  was  a  departure  from  the  normal 
mediaeval  usage1. 

A  new  note,  of  acute  and  even  violent  controversy,  was 
introduced  into  the  Protestant  drama  by  the  fiery  heretic, 
Thomas  Kirchmayer,  or  Naogeorgos.  Kirchmayer  wrote 
several  plays,  but  thfe  most  important  from  the  present  point 
of  view  is  that  of  Pammachius  (1538),  written  during  his 
pastorate  of  Suiza  in  TJiuringia  before  his  extreme  views 
had  led,  not  merely  to  exile  from  the  Empire,  but  also  to 
a  quarrel  with  Luther.  The  Pammachius  goes  back  to  one 
of  the  most  interesting,  although  of  course  not  one  of  the 

1  Creizenach,  ii.  74;  Herford,  84;  diae  aliquot  ex  Novo   et   Vetere 

Ward,  i.   120;    Bahlmann,  L.  D.  lestamento  desumptae  (Brylinger, 

39>  53)  66,  82.     Many  plays  of  this  Basle,  1540)  and  Dramata  Sacra 

school  are  in  Comoediae  et  Tragoe-  (Oporinus,  Basle,  1547)* 


218  THE  INTERLUDE 

most  usual,  themes  of  mediaeval  drama,  that  of  Antichrist ; 
and  it  will  readily  be  conceived  that,  for  Kirchmayer,  the 
Antichrist  is  none  other  than  the  Pope.  It  is  interesting  to 
observe  that  the  play  was  dedicated  to  Archbishop  Cranmer, 
whose  reforming  Articles  of  1536  had  roused  the  expecta- 
tions of  Protestant  Germany.  It  was  translated  into  English 
by  John  Bale,  and  was  certainly  not  without  influence  in 
this  country  \ 

Both  the  merely  edifying  and  the  controversial  type  of 
Lutheran  drama,  indeed,  found  its  English  representatives. 
To  the  former  belong  the  Chris tus  Redivivus  (1543)  and  the 
Archipropheta  (1548)  of  the  Oxford  lecturer,  Nicholas 
Grimald,  one  of  which  deals,  somewhat  exceptionally  at 
this  period,  with  the  Resurrection,  the  other  with  John  the 
Baptist.  The  Absalon  of  Thomas  Watson,  the  Jephthes  of 
John  Christopherson  (1546) 2,  and  the  Sodom,  Jonah,  Judith, 
Job)  Susanna,  and  Lazarus  and  Dives  of  Ralph  Radclif 
(1546-56) 3,  can  only  conjecturally  be  put  in  this  class  ; 
and  Nicholas  Udall,  who  wrote  an  Ezechias  in  English, 
certainly  did  not  commit  himself  irrecoverably  in  the  eyes 
of  good  Catholics.  John  Palsgrave's  Ecphrasis  or  para- 
phrase of  Acolastus  (1540)  is  supplied  with  grammatical 
notes,  and  is  conceived  wholly  in  the  academic  interest.  On 
the  other  hand  controversy  is  suggested  in  the  titles  of 
Radclif s  De  lohannis  Hussi  Damnatione>  and  of  the  De 
Meretrice  Babylonica  ascribed  by  Bale  to  Edward  VI4, 
and  is  undeniably  present  in  the  Chris  tus  Triumphans  (1551) 
of  John  Foxe,  the  martyrologist.  This,  like  Pammachius> 
to  which  it  owes  much,  belongs  to  the  Antichrist  cycle. 

Nor  was  controversy  confined  to  the  learned  language. 
As  Protestantism,  coquetted  with  by  Henry  VIII,  and  en- 

1  Creizenach,ii,76;  Herford,  119;  diam,  scilicet  Piscatorem  .  .  .  olio 

Bahlmann,  L.  D.  71.    The  play  is  titulo  Fraus  illusa  vacatur  (Bale, 

in  Bry linger,  314.    A  fecent  edition  i.  712),  seem  to  have  been  Protes- 

is  that  by  Bolte  and  Schmidt  (1891).  tants,  but  nothing  is  known,  of  the 

*  Cf.    p.    195.      Both    Thomas  character  of  their  plays,  which  may 

Artour,  of  Cambridge  (ob.  1532),  have  been  either  English  or  Latin* 
who  wrote  a  Mtcrocosmum,  tra-         8  Cf.  p.  197. 
gocdiam^faMundumplumbeum^         *  Bale,  Script  or ts,  i.  674.    It  was 

tragoediam  (Bale,  i.  709),  and  John  written  in  his  eleventh  year  (1547- 

Hooker  (ob.  1*1543),  of  Magdalen  8)  :  cf.  his  Remains,  \.  xvi. 
College,  Oxford,  who  wrote  a  comoe- 


HUMANISM  AND  MEDIAEVALISM         219 

couraged  by  Cromwell,  became  gradually  vocal  in  England 
and  awakened  an  equally  resonant  reply,  the  vernacular 
drama,  like  every  other  form  of  literary  expression,  was 
swept  into  the  war  of  creeds.  This  phase,  dominating  even 
the  professional  players,  endured  through  the  reigns  of 
Edward  VI  and  Mary,  and  still  colours  the  early  Eliza- 
bethan interludes.  Its  beginnings  were  independent  of 
the  Lutheran  influences  that  so  profoundly  Affected  its 
progress.  The  morality  already  contained  within  itself  that 
tendency  to  criticism  which  was  perhaps  the  easiest  way 
to  correct  its  insipidity.  Historically  it  was  politics  rather 
than  religion  with  which  the  interlude  first  claimed  to  inter- 
fere. The  story  begins,  harmlessly  enough,  at  court,  with 
an  allegorical  '  disguising '  during  the  visit  of  the  Emperor 
Charles  V  to  London  in  1523,  in  which  the  French  king, 
typified  by  an  unruly  horse,  was  tamed  by  Amitie,  who 
stood  for  the  alliance  between  Charles  and  Henry l.  In  1526 
John  Roo's  morality,  played  at  Gray's  Inn,  of  '  Lord  Govern- 
aunce '  and  '  Lady  Publike-Wele '  wrung  Wolsey's  withers, 
although  as  a  matter  of  fact  it  was  twenty  years  old 2. 
Religion  was  first  touched  in  1527  in  a  piece  of  which  one 
would  gladly  know  more.  It  was  played,  as  it  seems,  in 
Latin  and  French  by  the  St.  Paul's  boys  under  John  Ritwise, 
before  ambassadors  from  France.  The  subject  was  the 
captivity  of  the  Pope,  and  amongst  the  singular  medley  of 
characters  named  are  found  '  the  herretyke,  Lewtar '  and 
c  Lewtar's  wyfe,  like  a  frowe  of  Spyers  in  Almayn  V  This  was, 
no  doubt,  all  in  the  interests  of  orthodoxy ;  and  a  similar  tone 
may  be  assumed  in  the  comedies  acted  before  Wolsey  in  the 

1  Hall,  641.  'Lady    Quyetnes,'  'Dame   Tran- 

9  Hall,  719;  Collier,  i.  103.  quylyte.*    Brandl,  Ivi  suggests  that 

*  Hall,    735  ;    Collier,    i.    104  ;  the  play  might  have  been  related  to 

Brewer,  iv.   1603 ;    Brown,  Vene-  the  Ludus  ludentem  Luderum  lu- 

tian  Papers  >  iv.  208;    Cavendish,  dens  of  Johannes  Hasenberg(  1 530), 

Life    of    Wolsey >    i.     136.      The  and  the  analysis  of  this  piece  given 

characters    further    included   '  an  by  Bahlmann,  L.  D.  48,  shows  that 

oratur,'  a  Poet,  Religion,  Ecclesia,  the  two  had  several  characters  in 

Veritas,  Heresy,   False   Interpre-  common.      Another     anti-Luther 

tation,       'Corrupcio      Scriptoris,'  play,     the     Monachopornomachia 

St.   Peter,    St.   Paul,    St.  James,  (1538)  of  Simon  Lemnius  (Bahl- 

a  Cardinal,    two    Serjeants,    the  mann,  L.  D.  70),  appears  to  be 

Dauphin  and  his  brother,  a  Messen-  distinct 
ger,  three  '  Almayns/  *  Lady  Pees,* 


220  THE  INTERLUDE 

following  year  on  the  release  of  the  Pope 1.  But  much  water 
passed  under  the  mill  in  the  next  few  years,  and  in  1533  there 
was  a  comedy  at  court  '  to  the  no  little  defamation  of  certain 
cardinals  V  In  the  same  year,  however,  a  proclamation 
forbade  'playing  of  enterludes'  'concerning  doctrines  in 
matters  now  in  question  and  controversie  V  This  is  a  kind 
of  regulation  which  it  is  easier  to  make  than  to  enforce.  Its 
effect,  if  it  had  any,  was  not  of  long  duration.  In  1537  much 
offence  was  given  to  Bishop  Gardiner,  the  Chancellor  of  Cam- 
bridge University,  by  the  performance  amongst  the  youth  of 
Christ's  College  of  a  *  tragedie/  part  at  least  of  which  was  '  soo 
pestiferous  as  were  intolerable/  This  *  tragedie '  was  none  other 
than  the  redoubtable  Pammachius  itself4.  In  the  same  year, 
strict  orders  were  issued  to  stay  games  and  unlawful  assemblies 
in  Suffolk,  on  account  of  a  *  seditious  May-game '  which  was 
€  of  a  king,  how  he  should  rule  his  realm/  and  in  which  *  one 
played  Husbandry,  and  said  many  things  against  gentlemen 
more  than  was  in  the  book  of  the  play6/  These  were 
exceptional  cases.  Both  the  students  of  Christ's  and  the 
Suffolk  rustics  had  in  their  various  ways  overstepped  the  per- 
mitted mark.  Certainly  Henry  was  not  going  to  have  king- 
ship called  in  question  on  a  village  green.  But  it  is  notorious 
that,  in  matters  of  religion,  he  secretly  encouraged  many 
obstinate  questionings  which  he  openly  condemned.  And 
there  is  evidence  that  Cromwell  at  least  found  the  interlude  a 
very  convenient  instrument  for  the  encouragement  of  Protes- 
tantism. Bale  tells  us  that  he  himself  won  the  minister's 
favour  ob  editas  comedias 6  ;  and  there  is  extant  amongst  his 
papers  a  singular  letter  of  this  same  year  1537,  from  Thomas 
Wylley,  the  vicar  of  Yoxford  in  Suffolk,  in  which  he  calls 
attention  to  three  plays  he  has  writtep,  and  asks  that  he  may 

1  Brown,    Venetian  Papers,   iv.  Chris fs  College,  48.    The  corre- 

220.                              (  spondence  about  the  play  between 

*  Herbert  of  Cherbury,  Life  of  Gardiner  and  Parker  is  printed  in 
Henry  P7//(Kennet,  Hist.  o/Eng-  full  in  J.  Lamb,  Collection  of  Docu- 
land,  ii,  173).  mentsfrom  C.  C.  C.  C.  (1838),  49. 

*  Collier,  i.  119,  quoting  Foxe,  a  Brewer,  xii.  I.  557,  585. 
Martyrologie  (1576),  1339.  6  Bale,  Scriptores,  i.  702.      Cf. 

4  Herford,  129 ;  Mullinger,  Hist,      also  S.  R.  Maitland,  Essays  on  the 
of  Cambridge,  ii.  74;  Cooper,  An-      Reformation,  182. 
nals  of 'Cambridge,  i,  422 ;  J.  Peile, 


HUMANISM  AND  MEDIAEVALISM 


221 


have  'fre  lyberty  to  preche  the  trewtheV  Cranmer,  too, 
seems  to  have  been  in  sympathy  with  Cromwell's  policy, 
for  In  1539  there  was  an  enterlude  at  his  house  which  a 
Protestant  described  as  '  one  of  the  best  matiers  that  ever 
he  sawe  towching  King  John/  and  which  may  quite  possibly 
have  been  John  Bale's  famous  play2. 

The  position  was  altered  after  1540,  when  Cromwell  had 
fallen  and  the  pendulum  of  Henry's  conscience  had  swung 
back  to  orthodoxy.  Foxe  records  how  under  the  Act  Abolish- 
ing Diversity  in  Opinions  (1539),  known  as  the  Act  of  the  Six 
Articles^  one  Spencer,  an  ex-priest  who  had  become  an  inter- 
lude-player, was  burned  at  Salisbury  for  *  matter  concerning 
the  sacrament  of  the  altar ' ;  and  how,  in  London,  one  Sher- 
mons,  keeper  of  the  Carpenters'  Hall  in  Shoreditch,  'was 
presented  for  procuring  an  interlude  to  be  openly  played, 
wherein  priests  were  railed  on  and  called  knaves  V  But  the 
stage  was  by  now  growing  difficult  to  silence.  In  1542  the 
bishops  petitioned  the  king  to  correct  the  acting  of  plays 
'to  the  contempt  of  God's  Word  4> ;  and  in  1543  their  desire 


1  Brewer,  xii.  I.  244;  Collier,  i. 
128.  'The  Lorde  make  you  the 
instrument  of  my  hdpe,  Lorde 
Cromwell,  that  I  may  have  fre 
lyberty  to  preche  the  trewthe. 

I  dedycat  and  offer  to  your  Lorde-1 
shype  A  Reverent  Receyving  of 
the  Sacrament,  as  a  Lenton  matter, 
declaryd  by  vj  chyldren,  represent- 
yng  Chryst,  the  worde  of  God, 
Paule,  Austyn,  a  Chylde,  a  Nonne 
callyd  Ignorancy ;  as  a  secret  thyng 
that  shall  have  hys  ende  ons  rehersyd 
afore  your  eye  by  the  sayd  chyldren. 

The  most  part  of  the  prystes  of 
Suff.  wyll  not  reseyve  me  ynto  ther 
chyrchys  to  preche,  but  have  dys- 
daynyd  me  ever  synns  I  made  a 
play  agaynst  the  popys  Conselerrs, 
Error,  Colle  dogger  of  Conscyens, 
and  Incredulyte.  That,  arid  the 
Act  of  Parlyament  had  not  folowyd 
after,  I  had  be  countyd  a  gret  lyar. 

I  have  made  a  playe  caulyd  A 
Rude  Commynawlte.  I  am  a  mak- 
yng  of  a  nother  caulyd  The  Woman 
on  the  Rokke,  yn  the  fyer  of  fay  the 
a  fynyng,  and  a  purgyng  in  the 


trewe  purgatory ;  never  to  be  seen 
but  of  your  Lordshyp's  eye. 

Ayde  me  for  Chrystys  sake  that 
I  may  preche  chryst. 
Thomas  Wylley 

of  Yoxforthe  Vykar 
fatherlesse  and  forsaken/ 

*  Brewer,  xiv.  I.  22;  Collier,  i. 
124. 

8  Foxe,  Acts  and  Monuments 
(ed.  Cattley),  v.  443,  446. 

4  Brewer,  xvii.  79;  Wilkins,  iii. 
860.  About  the  same  date  a  Dis- 
course (Cotton  MSS.  Faustina,  C. 
ii.  5)  addressed  by  Sir  Richard 
M  orison  to  Henry  VIII  is  de- 
scribed by  Brewer  xvii.  707  as  pro- 
posing 'a  yearly  memorial  of  the 
destruction  of  the  bishop  of  Rome 
out  of  the  realm,  as  the  victory  of 
Agincourt  is  annually  celebrated  at 
Calais,  and  the  destruction  of  the 
Danes  at  Hoptide  (sic:  cf.  vol.  i. 
p.  1 54).  It  would  be  better  that  the 
plays  of  Robin  Hood  and  Maid 
Marian  should  be  forbidden,  and 
others  devised  to  set  forth  and 
declare  lively  before  the  people's 


222  THE  INTERLUDE 

was  met  by  the  Act  for  the  Advauncement  of  true  Religion  and 
for  the  Abolishment  of  the  Contrary,  which  permitted  of '  plays 
and  enterludes  for  the  rebukyng  and  reproching  of  vices  and 
the  setting  forth  of  vertue  * ;  but  forbade  such  as  meddled 
with  c  interpretacions  of  scripture,  contrary  to  the  doctryne 
set  forth  or  to  be  set  forth  by  the  kynges  maiestie  V  This 
led  to  a  vigorous  protest  from  John  Bale,  writing  under  the 
pseudonym  of  Henry  Stalbridge,  in  his  Epistel  Exhortatorye 
of  an  Inglyshe  Christian.  Its  repeal  was  one  of  the  first 
measures  passed  under  Edward  VI 2. 

Lord  Oxford's  men  were  playing  in  Southwark  at  the  very 
Iteur  of  the  dirge  for  Henry  in  the  church  of  St.  Saviour's  3. 
Almost  immediately  'the  Poope  in  play*  and  'prests  in  play' 
make  their  appearance  once  more 4.  Edward  himself  wrote 
his  comedy  De  Meretrice  Babylonica.  In  1551  the  English 
comedies  '  in  demonstration  of  contempt  for  the  Pope '  were 
reported  by  the  Venetian  ambassador  to  his  government6. 
But  the  players  were  not  to  have  quite  a  free  hand.  It  was 
now  the  Catholic  interludes  that  needed  suppression.  A  pro- 
clamation of  August  6,  1549,  inhibited  performances  until  the 
following  November  in  view  of  some  *  tendyng  to  sedicion  V 
The  Act  of  Uniformity  of  the  same  year  forbade  interludes 

eyes  the  abomination  and  wicked-  already  (p.  185)  called  attention  to 
ness  of  the  bishop  of  Rome,  the  the  ambiguity  of  the  term  'comon 
monks,  friars,  nuns  and  such  like,  player,1  and  on  the  whole,  in  view 
and  to  declare  the  obedience  due  of  a  reference  in  the  proclamation 
to  the  King.'  In  1543  the  Lord  to  'theft  and  falsehood  in  play*  I 
Mayor  complained  to  the  Privy  think  that  gamblers  are  here  in 
Council  of  the  'licentious  manner  question.  In  any  case  the  pro- 
of players.'  Certain  joiners,  who  tected  players  were  not  suppressed, 
were  the  Lord  Warden's  players,  *  I  Edw.  VI,  c,  nz. 
were  imprisoned  and  reprimanded  8  S.  P.  Dom.  Edw.  VI,  i.  5 ; 
for  playing  on  Sunday  (P.  C.  Acts,  Collier,  i.  135. 
i.  103,  109,  no,  122).  4  Kempe,  64,  74,  with  a  list  of 
1  34,  35  Hen.  VIII,  c.  I ;  Hazlitt,  personages  for  precisely  such  a  play. 
E.  £>.  S.  3  ;  Collier,  i.  127.  A  pro-  W.  Baldwin,  on  whom  cf.  pp.  194, 
clamation  of  May  26, 1545  (Hazlitt,  200,  and  Modern  Quarterly,  i.  259, 
E.  D.  S.  6),  states  an  intention  to  was  probably  a  dramatist  of  this 
employ  in  the  fleet '  all  such  ruffyns,  temper. 

Vagabonds,  Masteries  men,  Corapn  *  Brown,    Venetian    Papers,    v. 

players  and  euill  disposed  persons '  347 ;   cf.  the  letters  between  Gar- 

as  haunt  *  the  Banke,  and  such  like  diner   and    Somerset,    quoted   by 

naughtie  places,'  and  forbids  the  Maitland,  Essays  on  the  Reforma- 

retaining  of  servants,  other  than  tion,  228,  from  Foxe,  vi.  31,  tf. 

household  servants  or  others  allowed  *  Hazlitt,  E.  D.  S.  8;  Collier,  i. 

bylaw  or  royal  licence.    I  have  142;  Fuller,  Ch.  Hist.  (1655),  391. 


HUMANISM  AND  MEDIAEVALISM        228 

'  depraving  and  despising  *  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer l. 
A  more  effective  measure  came  later  in  a  proclamation  of 
155  J»  requiring  either  for  the  printing  or  the  acting  of  plays  a 
licence  by  the  king  or  the  privy  council a.  Mary,  at  whose 
own  marriage  with  Philip  in  1554  there  were  Catholic  inter- 
ludes and  pageants3,  issued  a  similar  regulation  in  1553, 
though  naturally  with  a  different  intention4.  But  this  was 
not  wholly  effectual,  and  further  orders  and  much  vigilance  by 
the  Privy  Council  in  the  oversight  of  players  were  required  in 
the  course  of  the  reign  5. 

Only  a  few  texts  from  this  long  period  of  controversial 
drama  have  come  down  to  us.  On  the  Catholic  side  there  is 
but  one,  the  play  of  Respublica  (1553).  In  this,  and  in  the 
Protestant  fragment  of  Somebody \  Avarice  and  Minister \ 
the  ruling  literary  influence  is  that  of  Lyndsay's  Satyre  of  the 
Thre  Estaitis.  Of  the  remaining  Protestant  plays,  Nice 
Wanton  (1560)  and  Thomas  Ingelend's  The  Disobedient  Child 
(n.  d.)  derive  from  the  Dutch  school  of  Latin  drama  and 
its  offshoots.  Nice  Wanton  is  an  adaptation  of  the  Rebelles 
(1535)  of  Macropedius.  The  Disobedient  Child  has  its  rela- 
tions, not  only  to  the  play  of  Ravisius  Textor  already 
mentioned,  but  also  to  the  Studentes  (1549)  of  Christopher 
Stymmelius.  More  distinctly  combative  in  tendency  is  the 
Lusty  Juventus  (n.d.)  of  R.  Wever,  who  may  be  reckoned 
as  a  disciple  of  John  Bale.  The  activity  of  Bale  himself  can 
be  somewhat  obscurely  discerned  as  the  strongest  impelling 

1  2,  3  Edw.  VI)  c.  I.  inquire  into   a   stage-play  to    be 

2  Hazlitt,  E.D.S.  9;  Collier,  i.  given    at  Shrovetide   at    Hatfield 
144.      In   1550    'il  plaiers'    were  Bradock,  Essex,  and  directed  him  to 
sought  for  in  Sussex  (Remains  of  stop  such  assemblies.     An  order 
Edward  VI,  ii.  280).     In  1551  the  against  strolling  players  who  spread 
council  gave  Lord  Dorset  a  licence  sedition  and  heresy  came  in  May. 
for  his  players  to  play  in  his  pres-  In     June,     1557,    performers    of 
ence  only  (P.  C.  Acts,  iii.  307).    In  *  naughty*  and  'lewd'  plays  were 
1552  Ogle  sent  to  Cecil  a  forged  arrested    in    London    and    Can- 
licence  taken  from  some   players  terbury.    An  order  forbade  plays 
(S.  P.  Dom.  Edw.  VI,  xv.  33).  throughout  the  country  during  the 

8  Holinshed  (1808),  iv.  61.  summer.      In   August    a    'lewd' 

4  Hazlitt,  E.  D.  S.  15;  Collier,  i.  play  called  a  'Sackfull  of  News1 

15; ;  P.  C.  Acts,  iv.  426.  was  suppressed  at  the  Boar's  Head, 

* -S.  P.  Dom.  Mary,v\\\.  50;  P.  Aldgate  ;  and  in.  September  plays 

C.  Acts,  v.  234,  237;  vi.  102,  no,  were  forbidden  in  the  city  except, 

118,  148,  1 68,  169.    In  Feb.  1556  after  licence  by  the  ordinary,  be- 

the  council   sent    Lord    Rich   to  tween  All  Saints  and  Shrovetide. 


224  THE  INTERLUDE 

force  on  the  Protestant  side.  He  had  his  debts  both  to 
Lyndsay  and  to  Kirchmayer,  whose  Pammachius>  if  not 
his  other  plays,  he  translated.  But  he  is  very  largely  original, 
and  he  is  set  apart  from  the  other  great  figures  of  the 
Lutheran  drama  by  the  fact  that  all  his  plays  were  written 
in  idiomate  materno.  Moreover,  though  not  without  classical 
elements,  they  were  probably  intended  for  popular  perform- 
ance, and  approach  more  closely  to  the  mediaeval  structure 
than  to  that  of  the  contemporary  interlude.  In  his  Scriptores 
he  enumerates,  under  twenty-two  titles,  some  forty-six  of 
them.  The  five  extant  ones  were  probably  all  '  compiled ' 
about  1538  while  he  was  vicar  of  Thorndon  in  Suffolk.  But 
some  of  them  were  acted  at  the  market-cross  of  Kilkenny 
in  1553,  and  the  others  show  signs  of  revision  under  Edward 
VI  or  even  Elizabeth.  In  God's  Promises,  John  Baptist^ 
and  The  Temptation,  Bale  was  simply  adapting  and  Pro- 
testantizing the  miracle-play*  The  first  is  practically  a 
Prophetae,  and  they  are  all  'actes,'  or  as  the  Middle  Ages 
would  have  said  'processes'  or  'pageants/  from  a  scriptural 
cycle.  Of  similar  character  were  probably  a  series  of  eleven 
plays  extending  from  Christ  in  the  Temple  to  the  Resurrec- 
tion. A  Vita  D.  Joannis  Baptistae  in  fourteen  libri  perhaps 
treated  this  favourite  sixteenth-century  theme  in  freer  style. 
The  polemics  are  more  marked  in  Three  Laws,  which  is 
a  morality ;  and  in  King  John,  which  is  a  morality  varied 
by  the  introduction  of  the  king  himself  as  a  champion  against 
the  Pope  and  of  certain  other  historical  figures.  It  thus 
marks  an  important  step  in  the  advance  of  the  drama  towards 
the  treatment  of  individualities.  With  the  Three  Laws  and 
King  John  may  be  grouped  another  set  of  lost  plays  whose 
Latinized  titles  point  unmistakably  to  controversy.  An 
Amoris  Imago  might  be  merely  edifying ;  but  it  would  be 
difficult  to  avoid  meddling  in  matters  of  doctrine  with  such 
themes  to  handle  as  De  Sectis  Papisticis^  Erga  Momos  et 
Zoilos,  Perditiones  Papistarum>  Contra  Adulterantes  Dei 
Verbum^  De  Imposturis  Thomae  Beckett.  A  pair  of  plays 
Super  utroque  Regis  Coniugio^  must  have  been,  if  they  were 
ever  acted,  a  climax  of  audacity  even  for  John  Bale. 
What  then,  in  sum,  was  the  heritage  which  the  early 


HUMANISM  AND  MEDIAEVALISM         225 

Elizabethan  writers  and  players  of  interludes  received  from 
their  immediate  predecessors?  For  the  writers  there  were 
the  stimulus  of  classical  method  and  a  widened  range  both 
of  intention  and  of  material.  Their  claim  was  established 
to  dispute,  to  edify,  or  merely  to  amuse.  They  stood  on  the 
verge  of  more  than  one  field  of  enterprise  which  had  been 
barely  entered  upon  and  justly  appeared  inexhaustible. 
*  Tragedy,  comedy,  history,  pastoral,  pastoral-comical,  his- 
torical-pastoral, tragical-historical,  tragical-comical-historical- 
pastoral  ' ;  they  possessed  at  least  the  keys  to  them  all. 
Their  own  work  is  a  heterogeneous  welter  of  all  the  dramatic 
elements  of  the  past  and  the  future.  Belated  morals  and 
miracle-plays  jostle  with  adaptations  of  Seneca  and  Plautus. 
The  dramatis  personae  of  a  single  play  will  afford  the  abstrac- 
tions of  the  allegory  and  the  types  of  the  farce  side  by  side 
with  real  living  individualities ;  and  the  latter  are  drawn 
indifferently  from  contemporary  society,  from  romance,  from 
classical  and  from  national  history.  These  are  precisely  the 
dry  bones  which  one  day,  beneath  the  breath  of  genius,  should 
spring  up  into  the  wanton  life  of  the  Shakespearean  drama. 
The  players  had  made  good  their  footing  both  in  courts  and 
amongst  the  folk.  But  their  meddlings  with  controversy  had 
brought  upon  them  the  hand  of  authority,  which  was  not 
to  be  lightly  shaken  off.  Elizabeth,  like  her  brother,  signal- 
ized the  opening  of  her  reign  by  a  temporary  inhibition  of 
plays1;  and  her  privy  council  assumed  a  jurisdiction,  by 
no  means  nominal,  over  things  theatrical.  In  their  censorship 
they  had  the  assistance  of  the  bishop  of  London,  as  '  ordinary/ 
The  lesser  companies  may  have  suffered  from  the  statute 
of  1572  which  confined  the  privilege  of  maintaining  either 
minstrels  or  players  of  interludes  to  barons  and  personages  of 
higher  degree 8.  But  the  greater  ones  which  had  succeeded 
in  establishing  themselves  in  London,  grew  and  flourished. 

1  The  proclamation  of  16  May  this.    By  I  Ehz.  c.  a  (the  Act  of 

1559  is  printed  in  Hazlitt,  E.  D.  S.  Uniformity)  the  provision  of  2,  3 

19 ;  Collier,  i.  166 ;  N.  S.  S.  Trans.  Edw.  VI,  c.  I,  against ' derogation, 

1880-5,  17 1.    I  do  not  think  the  depraving  or  despising*  the  Book 

proclamation  loosely  referred  to  by  of  Common  Prayer  in  interludes 

Holinshed  (1587),  lii.  1184,  as  at  was  re-enacted  with  a  penalty  of 

'  the  same  time '  as  another  procla-  100  marks, 

mation  of  7  April  is  distinct  from  *  Cf.  vol.  i.  p.  54. 


226  THE  INTERLUDE 

They  lived  down  the  competition  of  the  amateurs  which 
during  the  greater  part  of  the  century  threatened  to  become 
dangerous,  by  their  profitable  system  of  double  performances, 
at  court  and  in  the  inn  yards.  Thus  they  secured  the  future 
of  the  drama  by  making  it  economically  independent ;  and 
the  copestone  of  their  edifice  was  the  building  of  the  per- 
manent theatres.  But  for  courtesy  and  a  legal  fiction,  they 
were  vagabonds  and  liable  to  whipping :  yet  the  time  was 
at  hand  when  one  player  was  to  claim  coat  armour  and  enter- 
tain preachers  to  sack  and  supper  at  New  Place,  while  another 
was  to  marry  the  daughter  of  a  dean  and  to  endow  an  irony 
for  all  time  in  the  splendid  College  of  God's  Gift  at  Dulwich. 


APPENDICES 


APPENDICES 


THE  TRIBUNUS  VOLUPTATUM 

[The  tribunus  voluptatum  wste  a  municipal  officer  of  the  later  Empire 
charged  with  the  superintendence  of  the  spectacula.  He  seems  to  have 
been  appointed  for  life  by  the  Emperor,  and  to  have  taken  over  functions 
formerly  discharged  by  the  praetors  and  quaestors.  Mommsen,  Ostgothi- 
sche  Studien  (Neues  Archiv,  xiv.  495),  says  that  he  first  appears  in  the 
fifth  century.  Possibly,  therefore,  Suetonius,  Tiberius,  42,  'novum  deni- 
que  officium  instituit  a  voluptatibus,  praeposito  equite  R.T.  Caesonio 
Frisco '  refers  to  some  other  post.  A  titulus, '  de  officio  tribuni  voluptattt 
qd  a  temelicis  et  scenariis,'  which  should  be  C.  Th.  i.  19,  is  missing  from 
the  text.  C.  Th.  xv.  7, 13  (413),  is  addressed  to  the  tribunus  voluptatum  of 
Carthage.  The  office  was  maintained  in  Italy  under  Theodoric  (493-526). 
The  formula  of  appointment  here  'given  is  preserved  by  Cassiodorus, 
Variae,  vii.  10;  cf.  Var.  vi.  19  'cum  lascivae  voluptates  recipiant 
tribunum.'  The  Senate  is  informed  by  Var.  i.  43  (tsog)  of  the  promotion 
of  Artemidorus,  who  had  held  the  office,  to  be  praefectus  urbanus.  The 
tribunus  voluptatum  of  Rome  is  referred  to  in  two  inscriptions  of  522  and 
526  (Rossi,  Inscr.  Christ,  i.  Nos.  989,  1005).  One  Bacauda  is  appointed 
tribunus  voluptatum  in  Milan  by  Var.  v.  25  (523-6).  Constantine 
Porphyrogenitus  de  Caer.  i.  83  mentions  an  &p\uv  rf}r  %i«Xijf  in  the  tenth- 
century  court  of  Byzantium,  who  may  be  the  same  officer.] 

Formula  Tribuni  Voluptatum. 

Quamvis  artes  lubricae  honestis  moribus  sint  remotae  et  histrionum 
vita  vaga  videatur  efferri  posse  licentia,  tamen  moderatrix  providit 
antiquitas,  ut  in  totum  non  effiuerent,  cum  et  ipsae  iudicem  sustinerent 
amministranda  est  enim  sub  quadam  disciplina  exhibitio  voluptatum, 
teneat  scaenicos  si  non  verus,  vel  umbratilis  ordo  iudicii.  temperentur 
et  haec  legum  qualitate  negotia,  quasi  honestas  imperet  inhonestis,  et 
quibusdam  regulis  vivant,  qui  viara  rectae  conversationis  ignorant, 
student  enim  illi  non  tantum  iucunditati  suae,  quantum  alienae  laetitiae 
et  condicione  perversa  cum  dominatum  suis  corporibus  tradunt,  servire 
podus  animos  compulerunt  Dignum  fuit  ergo  moderatorem  suscipere, 
qui  se  nesciunt  iuridica  conversatione  tractare.  locus  quippe  tuus  bis 
gregibus  hominum  veluti  quidam  tutor  est  positus.  nam  sicut  illi 
aetates  teneras  adhibita  cautela  custodiunt,  sic  a  te  voluptates  fervidae 


230  APPENDIX  B 

impensa  maturitate  frenandae  sunt.  age  bonis  institutis  quod  nimia 
prudentia  constat  invenisse  maiorcs.  leve  desiderium  etsi  verecundia 
non  cohibet,  districtio  praenuntiata  modificat.  agantur  spectacula  suis 
consuetudinibus  ordinata,  quia  nee  illi  possunt  invenire  gratiam,  nisi 
imitati  fuerint  aliquam  discipfinam.  Quapropter  tribunum  te  volup- 
tatum  per  illam  indictionem  nostra  fecit  electio,  ut  omnia  sic  agas, 
quemadmodum  tibi  vota  civitatis  adiungas,  ne  quod  ad  laetitiam 
constat  inventum,  tuis  temporibus  ad  culpas  videatur  fuisse  transmissum. 
cum  fama  diminutis  salva  tua  opinione  versare.  castitatem  dilige,  cui 
subiacent  prostitutae :  ut  magna  laude  dicatur :  '  virtutibus  studuit, 
qui  voluptatibus  miscebatur/  optamus  enim  ut  per  ludicram  ammi- 
nistrationem  ad  seriam  pervenias  dignitatem. 


B 
TOTA  IOCULATORUM  SCENA 

John  of  Salisbury,  Polycraticus  i.  8  (tii59,  P.  L.  cxcix,  406),  says, 
Satius  enim  fuerat  otiari  quam  turpiter  occupari.  Hinc  mimi,  salii 
vel  saliares,  balatrones,  aemiliani,  gladiatores,  palaestritae,  gignadii, 
praestigiatores,  malefici  quoque  multi,  et  tota  ic°ulatorum  scena 
procedit.'  The  specific  terms  belong  to  John  of  Salisbui  s  classical 
learning  rather  than  to  contemporary  use ;  but  his  generic  ioculator  is 
the  normal  mediaeval  Latin  term  for  the  minstrel  in  the  widest  sense. 
Classically  the  word,  like  its  synonym  iocularis>  is  an  adjective,  '  given 
to  ioca/  'merry/  Thus  Cicero,  ad  Ait.  iv.  16.  3  'huic  ioculatorem 
senem  ilium  interesse  sane  nolui/  Similarly  Firmicus  Maternus 
(fourth  century),  Mathesis,  viii.  22  'histriones  faciat,  pantomimes,  ac 
scaenicos  ioculatores/  and  4  Cone.  Carthag.  (398),  c.  60  (C.  I.  C. 
Deer.  Gratiani)  i,  46.  6)  f  clericum  scurrilem  et  verbis  turpibus  iocula- 
torem ab  officio  retrahendum  censemus.'  Here  the  technical  meaning 
is  approached,  which  Gautier,  ii.  12,  declares  to  be  complete  in  Salvian 
(fifth  century),  dt  gubernatione  Dei.  I  cannot,  however,  find  the  word 
in  Salvian,  though  I  do  find  iugulator^  *  cut-throat/  I  have  not  come 
across  ioculalor  as  a  noun  before  the  eighth  century  (vol.  i.  p.  37), 


TOTA  IOCULATORUM  SCENA  281 

but  thenceforward  it  is  widely  used  for  minstrels  of  both  the  $c6p  and 
the  mimus  type.  A  rarer  form  is  iocista.  Ioculator  gives  rise  to  the 
equally  wide  French  term  jouglere,  jougleur,  which  seems  to  merge 
with  the  doublet  jogeler,jougler,  from  iocularis.  Similarly  ioca  becomes 
jeu,  the  equivalent  of  the  classical  and  mediaeval  Latin  ludus,  also  in 
the  widest  sense.  In  Provencal  ioculator  becomes  joglar,  in  English 
jugelouryjugelere,jogelert  &c.  Thus  *S*.  Eng.  Leg.  i.  271  (t  1290)  'Is 
iugelour  a  day  bifore  him  pleide  faste  And  nemde  in  his  ryme  and  in  is 
song  J>ene  deuel  atj>e  laste' ;  King  Horn  (ed.  Ritson),  1494  (tisoo) 
'  Men  seide  hit  were  harperis,  Jogelers,  ant  fythelers/  The  incorrect 
modern  French  form  jongleur  seems  due  to  a  confusion  between 
jougleur  zndjangleur,  '  babbler,1  and  the  English  jangler  has  a  similar 
use ;  cf.  Piers  the  Plowman^  B.  Text,  passus  x.  31  (ed.  Skeat,  i.  286) 
<  laperes  and  logeloures,  and  langelers  of  gestes.'  Here  both  words 
appear  side  by  side.  The  English  jogelour  sometimes  has  the  full 
sense  of  the  French  jougleur,  as  in  the  instances  just  given,  but  as 
a  term  for  minstrels  of  the  higher  or  scdp  type  it  has  to  compete,  firstly, 
with  the  native  gleeman,  from  O.  E.  gleoman,  gligman,  and  secondly, 
with  minstrel  \  and  as  a  matter  of  fact  its  commoner  use  is  for  the 
lower  type  of  minstrel  or  buffoon,  and  in  particular,  in  the  exact  sense 
of  the  modern  juggler •,  for  a  conjuror,  tregetour  or  prestigiator*  The 
latter  is  the  usual  meaning  of  jogelour,  with  the  cognate  jogelrye,  in 
Chaucer;  for  the  former,  cf.  Adam  Davie  (11312)  'the  minstrels  sing, 
the  jogelours  carpe.'  In  English  documents  the  Latin  ioculator  itself 
to  some  extent  follows  suit ;  the  ioculator  regis  of  late  fifteenth  or  early 
sixteenth-century  accounts  is  not  a  minstrel  or  musician,  but  the  royal 
juggler  (cf.  vol.  i.  p.  68).  On  the  other  hand  the  Prove^al/^/ar  is 
differentiated  in  the  opposite  sense,  to  denote  a  grade  of  minstrelsy 
raised  above  the  mere  bufos  (vol.  i.  p.  63). 

A  street  in  Paris  known  at  the  end  of  the  thirteenth  century  as  the 
{rue  aus  JugUeursl  came  later  to  be  known  as  the  rue  des  MJne'triers 
(Bernhard,  iii.  378).  This  is  significant  of  a  new  tendency  in  nomen- 
clature which  appears  with  the  growth  during  the  fourteenth  century 
of  the  household  entertainers  at  the  expense  of  their  unattached 
brethren  of  the  road.  Minister  is  classical  Latin  for  '  inferior '  and  so 
*  personal  attendant.'  The  ministeriales  of  the  later  Empire  are  officers 
personally  appointed  by  the  Emperor.  Towards  the  end  of  the 
thirteenth  century  minister,  with  its  diminutives  ministellus  and  mim- 
strallus  (French  menestrel),  can  be  seen  passing  from  the  general 
sense  of  '  household  attendant '  to  the  special  sense  of  '  household 
loiulator'  A  harper  was  one  of  the  minis tri  of  Prince  Edward 


282  APPENDIX  B 

in  1270  (vol.  i.  p.  49).  Gautier,  ii.  13,  51,  quotes  K  famles 
(famuli)  as  a  synonym  for  such  ioculatores,  and  such  doublets  as 
'  menestrel  et  serviteur/  *  menestrel  et  varlet  de  chambre/  The  mini- 
steralli  of  Philip  IV  in  1268  include,  with  the  musicians,  the  rex 
heraudum  and  the  rex  ribaldorum.  From  the  beginning  of  the 
fourteenth  century,  however,  ministrallus,  with  French  menestrel,  me- 
nestrier,  and  English  menestrel,  mynstral,  is  firmly  established  in  the 
special  sense.  The  antithesis  between  the  ministrallus  and  the  un- 
attached ioculator  appears  in  the  terminology  of  the  1321  statutes  of 
the  Paris  guild, '  menestreus  et  menestrelles,  jougleurs  et  jougleresses'; 
but  even  this  disappears,  and  the  new  group  of  terms  becomes  equiva- 
lent to  the  ioculator  group  in  its  widest  sense*  So  too,  ministralcia, 
menestrardie,  minstralcie,  although  chiefly  used,  as  by  Chaucer,  for 
music,  are  not  confined  to  that;  e.g.  Derby  Accounts ,  109,  'cuidam 
tumblere  facienti  ministralciam  suam/  The  word  is  here  approaching 
very  near  its  kinsman  mttier  (vol.  ii.  p.  105).  Wright- Wttlcker,  596, 
693,  quotes  from  the  fifteenth-century  glossaries,  '  simphonia,  myn- 
strylsy/  and  '  mimilogium,  mynstrisye/ 

Ioculator  and  ministrallus  are  in  their  technical  sense  post-classical. 
But  it  is  to  be  noted  that  the  classical  histrio  and  mimus,  widened  in 
connotation  to  an  exact  equivalent  with  these,  remain  in  full  use 
throughout  the  Middle  Ages.  They  are  indeed  the  more  literary 
and  learned  words,  as  may  be  seen  from  the  fact  that  they  did  not  give 
rise  to  Romance  or  English  forms ;  but  they  are  not  differentiated  as 
to  meaning.  In  particular,  I  do  not  find  that  mimus  is  used,  as  I  have 
occasionally  for  convenience  used  it,  to  denote  the  lower  minstrel  of 
classical  origin,  as  against  the  higher  minstrel  or  scdp.  Here  are 
a  few  of  many  passages  which  go  to  establish  this  complete  fourfold 
equivalence  of  ioculator,  ministrallus,  tnimus  and  histrio  \  Gloss,  in  JB.  N. 
MS.  4883*,  f.  67b  (Du  M6ril,  Or.Lat.  23)  *  istriones  sunt  ioculatores'; 
Constit.  regis  Minorcae  (1337,  Mabillon,  Ac/a  SS.  Bened.  Ian.  iii.  27) 
*  In  domibus  principum,  ut  tradit  antiquitas,  mimi  seu  ioculatores  licite 
possunt  esse';  Cone.  Lateran.  (1215),  c.  16  'mimis,  ioculatoribus 
et  histrionibus  non  intendant'  This  triple  formula,  often  repeated  by 
ecclesiastics,  is  of  course  conjunctive,  like  '  rogues  and  vagabonds/ 
Guy  of  Amiens  (tio68)  calls  Taillefer  both  histrio  and  mimus  (vol.  i. 
p.  43).  At  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth  century  the  royal  minstrels 
are  histriones  in  the  accounts  of  Shrewsbury,  ministralli  in  those  of 
Winchester  College  (App.  E.  (&>)),  mimi  in  those  of  Beverley  (Leach, 
Sever  ley  MSS.  171).  The  ioculator  regis,  as  already  said,  is  by  this 
time  distinct  The  Scottish  royal  minstrels  appear  in  the  Exchequer 


TOTA  IOCULATORUM  SCENA  288 

Rolls  for  1433-50  as  mfmf,  hisfriones,  toculatores  (L.H.T.  Accounts, 
i,  cxcix).  The  town  musicians  of  Beverley,  besides  their  specific 
names  of  watts  and  spiculatores,  have  indifferently  those  of  histriones, 
ministralli)  mimi  (Leach,  Beverley  MSS.  passim).  It  is  largely  a 
matter  of  the  personal  taste  of  the  scribe.  Thus  the  Shrewsbury 
accounts  have  both  histriones  and  menstralles  in  1401,  htsiriones  in 
1442,  mini  sir  alii  regularly  from  1457  to  1479,  an(*  histriones  regularly 
from  1483  onwards. 

Many  other  names  for  minstrels,  besides  these  dominant  four,  have 
been  collected  by  scholars  (Gautier,  ii.  10;  Julleville,  Les  Com.  17; 
Gr6ber,  ii.  489 ;  B&Iier,  366).  From  the  compliments  exchanged  in  the 
fabliau  of  Des  Deux  B ordeors  Ribaux  (Montaiglon-Raynaud,  i.  i)  one 
may  extract  the  equivalence  of  menestrel,  trouvtre,  riband,  bordeor, 
jougleur\  chanteur,  lecheor,  pantonnier.  Of  such  subordinate  names 
many  are  specific,  and  have  been  dealt  with  in  their  turn  in  chh.  iii,  iv. 
Others,  again,  are  abusive,  and  found  chiefly  in  the  mouths  of  ecclesi- 
astics, or  as  distinctive  of  the  lower  orders  of  minstrels.  There  are 
garciO)  nebulo,  delusor,  saccularius,  bufo9  riband,  harlot.  There  are 
bourdyour,  japer,  gabber ,  jangler  (vol.  i.  p.  84).  There  is  scurra,  an 
early  and  favourite  term  of  this  class  ;  cf.  JElfric's  gloss  (Ducange,  s.v. 
Iocisfa\  '  Mimus,  iocista>  scurra,  gligmon ' ;  Wright- Wtilcker,  693 
(fifteenth-century  gloss), '  scurra,  harlot ' ;  and  vol.  i.  p.  32,  There  is 
leccator^  leccour  (cf.  above  and  App.  JF1.  s.v.  Chester).  And  finally, 
there  are  a  few  terms  of  general,  but  not  very  common,  application. 
Scenici  and  thymelici  come  from  the  early  Christian  prohibitions  (vol. 
i.  pp.  12,  17,  24).  More  important  are  a  group  derived  from  ludus,  which 
like/w  has  itself  the  widest  possible  sense,  covering  ever}'  possible  kind 
of  amusement.  The  Sarum  Statutes  of  1319,  in  a  /i 'lulus  dealing  with 
histriones,  speak  of  those  '  qui  "  menestralli "  et  quandoque  "  ludorum 
homines  "  vulgari  eloquio  nuncupantur '  (vol.  i.  p.  40).  In  the  fifteenth 
and  sixteenth  centuries  appear  such  terms  as  lusor,  lusiator,  ludens, 
interlusor,  interludes.  The  two  latter  of  these  are  always  specific, 
meaning  '  actor ' ;  the  three  former  are  usually  so,  although  they  may 
occasionally  have  the  more  general  sense,  and  this  is  probably  also 
true  of  the  English  player.  This  question  is  more  fully  discussed  in 
vol.  i.  pp.  84,  393,  and  vol.  ii.  p.  185. 


234 


COURT  MINSTRELSY   IN   1306 

[From  Manners  and  Household  Expenses  of  England  in  the  Thirteenth 
and  Fifteenth  Centuries,  141  (Roxburghe  Club,  1841),  from  Exchequer  Roll 
(King's  Remembrancer's  Dept.)  in  Rolls  Office.  The  Pentecost  feast  of 
1306  was  that  at  which  Prince  Edward,  who  became  in  the  next  year 
Edward  II,  was  knighted.  It  is  described  in  the  Annales  Londonienses 
(Chronicles  of  Edward  1 and  Edward  //,  R.  S.  i.  146).] 

Solutio  facta  diversis  Menestrallis  die  Pentecostes  anno  xxxiiii*0. 

[A.D.  1306.] 

Le  Roy  de  Champaigne 
Le  Roy  Capenny 
Le  Roy  Baisescue 
Le  Roy  Marchis 
Le  Roy  Robert 
Phelippe  de  Caumbereye  Ix.j. ;  summa,  Ix.j. 

1    cuilibet  \\\}.marc.  ; 
summa, 
c.  vj.j.  viij.rf. 
(cuilibet  xl.j.; 
summa,  iiij./i. 


cuilibet  v.marc. ; 

summa,  xyj./i*. 

i.  marc. 


Robert  le  Boistous 
Gerard  de  Boloigne 

Bruant 
Northfolke 


Carltone 

Maistre  Adam  le  Boscu 

Devenays 

Artisien 

Lucat 

Henuer 

Le  menestral  Mons.  de  Montmaranci 

Le  Roy  Druet 

Janin  le  Lutour 

Gillotin  le  Sautreour 

Gillet  de  Roos 

Ricard  de  Haleford 

Le  Petit  Gauteron 

Baudec  le  Tabourer 

Ernolet 

Mahu  qui  est  ove  la  dammoisele  de  Baar 

Janin  de  Brebant 

Martinet  qui  est  ove  le  Conte  de  Warwike 

Gauteron  le  Grant 


cuilibet  xx.j.  ; 
summa,  Ix.j. 

cuilibet  XXX..T.  ; 
summa,  iiij.//'. 

[X.,.] 


cuilibet  xl.  s.  ; 
summa,  xxyj.//'. 


COURT  MINSTRELSY  IN  1306 

Le  Harpour  Levesque  de  Duresme 
Guillaume  le  Harpour  qui  est  ove  le  Patriarke 
Robert  de  Clou  V 

Maistre  Adam  de  Reve 
Henri  le  Gigour 
Corraud  son  compaignon 
Le  tierz  Gigour 
Gillot  le  Harpour 
Johan  de  Newentone 
Hugethun  le  Harpour  lour  compaignon 
Adekin  son  compaignon 
Adam  de  Werintone 
Adam  de  Grimmeshawe 
Hamond  Lestivour 

Mahuet  qui  est  ove  Mons.  de  Tounny 
Johan  de  Mochelneye 
Janin  Lorganistre 
Simon  d  le  Messager 

Les  ij.  Trumpours  Mons.  Thomas  de  Brother- 
tone 

Martinet  le  Taborour 
Richard  Rounlo 
Richard  Hendelek 
Janin  de  La  Tour  son  compaignon 
Johan  le  Waffrer  le  Roy 
Pilk 

C'll         I  Trumpours  Mons.  le  Prince 

Le  Nakarier 

Le  Gitarer 

Merlin 

Tomasin,  Vilour  Mons.  Le  Prince 

Raulin  qui  est  ove  le  Conte  Mareschal 

Esvillie  qui  est  ove  Mons.  Pierres  de  Maule 

Grendone 

Le  Taborer  La  Dame  de  Audham 

Gaunsaillie 

Guillaume  sanz  maniere 

Lambyn  Clay 

Jaques  Le  Mascun 

Son  compaignon 


235 


x.s. 


cuilibet  ij.marc. ; 

summa, 
xxj./i*.  di.marc. 


cuilibet  ].marc.\ 
summa,  *\.marc. 


236 


APPENDIX  C 


Mahu  du  North 

Le  menestral  ove  les  cloches 

Les  iij.  menestraus  Mons.  de  Hastinges 

Thomelin  de  Thounleie 

Les  ij.  Trompours  le  Comte  de  Hereforde 

Perle  in  the  eghe 

Son  compaignon 

Janyn  le  Sautreour  qui  est  ove  Mons.  de  Percy 

Les  ij.  Trumpours  le  Comte  de  Lancastre 

Mellet 

Henri  de  Nushom 

Janyn  le  Citoler 

Gilliame 

Fairfax 

Monet 

Hanecocke  de  Blithe 


cuilibet  xx. s. ; 
summa,  iiij./i*. 


Summa  totalis, — cxiiij./*'.  x.j. — Et  issi  demoerent  des  cc.marc.,  pur 
partir  entreles  autres  menestraus  de  lacommune, — xviij./*'.  xvj.j.  viij.d. — 
Et  a  ceste  partie  faire  sunt  assigne  Le  Roy  Baisescu,  Le  Roy  Marchis, 
Le  Roy  Robert,  et  Le  Roy  Druet,  Gauteron  le  Graunt,  Gauteron  le 
Petit,  Martinet  le  Vilour  qui  est  ove  le  Conte  de  Warewike,  et  del 
hostiel  Mons.  le  Prince,  ij.  serjantz  darmes  .  .  .  clerke. 

[Five  lines  of  which  only  a  few  words  are  legible.] 

Richard  le  Harpour  qui  est  ove  le  Conte  de  Gloucestre. 

Wauter  Bracon  Trounpour 

Wauter  le  Trounpour 

Johan  le  Croudere 

Tegwaret  Croudere 

Geffrai  le  Estiveur 

Guillot  le  Taborer 

Guillot  le  Vileur 

Robert  le  Vilour 

Jake  de  Vescy 

Richard  Whetacre 

A  ceux  xj.,  por  toute  la  commune,  xvii./;".  iiii.j.  viiirf. 

Denarii  dati  Mcntsirallis. 

Vidulatori  Dominae  de  Wak' v.j. 

Laurentio  Citharistae *  Ai.marc. 

Johanni  du  Chat,  cum  Domino  J.  de  Bur9     .        .        .    di.marc. 


COURT  MINSTRELSY  IN  1306 

Mellers       ......... 

Parvo  Willielmo,  Organistae  Comtissae  Herefordiae      . 
Ricardo  de  Quitacre,  Citharistae  ..... 

Ricardo  de  Leylonde,  Citharistae  ..... 

Carleton  Haralde         ....... 

Gilloto  Vidulatori  Comitis  Arundelliae  .... 

Amakyn  Citharistae  Principis       ..... 

Bolthede     ......... 

Nagary  le  Crouder  Principis         ..... 

Matheu  le  Harpour     ....... 

Johanni  le  Barber        ....... 

ij.  Trumpatoribus  J.  de  Segrave   ..... 

Ricardo  Vidulatori  Comitis  Lancastriae         .        .        . 
Johanni  Waffrarario  Comitis  Lancastriae       *        .        . 
Sagard  Crouther  ........ 

William  de  Grymesar',  Harpour   ..... 

Citharistae  Comitissae  Lancastriae        .        .        .        . 

ij.  Menestrallis  J.  de  Ber[wyke]    ..... 

Henrico  de  Blida        ....... 

Ricardo  Citharistae     ....... 

William  de  Duffelde    ....... 

v.  Trumpatoribus  Principis,  pueris,  cuilibet  ij.  s.     .        . 
iiijo*.  Vigil'  Regis,  cuilibet  di.marc  ..... 

Adinet  le  Harpour      ....... 

Perote  le  Taborer       ....... 

Adae  de  Swylingtone  Citharistae  ..... 

David  le  Crouther       ....... 

Lion  de  Norman  ville  ....... 

Gerardo     ......... 

Ricardo  Citharistae     ....... 

Roberto  de  Colecestria        ...... 

Johanni  le  Crouther  de  Salopia    ..... 

Johanni  le  Vilour  domini  J.  Renaude  .... 

Johanni  de  Trenham,  Citharistae  ..... 

Willielmo  Woderove,  Trumpatori         .... 

Johanni  Citharistae  J.  de  Clyntone        .... 

Waltero  de  Brayles     ....... 

Roberto  Citharistae  Abbatis  de  Abbyndone  .        .        . 
Gkdfredo  Trumpatori  domini  R.  de  Monte  Alto     . 
Richero  socio  suo       ....... 

Thomae  le.Croudere  ....... 


237 


v.s. 

v.s. 

di.marc. 

di.marc. 

v.s. 

Ai.marc. 

v.s. 

v.s. 

v.s. 

v.s. 

v.s. 

&.marc. 

v.s. 

xl.  d. 

xl.  d, 

xL</. 


xl.</. 
xl.</. 
xl.rf. 
xLrf. 
x.s.  in  toto. 


xij.rf. 

ij.x. 

xij.rf. 

ij..r. 

iij.x. 

xij.d. 

xij.d. 


ij.s. 

xij.</. 

xij.cf. 


238  APPENDIX  D 

Rogero  de  Corleye,  Trumpatori ij.s. 

Audoeno  le  Crouther xij.d. 

Hugoni  Daa  Citharistae ij.s. 

Andreae  Vidulatori  de  Hor' ij.s. 

Roberto  de  Scardeburghe xij.d. 

Guilloto  le  Taborer  Comitis  Warrewici         .         .         .  iij.s. 

Paul'  Menestrallo  Comitis  Marescalli    ....  iij.s. 

Matheo  Waffraris  domini  R.  de  Monte  Alto .         .         .  ij.s. 

iij.  diversis  menestrallis,  cuilibet  iij.s ix.s. 

Galfrido  Citharistae  Comitis  Warrenniae       .         .         .  ij.s. 

Matiir  Makejoye xij.d. 

Johanni  Trumpatori  domini  R.  de  Filii  Pagani      .         .  xij.d. 

Adae  Citharistae  domini  J.  Lestraunge,        .         .        .  xij.d. 

Reginaldo  le  Menteur,  Menestrallo  domini  J.  de  Buteturt  xij.d. 

Perle  in  the  Eghe xij.d. 

Gilloto  Citharistae  Domini  P.  de  Malo  Lacu         .        .  x.s. 

Roberto  Gaunsillie xl.d.  Item,  xl.rf. 

Jacke  de  Vescy di.marc. 

Magistro  Waltero  Leskirmissour  et  fratri  suo,  cuilibet  iij.  s.  vj.  s. 


D 

THE  MINSTREL  HIERARCHY 

The  term  rex  is  not  seldom  applied  as  a  distinction  amongst 
minstrels.  At  the  wedding  of  Joan  of  England  in  1290  were  present 
King  Grey  of  England  and  King  Caupenny  of  Scotland,  together 
with  Poveret,  minstrel  of  the  Marshal  of  Champagne  (Chappell,  i.  15). 
Poveret  is  perhaps  the  'roy  de  Champaigne1  of  the  1306  list,  which 
also  includes  the  'roys'  Capenny,  Baisescue,  Marchis,  Robert,  and 
Druet  (Appendix  C).  A  '  rex  Robertas/  together  with  '  rex  Pagius 
de  Hollandia,'  reappeats  in  accounts  of  the  reign  of  Edward  II 
(1307-27),  while  one  of  the  minstrels  of  the  king  was  William  de 
Morlee,  'roy  de  North*  (Percy,  416-8;  cf.  vol.  i.  p.  49).  In  France 
a  list  of  the  * ministeralli '  of  Philip  IV  in  1288  includes  the  'rex 
Flaiolatus/  'rex  Heraudum/  and  'rex  Ribaldorum.'  A  certain 
Pariset,  who  was  minstrel  to  the  Comte  de  Poitiers  in  1314,  signs 


THE  MINSTREL  HIERARCHY  239 

the  statutes  of  the  Paris  guild  in  1321  as  'Pariset,  menestrel  le  roy/ 
and  the  various  '  roys  des  menestreuls  du  royaume  de  France '  who 
appear  in  and  after  1338  may  have  been  heads  at  once  of  the  king's 
household  minstrels  and  of  the  guild  (Appendix  F\  cf.  Bernhard, 
iii.  380).  Further,  the  title  is  claimed  by  the  authors  of  various 
pieces  of  minstrel  literature.  'Adenet  le  roi'  is  the  author  oiCUomatRs 
(Paris,  84;  Percy,  416-8),  and  'Huon  le  roi/  perhaps  identical  with 
*  Huon  de  Cambrai '  and  c  Huon  Paucele/  of  the  fabliau  of  Du  Vair 
Palefroi  (Bedier,  438;  Montaiglon-Raynaud,  i.  3).  The  term  rex 
is  of  course  common  enough  in  connexion  with  temporary  or  per- 
manent associations  of  all  sorts,  and  is  probably  of  folk  origin 
(vol.  i.  chaps,  iv,  viii).  It  is  possible  that  some  of  these  <  rois '  may 
have  been  crowned  by  'puis'  (Lavoix,  ii.  377),  but  it  is  more  probable 
that  they  had  some  official  pre-eminence  amongst  their  fellows,  and 
perhaps  some  jurisdiction,  territorial  or  otherwise.  Clearly  this  was 
the  case  with  the  '  roy  des  ministralx '  at  Tutbury.  The  appearance 
of  the  'rex  Flaiolatus'  with  the  'rex  Heraudum*  and  the  'rex 
Ribaldorum'  in  the  French  list  of  1288  is  thus  significant,  for  the 
latter  had  just  such  a  jurisdiction  over  the  riff-raff  of  the  court 
(Ducange,  s.v»),  and  I  conceive  the  relation  of  the  minstrel  '  roys  * 
to  their  fellows  to  have  been  much  that  of  the  '  Kings  at  arms '  to  the 
ordinary  heralds.  It  seems  that  minstrels  and  heralds  belonged  to  the 
same  class  oftm'm'stri.  The  order  of  the  Emperor  Henry  II  (vol.  i.  p.  52) 
couples  'ioculatores  et  armaturi'  and  'Carleton  Haralde'  is  actually 
rewarded  in  the  1306  list  (App.  C,  p.  237).  If  one  may  quote  a  Celtic 
parallel,  the  Arwyddfardd  or  heralds  formed  a  regular  division  (tnoo) 
of  Welsh  minstrelsy  (E.  David,  La  PoSsie  et  la  Musique  dans  la  Carnbrie, 
72-91).  Under  Richard  II  the  head  of  the  English  royal  minstrels 
was  a  rex,  but  from  1464  onwards  the  term  used  is  marescallus 
(Rymer,  xi.  512),  and  this  again  may  be  paralleled  from  the  supreme 
position  of  the  Earl  Marshal  in  heraldry.  At  the  head  of  the  Earl  of 
Lancaster's  minstrels  in  1308  was  an  armiger.  I  only  find  this  term 
again  in  the  burlesque  account  of  the  'auncient  minstrell'  shown 
before  Elizabeth  at  Kenilworth  (Appendix  H).  He  was  'a  squier 
minstrel  of  Middilsex '  and,  as  he  bore  the  arms  of  Islington,  pre- 
sumably a  '  wait.' 


240 


EXTRACTS  FROM  ACCOUNT  BOOKS 

I.   DURHAM  PRIORY. 

[The  entries,  unless  otherwise  specified,  are  amongst  the  extracts 
(generally  of  Dona  Prioris)  from  the  Bursars'  Rolls  between  1278  and 
1371,  printed  by  Canon  Fowler  in  vols.  ii,  iii  of  the  Durham  Account 
Rolls  (Surtees  Soc.).  D.  H.  B. «  Durham  Household  Book  (Surtees  Soc.), 
F.  P.»  Inventories  and  Account  Rolls  of  Finchale  Priory  (Surtees  Soc.). 
This  was  a  cell  of  Durham  Priory.  The  minstrelsy  often  took  place  at 
the  ludi  Domini  Prioris •,  either  in  his  camera  (D.  A.  ii.  424)  or  at 
Beaurepaire,  Witton,  or  other  maneria  of  the  Priory.  There  seem  to 
have  been  in  most  years  four  ludi  ordinarii  (D.  A.  ii.  296),  though 
occasionally  only  two  or  three  are  mentioned.  These  were  at  the  feasts 
of  Candlemas,  Easter,  St.  John  Baptist,  and  All  Saints  (D.  A.  \.  242, 
iii.  932).  But  the  Prior,  Sub- Prior,  and  brethren  seem  often  to  have  been 
ludenteS)  spatiantes,  or  in  recreacione  (D.  A.  i.  118,  235),  without  much 
regard  to  fixed  dates.  In  1438-9  they  were  ludentes  for  as  much  as 
eleven  weeks  and  four  days  at  Beaurepaire  (D.  A.  i.  71).  See  also  D.  A. 
i.  16,  116,  120,  129,  137,  138,  142,  166,  207,  263 ;  ii.  287,  419,  456,  515 ; 
iii.  810,  s.w.  Ludi,  &c. ;  D.  H.  R.  9,  13,  54,  141,  240,  339 ;  F.  P.  30, 
ccxcv,  ccccxxxvi.] 

1278  Menestrallo  Regis  Scociae. 

Menestrallo  de  Novo  Castro. 
1299.  Roberto  le  Taburer. 
1300-1.  Cuidam  hystrioni  Regis. 
1302-3.  Histrionibus  domini  Regis. 
1310-11.  Hugoni  de  Helmeslaye  stulto  domini  Regis. 
Cuidam  lugulatori  d'ni  Regis. 
Cuidam  Cytharistae. 
ti3io.  Histrionibus  d'ni  H.  de  Bello  Monte. 

In  scissura  tunicae  stulti. 
+1315.  Histrionibus  ad  Natale. 
1330-1.  In  uno  garniamento  pro  Thoma  fatuo  empto. 
Histrionibus  ad  Natale. 

,,    -        in  fest.  S.  Cuthberti  in  Marcio. 
„  ad  fest.  S.  Cuthberti  in  Sept. 

„  d'ni  Henrici  de  Beaumond. 

Citharistae  (in  another  roll  'citharatori')  d'ni  Roberti  de 

Horneclyff  ex  precepto  Prioris. 

1333-4.  Duobus  histrionibus  in  die  Veneris  proximo  post  octavam 
bead  Martini 


EXTRACTS  FROM  ACCOUNT  BOOKS        241 

Histrionibus  d'ni  Regis  quando  d'nus  noster  Rex  rediit  de 

Novo  Castro. 
Stulto  d'ni  Episcopi. 
Histrionibus  comitis  Warenne. 
Histrionibus  Regis  Scociae. 
1334-5.  Histrionibus  ad  Natale. 
1335-6.  Histrionibus  d'ni  Regis  Scociae. 

Duobus  histrionibus  die  Sci.  Cuthberti. 

Duobus  histrionibus  ex  precepto  Prioris. 

Histrionibus  Novi  Castri  ad  fest,  S.  Cuthberti. 

Histrionibus  d'ni  R.  de  Nevill,  per  Priorem. 

In  i  Cythara  empta  pro  Thorn.  Harpour.     38. 

Cuidam  histrioni  apud  Beaurepaire  per  R.  de  Cotam  ex 

dono  Prioris. 

Thomae  fatuo  ex  precepto  eiusdem. 
1-1335.  Istrionibus  d'ni  Regis. 

Istrionibus  Reginae  apud  Pytingdon. 

Istrionibus  [die  Dominica  proxima  post  festum  Epiphaniae, 

quo  die  d'nus  Episcopus  epulabatur  cum  Priore]. 
Will'o  de  Sutton,  Citharaedo  d'ni  Galfridi  Lescrop  eodem 

die. 

Istrionibus  die  Natalis  Domini. 
1-1336.  Duobus  istrionibus  d'ni  Regis. 

Edmundo  de  Kendall,  Cytharaeto,  de  dono  Prioris  ad  Pascha. 
Menestrallis  de  dono  [quando  Episcopus  epulabatur  cum 

Priore]. 

1*1337.  In  *  Pari  sotularium  pro  Thoma  fatuo. 
1338-9.  Several  payments  to  *  istriones '  and  '  menestralli.' 

In  4  ulnis  burelli  scacciati  emptis  pro  garniamento  Thomae 

Pole  per  preceptum  Prioris. 
1339-40.  In  panno  empto  in  foro  Dunelm.  pro  uno  garniamento  pro 

Thoma  fatuo. 
Willelmo  Piper  istrioni  d'ni  Radulphi  de  Nevill  die  Circum- 

cisionis. 
1341.  Pelidod  et  duobus  sociis  suis  histrionibus  d'ni  Regis  post 

Natale  Domini. 

1341-42.  In  garniamentis  emptis  pro  .  . .  Thoma  fatuo  (and  similar 
entries,  or  for  '  Russet/  '  pannus/  '  Candelwykstret '  in 
other  years). 

Various  payment  to  '  Istriones/ 
'  Istrionibus/  &c. 
u  R 


242  APPENDIX  E 

1350-51.  Istrionibus  ad  Natale. 

„          ad  S.  Cuthbertum  in  Sept. 
1355-6.  Will'o  Pyper  et  aliis  istrionibus  ad  Natale. 

Item  duobus  istrionibus  d'ni  Episcopi  et  duobus  istrionibus 
Comitis  de  Norhamton  in  festo  ScL  Cuthberti  in  Marcio. 
Item  istrionibus  d'ni  Episcopi  ad  festum  Paschae. 
Item  istrionibus  in  festo  Sci.  Cuthberti  in  Sept. 
1356-7.  In  sepultura  Thomae  fatui  et  necessariis  expensis  circa 
corpus  eius,   per  manus  d'ni  Prioris  (similar  entry  in 
miscellaneous  roll,  'Thomae  Fole,'  /?.  A.  iii.  719). 
Diversis  ministrallis  (D.A.  iii.  718). 
ti357-  Et  Will'o  Blyndharpour  ad  Natale. 

Et  loh'i  Harpour  d'ni  loh'is  de  Streuelyn  et  Will'o  Blynd- 
harpour de  Novo  Castro. 
Et    duobus    Trompours    Comitis    de    Norhamton    apud 

Wyuestow. 

Et  cuidam  Harpour  vocato  Rygeway. 
Istrionibus  d'ni  Episcopi  (and  Harpers,  &c.). 
ti36o.  Petro  Crouder  apud  Pityngton,  per  Capellanum. 

Item  eidem  Petro  pro  uno  quarterio  ordii   sibi  dato  per 

Priorem. 

Duobus  Istrionibus  Episcopi  in  festo  Assensionis  Domini. 
Et  cuidam  Istrioni  Maioris  villae  Novi  Castri  per  Capellanum. 
1360-61.  Will'o   Pyper  et   aliis   istrionibus    ad   Natale   per  manus 

loh'is  del  Sayles. 

Cuidam  Welsharpour  d'ni  Will'i  de  Dalton. 
Item  histrionibus  aliorum  dominorum. 
1361-2.  In  uno  viro  ludenti  in  uno  loyt  et  uxori  eius  cantanti  apud 

Bewrpayr  (D.  A.  i.  127,  Hostiller's  Accounts). 
1362.  Item  cuidam  hislrioni  harper  episcopi  Norwychiae  in  festo 

Transl.  Sci.  Cuthberti. 

Cuidam  Istrioni  Jestour  Jawdewyne  in  festo  Natalis  Domini. 
Will'o  ye  kakeharpour  ad  idem  festum. 
Et  Barry  similem  sibi  ad  id.  festum. 

Et  cuidam  ystrioni  caeco  franco  cum  uno  puero  fratre  suo. 
Barry  harper  ex  precepto  Prioris  in  una  tunica  empta. 
1363-4-  Item  cantoribus  in  Adventu  Domini  cum  histrionibus  ibidem 

ex  dono  Prioris. 

Item  cuidam  histrioni  die  Dominica  Quasimodo  geniti. 
1364-5.  To  two  players  of  the  Lord  Duke  at  the  said  feast  (of 
St.  Cuthbert)  (Raine,  St.  Cuthbert,  109,  Surlces  Soc.). 


EXTRACTS  FROM  ACCOUNT  BOOKS   248 

1365-6.  Barry  Harpour,  ystrionibus,  &c. 

1366-8.  Ministrallis,  Istrionibus. 

1368-9.  Rob'o  Trompour  et  Will'o  Fergos  ministrallo  in  die  Sci. 

Cuthberti. 
1373-4.  Duobus  Ministrallis  cum  uno  Weyng. 

1374.  12  ministrallis  in  festo  Sci.  Cuthb. 
1375-6.  Ministrall.  in  die  S.  Cuthb.  in  Mar. 

Cuidam  ministrallo  ludenti  coram  domino  Priori  in  camera 

sua. 
Tribus  ministrallis  Comitis  del  Marchie  ludentibus  coram 

domino  Priore. 
Cuidam  ministrallo  domini  Regis  veniente  cum  domino  de 

Neuill. 

12  ministrallis  in  festo  Sci.  Cuthb.  in  Sept. 
4  ministrallis  domini   Principis   in  festo  exaltacionis  S<». 

Crucis. 

Cuidam  ministrallo  in  festo  Sci.  Mathaei. 
Ministrallis  in  festo  S<a.  Cuthb.  in  Marcio  anno  Domini,  &c. 

lxxvto. 

Duobus  ministrallis  in  die  Pasche. 
1376-7.  Willielmo  Fergos   et   Rogero  Harpour  caeco   ad   Natale 

Domini. 

Aliis  ministrallis  domini  de  Percy  in  eadem  fest. 
1377-8.  Haraldis,  histrionibus  et  nunciis,  ut  patet  per  cedulam. 
1378-9.  Histrionibus   .  .  .   dominorum    Regis,  Ducis,  et   aliorum 

dominorum. 

1380-1.  lohanni  Momford  ministrallo  domini  Regis. 
1381-2.  Ministrallis  domini  de  Neuill  apud  Beaurepaire  cum  domin a 

de  Lomly. 
Ministrallo  domini  Ducis   cum    uno   saltante   in   camera 

domini  Prioris. 
(and  others.) 

1384-5.  Ministrallis  domini  Regis. 

1394-5.  Ministrallis  in  festo  S.  Cuthb.,  TJenrici  Percy,  domini  Ducis 
Lancastr.,  domini  de  Neuill,  Ducis  Eborac.,  de  Scocia, 
comitis  Canciae,  ad  Nat.  Domini,  de  Hilton,  Ric.  Brome 
ministrallo,  in  fest.  S.  Cuthb.  in  Marc. 
Uni  Trompet  domini  Regis. 
Uni  Rotour  de  Scocia. 

1395.  Item,  in  vino,  speciebus,  in  donis  datis  Confratribus,  minis- 
trallis et  aliis  diversis,  ex  curialitate  (F 1  P.  cxv). 
R  3 


244  APPENDIX  E 

1399-1400.  Ministrallis. 
1401-2.  Ministrallis. 
1416-7.  Ministrallis. 

Diversis  pueris  ludentibus  coram  eodem  priore  in  festo  S4 

Stephani  hoc  anno. 
1441-2.  Per  .  .  .  capellanum  [et]  .  .  ,  per  bursarium  ntinistrallh 

domini  Regis  et  aliorum  dominonim  supervenientibus. 
1446-7.  Ministrallis. 
1449-50.  Ministrallis. 

1464-5.  Et  solvit  lohanni  Andrewson  et  sociis  suis  operantibus  pro 
nova  tectura  unius  camerae  vocatae  le  Playerchambrc 
(F.  P.  ccxcv). 
1465.  Item  j  por  de  ferro  in  camera  Prioris,  j  in  le  plaer  cha  .  .  , 

(F.  P.  ccxcviii). 
1496.  Paid  to  Robert  Walssch  for  two  days  playing  John  Gibson 

of  Elvet '  herper '  (Z>.  H.  £.  340). 

1532-3.  .  .  .  bus  lusoribus  .  . .  Regis,  in  rtgardis,  in  auro,  is9. 
Et  custodi  ursorum  et  cimearum  dominae  Principis. 
Et  capellano,  per  bursarium,  pro  4  lusoribus  domini  Comitis 
de  Darby,  in  auro,  7B.  6d.  (D.H.JB.  143,  the  last  two 
items  crossed  out). 

1536-7.  In  diversis  donis  datis  ministrallis  diversorum  dominorum. 
1538.  Paid  to  the  ministrels  (mmistrallts)  at  Me  musters'  upon 

'  le  Gelymore.' 
1539-40.  Paid  to  the  players  (lusoribus)  of  Auklande  at  Christmas 

before  Master  Hyndley,  as  a  present  (D.  H.  £.  340). 
1554-5.  [Cathedral  Account.]    Paid  for  two  mynstralles. 


II.  MAXSTOKE  PRIORY. 
[Printed  by  Hazlitt-Warton,  ii.  97,  *  ex  orig.  penes  me.'] 

*  In  the  Prior's  accounts  of  the  Augustine  canons  of  Maxstoke  in 
Warwickshire,  of  various  years  in  the  reign  of  Henry  VI  (1422-61); 
one  of  the  styles  or  regular  heads  is  DC  loculatoribus  et  Mimis  .... 

loculatori  in  septimana  S.  Michaelis,  iv<*. 

Citharistae  tempore  natalis  domini  et  aliis  iocatoribus,  iv^. 

Mimis  de  Solihull,  vid. 

Mimis  de  Coventry,  xxd. 

Mimo  domini  Ferrers,  vid. 


EXTRACTS  FROM  ACCOUNT  BOOKS       246 

Lusoribus  de  Eton,  viiid. 
Lusoribus  de  Coventry, 
Lusoribus  de  Daventry, 
Mimis  de  Coventry,  xiid. 
Mimis  domini  de  Asteley,  xiid. 
Item  iiij  mimis  domini  de  Warewyck,  xd. 
Mimo  caeco,  iid. 
Sex  mimis  domini  de  Clynton. 
Duobus  mimis  de  Rugeby,  xd. 
Cuidam  citharistae,  vid. 
Mimis  domini  de  Asteley,  xxd. 
Cuidam  citharistae,  vid. 
Citharistae  de  Coventry,  vid. 
Duobus  citharistis  de  Coventry,  viiid. 
Mimis  de  Rugeby,  viiid. 
Mimis  domini  de  Buckeridge,  xxd. 
Mimis  domini  de  Stafford,  ii8. 
Lusoribus  de  Coleshille,  viijd.  .  .  . 

[1432]  Dat.  duobus  mimis  de  Coventry 'in    die   consecrationis 
Prioris,  xiid.' 

III.  THETFORD  PRIORY. 

[From  Cottier,  i.  55,  84,  on  the  authority  of  a  'MS.  of  the  expenses  of 
the  Priory  of  Thetford,  from  1461  to  1540,  lately  in  the  collection  of 
Mr.  Craven  Orde,  and  now  of  the  Duke  of  Newcastle/] 

'  The  mention  of  "  plays "  and  "  players  "  does  not  begin  until  the 
13^  of  Henry  VII ;  but "  Minstrels  "  and  "  Waytes  "  are  often  spoken 
of  there  as  receiving  rewards  from  the  convent.  The  following  entries, 
regarding  "plays"  and  "players,"  occur  between  the  13^  and  23rd  of 
Henry  VII:— 

13  Henry  VII  [1497-8].    Itm.  sol.  in  regard  12  capital  plays,  4*. 

It™,  sol.  to  menstrell  and  players  in  festo  Epiphaniae,  2*. 
19  Henry  VII  [1503-4].    Itm.  sol,  to  the  play  of  Mydenale,  i2d. 
21  Henry  VII  [1505-6].     Itm.  sol.  in  regard  lusoribus  et  men- 

strall,  i7d. 
23  Henry  VII  [1507-8],    Itm.  sol.  in  regard  lusoribus  div.  vices, 

384d- 

Itm.  sol.  in  regard  to  Ixworth  play,  i6d. 
Itm.  sol.  in  regard  to  Schelfanger  play,  4d. 


246  APPENDIX  E 

.  .  .  From  the  Ist  to  the  31^  Henry  VIII,  the  King's  players,  the 
King's  jugglers,  the  King's  minstrels,  and  the  King's  bearwards  were 
visitors  of  Thetford,  and  were  paid  various  sums,  from  4d  to  6s  8d, 
by  the  Prior  of  the  convent  there,  as  appears  by  the  entries  in  the 
account-book  during  that  period.  On  one  occasion,  16  Henry  VIII, 
Cornyshe,  "  the  master  of  the  King's  chapel/'  was  paid  38  4d  by  the 
prior;  but  he  was  then,  probably,  attendant  upon  the  King,  who  is 
not  unfrequently  spoken  of  as  having  arrived,  and  being  lodged  at  the 
Priory.  Mr.  Brandon  and  Mr.  Smith  are  more  than  once  rewarded 
as  "  Jugglers  of  the  King."  The  Queen's  players,  the  Prince's  players, 
and  the  players  of  the  Queen  of  France,  also  experienced  the  liberality 
of  the  Prior,  as  well  as  those  of  the  Duke  of  Norfolk,  the  Duke  of 
Suffolk,  the  Earl  and  Countess  of  Derby,  Lord  and  Lady  Fitzwater, 
the  Lord  Privy  Seal,  the  Lord  Chancellor,  Sir  Thomas  Challoner  and 
two  gentlemen  who  are  called  Marks  and  Barney.' 


IV.  WINCHESTER  COLLEGE. 

[Extracts  from  computi  partly  by  Hazlitt-Warton,  ii.  98,  and  partly  by  M. 
E.  C.  Walcott,  William  of  Wykeham  and  his  Colleges,  206.  The  satrapae 
of  1466  and  1479  are  said  by  Mr.  Walcott  to  have  been  local  notables, 
but  a  collation  to  them  would  not  cost  so  little  or  be  grouped  with 
rewards  to  minstrels  in  the  computus.  Ducange  says  that  the  word  is 
used  '  pro  quodam  ministro  vel  satellite.*  The  Magdalen  accounts  use  it 
for  the  '  Serjeants '  of  the  mayor  of  Oxford  (Macray,  Register,  i.  15).] 

1400.    In  dono  lusoribus  civitatis  Wynton  venient.    ad  collegium  cum 

suo  tripudio  ex  curialitate,  xijd. 
1412.    In  dat.  Ric°.  Kent  bochier  tempore  regno  suo  vocat.  Somer- 

kyng,  xijd. 
1415.    In  dat.  diversis  hominibus  de  Ropley  venientibus  ad  coll.  die 

Sanct.  Innoc.  et  tripudiantibus  et  cantantibus  in  aula  coram 

Epo.  scholarium,  xxd. 
1422.    Dat.  histrioni  dni  epi  Wynton  et  ioculatori  ejusdem  5^  die 

lanuarii,  cuilibet,  xxd. 

1425.  Dat.   Gloucester  ioculatori  ludenti  coram  custode   et   sociis 

penultimo  die  lulii,  ob  reverentiam  ducis  Exon.  xijd. 

1426.  Dat.  ministrellis  d.  epi  Wynton  tempore  Nat.  Dni.  ex  curi- 

alitate et  honestate,  ij9  viiid. 
Dat.  ij   ministrallis  comitissae  de  Westmorland  venient'  ad 

coll.  xxd. 

I433»    I*1  dat-  mimis  $&  cardinalis  venient'  ad  collegium  erga  festum 
natale  Dn*  iiijs. 


EXTRACTS  FROM  ACCOUNT  BOOKS   247 

1462.   Dat'  Epo  Nicholatensi  visitanti  Dominum  custodem  in  hospitio 

suo  de  nocte  S^.  Nicholai,  iiijd. 
1464.   Et  in  dat.  ministrallis  comitis  Kanciae  venient.  ad  coll.  hi 

mense  lulii,  iiij3  iiijd. 

1466.  Et  in  dat.  satrapis  Wynton  venientibus  ad  coll.  festo  Epipha- 

niae,  cum  ij9  dat.  iiij,  interludentibus  et  J.  Meke  citharistae 
eodem  festo,  iiij8. 

1467.  Et  in  datis  iiijor  mimis  dom.  de  Arundell  venient.  ad  coll.  xiij. 

die  Febr.  ex  curialitate  dom.  custodis,  ij*. 
In  dat.  loh.  Pontisbery  et  socio  ludentibus  in   aula  in  die 
circumcisionis,  ij8. 

1471.  In  dat.  uni  famulo  dni  regis  Angliae  venienti  ad  collegium  cum 

Leone  mense  lanuarii,  xxd. 

1472.  Et  in  dat.  ministrallis  dom.  Regis  cum  viijd.  dat.  duobus  Bere- 

wardis  ducis  Clarentiae,  xxd. 
Et  in  dat.  lohanni  Stulto  quondam  dom.  de  Warewyco,  cum 

iiijd  dat.  Thomae  Nevyle  taborario. 
Et  in  datis  duobus  ministrallis  ducis  Glocestriae,  cum  iiijd.  dat. 

uni  ministrallo  ducis  de  Northumberland,  viijd. 
Et  in  datis  duobus  citharatoribus  ad  vices  venient.  ad  colle- 
gium viijd. 
1477.    Et  in  dat.  ministrallis  dom.  Principis  venient.  ad  coll.  festo 

Ascensionis  Domini,  cum  xxd.  dat.  ministrallis  dom.  Regis,  VB. 
1479.    Et  in  datis  satrapis  Wynton  venientibus  ad  coll.  festo  Epipha- 

niae,  cum  xijd  dat.  ministrallis  dom.  episcopi  venient.  ad 

coll.  infra  octavas  epiphaniae,  iii8. 
Dat.  lusoribus  de  civitate  Winton.  venientibus  ad  collegium  in 

apparatu  suo  mens.  lulii,  v<*  vijd. 
1481.    Et  in  sol.  ministrallis  dom.  regis  venientibus  ad  collegium  xv 

die  Aprilis  cum  xijd  solut.  ministrallis  dom.  episcopi  Wynton 

venientibus  ad  collegium  i°  die  lunii,  iiij8  iiijd. 
Et  in  dat.  ministrallis  dom.  Arundell  ven.  ad  coll.  cum  viijd 

dat.  ministrallis  dom.  de  la  Warr,  ijg  iijd. 

1483.  Sol.  ministrallis  dom.  regis,  ven.  ad  coll.  iij§  iiijd. 

1484.  Et  in  dat.  uni  ministrallo  dom.  principis  et  in  aliis  ministrallis 

ducis  Glocestriae  v  die  lulii,  xxd. 
1536.    In  dat.  ministrallis  dni  regis  venientibus  ad  coll.  xiij  die  April 

pro  regardo,  ij8. 

1573.    In  regardis  dat'  tibicinis  dominae  reginae  cum  vino,  vij8  iiijd. 
In  regardis  dat.  lusoribus  dominae  reginae,  vj8  viijd. 


248  APPENDIX  E 

V.  MAGDALEN  COLLEGE,  OXFORD. 

[Extracts  from  account  books  made  by  J.  R.  Bloxam  and  W.  D.  Macray, 
A  Register  of  the  Members  of  St.  Mary  Magdalen  College,  Oxford,  First 
Series,  ii.  235 ;  New  Series,  i.  3 ;  ii.  3.  The  dates  given  below  are  for  the 
year  in  which  the  account  begins.] 

1481.  pro  cerothecis  pro  chorustis,  iiijd. 

1482.  v<>  die  Decembris  pro  cerothecis  episcopi  in  festo  S.  Nicholai  iiijd. 

1483.  pro    cerothecis    datis    ad    honorem    Sancti    Nicolai    duobus 

choristis,  viijd. 

1484.  pro  cerothecis  Episcopi  in  festo  Sancti  Nicholai  et  eius  crucem 

ferentis,  viijd. 

1485.  '  Ursarii'  of  Lord  Stanley  dined  with  the  Fellows. 

1486.  pro  factura  sepulturae  erga  pascham,  xijd. 
*  Sex  vagatores '  dined  with  the  servants. 

Solut  vi°  die  Ian.  citharistis  et  mimis  tempore  ludi  in  aula  in 
regardo,  in  tempore  Nativitatis  Domini,  viijd. 

Solut.  pro  quodam  ornamento  lusorum  vocato  ly  Cape  mayn- 
tenawnce,  ixd. 

1487.  pro  vestimentis  lusorum  tempore  Nativ.  Domini,  consilio  unius 

decani,  ii8  ijd. 
pro  clavis  ad  pannos  in  ornatum  aulae  pendendos,  jd. 

1488.  Sol.  lohanni  Wynman  pro  scriptura  unius  libri  de  servicio 

episcopi  pro  die  Innocencium,  v4. 
1490.    Singers  from  Abingdon,  London  and  Hereford  entertained. 

1494.  Sol.  Pescode  servanti  quandam  bestiam  vocatam  ly  merumsytt 

ex  consilio  seniorum,  quia  Rex  erat  apud  Woodstocke,  xijd. 

1495.  Sol.  Henrico  Mertyn  pro  lino,  alyn,  et  aliis  emptis  pro  ludo  in 

die  Paschae,  xvijd  ob. 

Sol.  Pescod  ducenti  duo  animalia  nuncupata  mermosettes. 
1502.    Sol.  in  expensis  factis  tempore  Nativitatis  Domini,  in  biberiis 
post  interludia  et  alia,  xiij*  iiijd. 

1506.  To  John  Burgess,  B.A.,  .  .  .  xd  were  paid  for  writing  out  a 

miracle-play  ('  scriptura  lusi ')  of  S*.  Mary  Magd.,  and  v«.  for 
some  music ;  and  viijd  to  a  man  who  brought  some  songs 
from  Edward  Martyn,  M.  A.  For  his  diligence  with  regard  to 
the  above  miracle-play,  Kendall,  a  clerk,  was  rewarded  with  i«. 
pro  expensis  mimi,  iiij8,  at  Christmas. 

1507.  in  quatuor  refectionibus  citharistae,  at  Epiphany. 

1508.  Sol.  famulo  Regis  ducenti  ursam  ad  collegium,  ex  mandate 

Vice-presidentis,  xijd. 


EXTRACTS  FROM  ACCOUNT  BOOKS   249 

1509.  Sol  pane,  cibo  et  aliis  datis  pueris  ludentibus  in  die  Paschae, 

mandate  Vicepr.  xvijd  ob. 

1510.  Sol.  pro  expensisfactis  in  aula  tempore  Nativitatis  Domini,  xiij8iiijd. 
Sol.  cuidam  mimo  tempore  Nativitatis  Domini  in  regardo,  viijd. 

1512.    Sol.   Petro  Pyper   pro  pypyng  in    interludio   nocte   Sancti 

lohannis,  vjd. 
Sol.  lohanni  Tabourner   pro  lusione    in   interludio  Octavis 

Epiphaniae,  vj<*. 

Sol.  Roberto  Johnson  pro  una  tunica  pro  interludiis,  iiij8. 
1514.   pro  carnibus  [?  carbonibus]  consumptis  in  capella  tribus  nocti- 

bus  ante  Pascha  et  in  tempore  Nativitatis,  ij8. 

1518.  To  Perrot,  the  Master  of  the  choristers,  'pro  tinctura  et  factura 
tunicae  ems  qui  ageret  partem  Christi  et  pro  crinibus  muli- 
eribus,  ij8  vjd.' 

1520.    pro  pane  .  .  .  datis  clericis  in  vigiliis  S*l  Nicolai. 
pro  cerothecis  puerorum  in  festo  Sancti  Nicolai. 
1526.    pro  merendis  datis  episcopo  capellanis  clericis  et  aliis  in  vigilia 
St.  Nicolai. 

1529.  pro  . .  .  episcopo  Nicholai. 

1530.  pro  pueris  in  festo  Sancti  Nicholai. 

1531.  Solut.  mimis  dominae  principisshae,  xxd. 

Pro  biberio  dato  sociis  et  scolaribus  post  interludia  in  tempore 
Natalis  Domini,  vj1  viijd. 

1532.  To  the  Queen's  players,  by  the  President's  order,  xiid. 

pro  biberio  dato  sociis  post  ludum  baccalaureorum  in  magna 

aula,  vj8  viijd. 

1535.    pro  merenda  facta  in  vigilia  Sancti  Nicolai. 
Actors  at  Christmas,  iiii8  iiijd. 
pro  merenda  facta  post  comediam  actam,  ixfl  iijd. 
'  ioculatoribus  Regis,'  by  the  President's  order,  xxd. 
l&36*   Pr<>  biberio  in  nocte  Sancti  Nicholai. 

Sol.  mimo  pro  solatiis  factis  sociis  et  scholasticis  tempore  Nativi- 
tatis Domini,  viij8. 
X537'   Pr°  carbonibus  consumptis  in  sacrario,  per  custodes  sepulchri, 

et  per  pueros  in  festis  hiemalibus,  ij8  [and  in  other  years]. 
I539-   Pro  bellariis  datis  sociis  cum  ageretur  comedia,  viij8. 

1 540.  pro  epulis  datis  sociis  eo  tempore  quo  agebatur  tragedia,  viij8  iiij<*. 
pro  bellariis  datis  sociis  et  clericis  vigilia  divi  Nicolai,  iiij*  viijd. 
pro  pane  et  potu  datis  semicommunariis  dum  curabant  publi- 

cam  exhibere  comediam,  xxd. 

1541.  A  '  tympanista '  was  hired  at  Christmas  and  comedies  acted. 


250  APPENDIX  E 

*554«  3°  Ian-  in  adventu  [dom.  Matravers]  ad  tragedias  per  duas 
noctes,  xlij8  viijd  ob. 

Pro  epulis  datis  sociis  post  exactas  tragedias,  x«  ixd. 
The  only  Elizabethan  entry  I  need  note  is : — 

1561.  Sol.  Joyner,  pictori,  depingenti  portenta  religiosorum  in  spec- 
taculo  Baulino,  iij8  iiijd  .  .  .  depingenti  nomina  haeresium  in 
spectaculo  (in  aula)  quod  choristarum  moderator  [Richard 
Baull]  ordinavit. 

VI.  SHREWSBURY  CORPORATION. 

[Extracts  from  the  Bailiffs*  accounts  by  Owen  and  Blakeway,  Hist,  of 
Shrewsbury  (1825),  i.  262,  267,  275,  284,  290,  292,  325  sqq. ;  and  by  W.  D. 
Macray  in  Hist.  MSS.  xv.  10.  25.  It  is  not  always  clear  to  which  calendar 
year  an  entry  belongs.  The  accounts  run  from  Michaelmas  to  Michaelmas, 
but  Owen  and  Blakeway  generally  quote  entries  under  one  calendar  year 
and  sometimes  under  one  regnal  year.] 

1401.    *  Histriones '  of  the  Prince  and  the  Earl  of  Stafford. 

'  Menstralles '  of  the  Earls  of  Worcester  and  Stafford. 
1409.    Players  [i.  e.  in  these  early  accounts,  '  histriones/  not '  lusores'j 
of  the  countess  and  earl  of  Arundel,  of  Lord  Powis,  Lord 
Talbot,  and  Lord  Furnivall. 

Players  '  in  honorem  villae '  at  the  marriage  of  a  cousin  of 
David  Holbache. 

1437.  Minstrels  of  earl  of  Stafford. 

1438.  Livery  to  two  town  minstrels,  'voc.  waytes! 

1442.    Some  town    minstrels    called   '  histriones/     In    same    year, 

'  histrionibus  regis/  and  in  subsequent  years  *  histrionibus  '  of 

earl  of  Shrewsbury  and  others,  including  one '  voc.  Trumpet/ 

1450.    Players  and  minstrels  at  coming  of  duke  of  York  from  Ireland. 

1457.    Denaria  soluta  uni  ministrallo  domini  principis  [Edward]  pro 

honestate  villae. 

Quatuor  ministrallis  domini  ducis  de  Bukyngham. 
Duobus  ministrallis  d'ni  de  Powys. 
i  lagenae  vini  de  Ruyn  dictis  ministrallis. 
Denaria  data  uni  ministrallo  d'ni  principis  et  suo  puero. 
iiij.  ministrallis  d'ni  ducis  de  Eboraco. 
iv.  ministrellis  d'ni  ducis  de  Excestro. 
1474.    Regardo  ministrallis  d'ni  ducis  de  Clarence. 
1478.    Waltero  Harper  ministrallo  d'ni  principis. 

Regardo  dato   uni  ministrallo   ducis    Gloucestris  vocato  le 
Taborer. 


EXTRACTS  FROM  ACCOUNT  BOOKS        251 

Regardo  sex  ministrallis  d'ni  Regis. 
1479.    Soluta  pro  liberata  ministrallorum  vocatorum  Wayts,  quilibet 

eorum. 
Soluta  pro  conductu  unius  ministralli  vocati  Wayt  a  villa  de 

Norhampton  usque  Salop. 
Soluta  pro  quodam  regardo  dato  uni  ministrallo  d'ni  Regis  via 

elemosinaria  causa  eius  paupertatis  et  aetatis. 
[From  this  point  histriones  replaces  ministralli  in  the  accounts.] 
1483.    Soluta  pro  quodam  regardo  dato  sex  histrionibus  domini  Regis 

pro  honestate  villae. 
Pro  vino  dato  dictis  histrionibus  in  praesencia  ballivorum  et 

aliorum  proborum  hominum  pro  honestate  villae. 
Pro  liberatura  communium   histrionum  vocatorum   le  Wayts 

villae. 
Soluta  ursenario  domini  Regis  pro  honestate  villae. 

1495.  Pro  vino  dato  domino  Principi  [Arthur]  ad  ludum  in  quarell. 

1496.  Wine  given  to  the  minstrels  of  our  Lord  the  King. 

To  the  King's  minstrels. 

To  the  Queen's  minstrels. 

To  the  Prince's  players. 

To  the  Earl  of  Derby's  players. 

To  the  Earl  of  Shrewsbury's  players. 

1503.    In  regardo  dato  ij  Walicis  histrionibus  domini  Regis. 
1510.    '  Lusoribus '  in  feast  of  Pentecost. 

'  Histrionibus '  of  Earl  of  Shrewsbury  and  King. 

1516.  In  vino,  pomis,  waffers,  et  aliis   novellis   datis  et  expenditis 

super  abbatem  Salop  et  famulos  suos  ad  ludum  et  demon- 
strationem  martiriorum  Felicianae  et  Sabinae  in  quarera 
post  muros. 

In  regardo  dato  lusoris  eiusdem  martirii  tune  temporis  hoc 
anno. 

1517.  Regardo  ursinario  comitis  Oxoniae. 

In  regardo  dato  ursinario  domini  Regis  pro  agitacione  bestia- 
rum  suarum  ultra  denarios  tune  ibidem  collectos. 

1518.  In  vino  expendito  super  tres  reges  Coloniae  equitantibus  in 

interludio  pro  solacio  villae  Salop  in  festo  Pentecost. 
1520.    Ralph  Hubard,  minstrel  of  Lord  de  '  Mountegyle/ 

In  regardo  dato  iiijor  interlusoribus  comitis  Arundele  ostenden- 
tibus  ballivis  et  comparibus  suis  diversa  interludia. 

Et  in  vino  dato  eis  et  aliis  extraneis  personis  intuentibus  inter- 
ludia, ultra  denarios  collectos. 


252  APPENDIX  E 

In    regardo  dato  histrionibus    lohannis  Talbot  militis  pro 

melodia  eorum  facta  in  presencia  ballivorum. 
In  regardo  dato  iij  histrionibus  comitis  Arundelle  pro  honestate 

villae  Salop. 

In  regardo  dato  Benet  &  Welles  histrionibus  comitis  Salop. 
In  regardo  ij  histrionibus  comitissae  de  Derby  pro  honestate 

villae  Salop. 
Et  in  vino  expendito  per  ballivos  et  compares  suos  audientes 

melodiam  eorum. 

Histrionibus  domini  Regis  ex  consuetudine. 
In  regardo  dato  et  vino  expendito  super  Willelmum  More 

histrionem  domini  Regis  eo  quod  est  caecus  et  principalis 

citherator  Angliae. 

1521.  Regardo  dato    M.  Brandon    iofculatori    domini    Regis    pro 

honestate  villae 
Et  in  vino  expendito  par  ballivos  &  compares  suos  videntes 

lusum  et  ioculationem   dicti    ioculatoris  ultra   ij  denarios 

collectos  de  qualibet  persona  villae  extraneis  exceptis. 
Soluta  pro  una  roba  nova  depicta,  sotularibus  &  aliis  neces- 

sariis  regardis  &  expensis  factis  super  Ricardum  Glasyer, 

abbatem  de  Marham,  pro  honestate  &  iocunditate  villae. 
In  regardo  dato  portitori  communis  campanae  circa  villam  pro 

proclamacione  facta  pro  attendencia  facienda  super  abbatem 

de  Marham  tempore  Mail  hoc  anno. 

In  regardo  dato  iiijor  histrionibus  domini  Regis  de  consuetudine. 
Histrionibus  comitis  Derby. 
Regardo  dato  ursinario  ducis  Suffolke  ultra  2g.  3d.  de  pecu- 

niis  collectis  de  circumstantibus  ad  agitacionem  ursarum 

suarum. 
Pro  ursinario  domini  marchionis  Dorsett. 

1522.  '  Ursenarius '  of  duke  of  Suffolk. 

In  regardo  dato  ioculatori  domini  Regis. 

1524.  '  Histrio '  of  Henry  Knight. 

'  Histriones '  of  Earl  of  Derby. 
'  Histriones '  of  Lord  Mount  Egle. 

1525.  In  regardo  dato  iiij  histrionibus  comitis  Arundell. 

Et  in  vino  expendito  super  ballivos  &  compares  suos  audientes 

melodiam  et  ludentes  inspicientes. 
In  regardo  dato  iiijor  interlusoribus  ducis  Suffolk. 
Interludes  of  the  Lady  Princess,  and  wine  spent  at  hearing 

their  interludes. 


EXTRACTS  FROM  ACCOUNT  BOOKS        253 

1526.  In  regardo  dato  custodi  camel!  domini  Regis  ostendenti  ballivis 

et  comparibus  suis  ioca  illius  cameli. 
Interlusoribus  dominae  principissae. 
Ralph  Hubard,  minstrel  of  Lord  de  *  Mountegyle/  with  one 

Lokkett. 

1527.  In  regardo  dato  lusoribus  villae  tempore  veris  et  mensis  Mail 

pro  iocunditate  villae. 
Interlusoribus  dominae  principissae. 
Interluders  of  our  Lord  the  King. 
'  Histriones/  of  Sir  John  Talbot,  Arthur  Neuton  and  Sir  John 

Lyngen. 

1528.  '  Ursenarius '  of  marquis  of  Exeter. 

1 530.  '  Histrio '  of  baron  of  Burford. 

1531.  Data  interlusoribus  dominae  principissae. 

1533.   Soluta  Thomae  Eton  pro  factura  unius  mansionis  de  duobus 

stagiis  pro  domino  president!  [Bishop  of  Exeter]  et  ballivis 

tempore  ludi  septimana  Pentecostes. 
Et  in  regardo  dato  lusoribus  ad  dictum  lusum  et  pro  repara- 

cione  ornamentorum  suorum. 
In  vino  dato  domino  president!  &  ballivis  in  mansione  sua 

tempore  lusi  in  Quarrera  pone  muros. 
In  regardo  dato  lusoribus  &  interlusoribus  domini  Regis  osten- 

dentibus  &  offerentibus  ioca  sua. 
Et  in   vino  expendito    super  eos  et    comitivam  ballivorum 

&  comparium  suorum  audientium  &  supervidentium  lusum 

&  melodiam  eorum. 
In  expensis  factis  in  garniamentis,  liberatis  et  histrion[ibus] 

pro  domino  abbate  de  Marham  tempore  mensis  Maii  pro 

honestate  villae  hoc  anno. 
I53S*   la  regardo  m[agistro]  Brandon,  ioculatori  domini  Regis. 

In  regardo  dato  histrionibus  extraneis  melodiam  et  cantilenas 

eorum  coram  ballivis  et  comparibus  pronunciantibus. 
1538*    Data  in  regardo  lusoribus  domini  privati  sigilli. 

Data  in  regarda  lusoribus  domini  principis  [Edward]. 
Expendita  super  lusores  domini  principis,  domini  privati  sigilli, 

domini  visitatoris .  . .  pro  honestate  villae. 
'Histriones*  of  Sir  Thomas  Cornewall  and  of  Thomas  New- 
port. 
Rogero  Philipps,  goldsmyth,  pro  argento   et   emendacione 

colarium  histrionum  villae. 
'  Ursenarius '  of  marquis  of  Exeter. 


254  APPENDIX  E 

1540.  Data  in  regardo  quibusdam  interlusoribus  de  Wrexam  luden- 

tibus    coram  ballivis    et    comparibus    suis    in    vino    tune 

expendito. 
'Item,  Mr.  Bayleffes  left  on  pd  more  the  same  day  at  aftr 

the  play. 

*  Item,  the  vj  men  spend  appon  the  kyng's  pleyers  in  wyne. 
'Item,  there  was  left  on  pd  by  Mr.  Bayleffs  w*  my  Lorde 

Prinssys  plears  on  Sonday  after  Seint  Bartlaumew  day. 
'Item,  there  was  sent  them  the  nyght  to  supper  a  po1  of  red 

and  a  po1  of  claret. 
'  Item,  Mr.  Bayleffs  left  on  pd  on  Sonday  after  owre  Lade  day 

wyth  my  Lord  Prinsys  plears/ 
Cuidam  iugulatori  ludenti  coram  ballivis. 

1541.  '  Ursenario  duels  Norfoxiae/ 

1542.  In  vino  dato  interlusoribus  post  interlusum  in  cimitirio  sancti 

Cedde  coram  commissariis  domini  Regis  ballivis  et  aliis. 
Cuidem  ursuario  de  la  Northewiche. 
Ursiatori  praepotentis  viri  comitis  Derby  ad  ij  tempora. 
Pro  reparacione  et  pictura  ornamentorum  abbatis  de  Mayvole. 
Et  soluta  pro  una  toga  de  nova  facta  dicto  abbati  de  Mayvole. 
Soluta   Ricardo  Glasier  pro  labore  suo  in  ludendo  abbatem 

de  Mardall. 

1548.  Interlusoribus  ludentibus  cum  domino  abbate  de  Marall. 
Soluta  lohanni  Mason,  peynter,  pro  pictura  togae  pro  dicto 

domino  de  Marrall. 

In  regardo  istrionibus  ludentibus  ante  viros  armatos. 
Cuidam    istrioni    ludenti    ante    viros   equiles   equitantes    ad 

Scociam. 

1549.  James  Lockwood  '  servienti  et  gestatori  domini  Regis/ 
Interludes  of  Sir  John  Bridges  and  of  Sir  Edward  Braye. 
William  Taylor,  and  others,  interluders  of  the  town  of  Salop, 

playing  there  in  the  month  of  May. 

'  Histriones '  of  William  Sheldon  and  of  Lord  Ferrers  [last  use 
of  term  histrio]. 

1552.  Interluders  of  Lord  Russell. 

Soluta   domino  de   abbott   Marram  et  pro   apparatu  eorum 
videlicet  pro  calciamentis  tunicis  et  aliis  vestibus. 

1553.  Expendita  per  ballivos   et   associates   suos   die    lunae   in  le 

Whitson  wuck  post  visum  lusum. 

Pro    tunicis    et    aliis   vestimentis   ac   pistura   eorundem  pro 
Robyn  Hood. 


EXTRACTS  FROM  ACCOUNT  BOOKS   255. 

In  vino  dato  eisdem  interlusoribus. 

In  regardo  le  tomlers. 
1554.    In  regardo  Thomae  Staney  le  jugler. 

Wyett  le  gester. 

1559.    Regardo  lusiatoribus  domini  Stafford. 
1561.    Item,  gyvyn  unto  my  lord  Wyllybe's  playarys  in  reward. 

Item,  spent  at  the  gullet  on  the  saem  playarys. 

1565.  To  Master  Baly  Pursell  with  the  Quenes  players. 

1566.  Yeven  Mr.  Justes  Throgmerton's  mynstrell. 

1574.    Paid  and  geven  to  my  L.  Sandwayes  man,  the  berwart. 

The    players    of   noblemen    and    others    and   ber-wards    of 

noblemen   and  mynstrells    of   noblemen,   this   yere,   viuu 

x8  viijd. 

1576.    Leid  out  to  my  lord  of  Derby  and  my  lord  Staffart's  musicions. 
1582.    Bestowed  on  her  Majesty's  players  this  yere. 
1591.    To  my  lord  of  Derby's  musysyons,  and  to  the  erle  of  Woster's 

players  ...  to  my  L.  Beachem  men,  beinge  players. 

[From  Books  of  Council  Orders  in  Hist.  MSS.  xv.  13,  16,  18.] 

1556.  1 6  May.  The  bailiffs  to  set  forward  the  stage  play  this  next 
Whitsontide  for  the  worship  of  the  town  and  not  to  disburse 
above  £5  about  the  furniture  of  the  play. 

1570.  8  July.  Lease  of  pasture  'behind  the  walles,  exceptinge  the 
Quarrell  where- the  plases  have  bine  accustomyd  to  be  usyd/ 

r575-  *7  Juty'  Five  marks  to  be  given  to  Mr.  Churchyard  for  his 
pains  taken  in  setting  forth  the  show  against  the  Queen's 
coming,  being  sent  hither  by  the  Lord  President. 

VII.  THE  HOWARDS  OF  STOKE-BY-NAYLAND,  ESSEX. 

[From  accounts  of  Sir  John  Howard,  in  Manners  and  Household 
Expenses  (Roxburghe  Club,  1841),  325,  511.] 

2  May,  1465.     Item  that  he  [my  master]  delyverd   the  pleyers   at 

Moleyns  [a  servant  of  Sir  John's]  weddynge,  ijs. 
12  Jan.  1466.    And  the  sonday  nexte  after  the  xij  day,  I  jafe  to  the 

pleyeres  of  Stoke,  ij8. 

[From  accounts  of  John,  Lord  Howard,  afterwards  Duke  of  Norfolk,  in 
Household  Books  of  John,  Duke  of  Norfolk,  and  Thomas^  Earl  of  Surrey 
(ed.  Collier,  Roxburghe  Club,  1844),  104,  145,  146,  148,  149,  202,  336,  339.] 

29  Aug.  1481.     I  paid  to  the  pleirs  of  Turton  [Thorington]  Strete, 


256  APPENDIX  E 

26  Dec.  1481.    Item,  the  xxvj  day  of  December,  my  Lord  toke  the 

Plaiers  of  Kokesale  [Coggeshall],  iij»  iiijd. 

27  Dec.  1481.    Item,  to  the  Plaiers  of  Hadley  [Hadleigh],  and  the 

olde  man  and  ij.  children,  vj»  viijd. 

7  Jan.  1482.    Item,  to  the  Plaiers  of  Esterforde,  iij§  iiijd. 

9  Jan.  1482.  Item,  to  Senclowe,  that  he  paid  to  my  Lord  of  Essex 
[Henry  Bourchier]  men,  plaiers,  xxd. 

Thei  are  of  Canans. 
22  May,  1482.    Item,  that  my  Lord  yaffe  to  the  cherche  on  Whitson 

Monday  at  the  pley,  x8. 

25  Dec.  1482.  Item,  on  Crystemas  day,  my  Lord  gaff  to  iiij  pleyers 
of  my  lord  of  Gloucestres,  iij«  iiijd. 

Item,  the  same  day,  my  Lord  gaff  to  iiij  pleyers  of  Coksale, 
iij*  iiijd. 

9  Jan.  1483.  Item,  the  same  day,  my  Lord  paid  to  Garard,  of  Sud- 
bury,  for  all  suche  stoffe  as  folewyth,  that  he  bought  for  the 
Dysgysing  [a  schedule  of  paper,  gunpowder,  '  arsowde/  pack- 
thread, &c.,  follows].  Summe  totall,  xxj»  ob. 

[From  accounts  of  Thomas,  Earl  of  Surrey,  in  Household  Books  (ut 
sufra),  515,  517,  519.] 

20  Dec.  1490.  Payd  for  xviij  yardes  of  lynen  cloth,  that  M.  Leyn- 
thorpe  had  for  dysgysyng,  at  iiijd  the  yard,  .  .  .  vj»  iiijd. 

[Other  expenses  for  the  disguising  follow.] 
27  Dec.  1490.    Item,  payd  to  the  playars  of  Chemsford,  vj*.  viijd. 
2  Jan.  1491.    Item,  the  said  day,  in  reward  to  the  panget  [pageant  (?)], 
iij«  iiijd. 

Item,  payd  to  -  ,  when  he  went  to  Bury  to  fach  stuff  for 
dygysers  on  Saynt  Stevens  day,  xvjd. 

8  Jan.  1492.    Item,  in  reward  to  the  players  of  Lanam  [Lavenham], 

xl«. 

[The  Howard  accounts  also  include  many  payments  for  minstrelsy, 
&c.  The  Duke  of  Norfolk  kept  singers,  a  harper,  children  of  the 
chapel,  and  two  fools,  «  Tom  Fool  '  and  Richard,  '  the  fool  of  the 
kitchen.'] 

VIII.  THE  ENGLISH  COURT. 

[From  Rymer,  Focdera,  x.  387.  A  memorandum  de  strenis,  liberatis 
et  expensisy  at  Christmas,  1427.] 


A  Jakke  Travail  et  ses  compaignons  feisans  diverses  jeuues  et  entre- 
ludes  dedeins  le  feste  de  Noell  devant  notre  dit  sire  le  roi,  4  lib. 


EXTRACTS  FROM  ACCOUNT  BOOKS   257 

Et  as  autres  jewels  de  Abyndon  feisantz  autres  entreludes  dedeins  le 
dit  festede  Noel,  20  sol. 

[Extracted  by  Collier,  i.  50,  from  the  Household  Book  of  Henry  VII, 
1491-1505,  and  the  Book  of  King's  Payments,  1506-9.  I  cannot  identify 
the  former;  the  latter  appears  to  be  vol.  214  of  the  Miscellanea  of  the 
Treasury  of  the  Receipt  of  the  Exchequer  (Scargill-Bird,  Guide  to  the 
Public  Records^  228).  I  omit,  here  and  below,  entries  referring  to  min- 
strelsy, disguisings,  and  plays  by  the  King's  players  and  the  Chapel. 
Probably  some  of  the  performances  were  given  at  London  ;  others  before 
the  King  on  progress.  I  have  corrected  some  of  Collier's  dates  from  the 
similar  entries  in  Bentley,  Excerpta  Historica,  85,  taken  from  a  transcript 
in  B.  M.  Add.  MS.  7099.] 

i  Jan.  1492.    To  my  Lorde  of  Oxon  pleyers,  in  rewarde,  £i. 
7  Jan.  1493.     To    my    Lorde    of   Northumberlande    Pleyers,    in 
rewarde,  £i. 

1  Jan.  1494.     To  four  Pleyers  of  Essex  in  rewarde,  £i. 

To  the  Pleyers  of  Wymborae  Minster,  £i. 

6  Jan.  1494.  To  the  Frenche  Pleyers  for  a  rewarde,  £i. 

31  Dec.  1494.  To  3  Pleyers  of  Wycombe  in  rewarde,  13*  4*. 

4  Jan.  1495.  To  the  Frenshe  Pleyers  in  rewarde,  £2. 

20  July,  1498.  To  the  pleyers  of  London  in  rewarde,  io§. 

i4june,  1499.     To  the  pleyers  with  Marvells,  £4. 

6  Aug.  1501.  To  the  Pleyers  at  Myles  End,  3*  4^. 

2  Jan.  1503.  To  the  Pleyers  of  Essex  in  rewarde,  £i. 

20  May,  1505.    To  the  Players  of  Kingeston  toward  the  bilding  of 
the  churche  steple,  in  almasse,  3*  4d. 

1  Jan.  1506.     To  the  players  that  played  afore  the  Lord  Stewarde  in 

the  Hall  opon  Sonday  nyght,  6s  8d. 
To  my  lorde  Princes  players  that  played  in  hall  on 

new-yeres  even,  ib». 

25  Dec.  1506.    To  the  Players  that  played  affore  the  Lord  Stewarde 
in  the  Hall  opon  Tewesday  nyght,  lo8. 

2  Jan.  1509.    To  my  lord  of  Buckingham's  pleyers  that  playd  in 

the  Hall  at  Grenewich,  6«  8d. 

[Extracted  by  Collier,  i.  76,  from  the  Book  of  King's  Payments  for 
1509-17,  now  vol.  215  of  the  Miscellanea  of  the  Treasury  of  the  Receipt 
of  the  Exchequer.  The  document  is  more  fully  analysed  in  Brewer,  ii. 
1441.  It  is  an  account  of  the  Treasurer  of  the  Chamber.] 

6  Jan.  1512.  To  the  Players  that  cam  out  of  Suffolke,  that  playd 
affore  the  Lorde  Stewarde  in  the  Kings  Hall  opon  Monday 
nyght,  13^  4*. 


258  APPENDIX  F 

i  Jan.  1515.    To  the  Erie  of  Wiltyshires  playres,  that  shulde  have 
played  in  the  Kings  Hall  oppon  Thursday  at  nyght,  in  rewarde, 

13*  4d- 
i  Jan.  1516.    To  the  Erie  of  Wilshire's  players,  13*  4d. 

[From  Accounts  of  Treasurer  of  Chamber  in  Trevelyan  Papers  (C.S.), 
i.  146,  161,  174.] 

i  Jan.  1530.     To  the  Prince's  plaiers. 
i  Jan.  1531.    To  the  Princes  pleyers. 

Item,  paid  to  certain  Players  of  Coventrye,  as  in  wey  of  the 
Kinges  rewarde,  for  playnge  in  the  Corte  this  last  Cristmas. 
i  Jsm.  1532.    To  the  Princesse  plaiers. 


MINSTREL  GUILDS 

A.  FRANCE. 

1.  Arras  y  +1105. 

The  famous  Put  d*  Arras  (vols.  i.  p.  376,  ii.  p.  88)  was  in  a  sense 
a  minstrel  guild.  According  to  tradition  a  plague  was  stayed  by  a 
simultaneous  apparition  of  the  Virgin  in  a  dream  to  two  minstrels, 
which  led  to  the  acquisition  of  'le  joyel  d' Arras/  the  miraculous 
'cierge  de  notre  Dame/  This  was  about  1105,  and  the  result  was 
the  foundation  of  the  Confrtrie  or  Caritf  de  N.  D.  des  Ardents,  which 
afterwards  developed  into  the  put.  This  was  not  confined  to  minstrels, 
but  they  were  predominant.  The  Statutes  say, '  Ceste  carit£  est  estorde 
des  jogleors,  et  les  jogleors  en  sont  signors  V  The  objects  of  the  puz\ 
however,  were  religious,  social,  and  literary.  It  was  not  a  craft  guild, 
such  as  grew  up  two  centuries  later. 

2.  Parts,  1321. 

Ordinances  were  made  in  1321  '&  Tacort  du  commun  des  menestreus 
et  menestrelles,  jougleurs  et  jougleresses '  of  Paris  for  the  reformation 
of  their  'mestier/  and  registered  with  the  provost  of  Paris  in  1341. 
They  chiefly  regulate  the  employment  of  minstrels  within  the  city. 
The  '  mestres  du  dit  mestier '  are  to  be  '  ii  ou  iii  preudes  hommes ' 
appointed  by  the  provost  on  behalf  of  the  King.  A  number  of 
'  gu&es '  and  other  minstrels  sign,  beginning  with  '  Pariset,  menestrel 
le  roy/  and  ending  with  'Jaque  le  Jougleur/  As  a  possible  head 
of  the  '  mestier '  is  named  '  Ii  prevost  de  Saint- Julian/  This  seems 
to  contemplate  the  foundation  of  the  hospice  et  confrtrte  under  the 

1  Guy,  xxvii. 


MINSTREL  GUILDS  259 

patronage  of  SS.  Julian  and  Genesius,  and  in  close  connexion  with 
the  'mestier/  which  actually  took  place  1328-35.  But  in  the  later 
Statutes  of  1407  the  head  of  the  guild  is  called  the  'roy  des  m^nes- 
triers/  and  as  by  this  time  the  guild  seems  to  claim  some  authority 
over  the  whole  of  France,  it  is  probable  that  this  *  roy '  was  identical 
with  the  '  roy  des  menestreuls  du  royaume  de  France/  a  title  which 
occurs  in  various  documents  from  1338  onwards.  He  may  also  have 
been  identical  with  the  'roy'  of  the  King'$  household  minstrels 
(cf.  p.  239).  The  Paris  guild  lasted  until  the  suppression  of  all 
such  privileged  bodies  in  1776*. 

3.  Chauny. 

The  corporation  of  Mes  Trompettes  jougleurs'  of  Chauny  was 
founded  during  the  fifteenth  century.  This  town  claimed  to  provide 
batelturs  for  all  the  north  of  France  *. 

B.  ENGLAND. 

There  are  two  early  jurisdictions  over  minstrelsy,  which  are  not 
strictly  of  the  nature  of  guilds, 

i.  Chester. 

Tradition  has  it  that  1 1210  Randal  Blundeville,  Earl  of  Chester, 
besieged  by  the  Welsh  in  Rhuddlan  Castle,  was  relieved  by  Roger  Lacy, 
constable  of  Cheshire,  with  a  mob  of  riff-raff  from  Chester  Midsummer 
fair.  Randal  gave  to  Lacy,  and  Lacy's  son  John  gave  to  his  steward 
Hugh  de  Button  and  his  heirs  the  '  magistratum  omnium  leccatorum 
et  meretricum  totius  Cestriae.1  The  fact  of  the  jurisdiction  is 
undoubted.  It  was  reserved  by  the  charter  to  the  London  guild 
in  1469,  claimed  by  Laurence  de  Dutton  in  1499,  admitted  upon  an 
action  of  quo  warranto  as  a  right  c  from  time  immemorial/  further 
reserved  in  the  first  Vagrant  Act  (1572)  which  specifically  included 
minstrels,  and  in  the  successive  Acts  of  1597,  1603,  1628,  1641,  1713, 
1740,  1744.  It  lapsed  when  this  last  Act  was  repealed  in  1822.  Up  to 
1756  the  heir  of  Dutton  regularly  held  his  curia  Minstralciae  at  Chester 
Midsummer  fair,  and  issued  licences  to  fiddlers  in  the  city  and  county 
for  a  fee  of  4^.,  afterwards  raised  to  25.  6<t.  Thomas  Dutton 
(1569-1614),  under  puritan  influences,  inserted  a  proviso  against 
piping  and  dancing  on  Sundays9. 

1  B.  Bernhard,  Reck,  sur  THist.  de  *  Morris,  12,  346;  Rymer,  xi.  643  ; 
la    Corp.   des   Minttriers   ou  Joueurs  Ribton -Turner,  109, 129, 133,  148, 182, 
a"  Instruments  de  la  Ville  de  Paris  (Bibl.  aoi  ;  Onnerod,  Hist,  of  Cheshire,  i.  36 ; 
de  r£cole  des  CJiartes,  iii.  377  ;  iv.  525  ;  Memorials  of  the  Duttons  (1901),  9, 
v.  354,  339)-  209. 

2  Julleville,  Les  Com.  238. 

S2 


260  APPENDIX  F 

2.  Tutbury. 

Letters  patent  of  John  of  Gaunt  dated  1380  and  confirmed  by  an 
'  inspeximus '  of  Henry  VI  in  1443  assigned  '  le  roy  des  ministralx ' 
in  the  honour  of  Tutbury  to  arrest  all  minstrels  within  the  honour 
not  doing  service  on  the  feast  of  the  Assumption.  It  was  a  custom 
that  the  prior  of  Tutbury  should  provide  a  bull  for  a  bull-running  by 
the  assembled  minstrels  on  this  feast.  The  court  was  still  held  by 
an  annual  '  king  of  the  fiddlers/  with  the  steward  and  bailiff  of  the 
honour  (including  Staffs.,  Derby,  Notts.,  Leicester,  and  Warwick),  at 
the  end  of  the  seventeenth  century,  and  the  minstrels  claimed  to  be 
exempt,  like  those  of  Chester,  from  vagrancy  legislation.  But  their 
rights  were  not  reserved,  either  by  the  Charter  of  1469  or  the  Vagrant 
Acts  \ 

The  first  English  craft  guild  of  minstrels  is  later  by  a  century  and 
a  half  than  that  of  Paris. 

3.  London. 

A  charter  of  Edward  IV  (1469),  *ex  querelosa  insinuatione 
dilectorum  nobis  Walteri  Haliday,  marescalli  [and  seven  others] 
ministrallorum  nostrorum/  declares  that  'nonnulli  rudes  Agricolae 
et  Artifices  diversarum  Misterarum  Regni  nostri  Angliae  finxerunt 
se  fore  Ministrallos.  'Quorum  aliqui  Liberatam  nostram,  eis  minime 
datam,  portarunt,  seipsos  etiam  fingentes  esse  Ministrallos  nostros 
proprios.  Cuius  quidem  Liberatae  ac  dictae  Artis  sive  Occupationis 
Ministrallorum  colore  in  diversis  Partibus  Regni  nostri  praedicti 
grandes  Pecuniarum  Exactiones  de  Ligefis  nostris  deceptive  colligunt 
et  recipiunt.'  Hence  illegitimate  competition  with  the  real  minstrels, 
decay  of  the  art,  and  neglect  of  agriculture.  The  charter  then  does 
two  things.  It  makes  the  royal  minstrels  a  corporation  with  a 
marshall  elected  by  themselves,  and  it  puts  them  at  the  head  of 
a  *  Fraternitatem  sive  Gildam'  of  minstrels  already  existing  in  the 
chapel  of  the  Virgin  in  St.  Paul's,  and  in  the  royal  free  chapel  of 
St.  Anthony.  All  minstrels  in  the  country  are  to  join  this  guild 
or  be  suppressed.  It  is  to  have  two  custodes  and  to  make  statutes 
and  ordinances.  The  jurisdiction  of  Dutton  over  Chester  minstrels 
is,  as  already  stated,  reserved f.  A  '  serviens '  or  *  serjeant '  seems  to 
have  been  an  officer  of  the  guild 8.  With  this  exception  nothing  more 
is  heard  of  it  until  1594,  when  a  dispute  as  to  the  office  of  the  Master 

1  Carta    le  Roy  de   Ministralx,  in  x.  §  69. 

Dngdale,  Monasticon  (1822),  iii.  397,  *  Rymer  (1710),  xi.  642,  (1741)  v.2. 

from     Tutbury   Register   in    Coll.    of  169. 

Arm* ;  Plot,  Hist,  of  Staffs.  (1686),  ch.  •  Percy,  373. 


MINSTREL  GUILDS  261 

of  the  Musicians'  Company  called  for  the  intervention  of  the  Lord 
Keeper1/  In  1604  the  Company  received  a  new  charter,  which  gave 
it  jurisdiction  within  the  city  and  a  radius  of  three  miles  from  its 
boundaries.  It  was  further  restricted  to  the  city  itself  under  Charles  I. 
It  still  exists  as  the  Corporation  of  the  Master,  Wardens,  and 
Commonalty  of  the  Art  or  Science  of  the  Musicians  of  London *. 

The  London  guild  would  appear,  from  its  peculiar  relation  to  the 
royal  household  minstrels,  and  its  claim  to  jurisdiction  throughout 
the  country,  to  have  been  modelled  upon  that  of  Paris.  This  claim 
was  evidently  not  maintained,  and  in  fact  at  least  three  other  local 
guilds  can  be  shown  to  have  existed  in  the  sixteenth  century. 
A  search,  which  I  have  not  undertaken,  would  probably  readily 
discover  more. 

4.  Canterbury. 

Ordinances,  dated  1526,  of  the  'felowshyp  of  the  craft  and  mystery 
of  mynstrells '  give  the  prerogative  right  to  perform  in  the  city  to  the 
members  of  this  body,  saving  the  privileges  of  the  city  waits,  and 

*  the   King's   mynstrells,  the   Queane's,  my   Lord   Prince's,  or   any 
honorable  or  wurshipfull  mann's  mynstrells  of  thys  realmeV 

5.  Beverley. 

An  order  of  the  Governors  of  the  city  (1555)  recites  an  old  custom 

*  since  Athelstan '  of  the  choice  by  minstrels  between  Trent  and  Tweed 
of  aldermen  of  their  fraternities  during  Rogation  days,  and  renews 
orders  for  the  '  fraternity  of  our  Lady  of  the  read  arke  in  Beverley/ 
The  statutes  deal  with  the  employment  of  minstrels  in  Beverley,  and 
with  their  '  castells '  at  the  Rogation-day  procession.    A  new  member 
must  be  '  mynstrell  to  some  man  of  honour  or  worship  or  waite  of 
some  towne  corporate  or  other  ancient  town  or  else  of  such  honestye 
and  conyng  as  shalbe  thought  laudable  and  pleasant  to  the  hearers/ 
It  is  claimed  that  such  are  excluded  from  the  'Kyng's  acts  where 
they  speake  of  vacabonds  and  valiant  beggers/     Quite  in  the  spirit  of 
the  London  charter  of  1469  it  is  ordered  that  *  no  myler  shepherd 
or  of  other  occupation  or  husbandman  or  husbandman  servant '  shall 
assume  the  functions  of  a  minstrel  outside  his  own  parish4.     The 
earliest  notice  of  this  guild  in  the  Beverley  archives  seems  to  be  in 
1557 8,  but  the  terms  of  the  order  and  the  existence  of  pillars  put  up 

*  Analytical  Index  to  Remembrancia         *  Civis,  No.  xxi. 

of  the  City  of  London,  92.  4  Poulson,  Beverlac,  i.  302  (probably 

*  Grove,  Diet,  of  Music,  s.v.  Musi-  from  Lansd.  MS  896,  f.  180). 
cians;  W.  C.  Hazlitt,  Livery  Companies  5  Leach,  Beverley  AfSS.  179. 
of  London. 


262  APPENDIX  G 

by  the  minstrels  in  fifteenth-century  churches  in  Beverley1  point  to 
some  informal  earlier  association. 

6.  York. 

A  craft  of  Mynstrells  certainly  existed  by  1561,  in  which  year  they 
undertook  the  pageant  of  Herod  at  the  Corpus  Christi  plays2. 


THOMAS  DE  CABHAM 

[The  following  extract  from  a  Penitential  formerly  ascribed  to  John  of 
Salisbury,  but  now  to  Thomas  de  Cabham,  Bishop  of  Salisbury  (t  1313),  is 
printed  by  B.  Haur^au,  Notices  et  Extraits  de  Manuscrits,  xxiv.  2,  284, 
from  B.  N.  MSS.  Lat.  3218  and  3529*,  and  by  F.  Guessard  and 
C.  Grandmaison,  Huon  de  Bordeaux,  vi,  from  B.  N.  Sorbonne  MS.  1552, 
f.  71.  The  two  texts  differ  in  several  points.  According  to  Gautier,  ii.  22, 
there  are  several  similar  thirteenth-century  Penitentialsy  and  it  is  difficult 
to  say  which  was  the  original.  The  doctrine  laid  down  about  minstrels  is 
often  repeated  in  later  treatises.  See  e.  g.  a  passage  from  the  fifteenth- 
century  Lejardin  des  Nobles  in  P.  Paris,  Manuscritsfran$ais>  ii.  144.] 

Tria  sunt  histrionum  genera.  Quidam  transformant  et  trans- 
figurant  corpora  sua  per  turpes  saltus  et  per  turpes  gestus,  vel 
denudando  se  turpiter,  vel  induendo  horribiles  larvas,  et  omnes  tales 
damnabiles  sunt,  nisi  reliquerint  officia  sua.  Sunt  etiam  alii  qui  nihil 
operantur,  sed  criminose  agunt,  non  habentes  certum  domicilium,  sed 
sequuntur  curias  magnatum  et  dicunt  opprobria  et  ignominias  de 
absentibus  ut  placeant  aliis.  Tales  etiam  damnabiles  sunt,  quia 
prohibet  Apostolus  cum  talibus  cibum  sumere,  et  dicuntur  tales 
scurrae  vagi,  quia  ad  nihil  utiles  sunt,  nisi  ad  devorandum  et  male- 
dicendum.  Est  etiam  tertium  genus  histrionum  qui  habent  instrumenta 
musica  ad  delectandum  homines,  et  talium  sunt  duo  genera.  Quidam 
enim  frequentant  publicas  potationes  et  lascivas  congregationes,  et 
cantant  ibi  diversas  cantilenas  ut  moveant  homines  ad  lasciviam,  et 
tales  sunt  damnabiles  sicut  alii.  Sunt  autem  alii,  qui  dicuntur  iocu- 
latores,  qui  cantant  gesta  principum  et  vitam  sanctorum,  et  faciunt 
solatia  hominibus  vel  in  aegritudinibus  suis  vel  in  angustiis,  et  non 
faciunt  innumeras*  turpitudines  sicut  faciunt  saltatores  et  saltatrices 
et  alii  qui  ludunt  in  imaginibus  inhonestis  et  faciunt  videri  quasi 
quaedam  fantasmata  per  incajitationes  vel  alio  modo.  Si  autem  non 
faciunt  talia,  sed  cantant  in  instrumentis  suis  gesta  principum  et  alia 

1  Crowest,  244. 

1   York  Plays,  xxxviii,  125;  M.  Sellers  in  Eng.  Hist.  Review,  ix.  284. 


THOMAS  DE  CABHAM  263 

talia  utilia  ut  faciant  solatia  hominibus,  sicut  supradictum  est,  bene 
possunt  sustineri  tales,  sicut  ait  Alexander  papa.  Cum  quidam 
ioculator  quaereret  ab  eo  utrum  posset  salvare  animam  suam  in 
officio  suo,  quaesivit  Papa  ab  eo  utrum  sciret  aliquod  aliud  opus 
unde  vivere  posset:  respOndit  ioculator  quod  non.  Permisit  igitur 
Papa  quod  ipse  viveret  de  officio  suo,  dummodo  abstineret  a  praedictis 
lasciviis  et  turpitudinibus.  Notandum  est  quod  omnes  peccant  morta- 
liter  qui  dant  scurris  vel  leccatoribus  vel  praedictis  histrionibus  aliquid 
de  suo.  Histrionibus  dare  nichil  aliud  est  quam  perdere. 


H 

PRINCELY  PLEASURES  AT  KENILWORTH 

[From  Robert  Laneham's  Letter  (ed.  F.  J.  Furnivall  for  New  Shakspere 
Society  (1890) ;  and  in  Nichols,  Progresses  of  Elizabeth,  i.  420)  describing 
the  entertainment  of  Elizabeth  by  the  Earl  of  Leicester  at  Kenilworth,  in 
July,  1575.  G.  Gascoigne,  ThePrincelye  Pleasures  at  the  Courte  at  Kenel- 
worth  (1576,  in  Nichols,  i.  502),  leaves  undescribed  what  he  calls  the 
'  Coventrie '  (ed.  2,  '  Countrie ')  shows.] 

I.    A  SQUIRE  MINSTREL. 

Mary,  syr,  I  must  tell  yoo :  Az  all  endeuoour  waz  too  mooue  mirth 
&  pastime  (az  I  tolld  ye) :  £euen  so  a  ridiculoous  deuise  of  an  auncient 
minstrell  <fe  hiz  song  waz  prepared  to  haue  been  profferd,  if  m£et  time 
&  place  had  b^en  foound  for  it.  Ons  in  a  woorshipfull  company,  whear, 
full  appointed,  he  recoounted  his  matter  in  sort  az  it  should  haue  been 
vttred,  I  chaunsed  too  be:  what  I  noted,  heer  thus  I  tel  yoo:  A  parson 
very  m£et  seemed  he  for  the  purpoze,  of  a  xlv.  y^ers  olid,  apparelled 
partly  as  he  woold  himself.  Hiz  cap  of:  his  bed  seemly  roounded 
tonster  wyze :  fayr  kemb,  that  with  a  spoonge  deintly  dipt  in  a  littl 
capons  greaz  was  finely  smoothed  too  make  it  shine  like  a  Mallard's 
wing.  Hiz  beard  smugly  shauen :  and  yet  hiz  shyrt  after  the  nu  trink, 
with  ruffs  fayr  starched,  sleeked,  and  glistening  like  a  payr  of  nu 
shooz:  marshalld  in  good  order:  wyth  a  stetting  stick,  and  stoout, 
that  euery  ruff  stood  vp  like  a  wafer  :  a  side  gooun  of  kendall  green, 
after  the  freshnes  of  the  y&r  noow,  gathered  at  the  neck  with  a  narro 
gorget,  fastened  afore  with  a  white  clasp  and  a  keepar  close  vp  to  the 
chin :  but  easily  for  heat  too  vndoo  when  he  list :  Seemly  begyrt  in 
a  red  caddiz  gyrdl:  from  that  a  payr  of  capped  Sheffield  kniuez 
hanging  a  to  side :  Out  of  hiz  bozome  drawne  forth  a  lappet  of  his 


264  APPENDIX  H 

napkin,  edged  with  a  blu  lace,  &  marked  with  a  trulooue,  a  hart, 
and  A.  D.  for  Damian :  for  he  was  but  a  bachelar  yet. 

Hiz  gooun  had  syde  sleeuez  dooun  to  midlegge,  slit  from  the 
shooulder  too  the  hand,  &  lined  with  white  cotten.  Hiz  doobled 
sleeuez  of  blak  woorsted,  vpon  them  a  payr  of  poynets  of  towny 
Chamblet  laced  a  long  the  wreast  wyth  blu  threeden  points,  a  wealt 
toward  the  hand  of  fustian  anapes:  a  payr  of  red  neatherstocks : 
a  pair  of  pumps  on  hiz  f£et,  with  a  cross  cut  at  the  toze  for  cornz : 
not  nu  inddede,  yet  cleanly  blakt  with  soot,  &  shining  az  a  shoing 
horn. 

Aboout  hiz  nek  a  red  rebond  sutable  too  hiz  girdl:  hiz  harp  in 
good  grace  dependaunt  before  him :  hiz  wreast  tyed  to  a  gr£en  lace, 
and  hanging  by :  vnder  the  gorget  of  hiz  gooun  a  fair  flagon  cheyn, 
(pewter,  for)  siluer,  as  a  squier  minstrel  of  Middilsex,  that  trauaild  the 
cuntr^e  this  soommer  seazon  vnto  fairz  &  worshipfull  mens  hoousez : 
from  hiz  chein  hoong  a  Schoochion,  with  mettall  &  cooller  resplendant 
vpon  hiz  breast,  of  the  auncient  armez  of  Islington : 

[Apparently  the  minstrel  was  got  ready ;  but  not  shown.  He  was 
to  have  recited  an  Arthurian  romance  in  verse,] 

II.    THE  COVENTRY  HOCK-TUESDAY  SHOW. 

And  h^ertoo  folloed  az  good  a  sport  (me  thooght)  prezented  in 
an  historicall  ku,  by  certain  good  harted  men  of  Couentr^e,  my 
Lordes  neighboors  thear :  who,  vnderstanding  amoong  them  the  thing 
that  coold  not  bee  hidden  from  ony,  hoow  carefull  and  studious  hiz 
honor  waz,  that  by  all  pleazaunt  recreasions  her  highnes  might  best 
fynd  her  self  wellcom,  &  bee  made  gladsum  and  mery,  (the  ground- 
worke  indeede,  and  foundacion,  of  hiz  Lordship's  myrth  and  gladnesse 
of  vs  all),  made  petition  that  they  moought  renu  noow  their  olid  storiall 
sheaw :  Of  argument,  how  the  Danez  whylom  h^ere  in  a  troubloous 
seazon  wear  for  quietnesse  born  withall,  &  suffeard  in  peas,  that  anon, 
by  outrage  &  importabl  insolency,  abuzing  both  Ethelred,  the  king 
then,  and  all  estates  euerie  whear  beside :  at  the  greuoous  complaint 
&  coounsell  of  Huna,  the  king's  chieftain  in  warz,  on  Saint  Brices 
night,  Ann.  Dom.  1012  (Az  the  book  sayz)  that  falleth  y^erely  on  the 
thirteenth  of  Nouember,  wear  all  dispatcht,  and  the  Ream  rid.  And 
for  becauz  the  matter  mencioneth  how  valiantly  our  English  women 
for  looue  of  their  cuntr^e  behaued  themseluez :  expressed  in  actionz 
&  rymez  after  their  maner,  they  thought  it  moought  mooue  sum  myrth 
to  her  Maiestie  the  rather. 


PRINCELY  PLEASURES  AT  KENILWORTH  265 

The  thing,  said  they,  iz  grounded  on  story,  and  for  pastime  woont 
too  bee  plaid  in  oour  Citee  yderely :  without  ill  exampl  of  mannerz, 
papistry,  or  ony  superstition:  and  elz  did  so  occupy  the  heads  of 
a  number,  that  likely  inoough  woold  haue  had  woorz  meditationz : 
had  an  auncient  beginning,  and  a  long  continuauns :  tyll  noow  of  late 
laid  dooun,  they  knu  no  cauz  why,  onless  it  wear  by  the  zeal  of  certain 
theyr  Preacherz:  men  very  commendabl  for  their  behauiour  and 
learning,  &  swdet  in  their  sermons,  but  sumwhat  too  sour  in  preaching 
awey  theyr  pastime :  wisht  therefore,  that  az  they  shoold  continu  their 
good  doctrine  in  pulpet,  so,  for  matters  of  pollicy  &  gouernauns  of  the 
Citie,  they  woold  permit  them  to  the  Mair  and  Magistratez :  and 
seyed,  by  my  feyth,  Master  Martyn,  they  woold  make  theyr  humbl 
peticion  vntoo  her  highnes,  that  they  might  haue  theyr  playz  vp 
agayn. 

But  aware,  k£ep  bak,  make  room  noow,  heer  they  cum !  And 
fyrst,  .  ,  .  Captain  Cox  cam  marching  on  valiantly  before,  cl£en 
trust,  &  gartered  aboue  the  knde,  all  fresh  in  a  veluet  cap  (master 
Goldingha^  lent  it  him)  floorishing  with  hiz  tonswoord,  and  another 
fensmaster  with  him  :  thus  in  the  foreward  making  room  for  the  rest. 
After  them  proudly  prickt  on  formost,  the  Danish  launsknights  on 
horsbak,  and  then  the  English :  each  with  their  allder  poll  marcially 
in  their  hand.  Eeuen  at  the  first  entree  the  meeting  waxt  sumwhat 
warm :  that  by  and  by  kindled  with  corage  a  both  sidez,  gru  from 
a  hot  skirmish  vnto  a  blazing  battail :  first  by  speare  and  shield, 
outragious  in  their  racez  az  ramz  at  their  rut,  with  furious  encoounterz, 
that  togyther  they  tumbl  too  the  dust,  sumtime  hors  and  man :  and 
after  fall  too  it  with  sworde  &  target,  good  bangz  a  both  sidez :  the 
fight  so  ceassing ;  but  the  battail  not  so  ended :  folloed  the  footmen, 
both  the  hostez,  ton  after  toother :  first  marching  in  ranks  :  then 
warlik  turning,  the»  from  ranks  into  squadrons,  then  in  too  trianglz ; 
from  that  intoo  rings,  &  so  winding  oout  again:  A  valiant  captain 
of  great  prowez,  az  fiers  az  a  fox  assauting  a  gooz,  waz  so  hardy 
to  giue  the  first  stroke :  then  get  they  grisly  togyther :  that  great  waz 
the  actiuit^e  that  day  too  be  s^en  thear  a  both  sidez :  ton  very  eager 
for  purchaz  of  pray,  toother  vtterly  stoout  for  redemption  of  libertie : 
thus,  quarrell  enflamed  fury  a  both  sidez.  Twise  the  Danes  had  /Ae 
better;  but  at  the  last  conflict,  beaten  doun,  ouercom,  and  many  led 
captiue  for  triumph  by  our  English  w^emen. 

This  waz  the  effect  of  this  sheaw,  that,  az  it  waz  handled,  made 
mooch  matter  of  good  pastime :  brought  all  indeed  intoo  the  great 
court,  een  vnder  her  highnes  windo  too  haue  been  s&n:  but  (az 


266  APPENDIX  I 

vnhappy  it  waz  for  the  bride)  that  cam  thither  too  soon,  (and  yet  waz 
it  a  four  a  clok).  For  her  highnes  beholding  in  the  chamber  delectabl 
dauncing  indeed  :  and  h^erwith  the  great  throng  and  vnrulines  of  the 
people,  waz  cauz  that  this  solemnitee  of  Brideale  &  dauncing,  had  not 
the  full  muster  waz  hoped  for :  and  but  a  littl  of  the  Couentr^e  plea 
her  highnes  also  saw :  commaunded  thearfore  on  the  Tuisday  folloing 
to  haue  it  ful  oout :  az  accordingly  it  waz  prezented,  whearat  her 
Maiestie  laught  well :  they  wear  the  iocunder,  and  so  mooch  the  more 
becauz  her  highnes  had  giuen  them  too  buckes,  and  fiue  marke  in 
mony,  to  make  mery  togyther :  they  prayed  for  her  Maiesty,  long, 
happily  to  reign,  &  oft  to  cum  thither,  that  oft  they  moought  s6e  h£er : 
&  what,  reioycing  vpon  their  ampl  reward,  and  what,  triumphing  vpon 
the  good  acceptauns,  they  vaunted  their  play  waz  neuer  so  dignified, 
nor  euer  any  players  afore  so  beatified.  .  .  . 

Tuisday,  according  to  commandement,  cam  oour  Couentr^e  men  : 
what  their  matter  waz,  of  her  highnes  myrth  and  good  acceptauns,  and 
rewarde  vntoo  them,  and  of  their  reioysing  thearat,  I  sheawd  you 
afore,  and  so  say  the  less  noow. 

I 
THE  INDIAN  VILLAGE  FEAST 

[From  Sir  Walter  Elliot,  On  the  Characteristics  of  the  Population  of 
Central  India>  in  Journal  of  the  Ethnological  Society  of  London^  N.  S.  i. 
94  (1869).] 

In  the  north-east  corner  of  the  central  mountainous  region  repre- 
sented on  the  map,  between  the  Mahanadi  and  Godavery  rivers,  is 
found  a  tribe  which  has  preserved  its  normal  character  remarkably  free 
from  change  and  from  external  influence.  The  Konds,  or,  as  they 
call  themselves,  the  Kuingas,  although  only  discovered  within  the  last 
thirty-five  years,  are  better  known  than  most  of  the  other  barbarous 
tribes  from  the  fact  that  for  ages  they  have  been  in  the  habit  of  sacri- 
ficing human  victims  in  great  numbers  to  secure  the  favour  of  the 
deities  presiding  over  their  dwellings,  fields,  hills,  &c.,  but  especially 
of  the  earth-goddess. 

The  successful  efforts  employed  to  abolish  this  barbarous  rite  have 
made  the  subject  familiar  to  all,  and  it  is  remarkable  that  such  know- 
ledge should  have  failed  to  attract  attention  to  a  practice  precisely 
similar  in  its  objects  and  in  its  details,  which  is  observed  in  every 
village  of  Southern  India,  with  this  single  difference,  that  a  buffalo 


THE  INDIAN  VILLAGE  FEAST  267 

is  substituted  for  a  human  victim.  My  attention  was  early  drawn  to 
this  practice,  which  is  called  the  festival  of  the  village  goddess  (Devf, 
or  Grama  Devati),  the  descriptions  of  which  led  me  to  believe  it  might 
throw  light  on  the  early  condition  of  the  servile  classes,  and  resolving 
to  witness  its  celebrations,  I  repaired  to  the  village  of  Seriir,  in  the 
Southern  Mahratta  country,  in  March,  1829.  It  would  occupy  too 
much  time  to  describe  the  ceremony  in  full,  which  is  the  less  necessary 
as  the  details  vary  in  different  places ;  but  the  general  features  are 
always  the  same. 

The  temple  of  the  goddess  is  a  mean  structure  outside  the  village. 
The  officiating  priests  are  the  Farias,  who,  on  this  occasion,  and  on 
it  alone,  are  exempt  from  the  degrading  condition  which  excludes 
them  from  the  village,  and  from  contact  with  the  inhabitants.  With 
them  are  included  the  Mangs  or  workers  in  leather,  the  Asddis  or 
Ddsaris,  paria  dancing-girls  devoted  to  the  service  of  the  temple,  the 
musician  in  attendance  on  them  called  Rdniga,  who  acts  also  as  a  sort 
of  jester  or  buffoon,  and  a  functionary  called  P6t-raj,  who  officiates  as 
pujdri  to  a  rural  god  named  also  P6t-raj,  to  whom  a  small  altar  is 
erected  behind  the  temple  of  the  village  goddess.  He  is  armed  with 
a  long  whip,  which  he  cracks  with  great  dexterity,  and  to  which  also 
at  various  parts  of  the  ceremony  divine  honours  are  paid. 

All  the  members  of  the  village  community  take  part  in  the  festival 
with  the  hereditary  district  officers,  many  of  them  Brahmans.  The 
shepherds  or  Dhangars  of  the  neighbouring  villages  are  also  invited, 
and  they  attend  with  their  priests  called  Virgars  or  Irgars,  accom- 
panied by  the  dhol  or  big  drum  peculiar  to  their  caste.  But  the  whole 
is  under  the  guidance  and  management  of  the  Farias. 

The  festival  commences  always  on  a  Tuesday,  the  day  of  rest 
among  the  agricultural  classes,  both  for  man  and  beast.  The  most 
important  and  essential  ceremonies  take  place  on  the  second  and  fifth 
days.  On  the  former,  the  sacred  buffalo,  which  had  been  purchased 
by  the  Farias,  an  animal  without  a  blemish,  is  thrown  down  before  the 
goddess,  its  head  struck  off  by  a  single  blow  and  placed  in  front  of 
the  shrine  with  one  fore-leg  thrust  into  its  mouth.  Around  are  placed 
vessels  containing  the  different  cereals,  and  hard  by  a  heap  of  mixed 
grains,  with  a  drill  plough  in  the  centre.  The  carcase  is  then  cut  up 
into  small  pieces,  and  each  cultivator  receives  a  portion  to  bury  in  his 
field.  The  blood  and  offal  are  collected  into  a  large  basket,  over 
which  some  pots  of  the  cooked  food  which  had  been  presented  as 
a  meat  offering  (naivedya)  had  previously  been  broken,  and  P6t-raj 
taking  a  live  kid  called  the  hari-mariah)  hews  it  in  pieces  over  the 


268  APPENDIX  I 

whole.  The  mess  (cheraga)  is  then  mixed  together,  and  the  basket 
being  placed  on  the  head  of  a  naked  Mang,  he  runs  off  with  it,  flinging 
the  contents  into  the  air,  and  scattering  them  right  and  left,  as  an 
offering  (bhut-bali]  to  the  evil  spirits,  and  followed  by  the  other  Parias, 
and  the  village  Paiks,  with  drawn  swords.  Sometimes  the  demons 
arrest  the  progress  of  the  party,  when  more  of  the  mess  is  thrown 
about,  and  fowls  and  sheep  are  sacrificed,  till  the  spirits  are  appeased. 

During  the  whole  time  of  the  sacrifice  the  armed  paiks  keep  vigilant 
guard,  lest  any  intruder  should  secrete  a  morsel  of  flesh  or  a  drop 
of  blood,  which,  if  carried  off  successfully,  after  declaring  the  purpose, 
would  transfer  the  merit  of  the  offering  to  the  strangers'  village. 

On  the  return  of  the  party  from  making  the  circuit  of  the  village 
another  buffalo,  seized  by  force  wherever  it  can  be  found  (zulmi- 
khulga),  is  sacrificed  by  decapitating  it  in  the  same  manner  as  the 
former ;  but  no  particular  importance  is  attached  to  it,  and  the  flesh 
is  distributed  to  be  eaten. 

The  third  and  fourth  days  are  devoted  to  private  offerings.  On  the 
former  all  the  inhabitants  of  caste,  who  had  vowed  animals  to  the 
goddess  during  the  preceding  three  years  for  the  welfare  of  their 
families,  or  the  fertility  of  their  fields,  brought  the  buffaloes  or  sheep 
to  the  paria  pujdrt,  who  struck  off  their  heads.  The  fourth  day  was 
appropriated  exclusively  to  the  offerings  of  the  Parias.  In  this  way, 
some  fifty  or  sixty  buffaloes  and  several  hundred  sheep  were  slain,  and 
the  heads  piled  up  in  two  great  heaps.  Many  women  on  these  days 
walked  naked  to  the  temple  in  fulfilment  of  vows,  but  they  were  covered 
with  leaves  and  boughs  of  trees  and  surrounded  by  their  female  relations 
and  friends. 

On  the  fifth  and  last  day  (Saturday)  the  whole  community  marched 
in  procession,  with  music,  to  the  temple,  and  offered  a  concluding 
sacrifice  at  the  P6t-raj  altar.  A  lamb  was  concealed  close  by.  The 
P6t-raj  having  found  it  after  a  pretended  search,  struck  it  simply  with 
his  whip,  which  he  then  placed  upon  it,  and,  making  several  passes 
with  his  hands,  rendered  it  insensible ;  in  fact,  mesmerised  it.  When 
it  became  rigid  and  stiff  he  lifted  it  up  and  carried  it  about  on  the 
palm  of  his  hand,  to  the  amazement  of  the  spectators,  and  then  laid 
it  down  on  the  ground.  His  hands  were  then  tied  behind  his  back  by 
the  pujdri,  and  the  whole  party  began  to  dance  round  him  with  noisy 
shouts,  the  music  and  the  shepherd's  drum  making  a  deafening  noise. 
P6t-raj  joined  in  the  excitement,  his  eyes  began  to  roll,  his  long  hair 
fell  loose  over  his  shoulders,  and  he  soon  came  fully  under  the  influence 
of  the  numen.  He  was  now  led  up,  still  bound,  to  the  place  where  the 


THE  INDIAN  VILLAGE  FEAST  269 

lamb  lay  motionless.  He  rushed  at  it,  seized  it  with  his  teeth,  tore 
through  the  skin,  and  ate  into  its  throat.  When  it  was  quite  dead,  he 
was  lifted  up,  a  dishful  of  the  meat  offering  was  presented  to  him  ; 
he  thrust  his  bloody  face  into  it,  and  it  was  then,  with  the  remains  of 
the  lamb,  buried  beside  the  altar.  Meantime  his  hands  were  untied, 
and  he  fled  the  place,  and  did  not  appear  for  three  days.  The  rest  of 
the  party  now  adjourned  to  the  front  of  the  temple,  where  the  heap 
of  grain  deposited  the  first  day  was  divided  among  the  cultivators, 
to  be  buried  by  each  one  in  his  field  with  the  bit  of  flesh.  After  this 
a  distribution  of  the  piled-up  heads  was  made  by  the  hand  of  the 
Rdniga.  About  forty  sheep's  heads  were  given  to  certain  privileged 
persons,  among  which  two  were  allotted  to  the  Sircar !  For  the  rest 
a  general  scramble  took  place,  paiks,  shepherds,  Farias,  and  many 
boys  and  men  of  good  caste,  were  soon  rolling  in  the  mass  of  putrid 
gore.  The  heads  were  flung  about  in  all  directions,  without  regard 
to  rank  or  caste,  the  Brahmans  coming  in  for  an  ample  share  of  the 
filth.  The  scramble  for  the  buffalo  heads  was  confined  to  the  Farias. 
Whoever  was  fortunate  enough  to  secure  one  of  either  kind  carried  it 
off  and  buried  it  in  his  field.  The  proceedings  terminated  by  a  pro- 
cession round  the  boundaries  of  the  village  lands,  preceded  by  the 
goddess,  and  the  head  of  the  sacred  buffalo  carried  on  the  head  of 
one  of  the  Mangs.  All  order  and  propriety  now  ceased.  Rdniga 
began  to  abuse  the  goddess  in  the  foulest  terms ;  he  then  turned  his 
fury  against  the  government,  the  head  man  of  the  village,  and  every  one 
who  fell  in  his  way.  The  Farias  and  Asddis  attacked  the  most 
respectable  and  gravest  citizens,  and  laid  hold  of  the  Brahmans, 
Lingayats,  and  Zamindars  without  scruple.  The  dancing-women 
jumped  on  their  shoulders,  the  shepherds  beat  the  big  drum,  with 
deafening  clangor,  and  universal  license  reigned. 

On  reaching  a  little  temple,  sacred  to  the  goddess  of  boundaries 
(polimera-amma),  they  halted  to  make  some  offerings,  and  bury  the 
sacred  head.  As  Soon  as  it  was  covered,  the  uproar  began  again. 
Riniga  became  more  foul-mouthed  than  ever.  In  vain  the  head-men, 
the  government  officers,  and  others  tried  to  pacify  him  by  giving  him 
small  copper  coins.  He  only  broke  out  with  worse  imprecations  and 
grosser  abuse,  till  the  circuit  being  completed,  all  dispersed ;  the 
Farias  retired  to  their  hamlet  outside  the  town,  resuming  their  humble, 
servile  character,  and  the  village  reverted  to  its  wonted  peaceful 
appearance. 

Next  day  (Sunday)  the  whole  population  turned  out  to  a  great 
hunting-party. 


270  APPENDIX  J 

I  found  this  remarkable  institution  existing  in  every  part  of  India 
where  I  have  been,  and  I  have  descriptions  of  it  corresponding  in  all 
essential  points,  from  the  Dekhan,  the  Nizam's  country,  Mysore,  the 
Carnatic,  and  the  Northern  Circars.  The  details  vary  in  different 
places,  but  the  main  features  agree  in  all,  and  correspond  remarkably 
with  the  Mariah  sacrifice  of  the  Konds,  which  also  varies  consider- 
ably on  minor  points  in  different  places. 


J 

SWORD-DANCES 
I.   SWEDEN  (Sixteenth  Century). 

[From  Olaus  Magnus,  Historic*  de  gentibus  septentrionalibus  (1555)* 
Bk.  xv.  chh.  23,  24.] 

Ch.  23,  de  chorea  gladiatoria  vel  armifera  saltatione. 

Habent  septentrionales  Gothi  et  Sueci  pro  exercenda  iuventute  alium 
ludum,  quod  inter  nudos  enses  et  infestos  gladios  seu  frameas  sese 
exerceant  saltu,  idque  quodam  gymnastico  ritu  et  disciplina,  aetate 
successiva,  a  peritis  et  praesultare  sub  cantu  addiscunt :  et  ostendunt 
hunc  ludum  praecipue  tempore  carnisprivii,  maschararum  Italico  verbo 
dicto.  Ante  etenim  tempus  eiusdem  carnisprivii  octo  diebus  continua 
saltatione  sese  adolescentes  numerose  exercent,  elevatis  scilicet  gladiis 
sed  vagina  reclusis,  ad  triplicem  gyrum.  Deinde  evaginatis  itidemque 
elevatis  ensibus,  postmodo  manuatim  extensis,  modestius  gyrando 
alterutrius  cuspidem  capulumque  receptantes,  sese  mutato  ordine  in 
modum  figurae  hexagoni  fingendi  subiiciunt,  quam  rosam  dicunt :  et 
illico  earn  gladios  retrahendo  elevandoque  resolvunt  ut  super  unius- 
cuiusque  caput  quadrata  rosa  resultet:  et  tandem  vehementissima 
gladiorum  lateral!  collisione,  celerrime  retrograda  saltatione  determinant 
ludum,  quern  tibiis  Vel  cantilenis,  aut  utrisque  simul,  primum  per 
graviorem,  demum  vehementiorem  saltum  et  ultimo  impetuosissimum 
moderantur.  Sed  haec  speculatio  sine  oculari  inspectione  vix  appre- 
henditur  quam  pulchra  honestaque  sit,  dum  unius  parcissimo  praecepto 
etiam  armata  multitude  quadam  alacritate  dirigitur  ad  certamen: 
eoque  ludo  clericis  sese  exercere  et  immiscere  licet,  quia  totus 
deducitur  honestissima  ratione. 

Ch.  24.  Alia  etiam  iuvenum  exercitatio  est,  ut  certa  lege  arcualem 
choream  ducant  et  reducant,  aliis  quidam  instruments,  sed  eadem  ut 


SWORD-DANCES  271 

gladiatorum  saltantium  disciplina  reducta.  Arcubus  enim  seu  circulis 
inclusis  [inclusi?],  primum  modesto  cantu  heroum  gesta  referente 
vel  tibiis  aut  tympanis  excitati,  gyrando  incedunt  seque  dirigentis,  qui 
rex  dicitur,  sola  voce  reducunt,  tandem  solutis  arcubus  aliquantulum 
celerius  properantes  mutua  inclinatione  conficiunt,  veluti  alias  per 
gladios,  rosam,  ut  formam  sexangularem  efficere  videantur.  Utque  id 
festivius  sonoriusque  fiat,  tintinnabula  seu  aereas  campanulas  genu 
tenus  ligant. 

II.    SHETLAND  (Eighteenth  Century). 

[From  Sir  Walter  Scott's  Diary  for  August  7, 1814,  printed  in  Lockhart, 
Life  of  Scott  (1837),  Hi.  162  ;  (1878)  i.  265. 

At  Scalloway  my  curiosity  was  gratified  by  an  account  of  the  sword- 
dance,  now  almost  lost,  but  still  practised  in  the  Island  of  Papa,  belong- 
ing to  Mr.  Scott.  There  are  eight  performers,  seven  of  whom  represent 
the-  Seven  Champions  of  Christendom,  who  enter  one  by  one  with 
their  swords  drawn,  and  are  presented  to  the  eighth  personage,  who  is 
not  named.  Some  rude  couplets  are  spoken  (in  English^  not  Norse), 
containing  a  sort  of  panegyric  upon  each  champion  as  he  is  presented. 
They  then  dance  a  sort  of  cotillion,  as  the  ladies  described  it,  going 
through  a  number  of  evolutions  with  their  swords.  One  of  my 
three  Mw.  Scotts  readily  promised  to  procure  me  the  lines,  the  rhymes, 
and  the  form  of  the  dance.  ...  A  few  years  since  a  party  of  Papa-men 
came  to  dance  the  sword-dance  at  Lerwick  as  a  public  exhibition  with 
great  applause.  ...  In  a  stall  pamphlet,  called  the  history  of  Bucks- 
haven  [Fifeshire],  it  is  said  those  fishers  sprung  from  Danes,  and 
brought  with  them  their  war-dance  or  sword-dance,  and  a  rude  wooden 
cut  of  it  is  given. 

[A  footnote  by  Lockhart  adds : — ] 

Mr.  W.  S.  Rose  informs  me  that,  when  he  was  at  school  at 
Winchester,  the  morris-dancers  there  used  to  exhibit  a  sword-dance 
resembling  that  described  at  Camacho's  wedding  in  Don  Quixote ;  and 
Mr.  Morritt  adds  that  similar  dances  are  even  yet  performed  in  the 
villages  about  Rokeby  [Yorks,  N.R.]  every  Christmas. 

[The  following  account  was  inserted  in  a  note  to  Scott's  The  Pirate 
(ifai)J 

To  the  Primate's  account  of  the  sword-dance,  I  am  able  to  add  the 
words  sung  or  chanted,  on  occasion  of  this  dance,  as  it  is  still  per- 
formed in  Papa  Stour,  a  remote  island  of  Zetland,  where  alone  the 
custom  keeps  its  ground.  It  is,  it  will  be  observed  by  antiquaries, 
a  species  of  play  or  mystery,  in  which  the  Seven  Champions  of  Chris- 


272  APPENDIX  J 

tendom  make  their  appearance,  as  in  the  interlude  presented  in  Airs 
Well  that  ends  Well.  This  dramatic  curiosity  was  most  kindly  pro- 
cured for  my  use  by  Dr.  Scott  of  Haslar  Hospital  [died  1875],  son  of 
my  friend  Mr.  Scott  of  Melbie,  Zetland.  Dr.  Hibbert  has,  in  his 
Description  of  the  Zetland  Islands ,  given  an  account  of  the  sword-dance, 
but  somewhat  less  full  than  the  following : — 

'  WORDS  USED  AS  A  PRELUDE  TO  THE  SWORD-DANCE,  A  DANISH  OR 
NORWEGIAN  BALLET,  COMPOSED  SOME  CENTURIES  AGO,  AND  PRE- 
SERVED IN  PAPA  STOUR,  ZETLAND. 

PERSONJB  DRAMATIS  \ 

(Enter  MASTER,  in  the  character  of  SAINT  GEORGE.) 
Brave  gentles  all  within  this  boor2, 
If  ye  delight  in  any  sport, 
Come  see  me  dance  upon  this  floor, 
Which  to  you  all  shall  yield  comfort. 
Then  shall  I  dance  in  such  a  sort, 
As  possible  I  may  or  cah; 
You,  minstrel  man,  play  me  a  Porte8, 
That  I  on  this  floor  may  prove  a  man. 

[He  dows,  and  dances  in  a  line. 
Now  have  I  danced  with  heart  and  hand, 
Frave  gentles  all,  as  you  may  see, 
For  I  have  been  tried  in  many  a  land, 
As  yet  the  truth  can  testify; 

In  England,  Scotland,  Ireland,  France,  Italy,  and  Spain, 
Have  I  been  tried  with  that  good  sword  of  steel. 

\Drawsy  and  flourishes. 

Yet  I  deny  that  ever  a  man  did  make  me  yield; 
For  in  my  body  there  is  strength, 
As  by  my  manhood  may  be  seen; 
And  I,  with  that  good  sword  of  length, 
Have  oftentimes  in  perils  beeh, 
And  over  champions  I  Was  king. 
And  by  the  strength  of  this  right  hand, 
Once  on  a  day  I  kill'd  fifteen, 
And  left  them  dead  upon  the  land. 

1  So  placed  in  the  old  MS.  music  on  the  bagpipe,  to  which  ancient 

s  Boor — so  spelt  to  accord  with  the  instrument,  which  is  of  Scandinavian 

vulgar  pronunciation  of  the  word  bower,  origin,  the  sword-dance  may  have  been 

8  Porte— so  spelt  in  the  original.  The  originally  composed. 

word  is  known  as  indicating  a  piece  of 


SWORD-DANCES  273 

Therefore,  brave  minstrel,  do  not  care, 

But  play  to  me  a  Porte  most  light, 

That  I  no  longer  do  forbear, 

But  dance  in  all  these  gentles'  sight. 

Although  my  strength  makes  you  abased, 

Brave  gentles  all,  be  not  afraid, 

For  here  are  six  champions,  with  me,  staid, 

All  by  my  manhood  I  have  raised.  [He  dances. 

Since  I  have  danced,  I  think  it  best 

To  call  my  brethren  in  your  sight, 

That  I  may  have  a  little  rest, 

And  they  may  dance  with  all  their  might ; 

With  heart  and  hand  as  they  are  knights, 

And  shake  their  swords  of  steel  so  bright, 

And  show  their  main  strength  on  this  floor, 

For  we  shall  have  another  bout 

Before  we  pass  out  of  this  boor. 

Therefore,  brave  minstrel,  do  not  care 

To  play  to  me  a  Porte  most  light, 

That  I  no  longer  do  forbear, 

But  dance  in  all  these  gentles'  sight. 

[He  dances,  and  then  introduces  his  knights  as  undtr. 
Stout  James  of  Spain,  both  tried  and  stour  19 
Thine  acts  are  known  full  well  indeed ; 
And  champion  Dennis,  a  French  knight, 
Who  stout  and  bold  is  to  be  seen ; 
And  David,  a  Welshman  born, 
Who  is  come  of  noble  blood ; 
And  Patrick  also,  who  blew  the  horn, 
An  Irish  knight  amongst  the  wood. 
Of  Italy,  brave  Anthony  the  good, 
And  Andrew  of  Scotland  King ; 
Saint  George  of  England,  brave  indeed, 
Who  to  the  Jews  wrought  muckle  tinte1. 
Away  with  this ! — Let  us  come  to  sport, 
Since  that  ye  have  a  mind  to  war. 
Since  that  ye  have  this  bargain  sought, 
Come  let  us  fight  and  do  not  fear. 
Therefore,  brave  minstrel,  do  not  care 

Stour — great.  f  Muckle  tinte — much  loss  or  harm ;  so  in  MS. 

CHAMBERS      II  f 


274  APPENDIX  J 

To  play  to  me  a  Porte  most  light, 

That  I  no  longer  do  forbear, 

But  dance  in  all  these  gentles'  sight. 

[He  dances,  and  advances  to  JAMES  of  Spain. 
Stout  James  of  Spain,  both  tried  and  stour, 
Thine  acts  are  known  full  well  indeed, 
Present  thyself  within  our  sight, 
Without  either  fear  or  dread. 
Count  not  for  favour  or  for  feid, 
Since  of  thy  acts  thou  hast  been  sure ; 
Brave  James  of  Spain,  I  will  thee  lead, 
To  prove  thy  manhood  on  this  floor.  QAMKS  dances. 

Brave  champion  Dennis,  a  French  knight, 
Who  stout  and  bold  is  to  be  seen, 
Present  thyself  here  in  our  sight, 
Thou  brave  French  knight, 
Who  bold  hast  been; 
Since  thou  such  valiant  acts  hast  done, 
Come  let  us  see  some  of  them  now 
With  courtesy,  thou  brave  French  knight, 
Draw  out  thy  sword  of  noble  hue. 

[DENNIS  dances,  while  the  others  retire  to  a  side. 
Brave  David  a  bow  must  string,  and  with  awe 
Set  up  a  wand  upon  a  stand, 

And  that  brave  David  will  cleave  in  twa  *.    [DAVID  dances  solus. 
Here  is,  I  think,  an  Iri'sh  knight, 
Who  does  not  fear,  or  does  not  fright, 
To  prove  thyself  a  valiant  man, 
As  thou  hast  done  full  often  bright; 

Brave  Patrick,  dance,  if  that  thou  can.  [He  dances. 

Thou  stout  Italian,  come  thou  here ; 
Thy  name  is  Anthony,  most  stout; 
Draw  out  thy  sword  that  is  most  clear, 
And  do  thou  fight  without  any  doubt; 
Thy  leg  thou  shake,  thy  neck  thou  lout2, 
And  show  some  courtesy  on  this  floor, 
For  we  shall  have  another  bout, 
Before  we  pass  out  of  this  boor. 

1  Something  is  evidently  amiss,  or  *  Lout — to  bend  or  bow  down,  pro- 
omitted  here.  David  probably  ex-  nounced  loot,  as  doubt  is  doot  in  Scot- 
hibited  some  feat  of  archery.  land. 


SWORD-DANCES  275 

Thou  kindly  Scotsman,  come  thou  here; 
Thy  name  is  Andrew  of  Fair  Scotland; 
Draw  out  thy  sword  that  is  most  clear, 
Fight  for  thy  king  with  thy  right  hand; 
And  aye  as  long  as  thou  canst  stand, 
Fight  for  thy  king  with  all  thy  heart; 
And  then,  for  to  confirm  his  band, 
Make  all  his  enemies  for  to  smart. 

[He  dances. — Music  begins! 

'FlGVIR1. 

*  The  six  stand  in  rank  with  their  swords  reclining  on  their  shoulders. 
The  Master  (Saint  George)  dances,  and  then  strikes  the  sword  of 
James  of  Spain,  who  follows  George,  then  dances,  strikes  the  sword  of 
Dennis,  who  follows  behind  James.  In  like  manner  the  rest — the 
music  playing — swords  as  before.  After  the  six  are  brought  out  of 
rank,  they  and  the  Master  form  a  circle,  and  hold  the  swords  point 
and  hilt.  This  circle  is  danced  round  twice.  The  whole,  headed  by 
the  Master,  pass  under  the  swords  held  in  a  vaulted  manner.  They 
jump  over  the  swords.  This  naturally  places  the  swords  across,  which 
they  disentangle  by  passing  under  their  right  sword.  They  take  up 
the  seven  swords,  and  form  a  circle,  in  which  they  dance  round. 

'  The  Master  runs  under  the  sword  opposite,  which  he  jumps  over 
backwards.  The  others  do  the  same.  He  then  passes  under  the  right- 
hand  sword,  which  the  others  follow,  in  which  position  they  dance, 
until  commanded  by  the  Master,  when  they  form  into  a  circle,  and 
dance  round  as  before.  They  then  jump  over  the  right-hand  sword, 
by  which  means  their  backs  are  to  the  circle,  and  their  hands  across 
their  backs.  They  dance  round  in  that  form  until  the  Master  calls 
"  Loose,"  when  they  pass  under  the  right  sword,  and  are  in  a  perfect 
circle. 

'  The  Master  lays  down  his  sword,  and  lays  hold  of  the  point  of 
James's  sword.  He  then  turns  himself,  James,  and  the  others,  into 
a  clew.  When  so  formed,  he  passes  under  out  of  the  midst  of  the 
circle ;  the  others  follow ;  they  vault  as  before.  After  several  other 
evolutions,  they  throw  themselves  into  a  circle,  with  their  arms  across 
the  breast.  They  afterwards  form  such  figures  as  to  form  a  shield  of 
their  swords,  and  the  shield  is  so  compact  that  the  Master  and  his 
knights  dance  alternately  with  this  shield  upon  their  heads.  It  is  then 

1  Figuir — so  spelt  in  MS. 
T  3 


276  APPENDIX  K 

laid  down  upon  the  floor.  Each  knight  lays  hold  of  their  former 
points  and  hilts  with  their  hands  across,  which  disentangle  by  figuirs 
directly  contrary  to  those  that  formed  the  shield.  This  finishes  the 
ballet. 

'EPILOGUE. 

*  Mars  does  rule,  he  bends  his  brows, 
He  makes  us  all  agast/; 
After  the  few  hours  that  we  stay  here, 
Venus  will  rule  at  last. 
Farewell,  farewell,  brave  gentles  all, 
That  herein  do  remain, 
I  wish  you  health  and  happiness 
Till  we  return  again.  [Exeunt! 

The  manuscript  from  which  the  above  was  copied  was  transcribed 
from  a  very  old  one,  by  Mr.  William  Henderson,  jun.,  of  Papa  Stour, 
in  Zetland.  Mr.  Henderson's  copy  is  not  dated,  but  bears  his  own 
signature,  and,  from  various  circumstances,  it  is  known  to  have  been 
written  about  the  year  1788, 

K 

THE  LUTTERWORTH  ST.  GEORGE  PLAY 

[From  W.  Kelly,  Notices  Illustrative  of  the  Drama,  6r*c.,  . .  .from  . .  . 
Manuscripts  of  the  Borough  of  Leicester  (1865),  53.  The  version  is  that 
*  performed  in  some  of  the  villages  near  Lutterworth,  at  Christmas  1863.'] 

THE  CHRISTMAS  MUMMERS'  PLAY. 

DRAMATIS  PERSONAE. 

1.  CAPTAIN  SLASHER,  in  military  costume,  with  sword  and  pistol. 

2.  King  of  England,  in  robes,  wearing  the  crown. 

3.  PRINCE  GEORGE,  King's  Son,  in  robes,  and  sword  by  his  side. 

4.  Turkish  Champion,  in  military  attire  >  with  sword  and  pistol 

5.  A  Noble  Doctor. 

6.  Beelzebub. 

7.  A  Clown. 

Enter  Captain  Slasher.    I  beg  your  pardon  for  being  so  bold, 
I  enter  your  house,  the  weather's  so  cold, 
Room,  a  room!  brave  gallants,  give  us  room  to  sport; 
For  in  this  house  we  do  resort, — 

1  dgast— so  spelt  in  MS. 


THE  LUTTERWORTH  ST.  GEORGE  PLAY  277 

Resort,  resort,  for  many  a  day; 
Step  in,  the  King  of  England, 
And  boldly  clear  the  way. 

Enter  King  of  England.     I  am  the  King  of  England,  that 

boldly  does  appear; 
I  come  to  seek  my  only  son, — my  only  son  is  here. 

Enter  Prince  George.     I  am  Prince  George,  a  worthy  knight ; 
I'll  spend  my  blood  for  England's  right. 
England's  right  I  will  maintain; 
I'll  fight  for  old  England  once  again. 

Enter  Turkish  Knight.     I  am  the  Turkish  Champion  ; 
From  Turkey's  land  I  come. 
I  come  to  fight  the  King  of  England 
And  all  his  noble  men. 

Captain  Slasher.     In  comes  Captain  Slasher, 
Captain  Slasher  is  my  name ; 
With  sword  and  pistol  by  my  side, 
I  hope  to  win  the  game. 

King  of  England.     I  am  the  King  of  England, 
As  you  may  plainly  see, 
These  are  my  soldiers  standing  by  me; 
They  stand  by  me  your  life  to  end, 
On  them  doth  my  life  depend. 

Prince  George.     I  am  Prince  George,  the  Champion  bold, 
And  with  my  sword  I  won  three  crowns  of  gold ; 
I  slew  the  fiery  dragon  and  brought  him  to  the  slaughter, 
And  won  the  King  of  Egypt's  only  daughter. 

Turkish  Champion.    As  I  was  going  by  St.  Francis'  School, 
I  heard  a  lady  cry  '  A  fool,  a  fool  1 ' 
4  A  fool,'  was  every  word, 
'  That  man 's  a  fool, 
Who  wears  a  wooden  sword/ 

Prince  George.     A  wooden  sword,  you  dirty  dog! 
My  sword  is  made  of  the  best  of  metal  free. 
If  you  would  like  to  taste  of  it, 
I'll  give  it  unto  thee. 
Stand  off,  stand  off,  you  dirty  dog! 
Or  by  my  sword  you'll  die. 
I'll  cut  you  down  the  middle, 
And  make  your  blood  to  fly. 

[They  fight;  Prince  George  falls,  mortally  wounded. 


278  APPENDIX  K 

Enter  King  of  England.     Oh,  horrible  !  terrible !  what  hast 

thou  done  ? 

Thou  hast  ruin'd  me,  ruin'd  me, 
By  killing  of  my  only  son ! 
Oh,  is  there  ever  a  noble  doctor  to  be  found, 
To  cure  this  English  champion 
Of  his  deep  and  deadly  wound  ? 

Enter  Noble  Doctor.    Oh  yes,  there  is  a  noble  doctor  to 

be  found, 

To  cure  this  English  champion 
Of  his  deep  and  deadly  wound. 

King  of  England.    And  pray  what  is  your  practice? 

Noble  Doctor.    I  boast  not  of  my  practice,  neither  do  I  study 
in  the  practice  of  physic. 

King  of  England.    What  can  you  cure? 

Noble  Doctor.    All  sorts  of  diseases, 
Whatever  you  pleases: 
I  can  cure  the  itch,  the  pitch, 
The  phthisic,  the  palsy  and  the  gout; 
And  if  the  devil 's  in  the  man, 
I  can  fetch  him  out. 
My  wisdom  lies  in  my  wig, 
I  torture  not  my  patients  with  excations, 
Such  as  pills,  boluses,  solutions,  and  embrocations; 
But  by  the  word  of  command 
I  can  make  this  mighty  prince  to  stand. 

King.    What  is  your  fee? 

Doctor.     Ten  pounds  is  true. 

King.    Proceed,  Noble  Doctor; 
You  shall  have  your  due. 

Doctor.     Arise,  arise !   most  noble  prince,  arise, 
And  no  more  dormant  lay ; 
And  with  thy  sword 
Make  all  thy  foes  obey.  [The  Prince  arises. 

Prince  George.    My  head  is  made  of  iron, 
My  body  is  made  of  steel, 
My  legs  are  made  of  crooked  bones 
To  force  you  all  to  yield. 

Enter  Beelzebub.     In  comes  I,  old  Beelzebub, 
Over  my  shoulder  I  carry  my  club, 
And  in  my  hand  a  frying-pan, 


THE  PROSE  OF  THE  ASS  279 

Pleased  to  get  all  the  money  I  can. 

Enter  Clown.     In  come  I,  who 's  never  been  yet, 
With  my  great  head  and  little  wit: 
My  head  is  great,  my  wit  is  small, 
111  do  my  best  to  please  you  all. 

Song  (all join).    And  now  we  are  done  and  must  be  gone, 
No  longer  will  we  stay  here; 
But  if  you  please,  before  we  go, 
We'll  taste  your  Christmas  beer.  \Exeunt  omnes. 


THE  PROSE  OF  THE  ASS 

[The  text  is  taken  from  the  following  sources : — 

i.  BeauvaiS)  thirteenth  century.— (a)  [Due.] — Ducange,  Glossarium  (ed. 
1733-^6),  s.v.Festum,  from  a  lost  MS.;  copied  incorrectly  by  Caste*,  23,  and 
apparently  also  by  Clement,  158:  (b)  [B1]— Brit.  Mus.  Egerton  MS. 
2615,  f»  *>  with  music  for  singing  in  unison  :  (c)  [B 2] — Same  MS.  f.  43, 
with  music  harmonized  in  three  parts;  partly  Facsimiled  in  Annales 
Archtologiques  (1856),  xvi.  259,  300. 

ii.  Sens,  thirteenth  century. — [S] — MS.  Senonense^  46  A,  as  printed  by 
G.  M.  Dreves,  Analecta  Hymnica^  xx.  217.  The  text  has  also  been  given 
from  the  MS.  by  F.  Bourquelot,  in  Bull,  de  la  Soc.  Arch,  de  Sens  (1858), 
vi.  79,  and  others.  The  version  of  Clement,  126  is  probably,  like  the 
facsimile  given  by  him  in  Ann.  Arch.  vii.  26,  based  on  one  '  caique*  '  from 
the  MS.  by  a  M.  Ame*,  and,  where  it  differs  from  that  of  Dreves,  is  the 
less  trustworthy.  Dreves,  xx.  257  (cf.  infra)  and  Millin,  Monum.  Ant. 
In£dits>  ii.  348,  also  give  the  music  of  the  opening  lines.  Modern  settings 
are  provided  by  B.  De  la  Borde,  Essaisurla  Musique  (1780),  and  Clement, 
in  Ann.  Arch.  vii.  26,  and  Chantes  de  la  Sainte  Chafelle.  An  old  French 
translation  of  the  text  is  printed  in  Leber,  ix.  368. 

On  these  Beauvais  and  Sens  MSS.  cf.  ch.  xiii. 

iii.  Bourges. — [Bo.] — The  first  verse  with  the  music  and  variants  in  the 
later  verses  are  given  by  A.  Cachet  d' Art \^j^NouveauxMhnoires(  1756), 
vii.  77,  from  a  copy  of  a  book  given  to  Bourges  cathedral  by  a  canon 
named  Jean  Pastons.  Part  of  the  Bourges  music  is  also  given  by  Millin, 
loc.  tit. 

I  print  the  fullest  version  from  Ducange,  italicizing  the  lines  not  found 
elsewhere,  and  giving  all  variants,  except  of  spelling,  for  the  rest. 

Outside  Beauvais,  Sens,  and  Bourges  the  only  localized  allusion  to  the 
prose  that  I  have  found  is  the  Autun  order  of  1411  (vol.  i.  p.  312)  *  nee 
dicatur  cantilena  quae  dici  solebat  super  dictum  asinum.'  It  is  not  in 
the  Puy  officium  for  the  Circumcision,  which,  though  in  a  MS.  of  1553, 
represents  a  ceremony  as  old  as  1327  (U.  Chevalier,  Prosolarium  Eccle- 
siae  Anidensis,  1894).  The  officium  is  full  of  conductus  and  farsumina, 
and  the  clericuli  at  second  Vespers  tripudiant  firmiter.  The  sanctum 
Praepucium  was  a  relic  at  Puy. 

The  following  passage  is  from  Theoph,  Raynaudus,  Indicium  de  puer- 


280  APPENDIX  L 

sni/n  syuiphoniacorum  processione  in  festo  SS.  Innocentium  (Opera 
Omnia,  1665,  xv.  209) :  *  Legi  prosam  quandam  de  asino  e  Metropolitanae 
cuiusdam  Ecclesiae  ntuali  exscriptam ;  quae  super  sacrum  concinebatur 
in  die  S.  Stephani,et  dicebatur  prosa  fatuorum,  qua  nihil  insulsius  aut  asino 
convenientius.  Similis  prosa  de  bove^  quae  canebatur  in  die  S.  loannis, 
mtercidisse  dicitur,  haud  magno  sane  dispendio.  Itaque  hae  prosae  erant 
particulae  festi  fatuorum,  occoepti  a  die  S.  Stephani.'  I  have  never  come 
across  the  *  Prose  of  the  Ox,'  or  any  notice  of  it  which  appears  to  be 
independent  of  Raynaud's.] 

L 

Orientis  partibus 

Adventavit  Asinus, 

Pulcher  et  fortissimus, 
4  Sarcinis  aptissimus. 

Hez,  Sire  Asnes,  car  chantez, 

Belle  bouche  rechignez, 

Vous  aurez  du  foin  assez 
8  Et  de  tavoine  a  planiez. 

n. 

Lentus  erat  pedibus, 
Nisi  fore t  baculus, 
Et  eum  in  clunibus 
ia  Pungeret  aculeus. 
Hez,  Sire  Asnes,  etc. 

HI. 

Hie  in  collibus  Sichen 
lam  nutritus  sub  Ruben, 
Transiit  per  lordanem, 
ao  Saliit  in  Bethleem. 
HeZy  Sire  Asnes,  etc. 

IV. 

Ecce  magnis  auribus 
Subiugalis  filius 
Asinus  egregius 
28  Asinorum  dominus. 
Hez,  Sire  Asnes,  etc. 

B1    has    heading    Conduct™  ari(ni          18.  B1.2;  S,  Enulritus. 
nbC)addudtur\  S,  Conductus  ad  tabu-          21-4.  B1  Hez,  hez  (and  so    in  all 

*<"»•     ^  ,   f  verses  but  last) ;  B8  Hez  (and  so  in  all 

5-8  BS*  Hez,  hiz,  sire  Asnes,  Juz\  verses) ;  S,  Hez,  Sir  asne,  hez  (and  so 

S.  Hez,  Sir  asnct  kez  ;  Bo.  He,  he,  he,  in  all  verses). 
Sire  Ane.     lit. 


THE  PROSE  OF  THE  ASS  281 

v. 

Saltu  vincit  hinnulos, 
Dammas  et  capreolos, 
Super  dromedaries 
36  Velox  Madianeos. 
Hez,  Sire  Asnes,  etc. 

VI. 

Aurum  de  Arabia, 
Thus  et  myrrham  de  Saba 
Tulit  in  Ecclesia 
44  Virtus  Asinaria. 
Hez,  Sire  Asnes,  etc. 

VII. 

Dum  trahit  vehicula, 
Multa  cum  sarcinula, 
Illius  mandibula 
52  Dura  terit  pabula. 
Hez,  Sire  Asnes,  etc. 

VIII. 

Cum  aristis  hordeum 
Comedit  et  carduum: 
Triticum  e  palea 
60  Segregat  in  area. 
Hez,  Sire  Asnes,  etc. 

IX* 

Amen  dicas,  Asine, 

lam  satur  de  gramine, 

Amen,  Amen,  itera, 
68  Aspernare  vetera. 

Hez  va,  hez  va  1  hez  va,  hez ! 

Bialx  Sire  Asnes,  car  allez: 
71  Btlle  louche,  car  chantez. 

vi.  B^omit;  Bo.  places  after  viii.  69-7 1.  B9  Hez\  Clement, 

59.  Due.  a  palea.  Hez  va  I  hez  va  /  hez  va  !  hez ! 

65.  Due.  adds  (hie  genuflect ebatur).  Bialx,  sir  asnts,  car  chantez, 

66.  Bo.  lam  satis  de  carmine.  Vous  aurez  dufoin  assez 

Et  de  favoine  a  plantez* 


282 


APPENDIX  M 


I  append  the  air  of  the  Sens  prose,  as  given  by  Dreves,  Anahcta 
Hymnica,  xx.  257. 


IE  1  \  —  t 

3  l~ 

—  4- 

(ft)    d    re  —  - 

d 

rJ 

d   * 

-4  —  i 

i  —  i  —  i  —  i 

i  —  i  

O  ...  ri  ...  en...tis    par...ti ...  bus       Ad  .  ven...ta...vit     A ...  si ...  nus, 


s 


Pnl...cher   et    for...tis...si  ...  mus,      Sar...ci...nis    ap..  tis...si...mus. 


, 

J    rJ 


Hez,   Sir     As...ne,    hez. 


M 


THE  BOY  BISHOP 

I.    THE  SARUM  OFFICE. 

[From  C.  Wordsworth,  Ceremonies  and  Processions  of  the  Cathedral 
Church  of  Salisbury  (1901),  52,  which  follows  the  practically  identical 
texts  of  the  printed  Processionals  of  1508  (ed.  Henderson,  1882,  17)  and 
1555  and  the  printed  Breviary  (ed.  Procter-Wordsworth,  I.  ccxxix). 
Mr.  Wordsworth  also  found  the  office  in  two  MS.  breviaries  (Sarum 
Chapter  MS.  152  and  Peterhousey  Cambridge,  MS.  270).  In  the  MS. 
(ti44S)  processional  from  Salisbury  Cathedral  (Chapter  MS.  148),  on 
which  his  book  is  mainly  based,  there  is  a  lacuna,  probably  due  to  inten- 
tional mutilation,  where  the  office  should  come.  I  find  no  allusion  to  the 
Boy  Bishop  in  the  printed  Sarum  Missal  (ed.  Dickinson,  67),  or  in  the 
Sarum  Consuetudinary,  Custumary,  or  Ordinal  (Frere,  Use  of  Sarum).} 

C  In  die  sancti  Johannts. 
[De  Episcopo  Puerorum.] 

Ad  uesperas,  post  memoriam  de  S.  Stephana  eat  processio  Puerorum  ad 
altare  Innocencium,  uel  Sancfe  Trinitatis  et  Omnium  Sanctorum 
quod  diciiur  Salue,  in  capis  sericis,  cum  cereis  illuminatis  et  arden- 
tibus  in  manibus,  cantando,  Episcopo  Puerorum  pontifi calibus  induto 
(fxecutore  officy\siue  Episcopo  presence)  incipience  hoc  responsorium. 

Solus  Episccpus  Innocencium,  si  assit,  Christum  Puerum,  uerum  et 
eternum,  Pontificem  dtsignans,  incipiat: 

jR.  Centum  quadraginta  quattuor  millia  qui  empti  sunt  de  terra: 
hij  sunt  qui  cum  mulieribus  non  sunt  coinquinati,  uirgines  enim 


THE  BOY  BISHOP  283 

permanserunt.     Ideo  regnant  cum  Deo  et  Agnof  et  Agnus  Dei 
cum  illis. 

Tres  pueri  dicant  hunc  uersum. 

V.  Hij  empti  sunt  ex  omnibus,  primicie  Deo  et  Agno,  et  in  ore 
illorum  non  est  inventum  mendacium.  Ideo. 

Omnes  pueri  dicant  canlando  simul  hanc  prosam 

Sedentem  in  superne. 

Chorus  post  vnumquemque  uersum  respondent  cantum  prose  super 
vltimam  liter  am  E. 

V.  Sedentem  in  superne  maiestatis  arce-e. 

V.  Adorant  humillime  proclamantes  ad  te-e. 

V.  Sancte  •  Sancte  •  Sancte  •  Sabaoth  rex-e. 

V.  Plena  sunt  omnia  glorie  tue-e. 

V.  Cum  illis  vndeuiginti  quinque-e. 

V.  Atque  cum  innocentissimo  grege-e. 

F.  Qui  sunt  sine  vlla  labe-e. 

V.  Dicentes  excelsa  uoce-e. 

V.  Laus  Tibi,  Domine-e. 

Rex  eterne  glorie-e. 

Chorus  respondeat  Ideo  regnant 

Ad  hanc  processionem  non  dicatur  Gloria  Patri  sed  dumprosa  canitur 
tune  Episcopus  Puerorum  thurificet  altar e :  deinde  ymaginem  Sancte 
Trinitatis. 

Etpostea  dicat  Sacerdos,  modesta  uoce,  hunc  uersum. 

V.  Letamini  in  Domino,  et  exvltate  iusti. 

R.  Et  gloriamini  omnes  recti  corde. 

Deinde  dicat  Episcopus  Puerorum,  sine  Dominus  uobiscum,  sed  cum 
Oremus,  oracionem. 

Deus,  cuius  hodierna  die  preconium  innocentes  martires  non 
loquendo  sed  moriendo  confessi  sunt :  omnia  in  nobis  uitiorum  mala 
mortifica,  vt  fidem  tuam,  quam  lingua  nostra  loquitur,  eciam  moribus 
uita  fateatur.  Qui  cum  Deo  Patre. 

In  redeundo  precentor  ptierorum  incipiat  responsorium  de  S.  Maria, 
uel  aliquam  antiphonam  de  eadem. 

R<  Felix  namque  es,  sacra  uirgo  Maria,  et  omni  laude  dignissima. 
Quia  ex  te  ortus  est  Sol  iusticie,  Christus  Deus  noster. 
Et,  si  necesse  fuerit)  dicatur  uersus: 

V.  Ora  pro  populo,  interueni  pro  clero,  intercede  pro  deuoto 
femineo  sexu:  senciant  omnes  tuum  leuamen,  quicumque  celebrant 
tuam  solempnitatem.  Quia  ex  te  Gloria  •  Quia  • 

Et  sic  processio  chorum  intret>per*ostium  occidentak,  vt  supra.    Et 


284  APPENDIX  M 

omnts  pueri,  ex  vtraque  park  chori,  in  super -tart  gradu  se  recipiant;  et 
ab  hac  hora  vsque  post  processionem  diet  proximi  succedentis  nullus  cleri- 
corum  sole/  gradum  superior  em  ascendere>  cuiuscumque  condicionis  fuerit. 

Ad  istam  processionem  pro  disposicione  puerorum  scribuntur  canonici^ 
ad  ministrandum  eisdem,  maiores  ad  tkuribulandum,  et  ad  librum 
deferendum,  minores  ad  candelabra  deferenda. 

Responsorio  finito,  cum  sue  uersu,  Episcopus  Puerorum  in  sede  sua 
dicat  uersum  modes  fa  uocei 

V.  Speciosus  forma  pre  filijs  hominum : 

JR.  Diffusa  est  gracia  in  labijs  tuis. 

Oracio.  Deus  qui  salutis  eterne  beate  Marie  uirginitate  fecunda 
humano  generi  premia  prestitisti ;  tribue,  quesumus,  vt  ipsam  pro  nobis 
intercedere  senciamus,  per  quam  meruimus  Auctorem  uite  suscipere, 
Dominum  nostrum  Jesum  Christum  Filium  tuum.  Que  sic  terminetur: 
Qui  Tecum  uiuit  et  regnat  in  vnitate  Spiritus  Sancti  Deus.  Per  omnia 
secula  seculorum.  Amen. 

Pax  uobis. 

JR.  Et  cum  spiritu  tuo. 

Sequatur  Benedicamus  Domino,  a  duobus  uicarijst  uel  a  tribus,  extra 
regulam. 

Tune  Episcopus  Puerorum  intret  stallum  suum,  et  in  sede  sua, 
benedicat  populum. 

Et  interim  cructferarius  accipiat  baculum  episcopi,  conuersus  ad 
Episcopum^  et  cum  uenerit  adistum  versum  Cum  mansuetudine  conuertat 
se  ad  populum  et  incipiat  hanc  antiphonam  sequentem  (que  non  dicatur 
Episcopo  absente) :  et  cantet  totam  antiphonam  vsque  adfinem. 

Ant.  Princeps  ecclesie,  pastor  ouilis,  cunctam  plebem  tuam  bene- 
dicere  digneris.  Hie  conuertat  se  ad  populum  sic  dicendo : 

Cum  mansuetudine  et  caritate,  humilitate  uos  ad  benediccionem. 

Chorus  responded/:  Deo  gracias. 

Deinde  retradat  baculum  Episcopo^  et  tune  Episcopus  Puerorum,  primo 
signando  se  infronte^  dicat \  hoc  modo  incipiens : 

Adiutorium  nostrum  in  nomine  Domini : 

Chorus  respondeat  sic :  Qui  fecit  celum  et  terram. 

Item  Episcopus^  signando  se  in  pectore,  dicat  sic : 

Sit  nomen  Dei  benedictum : 

Chorus  respondeat ':  Ex  hoc  nunc,  et  vsque  in  seculum. 

Deinde  Episcopus  Puerorum^  conuersus  ad  derum>  eleuet  brachium 
suum,  et  dicat  hanc  benediccionem : 

Crucis  signo  uos  consigno : 

Hie  conuertat  se  ad  populum >  sic  dicendo : 


THE  BOY  BISHOP  285 

Nostra  sit  tuicio. 

Deinde  conuertat  se  ad  altar e^  dicens : 

Qui  nos  emit  et  redemit, 

Posted  ad  seipsum  reuersus  ponat  manum  suam  super  pec/us  suum 
dtcendo : 

Sue  carnis  precio, 

Chorus  responded/,  vt  sequitur,  Amen. 

His  iiaque  peractis  incipiat  Episcopus  Puerorum  COMPLETORIUM  de 
die,  more  soh'to,  post  Pater  Noster  et  Aue  Maria. 

Et  post  Comphtorium  dicat  Episcopus  Puerorum  ad  chorum  conuersus 
sub  tono  supradicio. 

Adiutorium  nostrum  in  nomine  Domini, 

Chorus  responded/:  Qui  fecit  celum  et  terram. 

Episcopus  Puerorum  dicat : 

Sit  nomen  Domini  benedictum : 

Chorus.    Ex  hoc  nunc,  et  vsque  in  seculum. 

Deinde  dicat  Episcopus : 

Benedicat  nos  omnipotens  Deus,  Pater,  et  Filius,  et  Spiritus  Sanctus. 

Chorus  \  Amen. 

C  In  die  SS.  Innocencium 
si  in  DOMINICA  euenerit : 

Eodem  modo  processio  fiat  vt  in  die  S.  Siephani,  excepto  quod  hac  die 
tres  pueri  prosam  in  eundo  dicant^  in  medio  procedentes :  que  in  ipsa 
stacione  ante  crucem  ab  eisdem  terminetur. 

In  eundo,  JR.     Centum  quadraginta. 

V.     Hij  empti. 

Prosd.     Sedentem  in  superne. 

Sequatur.     Gloria  Patri,  et  Filio. 

Ideo. 

In  introitu  chori,  de  Natiuiiate,  vt  supra. 

AD  MATUTINAS  in  Die  Innocencium : 

In  tercio  Nocturno,  post  lecciones  et  cetera,  ad  gradum  altar  is  omnes 
pueri  incipiant  nonum  Responsorium. 
R.    Centum  quadraginta,  ut  supra. 
Omnes  simul  dicant  uersum  : 
V.    Hij  empti.    Gloria  Patri.    Ideo. 
V.  Justi  autem. 

IN  LAUDIBUS,  post  Ps.  Laudate,  Episcopus  Puerorum  dicat  modesta 
uoce,  quasi  legendo>  Capitulum,  loco  nee  habitu  mutato,  quia  per  totum 
diem  capa  serica  vtitur  (Apoc.  xix.) 


286  APPENDIX  M 

Cap.    Vidi  supra  montem  Syon  Agnum  stantem,  &c. 

Ympnus.  Rex  gloriose  martirum.  De  Communi plurimorum  marti- 
rorum  (Brev.  Sarum,  ii.  406). 

V.    Mirabilis  Deus. 

Ant.  Hij  sunt  qui  cum  mulieribus,  et  cetera,  quam  precentor  ddbit 
Episcopo. 

Ps.    Benedictus. 

Oracio.    Deus,  cuius  hodierna,  &c.    Qui  tecum  uiuit. 

Tune  omnes  pueri  dicant,  loco  Benedicamus,  Verbum  Patris  (Brev, 
Sarum,  i.  p.  cxc). 

Chorus  responded/. 

Consequenter  dicat  Episcopus  Puerorum  benediccionem  super  populum 
eodem  modo  quo  ad  uesperas  precedences. 

Post  tres  Memorias  (scilicet  de  Natiuitate  Domini,  de  S.  Stephano,  et 
de  S.  Johanne)  dicat  Episcopus  Puerorum  benediccionem  super  populumy 
sicut  et  post  Completorium  supra  dictum  est. 

Deinde  tres  de  secunda  forma  dicant  Benedicamus  Domino,  more 
solito. 

AD  VESPERAS.     Episcopus  Puerorum  incipiat 

Deus  in  adiutorium  meum  intende. 

Ant.     Tecum  principium. 

Ps.    Dixit  Dominus  (cix). 

Capitulum.    Vidi  supra  montem, 

JR.     Centum  quadraginta. 

Hoc  Responsorium  ab  vno  solo  Puero,  scilicet  Cancellario,  incipiatur 
ad  gradum  chori,  in  capa  serica,  et  suus  versus  ab  omnibus  pueris  cantetur 
in  superpelliceis  in  stacione  puerorum,  cum  prosa>  si  placet,  et  eciam  cum 
Gloria  Patri. 

V.     Hij  empti  sunt. 

Ympnus.     Rex  gloriose  martirum.     De  Communi. 

V.     Mirabilis  Deus. 

Episcopus  Puerorum  incipiat  antiphonam  : 

Ant.    Ecce  vidi  Agnum  stantem. 

Ps.     Magnificat. 

Or  ado.    Deus,' cuius  hodierna. 

Dicta  oracione,  omnes  pueri  loco  Benedicamus  dicant  Verbum  Patris. 

Ant.  ad  gradum  altaris. 

Et  chorus  totum  respondeant. 

C  IN  DIE  S.  THOMAE  ARCHIEPISCOPI  MARTYRIS. 
Ad  Vesper  as,  post  memoriam  de  S.  Johannet  acdpiat  cruciferarius 


THE  BOY  BISHOP  287 

laculum  Episcopi  Puerorum,  et  cantet  antiphonam  Princeps  ecclesie,  sicut 
adprimas  ucsperas. 

Similiter  Episcopus  Puerorum  bentdicat  populum  supradicto  mode. 

Et  sic  compleatur  seruicium  (officium  Puerorum)  hums  diet. 


II.   THE  YORK  COMPUTUS. 

[I  have  expanded  the  following  document  from  the  copy  printed  with 
all  the  contractions  by  Dr.  E.  F.  Rimbault  in  The  Camden  Miscellany 
(C.S.),  vii  (1875),  31-  The  original  roll  was  in  the  possession  of  the  late 
Canon  Raine.] 

Compotus  Nicholay  de  Newerk  custodis  bonorum  Johannis  de  Cave 
Episcopi  Innocencium  Anno  domini  etc.  nonagesimo  sexto. 

In  primis  receptum  de  xij  denariis  receptis  in  oblacione  die  Nativi-  Clausura 
tatis  domini.  Et  de  xxiiij  solidis  j  denario  receptis  in  oblacione  die 
Innocentium  et  j  cochleare  argenteum  ponderis  xxd.  et  j  annulum 
argenteum  cum  bursa  cerica  eodem  die  ad  missam.  Et  de  xx</.  rec. 
de  Magistro  Willelmo  de  Kexby  precentore.  Et  de  ijs.  rec.  de 
Magistro  Johanne  de  Schirburne  cancellario.  Et  de  vjs.  viijd.  rec. 
de  Magistro  Johanne  de  Newton  thesaurario  ad  Novam.  Et  de 
vjs.  viijrf.  rec.  de  Magistro  Thoma  Dalby  archidiacono  Richmunde. 
Et  de  vj  s.  viijd.  rec.  de  Magistro  Nicholao  de  Feriby.  Et  de  vj  s.  viijd. 
rec.  de  Magistro  Thoma  de  Wallworthe.  Summa  Ivs.  vd. 

Item  rec.  de  vjs.  viijd.  rec.  de  Domino  Abbate  Monasterii  beatae  Villa. 
Mariae  virginis  extra  Muros  Eboraci.      Et  de  iijs.  iiijd.  rec.  de 
Magistro  Willelmo  de  Feriby  Archidiacono  Estridinge. 

Summa  xs. 

Item  de  iijs.  iiijrf.  rec.  de  domino  Thoma  Ugtreht  milite.  Et  de  Patria. 
ijs.  rec.  de  priore*  de  Kyrkham.  Et  de  vjs.  viijd.  rec.  de  priore  de 
Malton.  Et  de  xxj.  rec.  de  comitissa  de  Northumbria  et  j  anulum 
aureum.  Et  de  vjs.  viijd.  de  priore  de  Bridlyngtone.  Et  de  iijs.  iiijrf. 
de  priore  de  Watton.  Et  de  iijj.  iiijrf.  de  rectore  de  Bayntone.  Et 
de  iijs.  iiijd.  de  Abbate  de  Melsa.  Et  de  xxrf.  rec.  de  priore  de 
Feriby.  Et  de  vjj.  viijd.  rec.  de  domino  Stephano  de  Scrope.  Et  de 
ijs.  de  priore  de  Drax.  Et  de  vjj.  viijrf.  de  Abbate  de  Selby.  Et 
de  iijs.  iiijd.  rec,  de  priore  de  Pontefracte.  Et  de  vjs.  viijd.  rec.  de 
priore  Sancti  Oswaldi.  Et  de  iij s.  iiijd.  rec.  de  priore  de  Munkbretton. 
Et  de  vjj.  viij</.  rec.  de  domino  Johanne  Depdene.  Et  de  vjs.  viijd. 
rec.  de  domina  de  Marmeon  et  j  anulum  aureum  cum  bursa  cerica. 
Et  de  iijj.  iiijd.  de  domina  de  Harsay.  Et  de  vj  s.  viijd.  de  domina  de 
Rosse.  Et  de  ijs.  rec.  de  Abbate  Ryavalli.  Et  de  ijs.  rec.  de  Abbate 


288  APPENDIX  M 

Bcllalandi.    Et  de  ijs.  rec.  de  priore  de  Novoburgo.    Et  de  xxrf.  rcc. 
de  priore  de  Marton.  Summa  v  lib.  xs. 

Summa  totalis  Receptorum  viij  lib.  xvs.  vd. 

De  quibus  dictus  Nicholaus  compotat. 

Ad  *  0  virgo  virginum.'  In  pane  pro  speciebus  jd.  In  cervisia  vjd. 
tatem.  "  Item  *n  sua  Cena.  In  pane  vijd.  Et  in  pane  dominico  iiijd.  In 
cervisia  xxjrf.  In  carne  vitulorum  et  mutulorum  ixd.  obolus.  In 
sawcetiis  iiijd.  In  ij  anatibus  iiijd.  In  xij  gallinis  ijj.  vjd.  In  viij 
wodkoks  et  j  pluver  ijj.  \}d.  In  iij  dos  et  x  feldfars  xixd.  In  parvis 
avibus  iijfl?.  In  vino  ijs.  iijd.  In  diversis  speciebus  xjd.  In  Ix 
wardens  vd.  ob.  In  melle  ijd.  ob.  In  cenapio  jd.  In  ij  libris 
candelorum  ijd.  ob.  In  floure  ijd.  In  focali  jd.  ob.  Item  coco  vjd. 

Summa  xvs.  vjd.  ob. 

Item  die  Innocentium  ad  cenam.  In  pane  \\}d.  In  cervisia  vd. 
In  carne  vitulorum  et  mutulorum  vijrf.  In  pipere  et  croco  jd. 

Diebus  veneris  et  sabbati  nichil  quia  non  visitarunt. 

Item  dominica  prima  sequentibus  diebus  lunae  Martis  Mercurii 
nichil  quia  non  visitarunt. 

Die  Jovis  seu  die  Octavarum  Innocentium  inierunt  versus  Kexby  ad 
dominum  de  Ugtrehte  et  revenerunt  ad  cenam.  In  pane  \]d.  In 
cervisia  iiijrf.  In  carne  vd. 

Diebus  veneris  et  sabbati  nichil  quia  non  visitarunt. 

Dominica  ija  seu  die  Sancti  Willelmi  devillaverunt.  In  pane  ad 
Jantaculum  \]d.  In  cervisia  iijrf.  In  carne  vd. 

Die  lunae  cum  ebdomade  sequente  nichil  quia  extra  villam. 

Dominica  iija  cum  ebdomade  sequente  extra  villam. 

Die  sabbati  revenerunt  ad  cenam.  In  pane  jrf.  ob.  In  cervisia  iijrf. 
In  lacte  et  piscibus  iijd. 

Dominica  iiija  nichil. 

Die  lunae  inierunt  ad  scolas  et  post  Jantaculum  devillaverunt.  In 
pane  ijrf.  In  cervisia  iijd.  ob.  In  carne  vijd. 

Die  sabbati  revenerunt  ad  cenam.  In  pane  ijd.  ob.  In  cervisia  ijd. 
In  piscibus  vjd. 

Dominica  va  usque  ad  finem  Purificationis  nichil. 

Summa  vs.  vijd.  ob. 

In  primis.  In  zona  empta  pro  episcopo  iijd'.  In  emendacione 
pilii  sui  jd.  In  pane  equino  ante  arreptum  itineris  ijrf.  In  oblacione 
apud  Bridlyngtone  ijd.  In  elemosina  ibidem  jd.  In  ferilay  apud 
Melsam  iiijd.  In  ferilay  apud  Drax  iiijd.  In  pane  equino  apud 
Selby  iiijrf.  Item  barbitonsori  jd.  In  j  garth  apud  Bridlyngton  jd. 
In  emendacione  j  garth  ibidem  ob.  In  ij  pectinibus  equinis  emptis  apud 


THE  BOY  BISHOP  289 

Bridlyngtone  et  Eboracum  iiijrf.  In  j  garth  apud  Beverlacum  ]d.  In 
ferracione  equorum  apud  Feriby  viijd.  ob.  In  emendacione  j  garth 
ob.  In  cena  apud  Ledes  xvijd.  In  feno  et  avena  ibidem  xiijd. 
Item  in  cena  apud  Riplay  xvjd.  In  feno  et  avena  ibidem  xijd.  ob. 
In  ferracione  equorum  apud  Fontans  iiijd.  In  ferilay  versus  Harlsay 
iiijrf.  In  bay  ting  apud  Allertone  vjd.  In  vino  pro  episcopo  viijd. 
In  pane  et  feno  equorum  apud  Helmslay  vjd.  In  ferracione  equorum 
apud  Novumburgum  iijrf.  Summa  xs.  vijd. 

In  primis,    In  j  torchio  empto  ponderis  xij  lib.  iiij  s.  iijd.    In  j  pilio 
ixd.    In  j  pari  cirothecarum  linearum  iijd.    In  j  pari  manicarum  iijd. 

In  j  pari  cultellorum  xiiijrf.    In  j  pari  calcarium  vd.    Item  pro  factura  epixopi 

t  ...  ,      T     -  .  ,      •       ••       •  Y      T    infra  civ* 

robae  xvnjrf.    In  furura  agnma  empta  pro  supertumca  ijj.  v)d.    Intern. 

fururis  ex  convencione  vjs.  In  tortricidiis  per  totum  tempus  viijd. 
In  carbone  marino  vijd.  In  carbone  ligneo  xd.  In  paris  candelorum, 
iiij</.  ob.  In  xxviij  paribus  cirothecarum  emptis  pro  vicariis  et  magistris 
scolarum  iijj.  iiijrf.  ob.  Item  pro  emendacione  capae  cericae  ijd, 

Summa  xxiijj.  jd. 

In  primis  Nicholao  de  Newsome  tenori  suo  xiijj.  iiij^.    Et  eidem  Stipendia 
pro  suo  equo  conducto  ij  s.  Item  Roberto  Dawtry  senescallo  vjs.  viijd.  ^^Tet 
Et  pro  predicationibus  ejusdem  in  capella  ijs.jd.  ob.    Item  Johanni  eguorum. 
Baynton  cantanti  medium  x s.    Item  Johanni  Grene  vj.    Item  Johanni 
Ellay  iijs.  iiijd.    Item  Johanni  Schaptone  servienti  eidem  cum  ij  equis 
suis  xs.  ijd.    Item  Thomae  Marschale  pro  j  equo  iijs.  iiijd.    Item 
j  sellare  pro  j  equo  iij  j.  vjd.    Item  pistori  pro  j  equo  iijs.  vjd.    Item 
Ricardo  Fowler  pro  ij  equis  vs.  Summa  Ixvijs.  xjrf.  ob. 

In  primis  succentori  vicariorum  ijs.    Subcancellario  xijrf.    Item  Feoda  mi- 

cerae  puerorum  xiiV.    Item  clericis  de  vestibus  xijrf.    Item  sacristis  ?l' 

..  T     T  .  ,    ,          .         ,.    ....  T     T       .    ,. 

xi]  d.    Item  pro  ornacione  cathedrae  episcopalis  ui]d.    Item  in  hgno 

pro  stallis  iiijd.    Item  in  denariis  communibus  xviij^f.    Item  custodi  c*um* 
choristarum  iijs.  iiijd.  Summa  xjs.  vjd. 

Summa  totalis  Expensarum  vj  lib.  xiiijj.  xd.  ob.    Et  sic  Recepta 
excedunt  expensas  xls.  vjd.  ob.  ad  usum  Episcopi. 


U 


290 

N 
WINTER  PROHIBITIONS 

I,  190-200.  TERTULLIAN. 

[From  De  Idololatria  (Tertulliani  Opera,  ed.  A.  Reifferscheid  and 
G.  Wissowa,  in  Corpus  Script.  Eccles.  xx ;  P.  L.  i.  674).  Part  of  the 
argument  of  c.  15  is  repeated  in  De  Corona  Militari,  c.  13  (P.  L.  ii.  97). 
In  De  Fuga  in  Persecution*,  c.  13  (P.L.  ii.  119),  bribes  given  by 
Christians  to  avoid  persecution  are  called '  saturnalitia '  given  to  soldiers.] 

c.  10.  [de  ludimagistris].  Ipsam  primam  novi  discipvli  stipem 
Minervae  et  honor!  et  nomini  consecrat . . .  quam  Minervalia  Minervae, 
quam  Saturnalia  Saturni,  quae  etiam  serviculis  sub  tempore  Saturnalium 
celebrari  necesse  est.  Etiam  strenuae  captandae  et  septimontium,  et 
Brumae  et  carae  cognationis  honoraria  exigenda  omnia,  Florae  scholae 
coronandae  :  flaminicea  et  aediles  sacrificant  creati ;  schola  honoratur 
feriis ;  idem  fit  idolo  natali :  omnis  diaboli  pompa  frequentatur.  Quis 
haec  competere  Christiano  existimabit,  nisi  qui  putabit  convenire 
etiam  non  magistris? 

c.  14.  Quemadmodum,  inquit,  omnibus  per  omnia  placeo,  nimirum 
Saturnalia  et  Kalendas  lanuarias  celebrans  hominibus  placebat  ?  . .  . 
Sabbata,  inquit,  vtstra  et  numenias  et  ceremonias  odit  anima  mea;  nobis, 
quibus  sabbata  extranea  sunt  et  numeniae  et  feriae  a  deo  aliquando 
dilectae,  Saturnalia  et  lanuariae  et  Brumae  et  Matronales  frequentantur, 
munera  commeant  et  strenae,  consonant  lusus,  convivia  constrepunt. 

c.  15.  Sed  luceant,  inquit,  opera  vestra;  at  nunc  lucent  tabernae 
et  ianuae  nostrae,  plures  iam  invenias  ethniconim  fores  sine  lucernis  et 
laureis,  quam  Christianorum  .  .  .  ergo,  inquis,  honor  dei  est  lucernae 
pro  foribus  et  iaurus  in  postibus  ?  .  .  .  certi  enim  esse  debemus,  si 
quos  latet  per  ignorantiam  litteraturae  saecularis,  etiam  ostiorum  decs 
apud  Romanos,  Cardeam  a  cardinibus  appellatam  et  Forculum  a  foribus, 
et  Limentinum  a  limine  et  ipsum  lanum  a  ianua  ...  si  autem  sunt 
qui  in  ostiis  adorantur,  ad  cos  et  lucernae  et  laureae  pertinebunt ;  idolo 
feceris,  quicquid  ostio  feceris  .  .  .  scis  fratrem  per  visionem  eadem 
nocte  castigatum  graviter,  quod  ianuam  eius  subito  adnuntiatis  gaudiis 
publicis  servi  coronassent.  Et  tamen  non  ipse  coronaverat  aut  prae- 
ceperat ;  nam  ante  processerat  et  regressus  reprehenderat  factum  .  . . 
accendant  igitur  quotidie  lucernas,  quibus  lux  nulla  est ;  affigant 
postibus  lauros  postmodum  arsuras,  quibus  ignes  imminent;  illis 
competunt  et  testimonia  tenebrarum  et  auspicia  poenarum,  Tu  lumen 
es  mundi  et  arbor  virens  semper;  si  templis  rtnuntiasti,  ne  feceris 


WINTER  PROHIBITIONS  291 

templum  ianuam  tuam,  minus   dixi;   si  lupanaribus  renuntiasti,  ne 
induaris  domui  tuae  faciem  novi  lupanaris. 

II.  190-200.  TERTULLIAN. 
\ApologeticuSy  c.  42  in  P.  L.  i.  492.] 

Sed  si  ceremonias  tuas  non  frequento,  attamen  et  ilia  die  homo  sum. 
Non  lavo  sub  noctem  Saturnalibus,  ne  et  noctem  et  diem  perdam: 
attamen  lavo  et  debita  hora  et  salubri. 

III.  t348.  PRUDRNTIUS. 
[Contra  Symmachum>  i.  237  in  P.  ZL.  ix.  139.] 

lano  etiam  celebri  de  mense  litatur 
auspiciis  epulisque  sacris,  quas  inveterato 
heu  1   mi  seri  sub  honore  agitant,  et  gaudia  ducunt 
festa  Kalendarum. 

IV.  t37o.  PACIANUS,  BISHOP  OF  BARCELONA. 

[Pacianus,  Paraenesis  ad  Poenitentiam  (P.L.  xiii.  1081).  Jerome,  de 
Viris  illustrious,  c.  106  (P.  L.  xxiii.  703),  says  of  Pacianus,  '  scripsit  varia 
opuscula,  de  quibus  est  Cervus.'] 

Hoc  enim,  puto,  proximus  Cervulus  ille  profecit,  ut  eo  diligentius 
fieret,  quo  impressius  notabatur.  .  .  .  Puto,  nescierant  Cervulum  facere, 
nisi  illis  reprehendendo  monstrassem. 

V.  374-397.  ST.  AMBROSE. 

[From  De  Interpellation*  Job  et  David,  ii.  i  (P.L.  xiv.  813),  concluding 
a  passage  on  the  cervus  as  a  type  of  David  and  of  Christ.  The  Benedictine 
editors  think  that  if  the  allusion  were  to  the  Ceruulus,  St.  Ambrose  would 
have  reprobated  it.  But  in  any  case  it  is  only  a  passing  allusion.] 

Sed  iam  satis  nobis  in  exordio  tractatus,  sicut  in  principio  anni,  more 
vulgi,  cervus  allusit. 

VI.  380-397.  ST.  CHRYSOSTOM. 

\Oratio  Kalendis  Habila  (P.  G.  xlviii.  953).  A  sermon  preached  at 
Antioch.] 


'AXXa  irpbs  frcpa  KorcTrctyovTa  fjfuv  6  XJyoj  &pfjLryrai9  ra 
77?  ?  7roAea>s  airdcrris  i/utaprry^rra  .  .  .  /cal  yap  Kal  fjp>lv  Tro 

vvv  .  .  .  baipdvuv  TTOjji'nevcravTtov  fal  rijs  ayopas.     al  yap 
Travvv\ib€$  at  ytr^/merat  rrj^pov,  Kal  ra  cr/cd)jLx/iara,  Kal 
al  XotSop^at,  Kal  al  xopctat  al  i/VKrepii;a^  Kai  ^  fcaray^Xaoros  aZrr\ 


ricrav  .  .  .  irept^apTJy  fifuv  fj  TroAts  ytyovt  Kai  ^>at2pa\  Kal 
Kal  Kaddvcp  yvvr]  </>tAoKocr/iO9  Kal  TroXureXi??,  otirca^  fj  ayopa 
rt/Aa>?  ^icaXX(07r^<raro  crrj^po^  yjpvvia  Tr^ptrt^e/utrri,  /cat  ijtxarta  TroXv- 

U  2 


292  APPENDIX  N 


i},  Kal  foroft^/utara,  Kal  lr€p&  TWO,  rotafira,  r&v  h  ToTy  £pya<m?pfoty 
rvj  rc3z>  olxtltov  Ipyvv  tiTLbft&i.  rov  6fJLOT€\vov  trapabpa^elv 
<f>iXoj/«KoiiyToy.  *AXX'  aiJn;  /A>V  ^  <£tXonjx£a,  tl  Kal  Tratbutrjs  tern 
^v\rjs  ov8h>  jut^ya  Ov8fc  vi/frjXdv  <J>avTa£bjui&>Tj9,  aXX' 
ov  T0<r<xvrr\v  CTTicrvperai  f3\a/3riv.  .  .  .  AXX',  forep  Z<t>f]v,  ov 
K\rjp,dTa>v  &£la  ai/nj  f)  </>t\ort^^a*  oi  8£  fe  TOIS 
fim  yw6p,*voi  Tripcpov,  ofooi  }&v  /uuiXiora  (J8vp<£o-t,  Kol 
ical  icre/Jefaj  ^TrcTrXT/jui^ot  TroXXTjy'  Acre^cfas  /ut^y,  #rt 
irapaTrjpovcrw  ripe  pas  ol  ravra  Trotouz/re?,  Acai  o2a>i/^oi/rat, 
fovcriy,  cl  T^V  i;ov/uT)y(ai;  TOV  jurjyds  TOVTOV  /utefl'  ^801^9  Kal  €v 
l7T4T€X^(rot€V,  /cal  rdz;  &7favra  TOIOVTOV  $£(iv  ivtavrdv* 
8^,  £rt  vird  r^i;  ^ca  yvi;atK69  Kal  Kvbpts  <f>i<l\a$  Kal  itorfipia 
cravres  ficr^  TroXX^j  7^9  a<ro>r£a9  r6r  ILK  par  ov  -Trfcovcri.  .  .  .  TaSra 
Awd  i/ovjutrjr(ay  <£iAocro'$a,  raOra  iird  r^y  Treptcffiov  rfiy  ^tavrSi; 
iiva\j.i,\jLvri(TK,ov  .  .  .  Td  Traparr/pet^  fj^pas  ov  Xptartai;tK^y  <f>i\oo-o<ptas, 
AXX*  'EXXryj/iK^y  TrXcii^y  i<rr^.  .  .  .  Ov8^  lxcty  ^owdr  irpi?  TTJP  y^y, 
8po/xot,  Kal  TT^oJot,  Kal  rj^pai  .  .  .  Td  Trpdy  f)p.^pas 
roiavraSy  Kal  TrXe^ora  ^  avrai?  bfyeo-Oai  fjbovTJv,  Kal 


&voias  ecrriV.  .  .  .  Mr)  roiwv  lifl  rrjs  Ayopas  bvaKavoys  irvp 
dXX*  ^l  7779  5tai/ota?  &va\f/ov  <f>&s  Ttv^v^ari^v  .  .  .  Mry 
1^9  oi/aas  crre^arciiaT/j,  iXXa  rotavrryy  ^7rt8€t£ai  TroXtrc^aj;,  (Sore 
^9  8iKa40cni;z;r;9  crrtyavav  ay  Kt<f>a\fi  irapa  ri)$  rov  Xpurrov 
0at,  %€ip6s  .  .  .  *Orav  iutofojis  OopvfJovs,  dra£fa9  Kal 
8iaj3oXiK(i9,  TTOVTIP&V  hvOpto-nuv  Kal  aKoXao-Tcov  T^V  byopav 
,  ohot  pdv€j  Kal  riy9  rapax^J  ATraXXrfrrov  rat5nj9,  Kal 


VII.  380-397.  ST.  CHRYSOSTOM. 

fe  Lazaro  i  (/*.  Z.,  xlviii.  963).    Preached  at  Antioch  on  the 
day  after  No.  vi.] 


iv  ov<rav  o-araiUKifi',  ^iro«|<rar€  vpels  ioprrfv 
.  .  .  AtTrXovr  roivvv  ovrco  rd  K/p8o9  t5juiii/  ytyovtv,  on 
Kal  r^9  ir^Krov  rfli;  ptOvovrtov  &Tnj\\dyrjr€  \opttas,  Kal 


OVK  aKparov  £Kx^opro9,  dXX^  8t8a<TKaX^a9 
'   Kal  avXd9  iy€V€<r0€  Kal  KiO&pa  rtf  HvcvpaTi. 


/cpoCcrat  ray  v/xer^pay 

VIIL  388.  ST.  JEROME. 
[CVwwf  .  iV»  Ephes.  vi.  4  in  P.  Z.  xxvi.  540.] 

Legant  episcopi  atque  presbyteri,  qui  filios  suos  saecularibus  litteris 
erudiunt,  et  faciunt  comoedias  legere,  et  mimorum  turpia  scripta 
cantare,  de  ecclesiasticis  forsitan  sumptibus  erttditos;  et  quod  in 


WINTER  PROHIBITIONS  293 

corbonam  pro  peccato  virgo  aut  vidua,  vel  totam  substantiam  suam 
eflfundens  quilibet  pauper  obtulerat,  hex:  kalendariam  strenam,  et 
Saturnalitiam  sportulam  et  Minervale  munus  grammaticus,  et  orator, 
aut  in  sumptus  domesticos,  aut  in  templi  stipes,  aut  in  sordida  scorta 
convertit. 

IX.  t396.  ASTERIUS  OF  AMASEA. 
[Sermo  adv.  KaL  Festum,  in  P.  G.  xl.  215.] 

Atfo  Karci  ravrbv  kopral  (rvvtbpap,ov  M  rfjs  X^ffc  *<&  rW 
iUpas,  ov  <r6jjL<t><&vol  re  *al  d8€X<£o£,  Ttav  8c  roitvavrlov 
re  Kal  Ivavrltos  l\ov<Tanipbs  iXX?jXa9.  *H  p^vydp  i<m  rov 
crvp^eroC,  iroXv  (rvvdyovo'a  TOV  /Ltajuuopa  TO  &pyvpiov .  .  .  ^>t\cl- 
rat  n^v  rb  oro/ia,  AyaTrarat  5^  rd  vo'/uu<r/uia"  rd  <r)(^juta  8tad€<r€a>9,  Kai 
rd  Ipyoy  TrXcoi/cfia?  .  .  .  ra  8^  iXXa  wfiy  &v  riy  etirot ;  jm^  Kal  ^K- 
Ka\v\lfdfjL€vo$  yuvaiKL&Tat.  6  A/narcvs  ;  K.r.A. 

X.  387-430.  ST.  AUGUSTINE. 

[Sermo  cxcviii  in  P.  L.  xxxviii.  1024.  In  Sermones  cxcvi  and  cxcvii 
Augustine  also  attacks  the  Calends,  but  in  more  general  terms.] 

Et  modo  si  solemnitas  gentium,  quae  fit  hodierno  die  in  laetitia 
saeculi  atque  carnali,  in  strepitu  vanissimarum  et  turpissimarum 
cantionum,  in  conviviis  et  saltationibus  turpibus,  in  celebratione  ipsius 
falsae  festivitatis,  si  ea  quae  agunt  gentes  non  vo&  delectent,  con- 
gregabimini  ex  gentibus.  .  .  .  Qui  ergo  aliud  credit,  aliud  sperat,  aliud 
amat,  vita  probet,  factis  ostendat.  Acturus  es  celebrationem  strenarum, 
sicut  paganus,  lusurus  alea,  et  inebriaturus  te :  quomodo  aliud  credis, 
aliud  speras,  aliud  amas?  .  .  .  Noli  te  miscere  gentibus  similitudine 
morum  atque  factorum.  Dant  illi  strenas,  date  vos  eleemosynas. 
Avocantur  illi  cantionibus  luxuriarum,  avocate  vos  sermonibus  scri- 
pturarum :  currant  illi  ad  theatrum,  vos  ad  ecclesiam ;  inebriantur  illi, 
vos  ieiunate.  Si  hodie  non  potestis  ieiunare,  saltern  cum  sobrietate 
prandete.  .  .  .  Sed  dicis  mihi;  quando  strenas  do,  mihi  accipio  et 
ego.  Quid  ergo,  quando  das  pauperi,  nihil  accipis  ? .  .  .  Etenim  ilia 
daemonia  delectantur  canticis  vanitatis,  delectantur  nugatorio  spe- 
ctaculo,  et  turpitudinibus  variis  theatrorum,  insania  circi,  crudelitate 
amphitheatri,  certaminibus  animosis  eorum  qui  pro  pestilentibus 
hominibus  lites  et  contentiones  usque  ad  inimicitias  suscipiunt,  pro 
mimo,  pro  histrione,  pro  pantomimo,  pro  auriga,  pro  venatore,  Ista 
facientes,  quasi  thura  ponunt  daemoniis  de  cordibus  suis. 


294  APPENDIX  N 

XL  t4oo.  SEVERIAN. 

\Homilia  de  Pythonibus  et  Maleficis  (Mai,  Spicilegium  Romanum, 
x.  222).  The  author's  name  is  given  as  Severian.  A  Severian  was 
bishop  of  Gabala  in  Syria  t4oo,  a  prolific  preacher  and  an  opponent  of 
St.  Chrysostom  in  Constantinople.  It  seems,  however,  a  little  hazardous 
to  ascribe  to  him  a  Latin  homily.] 

Ecce  veniunt  dies,  ecce  kalendae  veniunt,  et  tota  daemonum 
pompa  procedit,  idolorum  tota  producitur  officina,  et  sacrilegio  vetusto 
anni  novitas  consecratur.  Figurant  Saturnum,  faciunt  lovem,  formant 
Herculem,  exponunt  cum  venantibus  suis  Dianam,  circumducunt 
Vulcanum  verbis  haletantem  turpitudines  suas,  et  plura,  quorum, 
quia  portenta  sunt,  nomina  sunt  tacenda ;  quorum  deformitates  quia 
natura  non  habet,  creatura  nescit,  fingere  ars  laborat.  Praeterea 
vestiuntur  homines  in  pecudes,  et  in  feminas  viros  vertunt,  honestatem 
rident,  violant  iudicia,  censuram  publicam  rident,  inludunt  saeculo 
teste,  et  dicunt  se  facientes  ista  iocari.  Non  sunt  ioca,  sed  sunt 
crimina.  In  idola  transfiguratur  homo.  Et,  si  ire  ad  idola  crimen 
est,  esse  idolum  quid  videtur  ?  . .  .  Namque  talium  deorum  facies  ut 
pernigrari  possint,  carbo  deficit ;  et  ut  eorum  habitus  pleno  cumuletur 
horrore,  paleae,  pelles,  panni,  stercora,  toto  saeculo  perquiruntur,  et 
quidquid  est  confusionis  humanae,  in  eorum  facie  collocatur. 

XII.  408-410.  ST.  JEROME. 
\Coftom.  in  Isaiamy  Ixv.  II  (P.L.  xxiv.  638).] 

Ei  vos  qui  dereliquisiis  Dominum,  et  obliti  estis  montem  sanctum  meum. 
Qui  ponitis  fortunae  mensam  et  libatis  super  earn.  .  .  .  Est  autem  in 
cunctis  urbibus,  et  maxime  in  Aegypto,  et  in  Alexandria  idololatriae 
vetus  consuetudo,  ut  ultimo  die  anni  et  mensis  eorum  qui  extremus 
est,  ponant  mensam  refertam  varii  generis  epulis,  et  poculum  mulso 
mixtum,  vel  praeteriti  anni,  vel  futuri  fertilitatem  auspicantes.  Hoc 
autem  faciebant  Israelitae,  omnium  simulacrorum  portenta  venerantes : 
et  nequaquam  altari  victimas,  sed  huiusce  modi  mensae  liba  fundebant 

XIII.  t4i2-t465-  MAXIMUS  OF  TURIN. 

\Homilia  ciii,  de  Calendis  Gentilium  (P.  L.  Ivii.  491).] 

Bene  quodammodo  Deo  providente  dispositum  est,  ut  inter  medias 

gentilium  festivitates  Christus  Dominus  oriretur,  et  inter  ipsas  tene- 

brosas  superstitiones  errorum  veri  luminis  splendor  effulgeret.  .  .  . 

Quis   enim  sapiens,  qui  dominici   Natalis  sacramentum  colit,  non 

ebrietatem   condemnet   Saturnalium,   non  declipet  lasciviam  calen- 

darum?  .  .  .  Sunt  plerique,  qui  trahentes  consuetudinem  de  veteri 


WINTER  PROHIBITIONS  295 

superstitione  vanitatis,  calendarum  diem  pro  summa  festivitate  pro- 
curent ;  et  sic  laetitiam  habere  velint,  ut  sit  magis  illis  tristitia.  Nam 
ita  lasciviunt,  ita  vino  et  epulis  satiantur,  ut  qui  toto  anno  castus  et 
temperans  fuerit,  ilia  die  sit  temulentus  atque  pollutus;  et  quod  nisi 
ita  fecerit,  putet  perdidisse  se  ferias ;  quia  non  intelligit  per  tales  se 
ferias  perdidisse  salutem.  Illud  autem  quale  est,  quod  surgentes 
mature  ad  publicum  cum  munusculo,  hoc  est,  cum  strenis  unusquisque 
procedit ;  et  salutaturus  amicos,  salutat  praemio  antequam  osculo  ?  .  .  . 
Adhuc  et  ipsam  munificentiam  strenas  vocant,  cum  magis  strenuum, 

quod cogitur. .  .  .  Hoc  gutem  quale  est  quod,  interposita  die,  tali 

inani  exordio,  velut  incipientes  vivere,  aut  auspicia  colligant,  omniaque 
perquirant ;  et  exinde  totius  anni  sibi  vel  prosperitatem,  vel  tristitiam 
metiuntur  ?  .  . .  Hoc  autem  malis  suis  addunt,  ut  quasi  de  auspicatione 
domum  redeuntes  ramusculos  gestent  in  manibus,  scilicet  pro  omine, 
ut  vel  onusti  ad  hospitium  redeant. 

XIV.  t4i2-t46s.  MAXIMUS  OF  TURIN. 
\Homilia  xvi,  de  Cal.  Ian.  (P.  L.  Ivii.  255).] 

Quamquam  non  dubitem  vos  .  .  .  universas  calendarum  super- 
venientium  vanitates  declinare  penitus  et  horrere  .  .  .  necessarium,  nee 

superfluum  reor . . .  precedentium  patrum  vobis  repetantur  alloquia 

Et  illorum  gravior  atque  immedicabilis  languor  est,  qui  superstitionum 
furore  et  ludorum  suavitate  decepti  sub  specie  sanitatis  insaniunt.  An 
non  omnia  quae  a  ministris  daemonum  illis  aguntur  diebus  falsa  sunt 
et  insana,  cum  vir,  virium  suarum  vigore  mollito,  totum  se  frangit  in 
feminam,  tantoque  illud  ambitu  atque  arte  agit,  quasi  poeniteat  ilium 
esse,  quod  vir  est  ?  Numquid  non  universa  ibi  falsa  sunt  et  insana, 
cum  se  a  Deo  formati  homines,  aut  in  pecudes,  aut  in  feras,  aut  in 
portenta  transformant  ?  Numquid  non  omnem  excedit  insaniam,  cum 
decorem  vultus  humani  Dei  specialiter  manibus  in  omnem  pulchri- 
tudinem  figuratum,  squalore  sordium  et  adulterina  foeditate  deturpant  ? 
.  . .  Post  omnia,  ad  offensionis  plenitudinem,  dies  ipsos  annum  novum 
vocant.  . .  .  Novum  annum  lanuarias  appellant  calendas,  cum  vetusto 
semper  errore  et  horrore  sordescant.  Auspicia  etiam  vanissimi 
colligere  se  dicunt,  ac  statum  vitae  suae  inanibus  indiciis  aestimantes, 
per  incerta  avium  ferarumque  signa  imminentis  anni  futura  rimantur. 

XV,  t4i2-t46s.  MAXIMUS  OF  TURIN? 

[Sermo  vi,  de  Cal.  Ian.  (P.L.  Ivii.  543).  The  Sermo  is  ascribed  to 
Maximus  in  three  good  MSS.  and  the  style  agrees  with  his.  Other  MSS 
give  it  to  St.  Augustine  or  St.  Ambrose,  and  it  is  printed  in  the  Benedictine 
edition  of  the  tetter's  works  (Sermo  vii.  in  P.  L.  xvii.  617).  The  editors, 
however,  do  not  think  it  his.] 


296  APPENDIX  N 

Est  mihi  adversus  plerosque  vestrum,  fratres,  querela  non  modica : 
de  iis  loquor  qui  nobiscum  natale  Domini  celebrantes  gentilium  se 
feriis  dediderunt,  et  post  illud  coeleste  convivium  superstitionis  sibi 
prandium  praepararunt  .  .  .  Quomodo  igitur  potestis  religiose  Epi- 
phaniam  Domini  procurare,  qui  lani  calendas  quantum  in  vobis  est 
devotissime  celebratis  ?  lanus  enim  homo  fuit  unius  conditor  civitatis, 
quae  laniculum  nuncupatur,  in  cuius  honore  a  gentibus  calendae  sunt 
lanuariae  nuncupatae;  unde  qui  calendas  lanuarias  colit  peccat, 
quoniam  homini  mortuo  defert  divinitatis  obsequium.  Inde  est  quod 
ait  Apostolus :  Dies  observastis,  et  menses,  et  temporay  et  annos  ;  timeo  ne 
sine  causa  laboraverim  in  vobis.  Observavit  enim  diem  et  mensem  qui 
his  diebus  aut  non  ieiunavit,  aut  ad  Ecclesiam  non  processit.  Obser- 
vavit diem  qui  hesterna  die  non  processit  ad  ecclesiam,  processit  ad 
campum.  Ergo,  fratres,  omni  studio  gentilium  festivitatem  et  ferias 
declinemus,  ut  quando  illi  epulantur  et  laeti  sunt,  nunc  nos  simus 
sobrii,  atque  ieiuni,  quo  intelligant  laetitiam  suam  nostra  abstinentia 
condemnari. 

XVI.  Fifth  century.  ST.  PETER  CHRYSOLOGUS. 
\Sermo  civ  in  P.  L.  Hi.  609.] 

Ubi  nostram  Christus  pie  natus  est  ad  salutem,  mox  diabolus  divinae 
bonitati  numeros^  genuit  et  perniciosa  portenta,  ut  ridiculum  de 
religione  componeret,  in  sacrilegium  verteret  sanctitatem.  .  .  .  Quorum 
formant  adulteria  in  simulacris,  quorum  fornicationes  imaginibus  man- 
dant,  quorum  titulant  incesta  picturis,  quorum  crudelitates  commendant 
libris,  quorum  parricidia  tradunt  saeculis,  quorum  impietates  personant 
tragoediis,  quorum  obscaena  ludunt,  hos  qua  dementia  deos  crederent, 
nisi  quia  criminum  desiderio,  amore  scelerum  possidentur,  deos 
exoptant  habere  criminosos  ?  .  .  .  Haec  diximus,  quare  gentiles  hodie 
faciant  deos  suos  talia  committere,  quae  sustinemus,  et  faciant  tales 
qui  videntibus  et  horrori  sunt  et  pudori ;  faciant  ut  eos  aliquando  et 
ipsi  qui  faciunt  horreant  et  relinquant,  et  Christiani  glorientur  a  talibus 
se  liberates  esse  per  Christum:  si  modo  non  eorum  ex  spectaculis 
polluantur.  .  .  .  Et  si  tanta  est  de  assensione  damnatio,  quis  satis 
lugeat  eos  qui  simulacra  faciunt  semetipsos  ? .  .  .  Qui  se  deum  facit, 
Deo  vero  contradictor  exietit ;  imaginem  Dei  portare  noluit,  qui  idoli 
voluerit  portare  personam ;  qui  iocari  voluerit  cum  diabolo,  non 
poterit  gaudere  cum  Christo.  . .  .  Abstrahat  ergo  pater  filium,  servum 
dominus,  parens  parentem,  civem  civis,  homo  hominem,  Christianus 
omnes  qui  se  bestiis  compararunt,  exaequarunt  iumentis,  aptaverunt 
pecudibus,  daemonibus  formaverunt. 


WINTER  PROHIBITIONS  297 

XVII.  470-542.  CAESARIUS  OF  ARLES? 

[Sermo  Pseud.-Augustin.  cxxix  de  Kal.  Ian.  in  P.  L.  xxxix.  2001.  Parts 
of  this  sermon  are  reproduced  *  mutatis  mutandis J  in  the  eighth-century 
Frankish  HomiliadeSacrilegiis  (§§  23-26), edited  by  Caspari  (cf.  No.  xxxix, 
below),  and  also  in  a  MS.  homily,  De  Kalendis  lanuariis^  in  Cod  Lat. 
Monac.  6108  (tenth  century),  f.  48T.  The  rest  of  that  homily  is  mainly 
from  Maxim  us  Taurinensis,  Horn.  16  (No.  xiv,  above).  And  nearly  the 
whole  of  the  present  Sermo  is  included  in  the  Homiliarium  of  Burchardus 
of  Wiirzburg  and  printed  from  his  MS.  by  Eckart,  Francia  Orientalis, 
i.  837- 

On  the  date  and  authorship  of  the  Sermo,  cf.  Caspari,  67.  It  is  ascribed 
to  Augustine  by  a  Codex  Colbertinus.  His  editors,  Blancpain  and  Coutant, 
treat  it  as  not  his  (a)  on  account  of  the  difference  of  style,  (b)  on  account 
of  the  reference  to  the  ieiunium  prescribed  by  the  sancti  antiqui  patres 
(i.e.  amongst  others,  Augustine  himself:  cf.  No.  x).  A  Codex  Aceiensis 
ascribes  it  to  Faustinus  (i.e.  Faustus  of  Raji),  and  this  is  accepted  by  the 
Bollandists  (Acta  SS.  Ian.  i.  2),  and  by  Eckart,  op.  tit.  i.  433.  Finally 
a  codex  Navarricus  assigns  it  to  Maxentius.  This  can  hardly  be  the 
Scythian  monk  of  that  name  (t52o).  Caspari  suggests  that  there  has 
been  a  scribal  error.  The  sermo  is  headed  'De  natali  Domini.  In 
calendis  ianuariis.'  There  is  nothing  about  the  Nativity  in  it,  and 
possibly  a  Nativity  sermon  and  the  author's  name  of  the  Kalends  sermon 
which  followed  it  have  dropped  out.  He  also  thinks  Maximus  Taurinensis 
may  be  meant.  However  Caspari  finally  agrees  with  Blancpain  and 
Coutant,  that  the  style  and  the  allusion  to  the  triduum  ieiunii  so  closely 
resembling  that  of  the  Council  of  Tours  (No.  xxii)  point  to  a  writer  of  the 
first  half  of  the  sixth  century,  and  that  he  may  very  likely  be  Caesarius 
of  Aries,  who,  as  his  Vita  (cf.  No.  xx)  states,  did  preach  against  the 
Kalends.] 

Dies  calendarum  istarum,  fratres  carissimi,  quas  lanuarias  vocant, 
a  quodam  lano  homine  perdito  ac  sacrilege  nomen  accepit.  lanus 
autem  iste  dux  quidam  et  princeps  hominum  paganorum  fuit :  quern 
imperiti  homines  et  rustici  dum  quasi  regem  metuunt,  colere  velut 
Deum  coeperunt.  .  .  .  Diem  ergo  calendarum  hodiernanim  de  nomine 
lani,  sicut  iam  dictum  est,  nuncuparunt :  atque  ut  ei  homini  divinos 
honores  conferre  cupiebant,  et  finem  unius  anni  et  alterius  initium 
deputarunt.  Et  quia  apud  illos  lanuariae  calendae  unum  annum 
implere,  et  alterum  incipere  dicebantur,  istum  lanum  quasi  in  prin- 
cipio  ac  termino  posuerunt,  ut  unum  annum  implere,  alterum  incipere 
diceretur.  Et  hinc  est,  quod  idolorum  cultores  ipsi  lano  duas  facies 
figurarunt.  .  .  .  Hinc  itaque  est  quod  istis  diebus  pagani  homines 
perverse  omnium  reram  ordine  obscenis  deformitatibus  teguntur;  ut 
tales  utique  se  faciant  qui  colunt,  qualis  est  iste  qui  colitur.  In  istis 
enim  diebus  miseri  homines,  et,  quod  peius  est,  aliqui  baptizati,  sumunt 
formas  adulteras,  species  monstrosas,  in  quibus  quidem  sunt  quae 
primum  pudenda,  aut  potius  dolenda  sunt.  Quis  enim  sapiens  poterit 
credere,  inveniri  aliquos  sanae  mentis  qui  cervulum  facientes,  in 
ferarum  se  velint  habitum  commutare?  Alii  vestiuntur  pellibus 


298  APPENDIX  N 

pecudum;  alii  assumunt  capita  bestiarum,  gaudentes  et  exsultantes, 
si  taliter  se  in  ferinas  species  transformaverint,  ut  homines  non  esse 
videantur.  .  .  .  lamvero  illud  quale  et  quam  turpe  est,  quod  viri  nati 
tunicis  muliebribus  vestiuntur,  et  turpissima  demum  demutatione 
puellaribus  figuris  virile  robur  efferainant,  non  erubescentes  tunicis 
muliebribus  inserere  militares  lacertos  :  barbatas  facies  praeferunt,  et 
videri  feminae  volunt.  .  .  ,  Sunt  enim  qui  calendis  ianuariis  auguria 
observant,  ut  focum  de  domo  sua,  vel  aliud  quodcumque  beneficium, 
cuicumque  petenti  non  tribuant.  Diabolicas  etiam  strenas,  et  ab  aliis 
accipiunt,  et  ipsi  aliis  tradunt.  Aliqui  etiam  rustici,  mensulas  in  ista 
nocte  quae  praeteriit,  plenas  multis  rebus,  quae  ad  manducandum 
sunt  necessariae,  componentes,  tota  nocte  sic  compositas  esse  volunt, 
credentes  quod  hoc  illis  calendae  ianuariae  praestare  possint,  ut  per 
totum  annum  convivia  illorum  in  tali  abundantia  perseverent.  .  .  . 
Qui  enim  aliquid  de  paganorum  consuetudine  in  istis  diebus  observare 
voluerint,  timendum  est  ne  eis  nomen  christianum  prodesse  non  possit. 
Et  ideo  sancti  antiqui  patres  nostri  considerantes  maximam  partem 
hominum  diebus  istis  gulae  vel  luxuriae  deservire,  et  ebrietatibus  et 
sacrilegis  saltationibus  insanire,  statuerunt  in  universum  mundum,  ut 
per  omnes  Ecclesias  publicum  indiceretur  ieiunium.  .  .  .  leiunemus 
ergo,  fratres  carissimi,  in  istis  diebus.  .  .  .  Qui  etiam  in  istis  calendis 
stultis  hominibus  luxuriose  ludentibus  aliquam  humanitatem  impen- 
dent, peccati  eorum  participem  se  esse  non  dubitet. 

XVIII.  ?  470-543.  CAESARIUS  OF  ARLKS? 

\Sermo  Pseud.-  Augustin.  cxxx  in  P.L.  xxxix.  2003.  The  authorship  is 
generally  taken  to  follow  that  of  No.  xvii,  although  a  Fleury  MS.  ascribes 
it  to  Bp.  Sedatus  of  Besiers 


Sic  enim  fit  ut  stultae  laetitiae  causa,  dum  observantur  calendarum 
dies  aut  aliarum  superstitionum  vanitas,  per  licentiam  ebrietatis  et 
ludorum  turpem  cantum,  velut  ad  sacrificia  sua  daemones  invitentur. 
.  .  .  Quid  enim  est  tarn  demens  quam  virilem  sexum  in  formam  mulieris, 
turpi  habitu  commutare  ?  Quid  tarn  demens  quam  deformare  faciem, 
et  vultus  induer^,  quos  ipsi  etiam  daemones  expavescunt  ?  Quid  tarn 
demens  quam  incompositis  motibus  et  impudicis  carminibus  vitiorum 
laudes  inverecunda  delectatione  cantare?  indui  ferino  habitu,  et 
capreae  aut  cervo  similem  fieri,  ut  homo  ad  imaginem  Dei  et  similitu- 
dinem  factus  sacrificium  daemonum  fiat?  .  .  .  Quicunque  ergo  in 
calendis  ianuariis  quibuscunque  miseris  hominibus  sacrilego  ritu  insa- 
nientibus,  potius  quam  ludentibus,  aliquam  humanitatem  dederint,  non 
hominibus,  sed  daemonibus  se  dedisse  cognoscant.  Et  ideo  si  in 


WINTER  PROHIBITIONS  299 

peccatis  eorum  participes  esse  non  vultis,  cervulum  sive  iuvencam1, 
aut  alia  quaelibet  portenta,  ante  domos  vestras  venire  non  permittatis. 
. ,  .  Sunt  enim  aliqui,  quod  peius  est,  quos  ita  observatio  inimica  sub- 
vertit,  ut  in  diem  calendarum  si  forte  aut  vicinis  aut  peregrinantibus  opus 
sit,  etiam  focum  dare  dissimulent.  Multi  praeterea  strenas  et  ipsi 
offerre,  et  ab  aliis  accipere  solent.  Ante  omnia,  fratres,  ad  confun- 
dendam  paganorum  carnalem  et  luxuriosam  laetitiam,  exceptis  illis  qui 
prae  infirmitate  abstinere  non  praevalent,  omnes  auxiliante  Deo  ieiune- 
mus ;  et  pro  illis  miseris  qui  calendas  istas,  pro  gula  et  ebrietate, 
sacrilega  consuetudine  colunt,  Deo,  quantum  possumus,  supplicemus. 

XIX.  470-542.  CAKSARIUS  OF  ARLES? 

\Sermo  Pseud.- Augustin.  265,  De  Christiano  Nomine  cum  Operibus  non 
ChristianiS)  in  P.L.  xxxix.  2239.] 

Licet  credam  quod  ilia  infelix  consuetudo  .  . .  iam  .  .  .  fuerit . .  . 
sublata ;  tamen,  si  adhuc  agnoscatis  aliquos  illam  sordidissimam  turpi- 
tudinem  de  hinnicula  vel  cervula  exercere  .  .  .  castigate. 

XX.  470-542.  CAESARIUS  OF  ARLES. 

[Episcopi  Cyprianus,  Firminus  et  Viventius,  Vita  S.  Caesarii  Arela- 
tensis,  i.  5.  42  ;  P.L.  Ixvii.  1021.] 

Predicationes  . .  .  contra  calendarum  quoque  paganissimos  ritus  . ,  . 
fecit. 

XXI.  t554-  CHILDEBERT. 

\Constitutio  Childeberti^  De  Abolendis  Reliquiis  ldolatriae>  in  Mansi, 
ix.  738  ;  Boretius,  i.  2.] 

Noctes  pervigiles  cum  ebrietate,  scurrilitate,  vel  canticis,  etiam  in 
ipsis  sacris  diebus,  pascha,  natale  Domini,  et  reliquis  festivitatibus,  vel 
adveniente  die  Dominico  dansatrices  per  villas  ambulare.  Haec  omnia, 
unde  Deus  agnoscitur  laedi,  nullatenus  fieri  permittimus. 

XXII.  567.  COUNCIL  OF  TOURS. 
[Maassen,  i.  121 ;  Mansi,  ix,  803.] 

c.  1 8.  [De  ieiuniis  monachorum] 

Quia  inter  natale  Domini  et  epyfania  omni  die  festivitates  sunt, 
idemque  prandebunt  excepto  triduum  illud,  quod  ad  calcandam  genti- 
lium  consuetudinem  patris  nostri  statuerunt,  privatas  in  kalendis 
lanuarii  fieri  letanias,  ut  in  ecclesia  psalletur  et  ora  octava  in  ipsis 
kalendis  circumcisionis  missa  Deo  propitio  celebretur. 

1  var.  Uct.  anulas,  agniculam,  anniculam. 


800  APPENDIX  N 

c.  23.  Enimvero  quoniam  cognovimus  nonnullos  inveniri  sequi- 
pedes  erroris  antiqui,  qui  Kalendas  lanuarii  colunt,  cum  lanus  homo 
gentilis  fuerit,  rex  quidam,  sed  esse  Deus  non  potuit ;  quisquis  ergo 
unum  Deuin  Patrem  regnantem  cum  Filio  et  Spiritu  Sancto  credit,  non 
potest  integer  Christianas  dici,  qui  super  hoc  aliqua  custodit. 

XXIII.  572-574.  MARTIN  OF  BRAGA. 

[Martin  von  Bracara,  De  Correctione  Rusticorum,  ed.  C.  P.  Caspari, 
Christiania,  1883.] 

c.  10.  Similiter  et  Hie  error  ignorantibus  et  rusticis  hominibus 
subrepit,  ut  Kalendas  lanuarias  putent  anni  esse  initium,  quod  omnino 
falsissimum  est.  Nam,  sicut  scriptura  dicit,  viii.  kal.  Aprilis  in  ipso 
aequinoctio  initium  primi  anni  est  factum. 

c.  ii.  ...  Sine  causa  autem  miser  homo  sibi  istas  praefigurationes 
ipse  facit,  ut,  quasi  sicut  in  introitu  anni  satur  est  et  laetus  ex  omnibus, 
ita  illi  et  in  toto  anno  contingat.  Observationes  istae  omnes  pagano- 
rum  sunt  per  adinventiones  daemonum  exquisitae. 

c.  1 6.  ...  Vulcanalia  et  Kalendas  observare,  menses  ornare,  lauros 
ponere,  pedem  observare,  effundere  [in  foco]  super  truncum  frugem  et 
vinum,  et  panem  in  fontem  mittere,  quid  est  aliud  nisi  cultura  diaboli  ? 

XXIV.  +560.  MARTIN,  BISHOP  OF  BRAGA. 

[Quoted  in  the  Decretum  Gratiani,  Pars  ii,  Causa  26,  Quaestio  7,  c.  13 
(C.  f.  Can.  ed.  Friedberg,  i.  1044),  as  from  '  Martinus  Papa/  or  *  Martinus 
Bracarensis '  [c.  74].  Mansi,  ix.  857,  gives  the  canon  with  a  reference  to 
C.  of  Laodicea^  c.  39,  which  is  a  more  general  decree  against  taking  part  in 
Gentile  feasts.  Burchardus,  x.  15,  quotes  it  'ex  decreto  Martialis  papae.' 
Martin  of  Braga  ob.  580.  His  Capitula  are  collected  from  the  councils 
of  Braga  and  the  Great  Councils.  Caspari,  Martin  von  BracarcCs  De 
Con.  Rusticoruni)  xl,  thinks  that  several  of  them,  including  c.  74,  were  his 
own  additions.] 

Non  licet  iniquas  observationes  agere  calendarum,  et  otiis  vacare 
gentilibus,  neque  lauro  aut  viriditate  arborum  cingere  domos :  omnis 
enim  haec  observatio  paganism!  est. 

XXV.  573-603.  COUNCIL  OF  AUXERRE. 
[Maassen,  i.  179.] 

c.  i.  Non  licet  kalendis  lanuarii  vetolo  aut  cervolo facere  vel  streneas 
diabolicas  observare,  sed  in  ipsa  die  sic  omnia  beneficia  tribuantur, 
sicut  in  reliquis  diebus. 

c.  5.  Omnino  inter  supra  dictis  conditionibu^  pervigilias,  quos  in 
honore  domini  Martini  observant,  omnimodis  prohibite. 


WINTER  PROHIBITIONS  801 

c.  xi*  Non  licet  vigilia  paschae  ante  ora  secunda  noctis  vigilias  per- 
expedire,  quia  ipsa  nocte  non  licet  post  media  nocte  bibere,  nee 
natale  Domini  nee  reliquas  sollemnitates. 

XXVI.  6th  cent.  ST.  SAMSON,  BISHOP  OF  DdLE. 
[Anonymi  Vita  S.  Samsonis,  ii.  13  (Acta  S*  S.  fulii,  vi.  590).] 

Nam  cum  quodam  tempore  in  Resia  insula  praedicaret,  veniente 
per  annuam  vertiginem  Kalenda  lanuaria,  qua  homines  supradictae 
insulae  hanc  nequam  solemnem  inepte  iuxta  patrum  abominabilem 
consuetudinem  prae  ceteris  sane  celebrate  consueverant,  ille  providus 
spiritu  ob  duritiam  eorum  mitigandam,  convenire  eos  omnes  in  unum 
fecit,  ut,  Deo  revelante,  sermo  ad  detestanda  tarn  gravia  mala  sit. 
Turn  hi  omnes  verum  de  eo  amantes,  pravos  ritus  anathematizaverunt, 
ac  verum  iuxta  praecepta  tenus  sine  suscipere  spoponderunt.  Ille 
nihilominus  in  Domino  secundum  Apostolos  gaudens,  omnes  parvulos 
qui  per  insulam  illam  ob  hanc  nefariam  diem  discurrebant,  vocavit 
ad  se,  eisque  singulis  per  sobriam  vocem  mercedem  nummismunculi 
auro  quod  est  mensura  domuit,  praecipiens  in  nomine  Domini,  ne 
ulterius  ab  illis  haec  sacrilega  consuetudo  servaretur.  Quod  ita  Deo 
operante  factum  est,  ut  usque  hodie  ,ibidem  spiritales  ioci  eius  solide 
et  catholice  remanserint. 

XXVII.  588-659.  ST.  ELIGIUS  OF  ROUEN? 

[Sermo  in  Vita  Eligii  of  Audoenus  of  Rouen  (P.  L.  Ixxxvii.  524). 
According  to  E.  Vacandard  in  JR.  des  Questions  historiquesy  Ixiv.  471, 
this  is  largely  a  compilation  from  the  sermons  of  St.  Caesarius  of  Aries.] 

Nullus  in  Kalendis  lanuarii  nefanda  et  ridiculosa,  vetulas  aut  cervulos, 
aut  iotticos 1  faciat,  neque  mensas  supra  noctem  componat,  neque  strenas 
aut  bibitiones  superfluas  exerceat. 

XXVIIL  t636.  ST.  ISIDORE  OF  SEVILLE. 

[De  Ecclesiasticis  Officiis^  i.  41 ;  De  leiunio  Kalendarum  lanuariarum 
(P.  L.  Ixxxiii.  774).  This  is  the  chief  source  of  the  similar  passage  in  the 
ninth-century  Pseudo-Alcuin,  De  Div.  Offic.  c.  4  (P.  L.  ci.  H77).J 

1.  leiunium  Kalendarum  lanuariarum   propter   errorem   gentili- 
tatis  instituit  Ecclesia.    lanus  enim  quidam  princeps  paganorum  fuit, 
a  quo  nomen  mensis  lanuarii  nuncupatur,  quern  imperiti  homines 
veluti  Deum  colentes,  in  religione  honoris  posteris  tradiderunt,  diem- 
que  ipsam  scenis  et  luxuriae  sacraverunt. 

2.  Tune  enim  miseri  homines,  et,  quod  peius  est,  etiam  fideles, 

1  var.  lect.  ulerioticos.    Ducange  explains>//i^tf  as  ' Iudit  Gall  jeux? 


802  APPENDIX  N 

sumentes  species  monstruosas,  in  feranim  habitu  transformantur  : 
alii,  femineo  gestu  demutati,  virilem  vultum  effeminant.  Nonnulli 
etiam  de  fanatica  adhuc  consuetudine  quibusdam  ipso  die  obser- 
vationum  auguriis  profanantur  ;  perstrepunt  omnia  saltantium  pedibus, 
tripudiantium  plausibus,  quodque  est  turpius  nefas,  nexis  inter  se 
utriusque  sexus  choris,  inops  animi,  furens  vino,  turba  miscetur. 

3.  Proinde  ergo  sancti  Patres  considerantes  maximam  partem 
generis  humani  eodem  die  huiusmodi  sacrilegiis  ac  luxuriis  inservire, 
statuerunt  in  Universo  mundo  per  omnes  Ecclesias  publicum  ieiunium, 
per  quod  agnoscerent  homines  in  tantum  se  prave  agere,  ut  pro  eorum 
peccatis  necesse  esset  omnibus  Ecclesiis  ieiunare. 

XXIX.  t685.  ST.  ALDHELM. 
\Epist.  iii  in  Eahfridum  (P.  L.  Ixxxix.  93).] 

Et  ubi  pridem  eiusdem  nefandae  natricis  ermuli  l  cervulique  cruda 
fanis  colebantur  stoliditate  in  profanis,.  versa  vice  discipulorum  gur- 
gustia  (imo  almae  oraminum  aedes)  architect!  ingenio  fabre  conduntur. 

XXX.  692,  QUINISEXTINE  COUNCIL. 

[Cone.  Quinisextinum  or  in  Trullo,  held  at  Constantinople,  versio 
Latina,  c.  62  (Mansi,  xi.  971).] 

Kalendas  quae  dicuntur,  et  vota  [Gk.  /Jora],  et  brumalia  quae 
vocantur  ;  et  qui  in  primo  Martii  mensis  die  fit  conventum  ex  fidelium 
universitate  omnino  tolli  volumus  :  sed  et  publicas  mulierum  salta- 
tiones  multam  noxam  exitiumque  afferentes:  quin  etiam  eas,  quae 
nomine  eorum,  qui  falso  apud  gentiles  dii  nominati  sunt,  vel  nomine 
virorum  ac  mulierum  fiunt,  sallationes  ac  mysteria  more  antiquo  et 
a  vita  Christianorum  alieno,  amandamus  et  expellimus;  statuentes, 
ut  nullus  vir  deinceps  muliebri  veste  induatur,  vel  mulier  veste  viro 
conveniente.  Sed  neque  comicas  vel  satyricas,  vel  tragicas  personas 
induat;  neque  execrati  Bacchi  nomen,  uvam  in  torcularibus  expri- 
mentes,  invocent  ;  neque  vinum  in  doliis  effundentes  risum  moveant, 
ignorantia  vel  vanitate  ea,  quae  ab  insaniae  impostura  procedunt, 
exercentes. 

XXXI.  714.  GREGORY  II. 

FGregorius    II.      Capitulare   datum   episcopo  et  aliis  in  Bavarian 
S)  c.  9  (Mansi,  xii.  260).] 


Ut  incantationes,  et  fastidiationes,  sive  diversae  observationes  dierum 
Kalendarum,  quas  error  tradidit  paganorum,  prohibeantur. 

1  Ermuli.  Ducange,  s.  v.,  would  read      Usshcr  though^  that  the  passage  referred 
hinnuli.     He  says  that  Archbishop      to  the  Saxon  god  Inninsul. 


WINTER  PROHIBITIONS  808 

XXXII.  731-741.  GREGORY  III. 

[ludicia,  c.  23  (P.  L.  Ixxxix.  594).  In  Epist.  3  sent  to  Germany  on  the 
return  of  Boniface  from  Rome  in  739,  Gregory  gives  the  more  general 
direction  '  abstinete  et  prohibete  vosmetipsos  ab  omni  cultu  paganorum ' 
(P.L.  Ixxxix.  579).] 

Si  quis  . . .  ut  frater  in  honore  lovis  vel  Beli  aut  lani,  secundum 
paganam  consuetudinem,  honorare  praesumpserit,  placuit  secundum 
antiquam  constitutionem  sex  annos  poeniteant.  Humanius  tres  annos 
iudicaverunt. 

XXXIII.  1 742.  ST.  BONIFACE  (alias  WINFRID). 

[Bonifatius,  Epistola  xlix  (P.  L.  Ixxxix.  746).  Epistola  xlii  (Jaffg, 
Monumenta  Moguntina),  Epistola  1  (Dummler,  Epistolae  Merowingici 
et  Karolini  Aevi,  i.  301) :  cf.  K6gel,  i.  28  ;  Tille,  Y.  adC.  88.  The  letter 
is  Ad  Zachariam  Papam.] 

Quia  carnales  homines  idiotae  Alamanni,  vel  Bagoarii,  vel  Franci, 
si  iuxta  Romanam  urbem  aliquid  fieri  viderint  ex  his  peccatis  quae  nos 
prohibemus,  licitum  et  concessum  a  sacerdotibus  esse  putant ;  et  dum 
nobis  improperium  deputant,  sibi  scandalum  vitae  accipiunt.  Sicut 
affirmant  se  vidisse  annis  singulis  in  Romana  urbe,  et  iuxta  ecclesiam 
sancti  Petri,  in  die  vel  nocte  quando  Kalendae  lanuariae  intrant, 
paganorum  consuetudine  choros  ducere  per  plateas,  et  acclamationes 
ritu  gentilium,  et  cantationes  sacrilegas  celebrare,  et  mensas  ilia  die 
vel  nocte  dapibus  onerare,  et  nullum  de  domo  sua  vel  ignem,  vel 
ferramentum,  vel  aliquid  commodi  vicino  suo  praestare  velle.  Dicunt 
quoque  se  ibi  vidisse  mulieres  pagano  ritu  phylacteria  et  ligaturas  in 
brachiis  et  in  cruribus  ligatas  habere,  et  publice  ad  vendendum  venales 
ad  comparandum  aliis  offerre.  Quae  omnia  eo  quod  ibi  a  carnalibus 
et  insipientibus  videntur,  nobis  hie  improperium  et  impedimentum 
praedicationis  et  doctrinae  faciunt. 

XXXIV.  t  742.  POPE  ZACHARY. 

[Zacharias  Papa,  Epistola  ii  (P.L.  Ixxxix.  918),  Epistola  li  (Dummler, 
Epist.  Merow.  et  KaroL  Aevi,  i.  301).  Written  Ad  Bonifatium  in  reply 
to  No.  xxxiii.  The  constitutio  of  Pope  Gregory  referred  to  appears  to  be 
No.  xxxii.j 

De  Kalendis  vero  lanuariis,  vel  ceteris  auguriis,  vel  phylacteriis,  et 
incantationibus,  vel  aliis  diversis  observationibus,  quae  gentili  more 
observari  dixisti  apud  beatum  Petrum  apostolum,  vel  in  urbe  Roma ; 
hoc  et  nobis  et  omnibus  Christianis  detestabile  et  perniciosum  esse 
iudicamus. . . .  Nam  et  sanctae  recordationis  praedecessoris  atque  nutri- 
toris  nostri  domini  Gregorii  papae  constitutione  omnia  haec  pie  ac 
fideliter  amputata  sunt  et  alia  diversa  quara  plura. 


804  APPENDIX  N 

XXXV.  743.  COUNCIL  OF  ROME. 

[Cone.  Romanum,  c.  9 :  Mansi,  xii.  384.  A  slightly  different  version, 
headed  'Zacharias  Papa  in  Cone.  Rom.  c.  9,'  is  in  Decretum  Gratiani,  ii. 
26.  7,  c.  14  (C.  L  Can.  ed.  Friedberg,  i.  1045).  This  seems  to  be  a  result 
of  Nos.  xxxiii,  xxxiv.] 

Ut  nullus  Kalendas  lanuarias  et  broma  ritu  paganorum  colere  prae- 
sumpserit,  aut  mensas  cum  dapibus  in  domibus  praeparare,  aut  per 
vieos  et  plateas  cantiones  et  choreas  ducere,  quod  maxima  iniquitas 
est  coram  Deo :  anathema  sit. 

XXXVI.  1 750.  PRIMINIUS. 

[Dicta  Abbatis  Priminii,  c.  22  (Caspari,  Kirchenhistorische  Anecdota, 
\.  172). 
Priminius  was  a  German  contemporary  of  Boniface.] 

Nam  Vulcanalia  et  Kalendas  observare  .  .  .  quid  aliut  nisi  cultura 
diabuli  est  ?  ...  Cervulos  et  vetulas  in  Kalendas  vel  aliud  tempus 
nolite  anbulare.  Viri  vestes  femineas,  femine  vestes  virilis  in  ipsis 
Kalandis  vel  in  alia  lusa  quam  plurima  nolite  vestire. 

XXXVII.  t  766.  EGBERT. 
\Penitentiale  Egberti^  viii.  4  (Haddan  and  Stubbs,  iii.  424).] 

Kalendas  lanuarias  secundum  paganam  causam  honorare,  si  non 
desinit,  v  annos  poeniteat  clericus,  si  laicus,  iii  annos  poeniteat. 

XXX VIII.  1 7  90-800.  LOMBARD  CAPITULARY. 

[Capit.Langobardicum,  c.  3  ;  Boretius,  i.  202 ;  Gr6ber,Z«r  Volkskunde 
aus  Concilbeschliissen  und  Capitularien  (1893),  No.  II.] 

De  pravos  homines  qui  brunaticus  colunt  et  de  hominibus  suis 
subtus  maida *  cerias  incendunt  et  votos  vovent :  ad  tale  vero  iniquitas 
eos  removere  faciant  unusquisque. 

XXXIX.  ^Eighth  century.  HOMILIA  DE  SACRILEGIIS. 

[C.  P.  Caspari,  Eine  Augustin  falschlich  beilegte  Homilia  de  Sacrilegiis 
(1886),  §  17.  Caspari  (pp.  71,  73)  assigns  the  homily  to  a  Prankish  clerk, 
probably  of  the  eighth  century.  Later  on  (§§  23-26)  is  another  passage 
on  the  Kalends  taken  from  the  pseud-Augustine,  Sermo  cxxix,  which  is 
No.  xvii,  above.] 

Quicumque  in  kalendas  ienuarias  mensas  panibus  et  aliis  cybis  ornat 
et  per  noctem  ponet  et  diem  ipsum  colit  et  [in  eo]  auguria  aspicet  vel 
anna  in  campo  ostendit  et  feel  urn8  et  cervulum  et  alias  miserias  vel  lusa 

1  maida  G.  explains  as  Backtrog,  i.  e.      Korting,  Lot  .•Rom.   Wortcrbuch,  No. 
'kneading-trough'   (Gk.  fuSrrfxi);    cf.      4980. 
Diez,  Etym.  Worterbuch*  S.Y.  madia;         a  TAS.fcctum. 


WINTER  PROHIBITIONS  305 

[facit]  qu§  in  ipso  die  insipientes  solent  facere,  vel  qui  in  mense 
februario  hibernum  credit  expellere,  vel  qui  in  ipso  mense  dies  spurcos 
ostendit,  [et  qui  in  kalendis  ianuariis]  aliquid  auguriatur,  quod  in  ipso 
anno  futurum  sit,  non  christianus,  sed  gentilis  est. 

XL.  Ninth  century.  PSEUDO-THEODORE. 

[Penit.  Pseudo-Theod.  c.  xii  (Wasserschleben,  ut  infra,  597  ;  cf.  Haddan 
and  Stubbs,  iii.  173).  This  Penitential,  quoted  by  Tille,  Y.  and  C.  98, 
and  others  as  Theodore's,  and  therefore  English,  is  really  a  Prankish 
one,  partly  based,  but  not  so  far  as  these  sections  are  concerned,  on  the 
genuine  Penitential  of  Theodore.  I  do  not  quote  all  the  many  Penitentials 
which  copy  from  each  other,  often  totidem  verbis,  prohibitions  of  the 
Cervulus  and  Vetula.  They  may  be  found  in  F.  W.  H.  Wasserschleben, 
Bussordnungen  der  abendland.  Kirche>  368,  382,  395,  414,  424,  428,  480, 
517  ;  H.  J.  Schmitz,  Die  Bussbucher  und  die  Bussdisciplin  der  Kirche^ 
311?  379*  479>  633.  On  the  general  character  of  these  compilations  and 
their  filiation,  see  Schaff,  vii.  371.  Their  ultimate  authority  for  the 
particular  prohibition  of  cervulus  and  •vetula,  under  these  names,  is 
probably  No.  xxv.] 

§  19.  Si  quis  in  Kalendas  ianuarii  in  cervolo  aut  vetula  vadit,  id 
est,  in  ferarum  habitus  se  communicant  et  vestiuntur  pellibus  pecudum, 
et  assumunt  capita  bestiarum  :  qui  vero  taliter  in  ferinas  species  se  trans- 
formant,  iii  annos  poeniteant,  quia  hoc  daemoniacum  est. 

§24.  Qui  .  .  .  kalendas  Ianuarii,  more  paganorum,  honorat,  si 
clericus  est,  v  annos  poeniteat,  laicus  iii  annos  poeniteat. 

XLI.  tgis.  REGINO  OF  PRUM. 


[Regino  von  Priim,  De  synodalibus  causis  et  disciplina  ecclesiastica 
(ed.  Wasserschleben,  1840),  i.  304.] 

Fecisti  aliquid  quod  pagan!  faciunt  in  Kalendis  januariis  in  cervulo 
vel  vetula  tres  annos  poeniteas. 

XLIL  Before  1024.  BURCHARDUS  OF  WORMS. 

\Collectio  Decretorum,  xix.  5  (Grimm,  iv.  1743  ;  P.  L.  cxL  960).  The 
larger  part  of  the  book  is  from  earlier  Penitentials,  &c.,  but  the  long 
chapter  from  which  these  extracts  are  taken  appears  to  be  based  upon  the 
writer's  own  knowledge  of  contemporary  superstition.  On  the  collection 
generally,  cf.  A.  Hauck,  in  Sitzb.  Akad.  Leipzig^  pkil.-hist.  A7.,  xlvi 
(1894),  65.] 

Observasti  Kalendas  lanuarias  ritu  paganorum,  ut  vel  aliquid  plus 
faceres  propter  novum  annum,  quam  antea  vel  post  soleres  facere,  ita 
dico,  ut  aut  mensam  tuam  cum  lapidibus  vel  epulis  in  domo  tua  prae- 
parares  eo  tempore,  aut  per  vicos  et  per  plateas  cantores  et  choros 
duceres,  aut  supra  tectum  domus  tuae  sederes  ense  tuo  circumsignatus, 
ut  ibi  videres  et  intellrgeres,  quid  tibi  in  sequenti  anno  futurum  esset? 


806  APPENDIX  O 

vel  in  bivio  sedisti  supra  taurinam  cutem,  ut  et  ibi  futura  tibi  intelligeres? 
vel  si  panes  praedicta  nocte  coquere  fecisti  tuo  nomine,  ut,  si  bene 
elevarentur  et  spissi  et  alti  fierent,  inde  prosperitatem  tuae  vitae  eo 
anno  praevideres  ? 

Credidisti  ut  aliqua  femina  sit  quae  hoc  facere  possit,  quod  quaedam 
a  diabolo  deceptae  se  affirmant  necessario  et  ex  praecepto  facere 
debere,  id  est,  cum  daemonum  turba  in  similitudinem  mulierum 
transformatam,  quam  vulgaris  stultitia  holdam l  vocat,  certis  noctibus 
equitare  debere  super  quasdam  bestias,  et  in  eorum  se  consonio 
annumeratam  esse  ? 

Fecisti  quod  quidam  faciunt  in  Kalendis  lanuarii,  i.e.  in  octava 
Natalis  Domini ;  qui  ea  sancta  nocte  filant,  nent,  consuunt,  et  omne 
opus  quodcunque  incipere  possunt,  diabolo  instigante  propter  novum 
annum  incipiunt  ? 

Fecisti  ut  quaedam  mulieres  in  quibusdam  temporibus  anni  facere 
solent,  ut  in  domo  tuo  mensam  praeparares,  et  tuos  cibos  et  potum 
cum  tribus  cultellis  supra  mensam  poneres,  ut  si  venissent  tres  illae 
sorores  quas  antiqua  posteritas  et  antiqua  stultitia  parcas  nominavit, 
ibi  reficerentur ;  et  tulisti  divinae  pietati  potestatem  suam  et  nomen 
suum,  et  diabolo  tradidisti,  ita  dico,  ut  crederes  illas  quas  tu  dicis  esse 
sorores  tibi  posse  aut  hie  aut  in  futuro  prodesse  ? 


O 

THE  REGULARIS  CONCORDIA  OF  ST.  ETHELWOLD 

[The  following  extracts  are  taken  from  the  text  printed  by  W.  S.  Loge- 
mann  in  Anglia^  xiii  (1891),  365,  from  Cotton  MS.  Tiberius  A.  ///, 
1 1020-1030.  This  MS.  has  Anglo-Saxon  glosses.  Other  MSS.  are  in 
Cotton  MS.  Faustina  B.  Ill,  and  Bodleian  MS.  Junius,  52,  ii.  Earlier 
editions  of  the  text  are  in  Reyner,  De  Antiquitate  Ordinis  Benedictinorum 
in  Anglia>  App.  iii.  p.  77,  and  Dugdale,  Monasticum  Anglicanum^  L 
xxvii.  The  literary  history  is  discussed  by  W.  S.  Logemann  in  Anglia^ 
xv  (1893),  20 ;  M.  Bateson,  Rules  for  Monks  and  Canons  in  English  Hist. 
Review,  ix  (1894),  700;  and  F.  Tupper,  History  and  Texts  of  the 
Benedictine  Reform  of  the  Tenth  Century ,  in  Modern  Language  Notes , 
viii.  344.  The  Prooemium  of  the  document  states  that  it  was  drawn  up  by 
the  bishops,  abbots,  and  abbesses  of  England  upon  the  suggestion  of  King 
Edgar  at  a  Council  of  Winchester,  and  that  certain  additions  were  made 
to  it  by  Dunstan.  The  traditional  ascription  by  Cotton's  librarian  and 
others  of  the  authorship  of  the  Regularis  Concordia  to  Dunstan  is 
probably  based  on  this  record  of  the  revision  which,  as  archbishop,  he 
naturally  gave  it.  The  actual  author  is  thought  by  Dr.  Logemann,  and  by 

jtfaritai;  Frig*  holdam;  var.  fat.  nnholdam. 


REGULARIS  CONCORDIA  OF  ST.  ETHELWOLD  807 

Dr.  Stubbs  (Memorials  of  Duns  tan,  R.  S.  ex)  to  have  been  <£lfric,  a  monk, 
first  of  Abingdon  and  then  of  Winchester,  who  became  abbot  of  Cerne, 
and  in  1005  of  Eynsham,  and  was  a  considerable  writer  in  Anglo-Saxon. 
Dr.  Logemann's  view  is  based  on  a  theory  that  the  Concordia  is  the 
1  Regula  Aluricii,  glossata  Anglice '  which  occurs  amongst  the  titles  of 
some  tracts  once  in  the  library  of  Christ  Church,  Canterbury  (Anglia,  xv. 
25).  But  the  Concordia  is  more  likely  to  have  been  the  '  Consuetudines 
de  faciendo  servitio  divino  per  annum,  glossatae  Anglice,'  which  is  in  the 
same  list,  and  in  fact  the  Canterbury  copy  is  probably  that  in  Cotton  MS. 
Faustina,  B.  Ill  (E.  H.  R.  ix.  708).  Perhaps  the  '  Regula  Aluricii '  was 
a  copy  of  the  letter  to  the  monks  of  Eynsham,  which  ^Elfric  at  some  date 
after  1005  based  upon  the  Concordia  and  the  De  Ecclesiasticis  Officiis  of 
Amalarius  of  Metz.  This  is  printed,  from  C.  C.  C.  C.  MS.  265,  by  Miss 
Bateson,  in  Dean  Kitchin's  Obedientiary  Rolls  of  St.  Swithirfs, 
Winchester,  173  (Hampshire  Record  Sec.).  It  omits  the  Sepulchrum 
and  its  Visitatio.  In  any  case  this  letter  makes  it  clear  that  ^Ifric  was 
not  the  author  of  the  Concordia,  for  he  says  '  haec  pauca  de  libro  con- 
suetudinum  quern  sanctus  Aethelwoldus  Wintoniensis  episcopus  cum 
coepiscopis  et  abbatibus  tempore  Eadgari  felicissimi  regis  Anglorum 
undique  collegit  ac  monachis  instituit  observandum.'  The  author,  there- 
fore, so  far  as  there  was  a  single  author,  was  Ethelwold,  whom  I  take  to 
be  the  *  abbas  quidam '  of  the  Prooemium.  He  became  Abbot  of  Abingdon 
about  954,  and  Bishop  of  Winchester  in  963.  In  965  Elfrida,  who  is  also 
mentioned  in  the  Prooemium,  became  queen.  The  date  of  the  Concordia 
probably  falls,  therefore,  between  965  and  the  death  of  Edgar  in  975. 
There  were  Councils  of  Winchester  in  969  and  975  (Wilkins,  i.  247,  261) : 
but  the  Council  at  which  the  Concordia  was  undertaken  may  be  an  earlier 
one,  not  otherwise  recorded.  The  Concordia  is  said  in  the  Prooemium  to 
have  been  based  in  part  upon  customs  of  Fleury  and  of  Ghent.  It  is 
worth  pointing  out  that  Ethelwold  had  already  reformed  Abingdon  after 
the  model  of  Fleury,  and  that  Dunstan,  during  his  banishment,  had  found 
refuge  in  St.  Peter's  at  Ghent  (Stephens- Hunt,  Hist,  of  the  English 
Church,  i.  347,  349).  Miss  Bateson  suggests  that  another  source  is  to  be 
found  in  the  writings  of  an  earlier  Benedictine  reformer,  Benedict  of 
Aniane  (E.  H.  R.  ix.  700).] 

De  Consuetudine  Atonachorum. 

Prohemum  Regularis  Concordiae  Anglicae  Nationis  Monachorum 
Sanctimonialiumque  Orditur. 

[The  Prooemium  opens  with  an  account  of  the  piety  of  King  Edgar 
'  abbate  quodam  assiduo  monente '  and  the  purification  of  the  English 
monasteries.] 

.  .  .  Regulari  itaque  sancti  patrjs  Benedict!  norma  honestissime 
suscepta,  tarn  abbates  perplurimi  quam  abbatissae  cum  sibi  subiectis 
fratrum  sororumque  collegiis  sanctorum  sequi  vestigia  una  fide  non 
tamen  uno  consuetudinis  usu  certatim  cum  magna  studuerunt  hilaritate. 
Tali  igitur  ac  tanto  studio  praefatus  rex  magnopere  delectatus  arcana 
quaeque  diligent!  cura  examinans  synoda  le  concilium  Wintoniae 
fieri  decrevit .  .  .  cunctosque  .  .  .  monuit  ut  Concordes  aequali  con- 
suetudinis usu  .  .  .  nullo  modo  dissentiendo  discordarent  . .  .  Huius 
praecellentissimi  regis  sagaci  monitu  spirituality  conpuncti  non  tantum 

X  % 


808  APPENDIX  O 

episcopi  vermn  etiam  abbates  et  abbatissae  .  .  .  eius  imperils  toto 
mentis  conamine  alacriter  obtemperantes,  sanctique  patroni  nostri 
Gregorii  documenta  quibus  beatum  Augustinum  monere  studuit,  ut 
non  solum  Romanae  verum  etiam  Galliarum  honestos  ecclesiarum 
usus  nidi  Anglorum  ecclesia  decorando  constituent,  recolentes,  accitis 
Floriacensibus  beati  Benedict!  nee  non  praecipui  coenobii  quod  celebri 
Gent  nuncupatur  vocabulo  monachis  quaeque  ex  dignis  eorum  moribus 
honesta  colligentes, ...  has  morum  consuetudines  ad  vitae  honestatem 
et  regularis  observantiae  dulcedinem  .  .  .  hoc  exiguo  apposuerunt 
codicello  .  .  .  Hoc  etenim  Dunstanus  egregius  huius  patriae  archie- 
piscopus  praesago  afflatus  spiritu  ad  corroborandum  praefati  sinodalis 
conventus  conciliabulum  provide  ac  sapienter  addidit,  ut  videlicet 

[On  Maundy  Thursday]  In  qua  missa  sicut  in  sequentium  dierum 
communicatio  prebetur  tarn  fratribus  quam  cunctis  fidelibus  reservata 
nihilominus  ea  die  eucharistia  quae  sufficit  ad  communicandum  cunctis 
altera  die  .... 

In  die  Parascevae  agatur  nocturna  laus  [i.  e.  the  Tenebrae]  sicut 
supra  dictum  est.  Post  haec  venientes  ad  primam  discalceati  omnes 
incedant  quousque  crux  adoretur.  Eadem  enim  die  hora  nona  abbas 
cum  fratribus  accedat  ad  ecclesiam.  .  .  .  Postea  legitur  passio  domini 
nostri  Ihesu  Christi  secundum  lohannem  .  .  .  Post  haec  celebrentur 
orationes  ,  .  .  Quibus  expletis  per  ordinem  statim  preparetur  crux 
ante  altare  interposito  spatio  inter  ipsam  et  altare  sustentata  hinc  et 
inde  a  duobus  diaconibus.  Tune  cantent  .  .  .  Deferatur  tune  ab 
ipsis  diaconibus  ante  altare,  et  eos  acolitus  cum  pulvillo  sequatur 
super  quern  sancta  crux  ponatur  .  .  .  Post  haec  vertentes  se  ad  clerum 
nudata  cruce  dicant  antiphonam  Ecce  lignum  cruets  .  .  .  Ilico  ea 
nudata  veniat  abbas  ante  crucem  sanctam  ac  tribus  vicibus  se  pro- 
sternat  cum  omnibus  fratribus  dexterioris  chori  scilicet  senioribus  et 
iunioribus  et  cum  magno  cordis  suspirio  vii«*  poenitentiae  psalmos 
cum  orationibus  sanctae  cruci  competentibus  decantando  peroret  .  .  . 
Et  earn  humiliter  deosculans  surgat.  Dehinc  sinisterioris  chori  omnes 
fratres  eadem  mente  devota  peragant.  Nam  salutata  ab  abbate  vel 
omnibus  cruce  redeat  ipse  abbas  ad  sedem  suam  usque  dum  omnis 
clerus  ac  populus  hoc  idem  faciat.  Nam  quia  ea  die  depositionem 
corporis  salvatoris  nostri  celebramus  usum  quorundam  religiosorum 
imitabilem  ad  fidem  indocti  vulgi  ac  neofitorum  corroborandam 
equiparando  sequi  si  ita  cui  visum  fuerit  vel  sibi  taliter  placuerit 
hoc  modo  decrevimus.  Sit  autem  in  una  parte  altaris  qua  vacuum 
fuerit  quaedam  assimilado  sepulchri  velamenque  quoddam  in  gyro 


REGULARIS  CONCORDIA  OF  ST.  ETHELWOLD  809 

tensum  quod  dum  sancta  crux  adorata  fuerit  deponatur  hoc  ordine. 
Veniant  diaconi  qui  prius  portaverunt  earn  et  involvant  earn  sindone 
in  loco  ubi  adorata  est.  Tune  reportent  earn  canentes  antiphonas  .  .  . 
donee  veniant  ad  locum  monument!  depositaque  cruce  ac  si  domini 
nostri  Ihesu  Christi  corpore  sepulto  dicant  antiphonam  ...  In  eodem 
loco  sancta  crux  cum  omni  reverentia  custodiatur  usque  dominicae 
noctem  resurrectionis.  Nocte  vero  ordinentur  duo  fratres  aut  tres  aut 
plures  si  tanta  fuerit  congregatio,  qui  ibidem  psalmos  decantando 
excubias  fideles  exerceant.  .  .  .  [The  Missa  de  Pratsanctificatorum 
follows]  .  .  .  Sabbato  sancto  hora  nona  veniente  abbate  in  ecclesiam 
cum  fratribus  novus  ut  supra  dictum  est  afferatur  ignis.  Posito  vero 
cereo  ante  altare  ex  illo  accendatur  igne.  Quern  diaconus  more 
solito  benedicens  hanc  orationem  quasi  voce  legends  proferens 
dicat  .  .  . 

In  die  sancto  paschae . .  .  eiusdem  tempore  noctis  antequam  matuti- 
norum  signa  moveantur  sumant  editui  crucem  et  ponant  in  loco  sibi 
congruo.  .  .  .  Dum  tertia  recitatur  lectio  quatuor  fratres  induant  se, 
quorum  unus  alba  indutus  ac  si  ad  aliud  agendum  ingrediatur  atque 
latenter  sepulchri  locum  adeat,  ibique  manu  tenens  palmam  quietus 
sedeat  Dumque  tertium  percelebratur  responsorium  residui  tres 
succedant,  omnes  quidem  cappis  induti  turribula  cum  incensu  manibus 
gestantes  ac  pedetemptim  ad  similitudinem  querentium  quid  veriant 
ante  locum  sepulchri.  Aguntur  enim  haec  ad  imitationem  angeli 
sedentis  in  monumento  atque  mulierum  cum  aromatibus  venientium 
ut  ungerent  corpus  Ihesu.  Cum  ergo  ille  residens  tres  velut  erraneos 
ac  aliquid  querentes  viderit  sibi  adproximare  incipiat  mediocri  voce 
dulcisono  can  tare  Quern  quaeritis\  quo  decantato  fine  tenus  respondeant 
hi  tres  uno  ore  Ihesum  Namrenum.  Quibus  ille,  Non  est  hie :  surrexit 
sicut  praedixerat.  lie  nuntiate  quia  surrexit  a  mortuis.  Cuius 
iussionis  voce  vertant  se  illi  tres  ad  chorum  dicentes  Alleluia :  resurrexit 
dominus.  Dicto  hoc  rursus  ille  residens  velut  revocans  illos  dicat 
antiphonam  Venite  et  videte  locum :  haec  vero  dicens  surgat  et  erigat 
velum  ostendatque  eis  locum  cruce  nudatum  sed  tantum  linteamina 
posita  quibus  crux  involuta  erat.  Quo  viso  deponant  turribula  quae 
gestaverunt  in  eodem  sepulchro  sumantque  linteum  et  extendant 
contra  clerum,  ac  veluti  ostendentes  quod  surrexerit  dominus,  etiam 
non  sit  illo  involutus,  hanc  canant  antiphonam,  Surrexit  dominus  de 
sepulchro,  superponantque  linteum  altari.  Finita  antiphona  Prior, 
congaudens  pro  triumpho  regis  nostri  quod  devicta  morte  surrexit, 
incipiat  hymnum  Te  deum  laudamus:  quo  incepto  una  pulsantur  omnia 
signa. 


810 


THE  DURHAM  SEPULCHRUM 

[From  A  Description  or  Breife  Declaration  of 'all  the  Ancient  Monu- 
ments, Rites  and  Customes  belonginge  or  beinge  within  the  Monastical 
Church  of  Durham  before  the  Suppression  (ed.  J.  Raine,  Surtees  Soc.  xv). 
This  anonymous  tract  was  written  in  1593.  A  new  edition  is  in  course  of 
preparation  for  the  Surtees  Society.] 

p.  9.   THE  QUIRE — THE  PASSION. 

Within  the  Abbye  Church  of  Durham,  uppon  Good  Friday  theire 
was  marvelous  solemne  service,  in  the  which  service  time,  after  the 
PASSION  was  sung,  two  of  the  eldest  Monkes  did  take  a  goodly  large 
CRUCIFIX,  all  of  gold,  of  the  picture  of  our  Saviour  Christ  nailed  uppon 
the  crosse,  lyinge  uppon  a  velvett  cushion,  havinge  St.  Cuthbert's 
armes  uppon  it  all  imbroydered  with  gold,  bringinge  that  betwixt 
them  uppon  the  said  cushion  to  the  lowest  greeces  in  the  Quire ;  and 
there  betwixt  them  did  hold  the  said  picture  of  our  Saviour,  sittinge  of 
every  side,  on  ther  knees,  of  that,  and  then  one  of  the  said  Monkes 
did  rise  and  went  a  pretty  way  from  it,  sittinge  downe  uppon  his 
knees,  with  his  shooes  put  of,  and  verye  reverently  did  creepe  away 
uppon  his  knees  unto  the  said  Crosse,  and  most  reverently  did  kisse 
it.  And  after  him  the  other  Monke  did  so  likewise,  and  then  they 
did  sitt  them  downe  on  every  side  of  the  Crosse,  and  holdinge  it 
betwixt  them,  and  after  that  the  Prior  came  forth  of  his  stall,  and  did 
sitt  him  downe  of  his  knees,  with  his  shooes  off,  and  in  like  sort 
did  creepe  also  unto  the  said  Crosse,  and  all  the  Monkes  after  him 
one  after  another,  in  the  same  order,  and  in  the  mean  time  all  the 
whole  quire  singinge  an  himne.  The  seruice  beinge  ended,  the  two 
Monkes  did  carrye  it  to  the  SEPULCHRE  with  great  reverence,  which 
Sepulchre  was  sett  upp  in  the  morninge,  on  the  north  side  of  the 
Quire,  nigh  to  the  High  Altar,  before  the  service  time ;  and  there  lay 
it  within  the  said  SEPULCHRE  with  great  devotion,  with  another  picture 
of  our  Saviour  Christ,  in  whose  breast  they  did  enclose,  with  great 
reverence,  the  most  holy  and  blessed  Sacrament  of  the  Altar,  senceinge 
it  and  prayinge  unto  it  upon  theire  knees,  a  great  space,  settinge  two 
tapers  lighted  before  it,  which  tapers  did  burne  unto  Easter  day  in  the 
morninge,  that  it  was  taken  forth. 

THE  QUIRE—  THE  RESURRECTION. 

There  was  in  the  Abbye  Church  of  Duresme  verye  solemne  service 
uppon  Easter  Day,  betweene  three  and  four  of  the  clocke  in  the 
morninge,  in  honour  of  the  RESURRECTION,  where  two  of  the  oldest 


THE  DURHAM  SEPULCHRUM  311 

Monkes  of  the  Quire  came  to  the  Sepulchre,  being  sett  upp  upon 
Good  Friday,  after  the  Passion,  all  covered  with  red  velvett  and 
embrodered  with  gold,  and  then  did  sence  it,  either  Monke  with  a  pair 
of  silver  sencers  sittinge  on  theire  knees  before  the  Sepulchre.  Then 
they  both  rising  came  to  the  Sepulchre,  out  of  which,  with  great 
devotion  and  reverence,  they  tooke  a  marvelous  beautifull  IMAGE  OF 
OUR  SAVIOUR,  representing  the  resurrection,  with  a  crosse  in  his  hand, 
in  the  breast  wherof  was  enclosed  in  bright  christall  the  holy  Sacra- 
ment of  the  Altar,  throughe  the  which  christall  the  Blessed  Host  was 
conspicuous  to  the  behoulders.  Then,  after  the  elevation  of  the  said 
picture,  carryed  by  the  said  two  Monkes  uppon  a  faire  velvett  cushion, 
all  embrodered,  singinge  the  anthem  of  CArisfus  resurgent,  they 
brought  it  to  the  High  Altar,  settinge  that  on  the  midst  therof, 
whereon  it  stood,  the  two  Monkes  kneelinge  on  theire  knees  before 
the  Altar,  and  senceing  it  all  the  time  that  the  rest  of  the  whole  quire 
was  in  singinge  the  foresaid  anthem  of  CArtstus  resurgent.  The  which 
anthem  beinge  ended,  the  two  Monkes  tooke  up  the  cushions  and  the 
picture  from  the  Altar,  supportinge  it  betwixt  them,  proceeding,  in 
procession,  from  the  High  Altar  to  the  south  Quire  dore,  where  there 
was  four  antient  Gentlemen,  belonginge  to  the  Prior,  appointed  to 
attend  theire  cominge,  holdinge  upp  a  most  rich  CANNOPYE  of  purple 
velvett,  tached  round  about  with  redd  silke  and  gold  fringe;  and  at 
everye  corner  did  stand  one  of  theise  ancient  Gentlemen,  to  beare 
it  over  the  said  image,  with  the  Holy  Sacrament,  carried  by  two 
Monkes  round  about  the  church,  the  whole  quire  waitinge  uppon  it 
with  goodly  torches  and  great  store  of  other  lights,  all  singinge, 
rejoyceinge,  and  praising  God  most  devoutly,  till  they  came  to  the 
High  Altar  againe,  whereon  they  did  place  the  said  image  there  to 
remaine  untill  the  Ascension  day. 

p.  26.    THE  SOUTH  ALLEY  OF  THE  LANTERN. 

Over  the  [second  of  the  iij  Alters  in  that  plage]  was  a  merveylous 
lyvelye  and  bewtiful  Immage  of  the  picture  of  our  Ladie,  so  called  the 
LADY  OF  BOULTONB,  which  picture  was  maide  to  open  with  gymmers 
from  her  breaste  downdward.  And  within  the  said  immage  was 
wrowghte  and  pictured  the  immage  of  our  Saviour,  merveylouse  fynlie 
gilted,  houldinge  uppe  his  handes,  and  houlding  betwixt  his  handes 
a  fair  large  CRUCIFIX  OF  CHRIST,  all  of  gold,  the  which  crucifix  was  to 
be  taiken  fourthe  every  Good  Fridaie,  and  every  man  did  crepe  unto  it 
that  was  in  that  church  at  that  daye.  And  ther  after  yt  was  houng  upe 
againe  within  the  said  immage. 


312 

Q 

THE  SARUM  SEPULCHRUM 

[I  give  the  various  directions  and  rubrics  referring  to  the  sepulchre 
from  the  Consuetudinary  (ti2io),  Ordinal  (ti27o),  Customary  (first  half 
of  fourteenth  century),  Processional  (1508,  &c.),  Missal  (1526,  &c.),  and 
Breviary  (1531).  The  printed  sixteenth-century  rubrics  practically  repro- 
duce the  later  Ordinal  of  the  middle  of  the  fourteenth  century.] 

The  Depositio. 
[From  the  Processional,  with  which  the  Missal  practically  agrees.] 

Finitis  vesperis,  exuat  sacerdos  casulam,  et  surttens  secum  unum 
de  praelatis  in  superpelliceis  discalceati  reponant  crucem  cum  corpore 
dominico  [scilicet  in  pixide,  Missal]  in  sepulcrum  incipiens  ipse  solus 
hoc  responsorium  Aeslimatus  sum,  genuflectendo  cum  socio  suo,  quo 
incepto  statim  surgat  Similiter  fiat  in  responsorio  Sepullo  Domino. 
Chorus  totum  responsorium  prosequatur  cum  suo  versu,  genuflectendo 
per  totum  tempus  usque  ad  finem  servitii.  Responsoria  ut  sic: 
Aestimatus  sum.  Chorus  prosequatur  cum  descendentibus  in  locum  .  .  . 
Dum  praedictum  responsorium  canitur  cum  suo  Versu,  praedicti  duo 
sacerdotes  thurificent  sepulcrum,  quo  facto  et  clauso  ostio,  incipiet 
idem  sacerdos  responsorium  Sepulto  Domino.  .  .  .  Item  praedicti  duo 
sacerdotes  dicant  istas  tres  antiphonas  sequentes  genuflectendo  con- 
tinue :  In  pace  .  .  .  In  pacefactus  est  .  .  .  Caro  mea  .  .  .  His  finitis,  et 
dictis  prius  orationibus  ad  placitum  secrete  ab  omnibus  cum  genu- 
flexione,  omnibus  aliis  ad  libitum  recedentibus,  ordiite  [non,  Missal] 
servato,  reinduat  sacerdos  casulam,  et  eodem  modo  quo  accessit  in  prin- 
cipio  servitii,  cum  diacono  et  subdiacono  et  ceteris  ministris  abscedat. 

The  Sepulchre  Light. 

[From  the  Processional  f,with  which 
[From  the  Consuetudinary  ^  S""1  Cusfoma^  Practi- 


In  die  parasceues  post  repos-  Exinde   [i.e.  from  the  Depo- 

itum  corpus  domini  in  sepulcro,  sitio]  continue  ardebit  unus  cereus 

duo  cerei  dimidie  libre  ad  minus  ad  minus  ante  sepulcrum  usque 

in  thesauraria  tota  die  ante  sepul-  ad  processionem  quae  fit  in  Re- 

crum    ardebunt.      In   nocte   se-  surrectibne     Dominica     in     die 

quente  et  exinde  usque  ad  pro-  Paschae:   ita  tamen  quod   dum 

cessionem  quae  fit  in  die  pasche  Psalmus    Senedictus    canitur    et 

ante  matutinas,  unus  illorum  tan-  cetera  quae  sequuntur,  in  sequent! 


THE  SARUM  SEPULCHIjLUM  313 

nocte  extinguatur:  similiter  et 
extinguatur  in  Vigilia  Paschae, 
dum  benedicitur  novus  ignis, 
usque  accendatur  cereus  pasch- 
alis. 


turn,  magnum  eciam  cereum  pa- 
schalem. 


[From  the  Consuetu- 
dinary.} 

In  die  pasche  ante 
matutinas  conueniant 
clerici  ed  ecclesiam 
accents  cunctis  cereis 
per  ecclesiarm :  duo 
excellenciores  presbi- 
teri  in  superpelliceis 
ad  sepulchrum  acce- 
dant  prius  incensato 
ostio  sepulchri  cum 
magna  ueneratione, 
corpus  dominicum 
super  altare  deponant : 
deinde  crucem  de  se- 
pulchro  tollant,  ex- 
cellenciore  presbitero 
inchoante  antiphonam 
Christus  resurgens  et 
sic  eant,  per  ostium 
australe  presbiterif  in- 
cedentes,  per  medium 
chori  regredientes, 
cum  thuribulario  et 
ceroferariis  precedent- 
ibus,  ad  altare  sancti 
martini  canentes  prae- 
dictam  antiphonam 
cumuersusuo.  Deinde 
dicto  uersiculo  Surre- 
xit  dominus  de  sepul- 
chre, et  dicta  oracione 


The  Elevatio. 


[Froto  the  Ordinal.] 

In  Die  Pasche 
Ad  Processionem 
ante  Matutinas  con- 
uehiant  omnes  clerici 
ad  ecclesiam  ac  accen- 
dantur  luminaria  per 
ecclesiam.  Episcopus 
uel  decanus  in  super- 
pelliceo  cum  cerofe- 
rariis thuribulariis  et 
clero  in  sepulcrum 
accedant,  et  incensato 
prius  sepulcro  cum 
magna  ueneracione 
corpus  domini  assu- 
mant  et  super  altare 
ponant.  Iterum  ac- 
cipientes  crucem  de 
sepulcro  inchoet  epi- 
scopus  uel  decanus 
Ant.  Christus  resur- 
gens.  Tune  omnes  cum 
gaudio  genua  flectant 
et  ipsam  crucem  ado- 
rent,  idipsum  canentes 
cum  "#.  Dicantnunc. 
Tune  omnes  cam- 
pane  in  classicum 
pulsentur,  et  cum 
magna  ueneracione 
deportetur  crux  ad 


[From  the  Breviary ', 
with  which  the  Pro- 
cessional,  although  less 
full,  practically  agrees.] 

In  die  sancto  Paschae 
ante  Matutinas  et  ante 
campanarum  pulsati- 
onem  conveniant  Cle- 
rici ad  ecclesiam,  et 
accendantur  lumin- 
aria per  totam  eccle- 
siam. Tune  duo  ex- 
cellentiores  Presbyteri 
in  superpelliceis  cum 
duobus  Ceroferariis,  et 
duobus  thuribulis,  et 
clem  ad  sepulchrum 
accedant:  et  incensato 
*a  praedictis  duobus 
Presbyteris  prius  se- 
pulchro  cum  magna 
veneratione,  videlicet 
genuflectendo,  statim 
post  thurificationem 
corpus  Dominicum 
super  altare  privatim 
deponant :  iterum  ac- 
cipientes  crucem  de 
sepulchro,  choro  et 
populo  interim  genu- 
flectente  incipiat  ex- 
cellentior  persona 
Ant.  Christus  resur- 
gens.  Et  Chorus  pro- 
sequatur  totam  and- 


314 

ab  exceUenciore  sa- 
cerdote  post  debitam 
campanarum  pulsaci- 
onem  inchoentur  ma- 
tutine. 


phonam  sic/or  mortuis 
.  .  .  Alleluya. 

Et  tune  dum  cani- 
tur  Antiphona,  eat 
processio  per  ostium 
australe  presbyterii 
incedens  et  per  me- 
dium chori  regrediens 
[per  ostium  presby- 
terii australe  ince- 


APPENDIX  Q 

locum  ubi  prouisum 

sit,  clero  canente  pre- 

dictam     antiphonam. 

Quo  facto  dicat  Sa- 

cerdos  'ft.      Surrexit 

dominus    de  sepukro. 

Or.  Deus  quipro  nobis. 

Que    terminetur    sic, 

Per  eundem  christum 

dominum  nostrum. 

dendo  per  medium  chori,  et  ingrediens,  Processional]  cum  praedicta 

cruce  de  sepulchro  inter  praedictos  duos  Sacerdotes  super  eorum  brachia 

venerabiliter  portata,  cum  thuribulis  et  Ceroferariis  praecedentibus,  per 

ostium  presbyterii  boreale  exeundo,  ad  unum  altare  ex  parte  boreali 

ecclesiae,  Choro  sequente,  habitu  non  mutato,  minoribus  [excellen- 

tioribus,  Processional]  praecedentibus :  ita  tamen  quod  praedicti  duo 

excellentiores  in   fine  processionis  subsequantur,  corpore  Dominico 

super  altare  in  pixide  dimisso  et  sub  Thesaurarii  custodia  [in  subthe- 

saurarii  custodia,  Processional],  qui  illud  statim  in  praedicta  pixide  in 

tabernaculo  deponat  [dependat  ut  potest  in  ista  statione  praecedente, 

Processional] :  et  tune  pulsentur  omnes  campanae  in  classicum. 

Finito  Antiphona  praedicta,  sequatur  a  toto  Choro 

V.  Dicant  nunc  Judei .  .  .  Alleluya. 

Finita  autem  Antiphona  cum  suo  Versu  a  toto  Choro,  dicat  excel- 
lentior  persona  in  sua  statione  ad  altare  conversus  hunc  Versum. 
V.  Surrexit  Dominus  de  sepulchro. 
R.  Quipro  nobis  pependit  in  ligno.    Alleluya. 
Oremus. 

Oratio.     Deus,  quipro  nobis  .  .  .  Per  Christum  Dominum  nostrum. 
Et  terminetur  sub  Dominicali  tono  ad  processlonem :   nee  prae- 
cedat  nee  subsequatur  Dominus  vobiscum. 

Finita.  Oratione  omnes  cum  gaudio  genuflectent  ibidem  et  ipsam 
crucem  adorent,  in  primis  digniores,  et  tune  secrete  sine  processione 
in  chorum  redeant 

His  itaque  gestis  discooperiantur  ymagines  et  cruces  per  totam 
eeclesiam:  et  interim  pulsentur  campanae,  sicut  in  Festis  princi- 
palibus,  ad  Matutinas  more  solito. 

The  Censing  in  Easter  Week. 

[From  the  Customary.] 
Ad  primas  uesperas  .  . .  post  inchoacionem  antiphone  super  psal- 


THE  DUBLIN  QUEM  QUAERITIS  815 

mum  Magnificat  procedat  executor  officii  cum  alio  sacerdote  ...  ad 
thurificandum  altare  ...  In  die  tamen  pasche  et  per  ebdomadam 
thurificetur  sepulchrum  domini  post  primam  thurificacionem  altaris, 
scilicet  antequam  thurificator  altaris  circumeat 

The  Removal  of  the  Sepulchre. 
[From  the  Customary^ 

Die  ueneris  in  ebdomada  pasche  ante  missam  amoueatur  sepul- 
chrum. 

R 

THE  DUBLIN  QUEM  QUAERITIS 

[From  Bodleian  MS.  15,846  (Rawlinson  Liturg.  D.  4),  f.  130,  a  Sarum 
processional  written  in  the  fourteenth  century  and  belonging  in  the  fifteenth 
to  the  church  of  St.  John  the  Evangelist,  Dublin.  A  less  good  text  from 
Dublin,  Abp.  Marsh's  Library,  MS.  V.  3,  2,  10,  another  fourteenth 
century  processional  from  the  same  church,  is  facsimiled  by  W.  H.  Frere, 
Winchester  Troper,  pi.  26b,  and  printed  therefrom  by  Manly,  i.  xxii. 
I  give  all  the  important  variants  of  this  version.] 

1Finito  iij  R°  cum  suo  "#  et  G/0ria  pa/ri  uenient  tres  p^rsone  in 
superpellicets  et  in  capis1  smcis  capitibw  uelatis  quasi  tres  Marie 
querentes  Ihesum  2,  siwgule  portantes  pixidem  in  manibwj  quasi  aroma- 
tibus,  quorum  prima  ad  ingressu/0  chori  usque  sepulcruw  procedat 
per  se 8  quasi  lamentando  dicat : 

Heu!  pius  pastor  occiditur, 
Quern  nulla  culpa  infecit: 

O  mors  lugendal 

Factoq**  modico  intmiallo,  intret  s^c«»da  Maria  co/isimili*  modo 
et  dicat : 

Heu !  nequam  gens  ludaica, 
Quam  dira  frendet  uesania, 

Plebs  execrandal 
Deinde  iij  Maria  consimili  modo  dicat 8 : 

Heu!  uerus  doctor  obijt, 
Qui  uita/a  f&#ctis  contulit: 
O  res  plangendal 

*~*  Omitted  by  Frert,  probably  because         *  Christum, 
it  was  inconvenient  to  facsimile  part         *  et.  *  Simtli. 

only  of  a  page.  *  Omitted. 


316  APPENDIX  R 

Ad  hue  paululu/0  procede»do  prima  Maria  dicat l : 
Heu!  misere  cur  contigit* 
Uidere  mortem  Saluatoris? 
Deinde  secunda  Maria  dicat6: 

Heu !   Consolacio  nostra, 
Ut  quid  mortem  sustinuitl 
Tu»c 4  iij  Maria : 

Heu!   Redempcio  nostra, 
Ut  quid  taliter  agere  uoluit! 

Tu#c  se  comu»ga»t  et  procedant  ad  gradual  chor/  an/*  altars  simul 9 
dicewtes : 

lam,  iam,  ecce,  iam  properemus  ad  tumulum 
Unguentes*  Delecti7  corpus  sanctissimum 

8  Dei»de  procedawt  $\mi\iter  prope  sepulchrum  et  pn'ma  Maria  dicat 
per  se 

Condumentis  aromatu^t 
Unganuw  corpus  sanctissimuw 

Quo  preciosa8. 
Tu;*c  secunda.  Maria  dicat  per  se : 

Nardi  uetet  commixtio, 
Ne  putrescat  in  tumulo 

Caro  be£ta! 
Deinde  iij  Maria  9  dicat  per  se 9 : 

Sed  nequimus  hoc  patrare  sine  adiutorio. 
Quis  nam  saxum  reuoluet10  a  monument!  ostio? 
Facto  intmiallo,  zngelus  nixus  sepulcrum  apparuit u  eis  et  dicat  hoc 
modo  : 

Quern  queritis  ad  sepulcrum,  o  Cristicole? 
Deinde  respo»deant  tres  Marie  simul  Mcentes 12 : 

Ihesum  Nazarenum  crucifixum,  o  celicolal 
Tune  angelus  dicet11: 

Surrexit,  non  est  hie,  sicut  dixit; 
Uenite  et  uidete  locum  ubi  positus  faerat. 
Deinde  pral/c/e  Marie  sepulcruw    intrent  ^/14  inclinantes  se  et 
prospicientes  undiq^  intra  sepulcrum,  alta  uoce  quasi  gaudentes lft  et 
admirantes  et  paru#z  a  septilcro  recedentes  simul  dicaat 16 : 

1  dicat  hoc  modo.  Condimentis  aromatum  vngnentes  cor- 

9  contingit.                    s  Omitted.  pus  sontttssimum  quo  preciosa. 

*  Deinde.                      5  Omitted.  >~9  Omitted.  M  reuoluit 

•  Ungentes.                   T  Dilecti.  ll  appariat.  lf  Omitted. 
".  Omitted:  but  a  later  hand  has  "  dicat  sic.                 14  Omitted. 

written  on  a  margin  of  the  manuscript,         "  gaudendo.  l*  dicaift  aimwL 


THE  DUBLIN  QUEM  QUAERITIS  317 

Alleluya!   resurrexit  Dominus! 
Alleluya!  resurrexit  Dominus  hodie! 
Resurrexit  potens,  fortis,  C  Arts/us  f  Filius  Dei! 
Deinde  qngelus  ad  eas1: 

Et  euntes  dicite  discipulis  eius  et  Petro  quia  surrexit. 
In  quo  reuirtant  ad  angelum  quasi  mandatuw  suum  ad  implendum 
parate  simul  dicentes  9  : 

Eya  !  pergamus  propere 
Mandatum  hoc  perficere! 

Interim  ueniant  ad  ingressuw  chori  due  p<?rsone  nude  pedes  sub 
personis  a,posfolorum  lohannis  et  Petr*'  indute  albis  sine  paruris  cum 
tunicis,  quorum  lohannes  amictus  tunica  alba  palmar  in  manu  gestans, 
Petrus  uero  rubea  tunica  indutus  claues  in  manu  ferens  8  ;  et  pralicte 
mulieres  de  sepulcro  reuertentes  et  quasi  de  choro  simul  exeuntes, 
dicat  prima  Maria  4  per  se  4  sequentiam  : 

Victime  paschali  laudes 
Immolant  CAni/iani. 
Agnus  redemit  oues  : 
Christus  innocens  Patri 
Reconsiliauit  peccatores. 
Mors  et  uita  duello 
Conflixere  mirando: 
Dux  uite  mortuis  5 
Regnat  uiuus. 

Tune  obuiantes  eis  in  medio  chori  predict!  discipuli,  interrogantes 
simul  dicant: 

Die  nobis,  Maria, 
Quid  uidisti  in  uia? 

Tu«c  pri'ma  Maria  respondeat  quasi  monstrando  : 
Sepulcrum  Christi  uiuentis 
Et  gloriam  uidi  resurgentis. 
Tu«c  ij  Maria  respondet  similtter  6  monstrando  : 
Angelicos  testes, 
Sudarium  et  uestes. 
Tune  iij  7  Maria  respondeat  : 

Surrexit  CAristus,  spes  nostra, 
Precedet  uos  in  Galileam. 
Et  sic  pr0cedant  simul  ad  ostium  chori  ;  interim  8  Currant  duo  ad 


1  eas  dicens.  lines  6-9  by  Tercia  Maria 

1  dicentes  simul.               f  deferens.  *  Manly  suggests  mortaus. 

4—4  Omitted.  Lines  -^^of  the  sequence  e  respondeat  quasi. 

are  preceded  by  S^c««da  Maria,  and  1  Tercia.                      8  et  interim. 


818  APPENDIX  S 

monumentum;  uerumptamen  ille  disciptdos  quern  diligebat  Ihesus 
uenit  prior  ad  monumen turn,  iuxta  euangiliu/* :  ( Currebant  au/im  duo 
sim«l  et  rile  alius  discipulus  pr*cucurrit  cicius  Petro  et  uenit  prior  ad 
monumefltu/0,  non  tamm  introiuit/  Uidentes  discipuli  predict1 
sepulcru/H  uacutuft  */  uerbis  Marie  credentes  reuirtaitt  se  ad  chorum 
dicentes  * : 

Credendum  est  magis  soli  Marie  ueraci 
Quam  ludeorum  turbe  fallacil 

Tune  audita 8  CAristi  resurreccione,  chorus  pro&equatur  alta  uoce 
quasi  gaudewtes  et  exultantes  sic  dicentes 4 : 

Scimus  Christum  surrexisse 
A  mortuis  uere. 

Tu  nobis,  uictor  Rex,  miserere ! 
Qua  fiw'ta,  executor  officii  incipiat : 

Te  Deum  laudamus. 
5  Tune  recedant  sancfae  Marie  ^postofi  et  angelus 5. 


THE  AUREA  MISSA  OF  TOURNAI 

[Communicated  from  Lille  Bibl.  Muntc.  MS.  62  (sixteenth  century)  by 
L.  Deschamps  de  Pas  to  the  Annales  archtologiques,  xvii  (1857),  167.] 

Sequuntur  ceremonie  et  modus  observandus  pro  celebratione  misse 
Missus  EST  GABRIEL  ANGELUS,  &c.,  vulgariter  dicte  AUREE  MISSE 
quolibet  anno  in  choro  ecclesie  Tornacensis  decantande  feria  xa  ante 
festum  nativitatis  Domini  nostri  lesu-Christi,  ex  fundatione  venerabilis 
viri  magistri  Petri  Cotrel,  canonici  died  ecclesie  Tornacensis  et  in 
eadem  archidiaconi  Brugensis,  de  licentia  et  permissione  dominorum 
suorum  decani  et  capituli  predicte  ecclesie  Tornacensis. — Primo,  feria 
tercia,  post  decantationem  vesperum,  disponentur  per  carpentatorem 
ecclesie  in  sacrario  chori  dicte  ecclesie  Tornacensis,  in  locis  iam  ad 
hoc  ordinatis  et  sibi  oppositis,  duo  stallagia,  propter  hoc  appropriate, 
que  etiam  ornabuntur  cortinis  et  pannis  cericeis  ad  hoc  ordinatis  per 
casularium  iam  dicte  ecclesie,  quorum  alterum,  videlicet  quod  erit  de 
latere  episcopi,  serviet  ad  recipiendam  beatam  virginem  Mariam,  et 
alterum  stallagium  ab  illo  oratorio  oppositum,  quod  erit  de  latere 
decani,  serviat  ad  recipiendum  et  recludendum  Angelum. — Item 

1  Omitted.  f  dicentes  hoc  mode.  '  andito.  *  dicant. 

M  Omitted. 


THE  AUREA  MISSA  OF  TOURNAI         319 

similiter  eodem  die  deputatus  ad  descendendum  die  sequent!  columbam, 
visitabit  tabernaculum  in  altis  carolis  dispositum,  disponet  cordas,  et 
parabit  instrumentum  candelis  suis  munitum,  per   quod   descendet 
Spiritus  Sanctus  in  specie  columbe,  tempore  decantationis  ewangelii, 
prout  postea  dicetur,  et  erit  sollicitus  descendere  cordulam  campanule, 
et  illam  disponere  ad  stallagium  Angeli,  ad  illam  campanulam  pul- 
sandam    suo  tempore,   die  sequenti,   prout   post  dicetur. — Item  in 
crastinum  durantibus  matutinis,  magistri  cantus  erunt  solliciti  quod 
duo  iuvenes,  habentes  voces  dulces  et  altas,  preparentur  in  thesauraria, 
hostio  clauso,  unus  ad  modum  virginis  seu  regine,  et  alter  ad  modum 
angeli,  quibus  providebitur  de  ornamentis  et  aliis  necessariis  propter 
hoc  per  fundatorem  datis  et  ordinatis. — Item  post  decantationem 
septime  lectionis  matutinarum,  accedent  duo  iuvenes,  Mariam  videlicet 
et  Angelum   representantes,  sic  parati   de  predicta  thesauraria,  ad 
chorum  intrando  per  maius  hostium  dicti  chori,  duabus  thedis  ardenti- 
bus  precedentibus :   Maria  videlicet  per  latus  domini  episcopi,  in 
manibus  portans  horas  pulchras,  et  Angelus  per  latus  domini  decani, 
p^rtans  in  manu  dextra  sceptrum  argenteum  deauratum,  et  sic  morose 
p^ogredientur,  cum  suis  magistris  directoribus,  usque  ad  summum 
ritare,  ubi,  genibus  flexis,  fundent  ad   Dominum    orationem.     Qua 
facta,  progredientur  dicti   iuvenes  quilibet  ad  locum  suum,   Maria 
videlicet  ad  stallagium,  de  parte  episcopi  preparatum,  cum  suo  magistro 
directore,  et  Angelus  ad  aliud  stallagium  de  parte  decani  similiter 
preparatum,  etiam  cum  suo  alio  magistro  directore,  et  ubique  cortinis 
clausis.     Coram  quibus  stallagiis  remanebunt  predicte  thede,  ardentes 
usque  ad  finem  misse. — Item  clerici  thesaurarie,  durantibus  octava  et 
nona  lectionibus  matutinarum,  preparabunt  maius  altare  solemniter,  ut 
in  triplicibus  festis,  et  omnes  candele  circumquaque  chorum  sacrarum 
de  rokemes,  et  in  corona  nova  existentes  accendentur.     Et  clerici 
revestiarii  providebunt  quod  presbyter,  dyaconus,  subdiaconus,  choriste, 
cum  pueris  revestitis,  sint  parati,  in  fine  hymni  TE  DEUM,  pro  missa 
decantanda,  ita  quod  nulla  sit  pausa  inter  finem  dicti  himpni  TE 
DEUM  et  missam.    Et  in  fine  praedicte  misse  sit  paratus  presbiter 
ebdomarius  cantandi   versum    Ora  pro  nobis,  et  deinde,  Deus  in 
adiutorium,  de  laudibus  illas  perficiendo  per  chorum,  et  in  fine  psalmi 
De  profundis  dicendi,  in  fine  matutinarum,  more  consueto,  adiungetur 
collecta  Adiuva  nos  pro  fundatore  ultra  collectam  ordinariam. — Item, 
cum  celebrans  accesserit  ad  maius  altare,  pro  incipienda  missa,  et  ante 
Confiteor  immediate  cortine  circumquaque  oratorium  Virginis  solum 
aperientur,  ipsa  Virgine  attente  orante  et  ad  genua  existente  suo  libro 
aperto,  super  pulvinari  ad  hoc  ordinato,  Angelo  adhuc  semper  clauso 


320  APPENDIX  S 

in  suo  stallagio  remanente. — Item  cum  cantabitur  Gloria  in  Excelsis 
Deo  tune  cortine  stallagii,  in  quo  erit  Angclus,  aperientur.  In  quo 
stallagio  stabit  dictus  Angelus  erectus,  tenens  in  manibus  suis  suum 
sceptrum  argenteum,  et  nichil  aliud  faciens,  quousque  fuerit  tempus 
cantandi  ewangelium,  nee  interim  faciet  Virgo  aliquod  signum  videndi 
dictum  angelum,  sed,  submissis  oculis,  erit  semper  intenta  ad  oratio- 
nem. — Item  cum  appropinquarit  tempus  cantandi  dictum  ewangelium, 
diaconus  cum  subdiacono,  pueris  cum  candelis  et  cruce  precedentibus, 
progredientur  ad  locum  in  sacrario  sibi  preparatum,  et  cantabit 
ewangelium  Missus  est  Gabriel,  et  etiam  cantabunt  partes  suas  Maria 
et  Angelus,  prout  ordinatum  et  notatum  est  in  libro  ad  hoc  ordinato. 
— Item  cum  Angelus  cantabit  hec  verba  ewangelii,  Ave,  gratia  plena, 
Dominus  tecum,  faciet  tres  ad  Virginem  salutationes ;  primo  ad  illud 
verbum  Ave,  humiliabit  se  tarn  capite  quam  corpore,  post  morose  se 
elevando ;  et  ad  ilia  verba, gratia  plena,  faciet  secundam  humiliationem, 
flectendo  mediocriter  genua  sua,  se  postea  relevando ;  et  ad  ilia  verba, 
Dominus  tecum,  quae  cantabit  cum  gravitate  et  morose,  tune  faciet 
terciam  humiliationem  ponendo  genua  usque  ad  terram  et  finita 
clausula  assurget,  Virgine  interim  se  non  movente.  Sed  dum  Maria 
virgo  cantabit  Quomodo  fief  istud,  assurget  et  vertet  modicum  faciem 
suam  ad  Angelum  cum  gravitate  et  modestia,  non  aliter  se  movendo. 
Et  dum  cantabit  Angelus  Spiritus  Sanctus  superveniet  in  te,  etc.,  tune 
Angelus  vertet  faciem  suam  versus  columbam  illam  ostendendo,  et 
subito  descendet  ex  loco  in  aids  carolis  ordinato,  cum  candelis  in 
circuitu  ipsius  ardentibus,  ante  stallagium  sive  oratorium  Virginis,  ubi 
remanebit,  usque  post  ultimum  Agnus  Dei,  quo  decantato,  revertetur 
ad  locum  unde  descenderat. — Item  magister  cantus,  qui  erit  in  stallagio 
Angeli,  sit  valde  sollicitus  pro  propria  vice  pulsare  campanam  in  altis 
carolis,  respondente  in  initio  ewangelii,  ut  tune  ille  qui  illic  erit 
ordinatus  ad  descendendum  columbam  sit  preadvisatus  et  preparet 
omnia  necessaria  et  candelas  accendat.  Et  secunda  vice  sit  valde 
sollicitus  pulsare  dictam  campanulam,  ita  quod  precise  ad  illud  verbum 
Spiritus  Sanctus  descendat  ad  Virginem  columbam  ornatam  candelis 
accensis,  et  remaneat  ubi  descenderit,  usque  ad  ultimum  Agnus  Dei 
decantatum,  prout  dictum  est.  Et  tune  idem  magister  cantus  iterum 
pulsabit  pro  tercia  vice  eamdem  campanulam,  ut  revertatur  columba 
unde  descenderit.  Et  sit  ille  disponendus  vel  deputandus  ad  descen- 
dendum dictam  columbam  bene  preadvisatus  de  supra  dicta  triplici 
pulsatione  et  quid  quilibet  significant  ne  sit  in  aliquo  defectus. — Item 
predict!,  diaconus,  Maria,  et  Angelus  complebunt  totum  ewangelium 
in  eodem  tono  prout  cuilibet  sibi  competit,  et  ewangelio  finito  reponet 


SUBJECTS  OF  THE  CYCLICAL  MIRACLES    821 

se  Maria  ad  genua  et  orationem,  et  Angelus  remanebit  rectus,  usque 
in  finem  misse,  hoc  excepto,  quod  in  elevatione  corporis  Christ!  ponet 
se  ad  genua. — Item  postea  proficietur  missa,  Maria  et  Angelo  in  suis 
stallages  usque  in  fine  permanentibus. — Item  missa  finita,  post  //<?, 
missa  est,  Maria  et  Angelus  descendent  de  suis  stallages  et  revertentur 
cum  reliquiis  et  revestitis  usque  ad  revestiarium  predictum  eorum, 
flambellis  precedentibus.  In  quo  revestiario  presbiter  celebrans  cum 
predictis  revestitis  Maria  et  Angelo  dicet  psalmum  De  profttndis,  prout 
in  choro  cum  adiectione  collecte  Adtuva  pro  fundatore. — Item  fiet 
missa  per  omnia,  ut  in  die  Annunciationis  dominice  cum  sequentia  sive 
prosa  Mittit  ad  virginem,  cum  organis  et  discantu  prout  in  triplicibus. 


SUBJECTS  OF  THE  CYCLICAL  MIRACLES 

[This  comparative  table  is  based  on  that  drawn  up  by  Prof.  Hohlfeld 
in  Anglia,  xi.  241.  The  episodes  are  taken  in  their  scriptural  order,  which 
is  not  always  that  of  the  plays.  I  have  added  the  Cornish  data,  using 
O.  P.  R.  to  indicate  the  Origo  Mundi>  Passio  Domini,  and  Resurrectio 
Domini  of  the  older  text,  and  J.  for  William  Jordan's  Creation  of  the 
World.  I  have  quoted  H  alii  well's  divisions  of  the  Ludus  Coventriae^ 
really  a  continuous  text,  for  convenience  sake.] 


Episodes. 

York. 

Town- 
*•?• 

Ches- 
ter. 

Ludus 
Cov. 

Cornwall. 

I.  Fall  of  Lucifer  . 

\ 

i 

i 

i 

O.  48  ':  J.I  14-334- 

2.  Creation  and  Fall  of 

ii-vi 

i* 

ii 

i,  ii 

O.I-437:  J.I-H3. 

Man 

33S-I05S. 

3.  Cain  and  Abel  . 

vii 

ii 

ii 

iii 

0.     438-633:     J. 

1056-1317. 

4.  Wanderings  of  Cain 

— 

— 

— 

— 

J.  1332-1393. 

5.  Death  of  Cain  . 
6.  Seth  in  Paradise  and 

— 

~ 

— 

iv 

J.  1431-1726. 
O.    634-916  :     J. 

Death  of  Adam 

1318-1331,1394- 

1430,  1727-2093, 

2146-2210. 

7.  Enoch 

— 

— 

— 

— 

J.  2094-2145. 

8.  Noah  and  the  Flood 

viii,  ix 

iii 

iii 

iv 

O.    917-1258  :    J. 

2211-2530*. 

9.  Abraham  and  Mel- 

chisedec 

— 

— 

iv 

— 

10.  Abraham  and  Isaac. 

X 

iv 

iv 

v 

0.  1259-1394. 

II.  Jacob's  Blessing 
12.  Jacob's  Wanderings  . 

_ 

V1 

vi 

_ 

_ 

1  Only  a  stage-direction,   Hie  ludit 
[!  cadif}  Lucifer  de  ceto. 
1  Imperfect. 


9  Jordan  closes  with  an  invitation  to 
Rcdtmptio  on  the  morrow. 


322 


APPENDIX  T 


Episodes. 

York. 

Town- 
ley. 

Ches- 
ter. 

Ludus 
Cov. 

Cornwall. 

13.  Moses  and  theExodus 

xi 

viii 

— 

vi 

o.  1395-1714- 

14.  Moses  in  the  Wilder- 

ness 

— 

vii 

V 

vi 

O.  1715-1898. 

15.  Balaam 

— 

— 

V 

— 

16.  David  and  the  Rods 

— 

— 

— 

— 

O.  1899-2104. 

17.  David  and  Bathsheba 

— 

— 

— 

— 

O.  2105-2376. 

1  8.  Building  of  the  Tem- 
ple      ... 







— 

O.  2377-2628. 

19.  Prophecy   of    Maxi- 
fhilla    . 

,  ._. 



- 

O.  2629-2778. 

20.  Bridge  over  Cedron  . 

— 

— 

— 

— 

O.  2779-2824. 

21.  Prophetae 

xii1 

vii 

— 

vii 

22.  Joachim  and  Anna  . 

— 

— 

— 

viii 

23.  Mary  in  the  Temple 

— 

— 

— 

ix 

24.  Betrothal  of  Mary    . 

— 

X1 

— 

X 

25.  Annunciation    . 

xii 

X 

vi 

xi 

26,  Salutation  of  Eliza- 

beth     . 

xii 

xi 

vi 

xiii 

27.  Suspicion  of  Joseph  . 

xiii 

X 

vi 

xii 

28.  Purgation  of  Mary    , 

— 

— 

— 

xiv 

29.  Augustus  and  Cyre- 

nius 

— 

ix 

— 

— 

30.  Nativity  . 

xiv 

— 

vi 

XV 

31.  Conversion  of  Octa- 

vian     . 

— 

— 

vi 

— 

32.  Pastores   . 

XV 

xii,xiii2 

vii 

xvi 

33.  Purification 

xii3 

xvii* 

xi 

xviii 

34.  Magi  before  Herod  . 

xvi, 

xvii  2 

xiv 

viii 

xvii 

35.  Offering  of  Magi 

xvii 

xiv 

ix 

xvii 

36.  Flight  into  Egypt 

xviii 

XV 

X 

xix 

37.  Massacre    of    Inno- 

cents   . 

xix 

xvi 

X 

xix 

38.  Death  of  Herod 

— 

— 

— 

xix 

39.  Presentation  in  Tem- 

ple       ... 

XX 

xviii  * 

— 

XX 

40.  Baptism   . 

xxi 

xix 

— 

xxi 

41.  Temptation 

xxii 

— 

xii 

xxii 

P.  1-172. 

42.  Marriage  in  Cana     . 

[lost] 

— 

— 

— 

43.  Transfiguration 

xxiii 

44.  Woman  in  Adultery 

xxiv 

— 

xii 

xxiii 

45.  Healing  of  Blind  in 

Siloam  . 

— 

— 

xiii 

— 

46.  Raising  of  Lazarus  . 

xxiv 

xxxi8 

xiii 

xxiv 

47.  Healing     of     Barti- 

maeus  . 

— 

— 

— 

— 

P-  393-454- 

48.  Entry  into  Jerusalem 

XXV 

— 

xiv 

xxvi 

P-  I73-330- 

49.  Cleansing  of  Temple 

— 

— 

xiv 

— 

P.  331-392. 

50.  Jesus  in    House    of 

Simon  the  Leper  . 

[lost] 

XX1 

xiv 

xxvii 

P-  455-552- 

51.  Conspiracy  of  Jews  . 

xxvi 

XX 

xiv 

XXV 

P.  553-584- 

1  Narrated. 


9  Duplicates. 


Misplaced. 


*  Imperfect. 


SUBJECTS  OF  THE  CYCLICAL  MIRACLES    323 


Episodes. 

York. 

Towto- 
ley. 

Ches- 
ter. 

Ludus 
Cov* 

Cornwall. 

52.  Treachery  of  Judas  . 

xxvi 

XX 

xiv 

xxvii 

P.  585-616. 

53.  Last  Supper     . 

xxvii 

XX 

XV 

xxvii 

P.  617-930. 

54.  Gethsemane 

xxviii 

XX 

XV 

xxviii 

P.  931-1200. 

55.  Jesus  beforeCaiaphas 

xxix 

xxi 

xvi 

xxx 

P.  1200-1504. 

56.  Jesus  before  Pilate  . 

XXX 

— 

xvi 

xxx 

P.  1567-1616. 

57.  Jesus  before  Herod  . 

xxxi 

— 

xvi 

xxix, 

P.  1617-1816. 

xxx 

58.  Dream  ofPilate'sWife 

XXX 

— 

— 

xxxi 

P.  1907-1968, 

2193-2212. 

59.  Remorse  and  Death 

of  Judas 

xxxii 

xxxii  * 

— 

xxxii 

P.  1505-1566. 

60.  Condemnation 

xxxiii 

xxii 

xvi 

xxxii 

P.  1817-2533. 

61.  Cross  Brought  from 

Cedron 

— 

— 

— 

— 

P.  2534-2584. 

62.  Bearing  of  the  Cross 

xxxiv 

xxii 

xv  ii 

xxxii 

P.  2585-2662. 

63.  Veronica  . 

XXXIV 

— 

— 

xxxii 

— 

64.  Crucifixion 

XXXV 

xxiii 

xvii 

xxxii 

P.  2663-2840. 

65.  Casting  of  Lots 

XXXV 

xxiii, 

xvii 

— 

P.  2841-2860. 

xxiv 

66.  Planctus  Mariae  [cf. 

P-39]    • 

xxxvi 

xxiii 

xvii 

xxxii 

P.  2925-2954. 

67.  Death  of  Jesus  . 

xxxvi 

xxiii 

xvii 

xxxii 

P.  2861-3098. 

68.  Longinus 

xxxvi 

xxiii 

xvii 

xxxiv 

P.  3003-3030. 

69.  Descent  from  Cross 

xxxvi 

xxiii 

xvii 

xxxiv 

P-  3°99-32oi. 

70.  Burial 

xxxvi 

— 

— 

xxxiv 

P.  3202-3216. 

71.  Harrowing  of  Hell 

xxx  vii 

XXV 

xviii 

xxxiii, 

P-  303i-307#: 

xxxv 

R.  97-306. 

72.  Release  of  Joseph  anc 

— 

— 

— 

— 

R.   1-96,  307- 

Nicodemus 

334,  625-662. 

73.  Setting  of  Watch 

xxxv  iii 

xxvi 

xix 

xxxv 

R.  335-422. 

74.  Resurrection     . 

xxxviii 

xxvi 

xix 

xxxv 

R.  423-678. 

75-  Quern  Quaeritis 

xxxviii 

xxvi 

xix 

xxxvi 

R.  679-834- 

76.  Hortulanus 

xxxix 

xxvi 

xix2 

xxxvn 

R.  835-892. 

77.  Peregnni 

xl 

xxvii 

XX 

xxx  vii 

R.  1231-1344. 

78.  Incredulity  ofThomas 

xlii 

xxviii 

XX 

xxxvii 

R.  893-1230, 

1345-1586. 

79.  Death  of  Pilate 

— 

— 

— 

— 

R.  1587-2360. 

80.  Veronica  and  Tiber 

ius 

— 

— 

— 

— 

R.  1587-2360. 

81.  Ascension 

xliii 

xxix 

xxi 

xxxix 

R.  2361-2630. 

82.  Pentecost 

xliv 

[?  lost; 

xxii 

xl 

83.  Death  of  Mary  . 

xlv 

— 

— 

xli 

84.  Burial  of  Mary 

[lost] 

— 

— 

xli 

85.  Apparition  of  Mary 

to  Thomas  . 

xlvi 



— 

— 

86.  Assumption  andCoro- 
nation  . 

xlvii  8 

[lost] 

xli 

87.  Signs  of  Judgemen 
[cf.  p.  53]     . 

xxiii 

88.  Antichrist  [cf.  p.  62] 

— 

— 

xxiv 

— 

89.  Doomsday 

xlviii 

XXX 

XXV 

xlii4 

Late  addition.          3  Imperfect  ?  *  And  later  fragment.          *  Imperfect. 

Y  2 


324 

U 
INTERLUDIUM  DE  CLERICO  ET  PUELLA 

[Printed  by  Wright  and  Halliwell,  Reliquiae  Antiquae  (1841),  i.  145, 
from  an  early  fourteenth-century  MS.,  then  belonging  to  the  Rev.  K. 
Yerburgh,  of  Sleaford.  On  the  piece  and  its  sources  in  the  Latin,  French, 
and  English  fabliaux  of  Dame  Siriz,  cf.  Ten  Brink,  i.  255  ;  ii.  295 ; 
Jusserand,  Lit.  Hist.  i.  446.  Ten  Brink  assigns  the  dramatic  text,  which 
is  in  the  South  Northumbrian  dialect,  to  the  reign  of  Edward  I  (1272- 
1307).] 

Hie  incipit  Inter ludium  de  Clerico  et  Puella. 

[Scene  i.] 

Clericus.    Damishel,  reste  wel. 

Puella.     Sir,  welcum,  by  Saynt  Michel! 

Clericus.     Wer  esty  sire,  wer  esty  dame? 

Puella.    By  Code,  es  noner  her  at  hame. 

Clericus.    Wel  wor  suilc  a  man  to  life, 
That  suilc  a  may  mithe  have  to  wyfel 

Puella.     Do  way,  by  Crist  and  Leonard, 
No  wily  lufe,  na  clerc  fayllard, 
Na  kepi  herbherg,  clerc,  in  huse  no  y  flore 
Bot  his  hers  ly  wit-uten  dore. 
Go  forth  thi  way,  god  sire, 
For  her  hastu  losye  al  thi  wile. 

Clericus.     Nu,  nu,  by  Crist  and  by  sant  Jhon, 
In  al  this  land  ne  wis  hi  none, 
Mayden,  that  hi  luf  mor  than  the, 
Hif  me  mithe  ever  the  bether  be. 
For  the  by  sory  nicht  and  day, 
Y  may  say,  hay  wayleuayl 
Y  luf  the  mar  than  mi  lif, 
Thu  hates  me  mar  than  gayt  dos  chuief. 
That  es  noute  for  mys-gilt, 
Certhes,  for  thi  luf  ham  hi  Spilt 
A,  ^uythe  mayden,  reu  ef  me 
That  es  ty  luf,  hand  ay  salbe. 
For  the  luf  of  [the]  y  mod  of  efhe  ; 
Thu  mend  thi  mode,  and  her  my  stevene. 

Puella.    By  Crist  of  heven  and  sant  Jone  I 
Clerc  of  scole  ne  kepi  non ; 


INTERLUDIUM  DE  CLERICO  ET  PUELLA  325 

For  many  god  wymman  haf  thai  don  scam. 
By  Crist,  thu  michtis  haf  be  at  hame. 

Clcricus.     Synt  it  nothir  gat  may  be, 
Jhesu  Crist,  by-tethy  the, 
And  send  neulit  bot  thar  inne, 
That  thi  be  lesit  of  al  my  pyne. 

Puella.    Go  nu,  truan,  go  nu,  go, 
For  mikel  thu  canstu  of  sory  and  wa 

[Scene  2.] 

Clericus.    God  te  blis,  Mome  Helwis. 

Mome  Helwis*     Son,  welcum,  by  san  Dinis  1 

Clericus.     Hie  am  comin  to  the,  Mome, 
Thu  hel  me  noth,  thu  say  me  sone. 
Hie  am  a  clerc  that  hauntes  scole, 
Y  hidy  my  lif  wyt  mikel  dole ; 
Me  wor  lever  to  be  dedh, 
Than  led  the  lif  that  hyc  ledh, 
For  ay  mayden  with  and  schen, 
Fayrer  ho  lond  hawy  non  syen. 
Tho  hat  mayden  Malkyn,  y  wene; 
Nu  thu  wost  quam  y  mene, 
Tho  wonys  at  the  tounes  ende, 
That  suyt  lif,  so  fayr  and  hende. 
Bot  if  tho  wil  hir  mod  amende, 
Neuly  Crist  my  ded  me  send. 
Men  send  me  hyder,  vyt  uten  fayle, 
To  haf  thi  help  anty  cunsayle. 
Thar  for  amy  cummen  here, 
That  thu  salt  be  my  herand-bere, 
To  mac  me  and  that  mayden  sayct, 
And  hi  sal  gef  the  of  my  nayct, 
So  that  hever  al  thi  lyf 
Saltu  be  the  better  wyf. 
So  help  me  Crist  I   and  hy  may  spede, 
Rithe  saltu  haf  thi  mede. 

Mome  Ellwis.    A,  son,  wat  saystu  ?    benedicite, 
Lift  hup  thi  hand,  and  blis  the. 
For  it  es  boyt  syn  and  scam, 
That  thu  on  me  hafs  layt  thys  blam. 
For  hie  am  an  aid  quyne  and  a  lam. 


326  APPENDIX  V 

Y  led  my  lyf  wit  Godis  love. 

Wit  my  roc  y  me  fede, 

Cani  do  non  othir  dede, 

Bot  my  pater  noster  and  my  crede, 

Tho  say  Crist  for  missedede, 

And  my  navy  Mary, 

For  my  scynne  hie  am  sory, 

And  my  de  profundis, 

For  al  that  yn  sin  lys. 

For  cani  me  non  othir  think, 

That  wot  Crist,  of  heven  kync. 

Ihesu  Crist,  of  heven  hey, 

Gef  that  hay  may  heng  hey, 

And  gef  that  hy  may  se, 

That  thay  be  henge  on  a  tre, 

That  this  ley  as  leyit  onne  me. 

For  aly  wymam  (sic)  ami  on. 

V 

TERENTIUS  ET  DELUSOR 

[I  follow  the  text  of  P.  de  Winterfeld,  Hrotsvithae  Opera  (1902),  xx  ; 
the  piece  was  previously  edited  by  C.  Magnin  in  Bibliotheque  de  FEcole 
des  Charles ',  i  (1840),  517  ;  A.  de  Montaiglon  in  L?  Amateur  des  Livres 
(1849)  ;  A.  Riese,  in  Zeits.  /.  d.  osterreich.  Gymn.  xviii,  442  ;  R.  Sabbadini 
(1894).  The  only  manuscript  is  B.  N.  Lat.  MS.  8069  of  the  late  tenth  or 
early  eleventh  century.  Various  scholars  have  dated  the  poem  from  Jie 
seventh  to  the  tenth  century;  Winterfeld  declares  for  the  ninth.  It  might 
have  been  intended  as  a  prologue  to  a  Terentian  revival  or  to  a  mime. 
The  homage  paid  to  the  vetus  poet  a  by  the  delusor  in  his  asides  rather 
suggests  the  former  ;  cf.  Cloetta,  i.  2  ;  Creizenach,  i.  8.] 

[DELUSOR.] 
Mitte  recordari  monimenta  vetusta,  Terenti ; 

cesses  ulterius:   vade,  poeta  vetus. 
vade,  poeta  vetus,  quia  non  tua  carmina  euro; 

iam  retice  fabulas,  dico,  vetus  veteres. 
dico,  vetus  veteres  iamiam  depone  camenas, 

quae  nil,  credo,  iuvant,  pedere  ni  doceant. 
tale  decens  carmen,  quod  sic  volet  ut  valet  istud ; 

qui  cupit  exemplum,  captet  hie  egregium. 
hue  ego  cum  recubo,  me  taedia  multa  capescunt : 

an  sit  prosaicum,  nescio,  an  metricum. 


TERENTIUS  ET  DELUSOR  327 

die  mihi,  die,  quid  hoc  est  ?   an  latras  corde  sinistro  ? 

die,  vetus  auctor,  in  hoc  quae  iacet  utilitas? 

Nunc  TERENTIUS  exit  for  as  audiens  haec  et  ait\ 
quis  fuit,  hercle,  pudens,  rogo,  qui  mihi  tela  lacessens 
turbida  contorsit?    quis  talia  verba  sonavit? 
hie  quibus  externis  scelerosus  venit  ab  oris, 
qui  mihi  tarn  durum  iecit  ridendo  cachinnum? 
quam  graviter  iaculo  mea  viscera  laesit  acuto ! 
hunc  ubi  repperiam,  contemplor,  et  hunc  ubi  quaeram? 
si  mihi  cum  tantis  nunc  se  offerat  obvius  iris, 
debita  iudicio  persolvam  dona  librato. 

Ecce  persona  DELUSORIS  praesentatur  et  hoc  audiens  mquit\ 
quern  rogitas  ego  sum :    quid  vis  persolvere  ?   cedo ; 
hue  praesens  adero,  non  dona  probare  recuso. 

TERENTIUS. 

tune,  sceleste,  meas  conrodis  dente  Camenas? 
tu  quis  es  ?    unde  venis,  temerarie  latro  ?   quid  istis 
vocibus  et  dictis  procerum  me,  a  !    perdite,  caedis  ? 
tene,  superbe,  meas  decuit  corrumpere  Musas  ? 

PERSONA  DELUSORIS. 

si  rogitas,  quis  sum,  respondeo :    te  melior  sum : 
tu  vetus  atque  senex,  ego  tyro  valens  adulescens ; 
tu  sterilis  truncus,  ego  fertilis  arbor,  opimus. 
si  taceas,  vetule,  lucrum  tibi  quaeris  enorme. 

TERENTIUS. 

quis  tibi  sensus  inest  ?   numquid  melior  me  es  ?  .  .  . 
nunc,  vetus  atque  senex  quae  fecero,  fac  adolescens. 
si  bonus  arbor  ades,  qua  fertilitate  redundas? 
cum  sim  truncus  iners,  fructu  meliore  redundo. 

PERSONA  secum. 

nunc  mihi  vera  sonat ;    set  huic  contraria  dicam — 
quid  magis  instigas  ?   quid  talia  dicere  certas  ? 
haec  sunt  verba  senum,  qui  cum  post  multa  senescunt 
tempora,  tune  mentes  in  se  capiunt  pueriles. 

TERENTIUS. 

hactenus  antiquis  sapiens  venerandus  ab  annis 
inter  et  egregios  ostentor  et  inter  honestos. 


828  APPENDIX  V 

sed  mihi  felicem  sapientis  tollis  honorem, 
qui  mihi  verba  iacis  et  vis  contendere  verbis. 

PERSONA. 

si  sapiens  esses,  non  te  mea  verba  cierent. 
o  bone  vir,  sapiens  ut  stultum  ferre  libenter, 
obsecro,  me  sapias;    tua  me  sapientia  firmet. 

TERENTIUS. 

cur,  furiose,  tuis  lacerasti  carmina  verbis? 
me  retinet  pietas,  quin  haec  manus  arma  cerebro 
implicet  ista  tuo:    pessumdare  te  miseresco. 

PERSONA  stcum. 

quam  bene  ridiculum  mihi  personat  iste  veternus.-— 
te  retinet  pietas  ?   nam  fas  est  credere,  credo, 
me,  peto,  ne  tangas,  ne  sanguine  tela  putrescant. 

TERENTIUS. 
cur,  rogo,  me  sequeris  ?    cur  me  ludendo  lacessis  ? 

[PERSONA.] 
sic  fugit  horrendum  praecurrens  damna  leonem. 

[TERENTIUS.] 

vix  ego  pro  superum  teneor  pietate  deorum, 
ad  tua  colla  meam  graviter  lentescere  palmam. 

PERSONA. 

vae  tibi,  pone  minas:    nescis  quern  certe  minaris. 
verba  latrando,  senex  cum  sis  vetus,  irrita  profers. 
i,  rogo,  ne  vapules  et,  quod  minitare,  reportes ; 
mine  ego  sum  iuvenis :   patiarne  ego  verba  vetusti  ? 

TERENTIUS. 

o  iuvenis,  tumidae  nimium  ne  crede  iuventae : 
saepe  superba  cadunt,  et  humillima  saepe  resurgunL 
o  mihi  si  veteres  essent  in  pectore  vires, 
de  te  supplicium  caperem  quam  grande  nefandum. 
si  mihi  plura  iacis  et  tali  voce  lacessis, 
P 


329 


W 

REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS 

[I  have  attempted  to  bring  together,  under  a  topographical  arrange- 
ment, the  records  of  such  local  plays  of  the  mediaeval  type  as  I  air 
acquainted  with.  Probably  the  number  could  be  increased  by  systematic 
search  in  local  histories  and  transactions  of  learned  societies.  But  my  list  is 
a  good  deal  longer  than  those  of  L.  T.  Smith,  York  Plays>  Ixiv ;  Stoddard, 
53 ;  or  Davidson,  219.  For  convenience  I  have  also  noted  here  a  few 
records  of  Corpus  Christi  processions,  and  of  folk  '  ridings '  and  othei 
institutions.  The  following  index-table  shows  the  geographical  distribution 
of  the  plays.  The  names  italicized  are  those  of  places  where  plays  have 
been  reported  in  error  or  are  merely  conjectural.] 


BEDFORDSHIRE. 
Dunstable,page  366. 

BERKSHIRE. 

Abingdon,  337. 
Reading,  392. 
Windsor,  396. 

BUCKINGHAMSHIRE. 
Wycombe,  398* 

CAMBRIDGESHIRE. 

Bassingbourne,  338. 
Cambridge,  344. 

CHESHIRE. 
Chester,  348. 

CORNWALL. 

Camborne^  344. 
Penrhyn,  390. 
Per  Ranzabulo,  390. 
St.  Just,  393. 

DENBIGHSHIRE. 
Wrexham,  398. 

DEVONSHIRE. 
Morebath,  384. 

DORSETSHIRE. 

Wimborne  Minster, 
396. 

DURHAM. 

Bishop     Auckland, 
342. 


INDEX. 

ESSEX. 

Baddow,  338. 
Billericay,  341. 
Boreham,  342. 
Braintree,  342. 
Brentwood,  342. 
Burnham,  343. 
Chelmsford,  345. 
Coggeshall,  357. 
Colchester,  357. 
Easterford,  367. 
Hadleigh,  367. 
Halstead,  367. 
Hanningfield,  368. 
Heybridge,  370. 
High  Easter,  370. 
Kelvedon,  373. 
Lanchire  (?),  375. 
Little  Baddow,  379. 
Maiden,  384. 
Manningtree,  384. 
Nayland,38s. 
Sabsford  (?),  393. 
Saffron  Walden,  393. 
Stapleford  (?),  395. 
Stoke  -  by  -  Nayland, 

395- 

Witham,  397. 
Woodham    Walter, 

397- 
Writtle,  398. 

GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 

Bristol,  342. 
Tewkesbury,  396. 

HAMPSHIRE. 
Winchester,  396. 


HEREFORDSHIRE. 
Hereford,  368. 

KENT. 

Appledore,  337. 
Bethersden,  338. 
Brookland,  343. 
Canterbury,  344. 
Folkestone,  367. 
Great  Chart,  367. 
Ham  Street,  367. 
Herne,  370. 
High  Halden,  370. 
Hythe,  371. 
Lydd,  383. 
New  Romney,  385. 
Ruckinge,  393. 
Stone,  396. 
Wittersham,  397. 
Wye,  398- 

LANCASHIRE. 

Lancaster,  375. 
Preston,  392. 

LEICESTERSHIRE. 

Foston,  367. 
Leicester,  376. 

LINCOLNSHIRE. 

Holbeach,  370. 
Lincoln,  377. 
Louth,  383. 
Sleaford,  395. 

MIDDLESEX. 

London,  379. 
Mile  End,  384. 


330 


APPENDIX  W 


NORFOLK, 

Croxton,  363. 
Garboldisham,  367. 
Harling,  368. 
Kenninghall,  374. 
King's  Lynn,  374. 
Lopham,  383. 
Middleton,  384. 
Norwich,  386. 
Shelfhanger,  393. 
Wymondham,  398. 
Yarmouth,  399. 

NORTHAMPTONSHIRE. 

Daventry,  363. 
Northampton,  386. 

NORTHUMBERLAND. 
Newcastle,  385. 

OXFORDSHIRE. 

Fyfield,  367. 
Idbury,  371. 
Langley,  375. 
Lyneham,  383. 
Milton,  384. 
Oxford,  389. 
Shipton,  394. 


SHROPSHIRE. 
Shrewsbury,  394. 

SOMERSETSHIRE. 

Bath,  338. 
Tintinhull,  396. 

STAFFORDSHIRE. 
Lichfield,  377. 

SUFFOLK. 

Boxford,  342. 
Bury  St.  Edmunds, 

343- 

Bungay,  343. 
Ipswich,  371. 
Ixworth,  373. 
Lavenham,  375. 
Mildenhall,  384. 

SURREY. 

Hascombe,  368. 
Kingston,  374. 

SUSSEX. 
Rye,  393- 


WARWICKSHIRE. 

Coleshill,  357. 
Coventry,  357. 
Maxstoke,  384. 
Nuneaton,  389. 

WESTMORELAND. 
Kendal,  373. 

WILTSHIRE. 
Salisbury,  393. 

WORCESTERSHIRE. 
Worcester,  398. 

YORKSHIRE. 

Beverley,  338. 
Hull,  370. 
Leconfield,  375. 
Leeds,  375. 
Wakefield,  396. 
Woodkirk,  398. 
York,  399. 

SCOTLAND. 
Aberdeen,  330. 
Edinburgh,  366. 

IRELAND. 
Dublin,  363. 
Kilkenny,  374. 


ABERDEEN,  SCOTLAND. 

I  summarize  the  references  to  plays  and  pageants  in  the  Burgh 
Records  \ 

May  13,  1440.  Richard  Kintor,  abbot  of  Boneacord,  was  granted 
'unus  burgensis  futurus  faciendus'  (i.e.  the  fees  on  taking  up  the 
freedom),  '  pro  expensis  suis  factis  et  faciendis  in  quodam  ludo  de  ly 
Haliblude  ludendo  apud  ly  Wyndmylhill.' 

Sept.  5,  1442.  'Thir  craftes  vndirwritten  sal  fynd  yerly  in  the 
offerand  of  our  Lady  at  Candilmes  thir  personnes  vnderwrittin ;  that 

is  to  say, 

The  littistares  sal  fynd, 

The  empriour  and  twa  doctoures,  and  alsmony  honeste  squiares 
as  thai  may. 

The  smythes  and  hammermen  sal  fynd, 

The  three  kingis  of  Culane,  and  alsmony  honeste   squiares  as 
thai  may. 

1  J.  Stuart,  Extracts  from  the  Council  vol.  i.  1398-1570  (Spalding  Club, 
Register  of  the  Burgh  of  Aberdeen,  1844). 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS   331 

The  talzoures  sal  fynd, 

Our    lady   Sancte   Bride,   Sancte   Helone,   Joseph,   and  alsmony 
squiares  as  thai  may. 

The  skynnares  sal  fynd, 

Two  bischopes,  four  angeles,  and  alsmony  honeste   squiares  as 
thai  may. 

The  webstares  and  walkares  sal  fynd, 
Symon  and  his  disciples,  and  alsmony  honeste  squiares,  etc. 

The  cordinares  sal  fynd, 
The  messyngear  and  Moyses,  and  alsmony  honeste  squiares,  etc. 

The  fleschowares  sal  fynd, 
Twa  or  four  wodmen,  and  alsmony  honest  squiares,  etc. 

The  brethir  of  the  gilde  sail  fynd, 
The  knyghtes  in  harnace,  and  squiares  honestely  araiit,  etc. 

The  baxsteiris  sal  fynd, 

The  menstralis,  and  alsmony  honest  squyares  as  thai  may/ 
May  21,  1479.     Order  for  the  alderman  'to  mak  the  expensis  and 
costis  of  the  comon  gude  apon  the  arayment,  and  uthris  necessaris,  of 
the  play  to  be  plait  in  the  fest  of  Corpos  Xristi  nixttocum/ 

Feb.  i,  148^.  Order  for  all  craftsmen  to  'beyr  thare  takyinis  of 
thare  craft  apon  thare  beristis,  and  thare  best  aray  on  Canddilmes 
day  at  the  Offerand/ 

Feb.  3,  i5of.  Fine  imposed  upon  certain  websters,  because  'thai 
did  nocht  it  that  accordit  thame  to  do  one  Candilmese  day,  in  the 
Passioun  [PPr'ssioun,  "Procession"]/  owing  to  a  dispute  as  to 
precedence  with  the  tailors. 

Jan.  30,  i5o|.  Order  for  continuance  of  'the  aid  lovabile  con- 
suetud  and  ryt  of  the  burgh'  that  the  craftsmen  'kepit  and  decorit 
the  procession  one  Candilmes  day  yerlie ;  .  . .  and  thai  sale,  in  order 
to  the  Offering  in  the  Play,  pass  tua  and  ij  togidr  socialie;  in  the 
first  the  flesshoris,  barbouris,  baxturis,  cordinaris,  skineris,  couparis, 
wrichtis,  hat  makars  [and]  bonat  makars  togidr,  walcaris,  litstaris, 
wobstaris,  tailyeouris,  goldsmiths,  blaksmithis  and  hammermen ;  and 
the  craftsmen  sal  furnyss  the  Pageants ;  the  cordinaris,  the  Messing[er]  ; 
wobstaris  and  walcaris,  Symeon;  the  smyths  [and]  goldsmiths,  iij  Kingis 
of  Cullane;  the  litstaris,  the  Emperour;  the  masons,  the  Thrie 
Knichtis ;  the  talyors,  our  Lady,  Sanct  Brid,  and  Sanct  Elene ;  and 
the  skynners,  the  Tua  Bischopis;  and  tua  of  ilke  craft  to  pass  \vith 
the  pageant  that  thai  furnyss  to  keip  thair  geir.' 

May  28,  1507.  Order  for  precedence  'in  ale  processiounis,  baitht 
in  Candilmes  play  and  utheris  processionis.1 


332  APPENDIX  W 

Jan.  30,  1 5  if.    The  order  of  Jan.  30,  150$  repeated  verbatim. 

Feb.  3,  1 5 if.  Citizens  fined  'becauss  thai  passt  not  in  the  pro- 
cession of  Candilmes  day  to  decoir  the  samyn.' 

Feb.  5,  i52f.  Johne  Pill,  tailor,  to  do  penance,  'for  the  disobeing 
of  David  Anderson,  bailze,  becaus  he  refusit  to  pas  in  the  Candilmess 
processioun  with  his  taikin  and  sing  of  his  craft  in  the  place  lemit  to 
his  craft,  and  in  likewise  for  the  mispersoning  of  the  said  Dauid 
Andersoun,  the  merchandis  of  the  said  guid  town,  in  calling  of  thame 
Coffeis,  and  bidding  of  thame  to  tak  the  salt  pork  and  herboiss  in 
thair  handis.' 

May  22,  1531.  Order  for  the  craftsmen  to  'keipe  and  decoir  the 
processioun  on  Corpus  Cristi  dais,  and  Candilmes  day  .  .  .  every 
craft  with  thair  awin  baner  .  .  .  And  euery  ane  of  the  said  craftis,  in 
the  Candilmes  processioun,  sail  furneiss  thair  pageane,  conforme  to 
the  auld  statut,  maid  in  the  yeir  of  God  jai  v<*  and  x  yeris  .  .  . 

The  craftis  ar  chargit  to  furneiss  thair  panzeanis  vnder  writtin. 

The  flescharis,  Sanct  Bestian  and  his  Tourmentouris. 

The  barbouris,  Sanct  Lowrance  and  his  Tourmentouris. 

The  skynnaris,  Sanct  Stewin  and  his  Tourmentouris. 

The  cordinaris,  Sanct  Martyne. 

The  tailzeouris,  the  Coronatioun  of  Our  Lady. 

Litstaris,  Sanct  Nicholes. 

Wobstaris,  walcaris,  and  bonet  makaris,  Sanct  John. 

Baxstaris,  Sanct  Georg. 

Wrichtis,  messonis,  sclateris,  and  cuparis,  The  Resurrectioun. 

The  smithis  and  hemmirmen  to  furneiss  The  Bearmen  of  the 
Croce.' 

June  13,  1533.  A  very  similar  order,  but  without  the  list  of 
pageants,  and  so  worded  as  to  extend  the  obligation  of  furnishing 
pageants  to  the  Corpus  Christi,  as  well  as  the  Candlemas  procession : — 
*  The  craftismen . . .  sail . . .  keip  and  decoir  the  processionis  on  XXi  day 
and  Candelmes  day  .  .  ,  euery  craft  with  thair  avin  banar  .  .  .  with  thair 
pegane  .  .  .  And  euery  craft  in  the  said  processionis  sail  furneiss  thair 
pegane  and  banar  honestlie  as  effers,  conforme  to  the  auld  statut  maid 
in  the  yeir  of  God  jaj  v°  and  tene  yers.' 

June  21,  1538,  Dispute  between  goldsmiths  and  hammermen  as 
to  precedence  '  in  the  processioun  of  Corpus  Xri.' 

June  25,  1546.  Litsters  ordered  to  'haue  thar  banar  and  Pagane, 
as  uther  craftis  of  the  said  Burgh  hes,  ilk  yeir,  on  Corpus  Xhri  day, 
and  Candilmess  dayis  processiounis/ 

June  4, 1553.    Disputes  as  to  ordering  of  Corpus  Christi  procession* 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  333 

May  21,  1554.  Similar  disputes.  A  'Pagane'  in  procession 
mentioned. 

May  29,  1556.  Order  for  observance  of  statute  as  to  Corpus 
Christi  procession. 

The  interpretation  of  these  notices  is  not  quite  clear.  Davidson,  220, 
seems  to  think  that  there  was  never  more  than  a  mystire  mimf  at 
Candlemas.  But  the  'play*  is  mentioned  in  1506,  1507,  and  1510. 
I  conjecture  that  the  Passion  and  Nativity  cycles  were  not  merged 
in  Aberdeen.  The  Passion  (Haliblude  play)  was  performed,  perhaps 
only  occasionally,  on  Corpus  Christi  day ;  the  Nativity  annually,  at 
Candlemas.  The  'persones'  of  1442  and  the  'Pageants'  of  150^ 
are  practically  identical,  and  would  furnish  a  short  play,  with  Moses 
and  Octavian  to  represent  the  Prophetaey  a  Stella,  and  a  Presentation 
in  the  Temple.  But  there  was  certainly  also  a  procession  in  which  the 
'honest  squiares'  of  1442  figured.  This  may  have  preceded  the  play, 
but  it  may  have  been  in  some  way  introduced  into  it  at  '  the  offerand ' 
(of  the  Virgin  in  the  Temple,  or  of  the  Magi  ?).  The  pageants  in  the 
list  of  1531  are  such  as  cannot  all  have  formed  part  of  a  connected 
cycle.  But  some  of  them  might  come  from  the  *  Haliblude '  play,  and 
I  take  it  that  this  list  was  meant  for  the  Corpus  Christi  procession 
only,  the  Candlemas  procession  being  still  regulated  by  the  order 
of  1507. 

Bon  Accord. 

The  Haliblude  play  of  1440  was  directed  by  the  Abbot  of  Bon 
Accord.  This  was  the  Aberdeen  name  for  the  Lord  of  Misrule. 
There  are  many  notices  of  him. 

April  30,  1445,  Order  'for  letting  and  stanching  of  diuerse 
enormyteis  done  in  time  bygane  be  the  abbotis  of  this  burgh,  callit 
of  bone  acorde,  that  in  time  to  cum  thai  will  giue  na  feis  to  na  sic 
abbotis.  Item,  it  is  sene  speidful  to  thame  that  for  the  instant  yher 
thai  will  haue  na  sic  abbot;  but  thai  will  that  the  alderman  for  the 
tyme,  and  a  balyhe  quhom  that  he  will  tak  til  him,  sail  supple  that 
faute.' 

August  17,  1491.    Dispute  as  to  fee  of  '  Abbat  of  Bonacord.' 

May  8,  1496.  Choice,  '  for  vphaldin  of  the  auld  lovable  consuetud, 
honour,  consolacioun,  and  pleasour  of  this  burgh/  of  two  '  coniunctlie 
abbotis  and  priour  of  Bonacord/  with  fee  of  five  marks. 

Nov.  30,  1504.  All  'personis  burges  nichtbours,  and  burgyes 
sonnys '  to  ride  with  '  Abbot  and  Prior  of  Bonaccord '  on  St.  Nicholas 
day  annually  when  called  on  by  them. 


334  APPENDIX  W 

[In  1511  and  1515  this  function  of  the  Abbot  has  passed  to  the 
provost  and  baillies.] 

May  16,  1507.  '  All  manere  of  youthis,  burgeis  and  burges  sonnys 
salbe  redy  everie  halyday  to  pass  with  the  Abbat  and  Prior  of  Bonacord/ 

May  8,  1508.  'All  personis  that  are  abill  within  this  burghe  sail 
be  ready  with  thair  arrayment  maid  in  grene  and  yallow,  bowis,  arrowis, 
brass,  and  all  uther  convenient  thingis  according  thairto,  to  pass  with 
Robyne  Huyd  and  Litile  Johnne,  all  tymes  convenient  tharto,  quhen 
thai  be  requirit  be  the  saidis  Robyne  and  Litile  Johnne/ 

Nov.  17,  1508.  Order  for  St,  Nicholas  riding  'with  Robert  Huyid 
and  Litile  Johne,  quhilk  was  callit,  in  yers  bipast,  Abbat  and  Prior  of 
Bonacord/ 

April  13,  1523.  Choice  of '  Lordis  of  Bonaccord/  young  men  '  to 
rise  and  obey  to  thame/  They  are  also  to  be  '  Mastris  of  Artuilyery/ 

April  30,  1527.  Grant  of  'x  marks  of  the  fyrst  fremen  that 
hapynnis  to  be  frathinfurht '  to  '  the  Lord  of  Bonnacord  and  his  fellow/ 

Aug.  3,  1528.  Similar  grant  to  'thair  lovits,  Jhone  Ratray  and 
Gilbert  Malisoun,  thair  Abbatis  out  of  ressoun/ 

April  1 6,  1531.  One  of  those  chosen  to  be  '  lords  of  Bonacord,  to 
do  plesour  and  blythnes  to  the  toune  in  this  sessoun  of  symmir  in- 
cumming '  protests  against  his  appointment. 

Oct.  n,  1533.     Grant  of  fee  to  'lordis  of  Bonaccord/ 

April  30,  1535.  Order  'that  all  the  zoung  abil  men  within  this 
guid  [toune]  haue  thair  grene  cottis,  and  agit  men  honest  cottis, 
efferand  to  thame,  and  obey  and  decor  the  lordis  of  Bonaccord/ 

April  4,  1539.  '  The  lordis  of  Bonacordis  desyr '  for  their  fee,  and 
for  '  all  the  yong  able  men  within  this  guid  towne  to  conwey  ws  euery 
Sunday  and  halyday,  and  wther  neidfull  tymes,  aboulzeit  as  your  M.  has 
deuisit,  and  agit  men  to  meit  us  at  the  crabstane  or  kirkyard '  is  granted. 

June  23,  1539.     Fee  to  '  lordis  of  Bonacord/ 

April  17,  1541.  Similar  fee  '  to  help  to  the  decoration  and  plesour 
to  be  done  be  thaim  to  this  guid  towne/ 

April  17,  1542.     Similar  fee. 

April  24,  1542.  'Alex.  Kayn,  accusit  in  gugment  for  his  wyff .  .  . 
for  the  hawy  strublens  and  vile  mispersoning  of  Alex.  Gray  and 
Dauid  Kintoir,  lordis  of  Bonacord,  and  thair  company  present  with 
thame  for  the  tyme,  sayand  common  beggaris  and  skafferis,  thair 
meltyd  was  but  small  for  all  thair  cuttit  out  hoyss,  with  moy  oder 
inurious  wordis,  unleful  to  be  expremit/ 

July  24,  1545.    Grant  of '  compositioun  siluer'  as  fee. 

April  20,  1548.     Similar  fee. 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  335 

April  14,  1552.  'The  said  day,  the  counsell,  all  in  ane  voce, 
havand  respect  and  consideratioune  that  the  Icrdis  of  Bonnacord  in 
tymes  bygane  hase  maid  our  mony  grit,  sumpteous,  and  superfleous 
banketing  induring  the  tyme  of  thair  regnn,  and  specialie  in  May, 
quhilks  wes  thocht  nother  profitabill  nor  godlie,  and  did  hurt  to  sundry 
young  men  that  wer  elekit  in  the  said  office,  becaus  the  last  elekit  did 
aye  pretent  to  surmont  in  thair  predecessouris  in  thair  ryetouss  and 
sumpteous  banketing,  and  the  causs  principal  and  gud  institutiounn 
thairof,  quhilk  wes  in  balding  of  the  gud  toun  in  glaidnes  and  blythtnes, 
witht  danssis,  farsiis,  playis,  and  gamis,  in  tymes  convenient,  necleckit 
and  abusit ;  and  thairfor  ordinis  that  in  tyme  cummin  all  sic  sumpteous 
banketing  be  laid  doun  aluterlie  except  thre  sobir  and  honest,  vizt., 
upoun  the  senze  day,  the  first  Sonday  of  May,  and  ane  [  J 

upoun  Tuisday  efter  Pasche  day,  and  na  honest  man  to  pass  to  ony  of 
thair  banketis  except  on  the  said  thre  dais  allanerlie ;  and  in  ane  place 
of  the  forsaid  superfleouss  banketing  to  be  had  and  maid  yeirly  to 
generall  plais,  or  ane  at  the  lest,  with  danssis  and  gammes  usit  and 
wont;  and  quha  souer  refuisis  to  accept  the  said  office  in  tyme 
cumming,  beand  elekit  thairto  be  the  toun,  to  tyne  his  fredome, 
priuelege,  takis,  and  profit  he  hes  or  ma  haf  of  the  toun,  and  neuer  to 
be  admittit  frathinfurtht  to  office,  honour,  nor  dingnete/ 

May  27,  1552.  Grant  of  fee,  larger  than  usual,  'be  ressoune  that 
thai  ar  put  to  grytar  coist  this  yeir  nor  utheris  that  bar  office  before 
thaim  hes  bene  put  to,  and  that  be  ressoune  of  cummyng  of  the  quenis 
grace,  my  lord  governor,  and  the  maist  of  the  lords  and  grit  men  of 
this  realme,  presently  to  this  toun/ 

[1555.  Parliament  '  statute  and  ordanit  that  in  all  tymes  cumming 
na  maner  of  persoun  be  chosin  Robert  Hude  nor  Lytill  Johne,  Abbot 
of  vnressoun,  Quenis  of  Maij,  nor  vtherwyse,  nouther  in  Burgh  nor  to 
landwart  in  ony  tyme  to  cum,  and  gif  ony  Prouest,  Baillies,  counsall,  and 
communitie,  chesis  sic  ane  Personage  as  Robert  Hude,  Lytill  Johne, 
Abbottis  of  vnressoun,  or  Quenis  of  Maij  within  Burgh,  the  chesaris  of 
sic  sail  tyne  thair  fredome  for  the  space  of  fyve  zeiris,and  vtherwyse  salbe 
punist  at  the  Quenis  grace  will,  and  the  acceptar  of  sicklyke  office  salbe 
banist  furth  of  the  Realme.  And  gif  ony  sic  persounis  sic  as  Robert 
Hude,  Lytill  Johne,  Abbottis  of  vnresson,  Quenis  of  Maij,  beis  chosin 
outwith  Burgh  and  vthers  landwart  townis,  the  chesars  s^ll  pay  to  our 
Souerane  Lady  x  pundis,  and  thair  persounis  put  in  waird,  thair  to 
remane  during  the  Quenis  grace  plesoure.  And  gif  ony  wemen  or 
vthers  about  simmer  treis  singand  makis  perturbatioun  to  the  Quenis 
liegis  in  the  passage  throw  Burrows  and  vthers  landwart  townis,  the 


336  APPENDIX  W 

wemen  perturbatouris  for  skafrie  of  money  or  vtherwyse  salbe  takin 
handellit  and  put  upon  the  Cukstulis  of  everie  Burgh  or  towne.] 

May  4,  1562.  'John  Kelo,  belman,  wes  accusit  in  jugement  for 
the  passing  throw  the  rewis  of  the  toune  with  the  hand  bell,  be  oppin 
voce,  to  convene  the  haill  communitie,  or  sa  mony  thairof  as  wald 
convene,  to  pass  to  the  wood  to  bring  in  symmer  upoun  the  first 
Sonday  of  Maii,  contravinand  the  actis  and  statutis  of  the  quenis 
grace,  and  lordis  of  consell,  eppeirandlie  to  raise  tumult  and  ingener 
discord  betuix  the  craftismen  and  the  fre  burgessis  of  gild,  and  the 
saidis  craftismen  to  dissobey  and  adtempt  aganis  the  superioris  of  the 
toun,  gif  it  stuid  in  thair  power,  as  the  saidis  prowest  and  baillies  ar 
informit,  the  said  Johnne  hawing  na  command  of  the  saidis  prowest 
and  baillies  to  do  the  same ;  and  inlykwyise,  Alexander  Burnat  alias 
Potter  wes  accusit  for  passing  throw  the  toun  with  ane  swech,  to  the 
effect  and  occasioun  aboun  wryttin.' 

May  1 4  and  18,  1565.  Several  citizens  disfranchised  for  disobeying 
the  proclamation  made  by  '  Johnne  Kelo,  belman,'  forbidding  any 
persons  '  to  mak  ony  conventione,  with  taburne  plaing,  or  pype,  or 
fedill,  or  have  anseinges,  to  convene  the  quenis  legis,  in  chusing  of 
Robin  Huid,  Litill  Johnne,  Abbot  of  Ressoune,  Queyne  of  Maii,  or 
sicklyk  contraveyne  the  statutis  of  parliament,  or  mak  ony  tumult, 
seism,  or  conventione/ 

Royal  Entry. 

The  entertainment  of  Queen  Margaret,  wife  of  James  IV,  in  May, 
1511,  seems  to  have  included  some  of  the  pageants  from  the  Nativity 
cycle.  The  following  extract  is  from  Dunbar's  The  Quenis  Reception 
at  Aberdein l : — 

'Ane  fair  processioun  mett  hir  at  the  Port, 

In  a  cap  of  gold  and  silk,  full  pleasantlie, 
Syne  at  hir  entrie,  with  many  fair  disport, 

Ressauet  hir  on  streittis  lustilie; 

Quhair  first  the  salutatioun  honorabilly 
Of  the  sweitt  Virgin,  guidlie  mycht  be  seine ; 

The  sound  of  menstrallis  blawing  to  the  sky; 
Be  blyth  and  blisfull,  burgh  of  Aberdein. 

And  syne  thow  gart  the  orient  kingis  thrie 
Offer  to  Chryst,  with  benyng  reuerence, 

Gold,  sence,  and  mir,  with  all  humilitie, 

Schawand  him  king  with  most  magnificence; 

1  Dunbar,  Works  (ed.  J.  Small,  for  Scottish  Text  Soc.),  ii.  351. 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS   337 

Syne  quhow  the  angill,  with  sword  of  violence, 
Furth  of  the  joy  of  paradice  putt  clein 

Adame  and  Eve  for  innobedience ; 
Be  blyth  and  blisfull,  burgh  of  Aberdein. 

And  syne  the  Bruce,  that  euir  was  bold  in  stour, 

Thow  gart  as  roy  cum  rydand  vnder  croun, 
Richt  awfull,  strang,  and  large  of  portratour, 

As  nobill,  dreidfull,  michtie  campioun; 

The  [nobili  Stewarts]  syne,  of  great  renoun, 
Thow  gart  upspring,  with  branches  new  and  greine, 

Sa  gloriouslie,  quhill  glaided  all  the  toun : 
Be  blyth  and  blisfull,  burgh  of  Aberdein. 

Syne  come  thair  four  and  twentie  madinis  jing, 
All  claid  in  greine  of  mervelous  bewtie, 

With  hair  detressit,  as  threidis  of  gold  did  hing, 
With  quhyt  hattis  all  browderit  rycht  bravelie, 
Playand  on  timberallis,  and  syngand  rycht  sweitlie; 

That  seimlie  sort,  in  ordour  weill  besein, 
Did  meit  the  quein,  hir  saluand  reverentlie : 

Be  blyth  and  blisfull,  burgh  of  Aberdein. 

The  streittis  war  all  hung  with  tapestrie, 
Great  was  the  press  of  peopill  dwelt  about, 

And  pleasant  padgeanes  playit  prattelie; 
The  legeiss  all  did  to  thair  lady  loutt, 
Quha  was  convoyed  with  ane  royall  routt 

Off  gryt  barrounes  and  lustie  ladyis  [schene] ; 

Welcum,  our  quein !   the  commoness  gaif  ane  schout : 

Be  blyth  and  blisfull,  burgh  of  Aberdein. 

ABINGDON,  BERKSHIRE. 

Certain  'jeweis  de  Abyndon'  were  at  Court  at  Xmas  1427  (Appen- 
dix E,  viii). 

A  seventeenth-century  account  of  the  Hospital  of  Christ  says  that 
the  fraternity  held  their  feast  on  May  3  (Holy  Cross  day),  1445,  with 
'  pageantes  and  playes  and  May  games/  They  employed  twelve 
minstrels l. 

APPLEDORE,  KENT. 

Appledore  players  were  at  New  Romney  in  1488. 

1  Hearae,  Liber  Niger  Scaccarii  (ed.  a),  ii.  598. 


CHAMBERS.    IS 


338  APPENDIX  W 

BADDOW,  ESSEX. 

The  Chelmsford  (q.v.)  wardrobe  was  hired  by  'children  of 
during  1564-6. 

BASSINGBOURNE,  CAMBRIDGESHIRE. 

A  play  'of  the  holy  martyr  St.  George'  was  held  in  a  field  at 
Bassingbourne  on  the  feast  of  St.  Margaret,  July  20,  1511.  The 
churchwardens'  accounts  for  the  play  show,  besides  payments  for 
refreshments : — 

'  First  paid  to  the  garnement  man  for  garnements  and  propyrts  and 
playbooks,  xx8. 

To>£  minstrel  and  three  waits  of  Cambridge  .  .  . 

Item  ...  for  setting  up  the  stages. 

Item  to  John  Beecher  for  painting  of  three  Fanchoms  and  four 
Tormentors. 

Item  to  Giles  Ashwell  for  easement  of  his  croft  to  play  in,  i8. 

Item  to  John  Hobarde,  Brotherhood  Priest,  for  the  play  book, 
ii9.  viii<V 

Twenty-seven  neighbouring  villages  contributed  to  these  expenses1. 

BATH,  SOMERSETSHIRE. 

The  accounts  of  St.  Michael's,  Bath,  for  1482,  include  'pro  potatione 
le  players  in  recordacione  ['  rehearsing '  ?]  ludorum  diversis  vicibus/ 
with  other  expenditure  on  players  and  properties.  As  one  item  is  '  et 
lohT  Fowler  pro  cariando  le  tymbe  a  cimiterio  dicto  tempore  ludi/ 
the  play  was  perhaps  a  Quern  quaeritis  a. 

Chaucer's  Wife  of  Bath,  in  her  husband's  absence  at  London  during 
Lent,  would  make  her  '  visitaciouns  ' — 

'  To  pleyes  of  miracles  and  manages  V 

BETHERSDEN,  KENT. 

The  churchwardens'  accounts  record  ludibeatae  Christinae,  in  1522. 
St.  Christina's  day  was  July  24*.  Bethersden  players  were  at  New 
Romney  in  1508. 

BEVERLEY,  YORKSHIRE. 

A  thirteenth-century  continuator  of  the  Vita  of  St.  John  of  Beverley 
records  a  recent  (ti22o)  miracle  done  in  the  Minster: — 

1  B.  H.  Wortham,  Churchwarden?  a  C.   B.    Pearson,    Accounts    of  St. 

Accounts  of  Bassingbourne  (Antiquary,  Michaefs,  Bath  (£.  Hist.  Soc.  Trans. 

Tii.    25) ;    Lysons,   Maena  Britannia,  vii.  309). 

Cambridgeshire ,  89;  Dyer,  343,  from  »  Cant.    Tales,  6140   (W.    of  B!s 

Antiquarian    Repertory     (1808),    iiu  Prol  558). 

3^0.  *  L.  T.  SmiA,  York  Plays,  Ixv. 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS   339 

'  Contigit,  ut  tempore  quodam  aestivo  intra  saepta  polyandri  ecclesiae 
B.  loannis,  ex  parte  aquilonari,  larvatorum,  ut  assolet,  et  verbis  et  actu 
fieret  repraesentatio  Dominicae  resurrectionis.  Confluebat  ibi  copiosa 
utriusque  fcexus  multitude,  variis  inducta  votis,  delectationis  videlicet, 
seu  admirationis  causa,  vel  sancto  proposito  excitandae  devotionis. 
Cum  vero,  prae  densa  vulgi  adstante  corona,  pluribus,  et  praecipue 
statura  pusillis,  desideratus  minime  pateret  accessus,  introierunt  plurimi 
in  ecclesiam ;  ut  vel  orarent,  vel  picturas  inspicerent,  vel  per  aliquod 
genus  recreationis  et  solatii  pro  hoc  die  taedium  evitarent/  Some 
boys  climbed  into  the  triforium,  in  order  that,  through  the  windows, 
'  liberius  personarum  et  habitus  et  gestus  respicerent,  et  earundem 
dialogos  auditu  faciliori  adverterent.'  One  of  these  fell  into  the 
church,  but  was  miraculously  preserved1. 

The  Corpus  Christi  play  is  first  mentioned  in  1377.  It  was  'antiqua 
consuetudo'  in  1390,  when  an  'ordinacio  ludi  Corporis  Christi  cum 
pena '  was  entered  in  the  Great  Guild  Book,  requiring  the  crafts  or 
1  artes '  to  produce  '  ludos  suos  et  pagentes '  under  a  penalty  of  40^. 
The  plays  were  held  annually,  subject  to  an  order  by  the  oligarchical 
town  council  of  twelve  custodies  or  gubernatores  on  St.  Mark's  day. 
The  custodes  '  governed '  the  play,  and  met  certain  general  expenses. 
In  1423  they  paid  Master  Thomas  Bynham,  a  friar  preacher,  for 
writing  'banis';  also  the  waits  ('  spiculatores')  who  accompanied  the 
'bams.'  In  the  same  year  they  gave  a  breakfast  to  the  Earl  of 
Northumberland.  In  1460  they  put  up  a  scaffold  for  their  own  use. 
Apparently  the  pageants  and  properties  belonged  to  them,  for  in  1391 
they  handed  over  to  John  of  Arras,  on  behalf  of  the  '  hairers/  for  his 
life  and  under  surety,  the  necessaries  for  the  play  of  Paradise ;  '  viz. 
j  karre,  viij  hespis,  xviij  stapels,  ij  visers,  ij  wenges  angeli,  j  fir-sparr, 
j  worme,  ij  paria  caligarum  linearum,  ij  paria  camisarum,  j  gladius.' 
Otherwise  the  expenses  were  met  by  the  crafts,  whose  members  paid 
a  fixed  levy  towards  the  play,  the  '  serge '  or  light  maintained  by  the 
craft  in  some  chapel,  and  the  wooden  '  castle  '  erected  at  the  proces- 
sion of  St.  John  of  Beverley  on  Monday  in  Rogation  week.  Thus 
the  Barbers'  Ordinances  in  1414  require  their  members  to  pay  2s.  and 
a  pound  of  wax  on  setting  up  shop,  and  2s.  on  taking  an  apprentice. 
Certain  fines  also  were  in  this  company  appropriated  to  the  same 
purposes.  In  1469  journeymen  cappers  paid  Sd.  for  any  year  when 
there  was  a  play,  and  6d.  when  there  was  not.  The  town  Ordinances 
of  1467  contemplate  annual  payments  by  all  craftsmen.  In  1449  the 

1  Acta    Sanctorum,    Mali,    ii.    189;      328  (Rolls  Series,  Ixxi) ;  Rock,  ii.  430; 
Historians  of  the   Church  of  York,  i.      A.¥.Le&chinjFurnivaHMis<:ettanyt2Q6. 

Z  Z 


340  APPENDIX  W 

custodes  contributed  4$.  to  the  Skinners'  play  as  '  alms  of  the  com- 
munity/ If  a  craft  failed  to  produce  its  play,  the  custodes  exacted  the 
whole  or  a  part  of  the  fine  of  40^.  specified  in  the  Ordinacio  of  1390. 
They  also  levied  other  disciplinary  fines ;  as  on  John  '  cordewainer ' 
in  1423,  for  hindering  the  play,  on  Henry  Cowper,  *  webster/  in  1452, 
'  quod  nesciebat  ludum  suum ' ;  on  the  alderman  of  the  '  paynetors/ 
in  1520-1  *  because  their  play  was  badly  and  confusedly  played,  in 
contempt  of  the  whole  community,  before  many  strangers ' ;  and  so 
forth.  The  order  of  1390  specified  thirty-eight  crafts  to  play;  'viz. 
mercers  et  drapers,  tannatores,  masons,  skynners,  taillors,  goldsmyths, 
smyths,  plummers,  boilers,  tumors,  girdelers,  cutlers,  latoners,  broche- 
makers,  homers,  sponers,  ladilers,  furburs,  websters,  walkers,  coverlid- 
wevers,  cartwrightes,  coupars,  fletchers,  bowers,  cordewaners,  baksters, 
flesshewers,  fysshers,  chaundelers,  barburs,  vynters,  sadilers,  rapers, 
hayrers,  shipmen,  glovers,  and  workmen/  As  elsewhere,  changing 
conditions  of  social  life  led  to  alterations  in  this  list,  and  consequent 
divisions  and  mergings  of  the  plays.  Thus  in  1411  it  seems  to  have 
been  felt  as  a  grievance  that  certain  well-to-do  inhabitants  of  Beverley, 
who  belonged  to  no  craft,  escaped  all  charge  for  the  plays,  and  it  was 
agreed  that  in  future  the  '  digniores  villae '  should  appoint  four 
representatives  and  contribute  a  play.  In  1493  the  Drapers  formed 
a  craft  of  their  own  apart  from  the  Mercers,  and  consequently  a  play 
was  divided,  the  Drapers  taking  'Demyng  Pylate/  and  leaving  to  the 
Mercers  '  Blak  Herod/  On  the  fly-leaf  of  the  Great  Guild  Book  is 
a  list  of  crafts  and  their  plays,  dated  by  Mr.  Leach  ti52O,  which  differs 
considerably  from  that  of  1390.  It  is  as  follows : — 

1  Gubernacio  Ludi  Carports  Christi. 

Tylers :  the  fallinge  of  Lucifer.  Husbandmen :  Bedleem. 

Saddelers\  the  makinge  of  the  World.  Vynteners :  Sheipherds. 

Walkers:  makingeof  Adam  and  eve.  Goldsmyths :  Kyngs  of  Colan. 

Ropers :     the    brekinge    of    the  Fyshers :  Symeon. 

Comaundments  of  God.  Cowpers :  fleyinge  to  Egippe. 

Crelers:  gravinge  and  Spynnynge.  Shomakers  :  Children  of  Ysraell. 

Glovers:  Cayn.  Scryveners:    Disputacion   in    the 
Shermen :  Adam  and  Seth.  Temple. 

Wattermen :  Noe  Shipp.  Barbours :  Sent  John  Baptyste. 

Bowers  and  Fletshers :  Abraham  Laborers :  the  Pynnacle. 

and  Isaak.  The  Mylners :  rasynge  of  Lazar. 

Muster dmakers     and     Chanlers :  Skynners  :  ierusalem. 

Salutation  of  Our  Lady.  Bakers:  the  Mawndy. 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS   341 

Litsters :  prainge  at  the  Mownte.  Wevers :  the  Stanginge. 

Tailyours:  Slepinge  Pilate.  Barkers*.  theTakinge  oftheCrose. 

Marchaunts  [i.  e.  Mercers]  :  Blak  Cooks :  Haryinge  of  hell. 

Herod.  Wrights :  the  Resurrection. 

Drafters :  Demynge  Pylate.  Gentylmen :  Castle  of  Emaut, 

JBochtours:  Scorgynge.  Smyths:  Ascencion. 

Cutlers  and  Potters :  the  Stedyn-  Prestes :  Coronacion  of  Our  Lady. 

ynge.  Marchaunts:  Domesday. 

The  thirty-eight  pageants  of  1390  have  become  thirty-six  in  1520. 
Besides  the  '  Gentylmen/  dating  from  1411,  the  '  Prestes'  are  notice- 
able. These  are  probably  the  '  clerus  Gildae  Corporis  Christi/  who 
in  1430  led  the  Corpus  Christi  procession  in  which  many  of  the  crafts 
with  their  lights  took  part.  Procession  and  play,  though  on  the  same 
day,  seem  to  have  been  in  1430  quite  distinct.  The  play  lasted  only 
one  day,  and  was  given  in  1449  at  six  stations ;  viz.  at  the  North  Bar, 
by  the  Bull-ring,  between  John  Skipworth  and  Robert  Couke  in 
Highgate,  at  the  Cross  Bridge,  at  the  Fishmarket  (now  called  Wednes- 
day Market),  at  the  Minster  Bow,  and  at  the  Beck.  Poulson  stated 
that  the  performances  lasted  into  the  reign  of  James  I.  Mr.  Leach 
could  find  no  trace  of  them  in  the  municipal  archives  after  1520  l.  But 
the  Ordinances,  dated  1555,  of  the  Minstrels'  guild  '  of  our  Lady  of  the 
read  arke'  provide  that  certain  forfeits  shall  go  to  the  'comon  place* 
(which  I  take  to  be  '  common  plays ')  of  Beverley. 

A  second  craft-play  appears  in  1469,  when  a  number  of  crafts, 
thirty-nine  in  all,  gave  a  Pater  Noster  play  on  the  Sunday  after  St.  Peter 
and  Vincula  (August  i).  Copies  of  the  text  (regtstra)  were  made  for 
the  crafts.  The  stations  were  those  of  the  Corpus  Christi  play.  There 
were  eight  '  pagends '  named  after  the  eight  principal  *  lusores/  viz. 
'Pryde:  Invy:  Ire:  Avaryce:  Sleweth  (also  called  *  Accidie'):  Glotony: 
Luxuria :  Vicious.1  A  number  of  crafts  united  to  furnish  each  of 
these ;  apparently  the  most  important  was  that  of  '  Vicious/  provided 
by  the  '  gentiltnen,  merchands,  clerks  and  valets/  Aldermen  of  the 
pageants  were  appointed  \ 

BlLLERICAY,  ESSEX. 

The  Chelmsford  (q.v.)  wardrobe  was  twice  hired  by  men  of 
'Beleryca/  or  'Belyrica'  during  1564-6. 

1  A.  F.  Leach,  Beverley  Town  Docu-  f.  133  (Warburton's  eighteenth- century 

mtnts  (Selden  Soc.  xiv),  1.  lix.  33,  45,  collections  for  a  history  of  Yorkshire). 

75,  99,   109,   117;  and  in  Furnivall  *  A.   F.  Leach,  in  Fumivall  Mis- 

Miscellany,  208  ;  Poulson,  Beverlac^.  cellany^  220. 
268  sqq.,  302;    Lansdawne  MS.  896, 


342  APPENDIX  W 

BISHOP  AUCKLAND,  DURHAM. 

The  lusores  of  '  Auklande  '  received  a  present  from  Durham  Priory 
for  playing  before  Master  Hyndley,  at  Christmas,  1539.  (App.  E,  i.) 

BOREHAM,  ESSEX. 

'  Casse  of  Boreham'  hired  the  Chelmsford  (q.v.)  wardrobe  in  1566 
and  1573,  and  the  'players  of  Boreham/  at  Twelfth  Night,  1574. 

BOXFORD,  SUFFOLK. 

A  play  appears  in  the  churchwardens'  accounts  for  1535  *. 
BRAINTREE,  ESSEX. 

The  churchwardens'  accounts  of  St.  Michael's  include  the  follow- 
ing :— 

'  Anno  1523.  A  Play  of  S**  Swythyn,  acted  in  the  Church  on 
a  Wednesday,  for  which  was  gathered  6  :  14  :  u^;  Pd  at  the  said 
Play,  3:1:4;  due  to  the  Church,  3  :  13  :  7^. 

Anno  1525.  Theie  was  a  Play  of  Sfc  Andrew  acted  in  the  Church 
the  Sunday  before  Relique  Sunday ;  Rcd,  8:9:6;  Pd,  4  :  9  :  9 ;  Due 
to  the  Church,  3  :  19:8. 

Anno  1529.     A  Play  in  Halstead  Church. 

Anno  1534.  A  Play  of  Placidas  alias  Sfc  Eustace.  Rd,  14  :  17  :  6^; 
Pd,  6:  13:  7j:  due,  8  :  2  :  8£. 

Anno  1567.     Rd  of  the  Play  money,  5:0:0. 

Anno  1570.  Recd  of  the  Play  money,  9:7:7;  and  for  letting  the 
Playing  garments,  o  :  i  :  8. 

Anno  1571.  Rcd  for  a  Playbook,  2Od ;  and  for  lending  the  Play 
gere,  8  :  7d. 

Anno  1579.     For  the  Players  Apparel,  5o8  V 

Nicholas  Udall  was  vicar  of  Braintree,  1533-1537.  The  plays 
were  probably  in  aid  of  the  large  expenditure  on  the  fabric  of  the 
church  between  1522  and  1535. 

The  Chelmsford  (q.v.)  play  was  given  at  Braintree  in  1562. 

BRENTWOOD,  ESSEX. 

*  Mr.  Johnston  of  Brentwoode '  hired  the  Chelmsford  (q.v.)  wardrobe 
in  1566. 

BRISTOL,  GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 

A  town-clerk's  account  of  municipal  customs,  after  describing  the 
banquet  on  St.  Katharine's  Eve  (Nov.  24),  concludes : — 

1  Corrie,  Boxford  Parish  Accounts  a  Pearson, »ii.  413  ;  Morant,  History 
(Cambridge  Antiq.  Sw.  Trans,  i.  266).  of  Essex  (1768),  li.  399. 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS   343 

'  And  then  to  depart,  euery  man  home :  the  Maire,  Shiref,  and  the 
worshipfull  men  redy  to  reeeyue  at  theire  dores  Seynt  Kateryns 
players,  makyng  them  to  drynk  at  their  dores,  and  rewardyng  theym 
for  theire  plays  V  Were  these  plays  more  than  a  '  catterning '  qufte 
(vol.  i.  p.  253)  ? 

There  is  no  mention  of  plays  amongst  the  records,  including  several 
craft-guild  ordinances,  in  the  Little  Red  Book  of  Bristol  (ed.  W.  B. 
Bickley,  1901).  But  'the  Shipwrights  Pageannt'  was  used  at  the 
reception  of  Henry  VII  in  1486  (p.  175). 

BROOKLAND,  KENT. 
Brookland  players  were  at  New  Romney  in  1494. 

BUNGAY,  SUFFOLK. 

On  the  night  after  Corpus  Christi  day,  June  16,  1514,  certain 
persons  '  brake  and  threw  down  five  pageants  of  the  said  inhabitants, 
that  is  to  saye,  hevyn  pagent,  the  pagent  of  all  the  world,  Paradyse 
pagent,  Bethelem  pagent,  and  helle  pagent,  the  whyche  wer  ever  wont 
tofore  to  be  caryed  abowt  the  seyd  town  upon  the  seyd  daye  in  the 
honor  of  the  blissyd  Sacrement.' 

The  churchwardens*  accounts  of  St.  Mary's  show  payments  in  1526 
for  copying  the  game-book,  and  to  Stephen  Prewett,  a  Norwich  priest, 
for  his  labour  in  the  matter. 

The  accounts  of  Holy  Trinity  show  payments:  in  1558,  to  a  man 
riding  to  Yarmouth  for  the  'game  gear,'  'to  William  Ellys  for  the 
interlude  and  game  booke,  iiijd/  'for  writing  the  partes,  ij8';  in  1566, 
on  occasion  of  'the  interlude  in  the  churchy arde/  for  apparel  borrowed 
from  Lord  Surrey,  'for  visors/  and  'to  Kelsaye,  the  vyce,  for  his 
pasty  me  before  the  plaie,  and  after  the  playe,  both  daies,  ij9/  In  1577, 
a  churchwarden  gave  a  receipt  to  his  predecessor  for  '  game  pleyers 
gownes  and  coats,  that  were  made  of  certayne  peces  of  olid  copes.' 
In  1591,  5J.  was  received  for  'players  cootesV 

BURNHAM,   ESSEX. 

'  Wm  Crayford  of  Burnam '  hired  the  Chelmsford  (q.v.)  wardrobe  in 

1568. 

BURY  ST.  EDMUND'S,  SUFFOLK. 

The  Ordinances  of  the  Weavers  (1477)  assign  half  of  certain  fines 
to  'the  sustentacione  and  mayntenaunce  of  the  payent  of  the 

1  L.Toulrain  Smith,  Ricar?  s  Kalendar      Archaeology ',  xi.  336  ;  Eastern  Counties 
(Camden  Soc.),  80.  Collectanea^  272. 

2  L.    G.    Bolingbroke,    in    Norfolk 


344  APPENDIX  W 

Assencione  of  oure  Lord  God  and  of  the  yiftys  of  the  Holy  Cost, 
as  yt  hath  be  customed  of  olde  tyme  owte  of  mynde  yeerly  to  be  had 
to  the  wurschepe  of  God,  amongge  other  payenttes  in  the  processione 
in  the  feste  of  Corpus  Xri/ 

Journeymen  weavers  are  to  pay  '  iiijd '  yearly  to  the  *  payent '  and 
all  '  foreyne '  as  well  as  '  deyzin '  weavers  are  to  be  contributory  to  it l. 

It  is  not  clear  whether  the  '  payent '  had  a  Indus  or  was  a  dumb- 
show. 

CAMBORNE,  CORNWALL. 
See  Texts  (i),  Cornish  Plays,  Si.  Meriasek. 

CAMBRIDGE,  CAMBRIDGESHIRE. 

William  de  Lenne  and  Isabel  his  wife,  joining  the  guild  of  Corpus 
Christi  (1*1350),  spent  half  a  mark  *in  ludo  Filiorum  Israelis*! 

Warton  says: — 

c  The  oldest  notice  I  can  recover  of  this  sort  of  spectacle  [Latin 
plays]  in  an  English  University  is  in  the  fragment  of  an  ancient 
accompt-roll  of  the  dissolved  college  of  Michael- House  in  Cambridge  • 
in  which,  under  1386,  the  following  expense  is  entered:  'Pro  ly 
pallio  brusdato  et  pro  sex  larvis  et  barbis  in  comedia  V 

CANTERBURY,  KENT. 

A  Burghmote  order  (tisoo)  directed  'a  play  called  Corpus  Christi 
play  .  .  .  maintained  and  played  at  the  costs  of  the  Crafts  and 
Mysteries/  although  '  of  late  days  it  hath  been  left  and  laid  apart/  to 
be  revived  at  Michaelmas 4. 

A  book  of  the  play  of  Abraham  and  Isaac,  belonging  to  the  'schaft' 
or  parochial  guild  of  St.  Dunstan's,  lay  in  the  keeping  of  the  church- 
wardens of  that  church  from  1491  to  1520 B. 

On  Jan.  6, 1503,  the  corporation  paid  for  a  play  of  the  Three  Kyngs 
of  Coleyn  in  the  guildhall.  The  account  mentions  three  '  bests '  made 
of  hoops  and  laths  and  painted  canvas,  'heddyng  of  the  Hensshemen/ 
a  castle  in  the  courthall,  and  a  gilt  star. 

Annual  accounts  for  '  the  pagent  of  St.  Thomas  *  on  the  day  of  his 

1  Hist.  MSS.  xiv.  8,   133;  Arnold,  Bodl.  Qxon.'    Mr.  F.  Madan    kindly 

Memorials   of  St.    Edmund*  s    Abbey  informs  me  that  the  document  cannot 

(R.  S.),  iii«  361.  now  be  identified  amongst  the  Rawlinson 

•  Masters,  Hist.  o/C.C.C.  Cambridge  MSS. 

(ed.  1753),  i.  5.  *  Arch.  Cantiana,  xvii.  147. 

1  Hazlitt-Warton,  iii.  302.    The  only  8  Ibid.  zviLJBo. 
reference  given  is  '  MSS.  Rawlins.  Bibl. 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  345 

martyrdom  (Dec.  29),  appear  amongst  the  financial  records  of  the 
corporation  from  1504-5  until  'far  on  in  the  reign  of  Queen  Elizabeth/ 
I  select  some  items  :— 

'1504-6- 

Paied  to  Sampson  Carpenter  and  hys  man  hewyng  and  squeryng 

of  tymber  for  the  Pagent. 

For  makyng  S*  Thomas  Carte  with  a  peyer  of  whyles. 
To  iiij  men  to  helpe  to  cary  the  Pagent. 
For  a  newe  myghter. 
For  two  bagges  of  leder. 
For  payntyng  of  the  awbe  and  the  hedde. 
For  gunpowder. 

For  lynnen  cloth  bought  for  S*  Thomas  garment. 
For  forgyng  and  makyng  the  knyghts  harnes. 
For  the  hyre  of  a  sworde. 
For  wasshynge  of  an  albe  and  an  amys.' 
In  later  years. 

i  Pro  le  yettyng  sanguynem. 

Pro  le  payntyng  capitis  Sci  Thomae. 

For  them  that  holpe  to  dress  the  Pagent  and  for  standyng  of 

the  same  in  the  barne. 

For  a  payer  of  new  gloves  for  Seynt  Thomas. 
For  payntyng  of  the  hede  and  the  Aungell  of  the  pagent. 
Paied  to  hym  that  turned  the  vyce. 
Paied  for  wyre  for  the  vyce  of  the  Angell. 

For   i   quarter  of  lambe  and  brede  and  drynke  gevyn  to  the 
children  that  played  the  knyghtes,  and  for  them  that  holpe  to 
convey  the  Pagent  abowte. 
For  a  new  leder  bag  for  the  blode. 
For  wasshyng  of  the  albe  and  other  clothys  abowte  the  Auter, 

and  settyng  on  agayn  the  apparell.' 

Until  1529  the  pageant  stood  in  the  barn  of  St.  Sepulchre's  convent; 
thenceforward  in  the  archbishop's  palace.  In  1536-7  'Seynt  Thomas' 
became  'Bysshop  Bekket/  and  the  show  was  suppressed,  to  be  revived 
with  some  added  'gyaunts'  under  Mary1. 

This  pageant  was  probably  a  dumb-show  of  the  martyrdom  of 
Becket. 

CHELMSFORD,  ESSEX. 

The  Earl  of  Surrey  rewarded  the  players  of  'Chemsford'  on 
Dec.  27,  1490  (Appendix  E,  vii). 

/.  MSS.  Comm.  ix.  I,  147. 


346  APPENDIX  W 

The  churchwardens'  accounts  give  minute  details  of  a  play  held  in 
1562  and  1563.     The  following  are  the  chief  items  : — 

'Inprms  paid  unto  the  Mynstrolls  for  the  Show  day  and  for  the 
play  day. 

Unto  Willm.  Hewet  for  makinge  the  vices  coote,  a  fornet  of  borders, 
and  a  Jerken  of  borders. 

To  John  Lockyer  for  making  iiij  shep  hoks  and  for  iron  work  that 
Burle  occupied  for  the  hell. 

Item  paide  to  Robfc  Mathews  for  a  pair  of  wombes. 

to  Lawrence  for  watching  in  the  Churche  when  the  temple  was 
a-dryenge. 

for  carrying  of  plonk  for  the  stages. 

for  ...  the  scaffold. 

to  M.  Browne  for  the  waightes  of  Bristowe. 

for  makyng  the  conysants. 

forty  Mynstrells  meate  and  drinke. 

to  William  Withers  for  making  the  frame  for  the  heaven  stage  and 
tymber  for  the  same. 

for  writtinge. 

to  William  Withers  for  makynge  the  last  temple,  the  waies,  and  his 
paynnes. 

to  John  Wryght  for  makynge  a  cotte  of  lether  for  Christ. 

to  Solomon  of  Hatfild  for  parchmente. 

to  Mother  Dale  and  her  company  for  reaping  flagges  for  the  scaffold. 

to  Polter  and  Rosse  for  watching  in  the  pightell  on  the  play  show. 

for  fyftie  fadam  of  lyne  for  the  cloudes. 

for  tenn  men  to  beare  the  pagiante. 

to  Browne  for  keapinge  the  cornehill  on  the  showe  daye. 

to  Roistone  for  payntenge  the  Jeiants,  the  pagiante,  and  writing  the 
plaiers  names. 

for  paper  to  wright  the  Bookes.' 

There  are  many  other  payments  to  workmen  and  for  refreshments, 
and  large  sums  to  various  people  'for  suinge  the  play/  Is  this 
*  showing/  '  stage-managing '  ?  One  Buries,  who  was  twice  paid 
for  *  suinge/  was  also  boarded  with  his  boy  for  three  weeks. 

An  inventory  of  garments  made  in  February,  1564,  includes,  with 
many  velvet  gowns  and  jerkins,  &c. : — 

'  ij  vyces  coates,  and  ij  scalpes,  ij  daggers  (j  dagger  wanted). 
v  prophets  cappes  (one  wantinge). 
iij  flappes  for  devils, 
iiij  shepehoks,  iiij  whyppes  (but  one  gone)/ 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS   347 

I  infer  that  the  play  was  a  cyclical  one,  extending  at  least  from 
Creation  to  Crucifixion.  The  temple,  which  required  renewing,  was 
probably  rent  in  twain.  There  were  heaven,  hell,  Prophetae,  Pastores. 
The  performance  was  not  in  the  church,  although  the  temple  was  put 
to  dry  there,  but  in  a  €  pightell '  or  enclosure,  upon  a  scaffold,  with  stages 
for  the  spectators.  It  was  held  in  connexion  with  a  *  showe/  which 
was  on  Cornhill,  and  to  which  I  assign  the  '  pagiante '  and  '  jeiantes.' 
The  time  was  therefore  probably  Midsummer. 

The  accounts  seem  to  cover  two  years  and  at  least  four  performances. 
In  1562,  Midsummer  day  with  its  show  fell  on  a  Saturday.  The  play 
was  on  Monday.  On  Tuesday  it  was  repeated  at  Braintree,  and  later 
on  at  Maiden,  and  possibly  elsewhere.  Then  in  1563  it  was  again 
given  in  Chelmsford  at  Midsummer. 

The  total  expenditure  was  over  £50,  although,  unless  the  forty 
minstrels  acted,  nothing  was  paid  to  actors.  Against  this  was  received 
'at  the  seconde  play'  £17  us.  3</.,  and  *at  the  ij  last  plaies' 
£19  i$s.  4</.,  and  £2  19^.  was  realized  by  letting  out  the  garments 
to  the  men  of  Sabsford  in  1562  and  1563,  and  i6s.  more  for  letting 
them  to  '  Mr  William  Peter,  Knyght/  Nor  did  this  source  of  income 
soon  close.  A  second  inventory  of  1573  shows  that  the  garments 
were  carefully  preserved.  They  became  a  valuable  stock.  In  1564-6 
alone  the  hire  of  them  brought  in  £10  14^.  %d.  They  were  let  to 
men  of  Colchester,  Walden,  Beleryca,  Starford,  Little  Badow,  and 
to  '  children  of  Badow/  Further  loans  are  noted  as  follows  in  later 
years : — 

'  Receipts,  June  3,  1566. 

Sabsforde  men. 

Casse  of  Boreham. 

Somers  of  Lanchire. 

Barnaby  Riche  of  Witham. 

Willm  Monnteyne  of  Colchester. 

Mr.  Johnston  of  Brentwoode,  the  loth  Dec. 

Richard  More  of  Nayland. 

Frauncis  Medcalfe,  the  iiij  of  June,  1568. 

Wm  Cray  ford  of  Burnam,  the  ij  of  June,  1568. 
1570-1572. 

High  Ester  men. 

Parker  of  Writtell. 

Mrs  Higham  of  Woodham  Walter. 

I572- 

Parker  of  Writtell,  Aprill. 


348  APPENDIX  W 

The  Earle  of  Sussex  players. 
John  Walker  of  Hanfild. 

1573- 
Casse  of  Boreham. 

1574- 
Players  of  Boreham,  till  the  mondaye  after  twelfe  day. 

In  1574  the  'playe  books'  were  valued  at  £4,  and  in  the  same 
year  all  the  garments,  &c.,  included  in  the  inventory  of  1573  were 
sold  to  George  Studley  and  others  for  £6  i2s.  4^.  In  1575  one 
Mr.  Knott  was  paid  3d.  '  for  the  makinge  of  two  oblijacyons  for 
the  assurance  of  the  players  garments  belonginge  to  the  Pyshe  V 

CHESTER,  CHESHIRE. 

[Authorities. — (i)  Editions  of  the  plays  by  Wright  and  Deimling, 
described  on  p.  408.  (li)  Notices  in  Furnivall,  Digby  Plays,  xviii,  from 
(a)  Harl.  MSS.  1944,  1948,  which  are  versions  of  a  Breviary  of  the  City 
of  Chester )  compiled  in  1609  by  David  Rogers  from  the  collections  of  his 
father,  Robert  Rogers,  Archdeacon  of  Chester,  who  died  in  1 595  ;  (b]  local 
Annalesm  Harl.  2125  (Randle  Holme's  Collections) ,  and  Daniel  King's 
Vale-Roy  all  (1656).  (ni)  Notices  in  R.  H.  Morris,  Chester  in  the  Planta- 
genet  and  Tudor  Reigns  (1894),  from  (a)  Corporation  archives,  (b)  accounts 
of  the  Smiths7  Company  in  Harl.  2054,  (c)  a  copy  in  Harl.  2150  (cited  in 
error  as  Harl.  2050)  of  part  or  all  of  the  contents  of  a  record  known  as 
the  White  Book  of  the  P entice.  This  was  bound  with  other  documents 
by  Randle  Holme,  and  indexed  by  him  in  1669.  I  do  not  find  any  mention 
of  such  a  '  White  Book  '  in  the  calendar  of  extant  Corporation  archives  by 
Mr.  J.  C.  Jeaffreson,  in  Hist.  MSS.  viii.  I.  355,  unless  it  is  identical  with 
the  fentice  Chartulary  compiled  in  1575-6  an  the  basis,  partly  of  an  older 
'  Black  Book,1 '  translated  oute  of  Laten  and  Frenche '  in' 1540,  and  partly 
of  loose  '  sceduls,  papers  and  books '  in  the  Treasure  House.] 

The  Whitsun  Plays:    The  Tradition. 

The  Chester  plays  are  traditionally  ascribed  to  the  mayoralty  of  one 
John  Arneway.  As  '  John  Arneway/  '  de  Arnewey/  '  Hernwey/  or 
'Harnwey'  served  continuously  as  mayor  from  1268  to  I2772,  and 
as  no  other  of  the  great  English  cycles  of  municipal  plays  can  claim 
anything  like  this  antiquity,  it  is  worth  while  to  examine  the  evidence 
pretty  closely.  I  therefore  put  the  versions  of  the  tradition  in  chrono- 
logical order. 

(a)  1544.-  The  following  document  is  headed  'The  proclamation 
for  the  Plaies,  newly  made  by  William  Newhall,  clarke  of  the  Pentice, 
the  first  yere  of  his  entre/  It  is  dated  '  tempore  Willi  Sneyde,  draper, 
secundo  tempore  sui  maioritatis '  [Oct.  9,  1543-1544],  endorsed  as 
made  '  opon  the  rode  ee '  [Rood-eye],  and  stated  on  an  accompanying 

1  Pearson,  ii  414 ;  Freemasons'  Magazine  and  Magic  fairror,  Sept  1861. 
*  Morris,  575. 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS   349 

sheet  to  be  *  of  laten  into  Englishe  translated  and  made  by  the  said 
William  Newhall  the  yere  aforesaid  V 

1  For  as  moche  as  of  old  tyme,  not  only  for  the  Augmentacon  and 
increase  of  [the  holy  and  catholick]  faith  of  our  Savyour,  Jhu'  Crist, 
and  to  exort  the  mynds  of  the  co'mon  people  to  [good  devotion  and 
holsome]  doctryne  thereof,  but  also  for  the  co'men  Welth  and 
prosperitie  of  this  Citie  a  plaie  [and  declaration — ]  and  diverse  stories 
of  the  bible,  begynnyng  with  the  creacon  and  fall  of  Lucifer,  and 
[ending  with  the  general]  jugement  of  the  World  to  be  declared 
and  plaied  in  the  Witson  wek,  was  devised  [and  made  by  one  Sir] 
Henry  Fraunces,  somtyme  monk  of  this  dissolved  monastery,  who 
obtayned  and  gate  of  Clement,  then  beyng  [bushop  of  Rome,  a  thou- 
sand] daies  of  pardon,  and  of  the  Busshop  of  Chester  at  that  time 
beyng  xl^  daies  of  pardon  graunted  from  thensforth  to  every  person 
resortyng  in  pecible  maner  with  good  devocon  to  here  and  se  the 
sayd  [plaies]  from  tyme  to  tyme  as  oft  as  they  shalbe  plaied  within 
this  Citie  [and  that  every  person  disturbing  the  same  plaies  in  any 
manner  wise  to  be  accursed  by  thaucloritie  of  the  said  Pope  Clement 
bulls  unto  such  tyme  as  he  or  they  be  absolved  therof  (erased)],  which 
plaies  were  devised  to  the  honour  of  God  by  John  Arneway,  then 
maire  of  this  Citie  of  Chester,  and  his  brethren,  and  holl  cominalty 
therof  to  be  brought  forthe,  -declared  and  plead  at  the  cost  and 
charges  of  the  craftsmen  and  occupacons  of  the  said  Citie,  whiche 
hitherunto  have  frome  tyme  to  tyme  used  and  performed  the  same 
accordingly. 

Wherfore  Maister  Maire,  in  the  Kynges  name,  straitly  chargeth 
and  co'mandeth  that  every  person  and  persons  of  what  estate,  degre 
or  condicion  soever  he  or  they  be,  resortyng  to  the  said  plaies,  do  use 
[themselves]  pecible  without  makyng  eny  assault,  affrey,  or  other 
disturbance  whereby  the  same  plaies  shalbe  disturbed,  and  that  no 
maner  person  or  persons  who  soever  he  or  they  be  do  use  or  weare 
eny  unlaufull  wepons  within  the  precynct  of  the  said  Citie  duryng  the 
tyme  of  the  said  plaies  \not  only  upon  payn  of  cursyng  by  thauctoritie 

1  Morris,  317.     Canon   Morris  does  mayoralty  of   the    younger    man   was 

not  say  where  he  found  the  document.  1543-4.       And    the    appointment     of 

He  dates  it  in  '  24  Hen.  VIII,  1531.'  Newhall  as  clerk  of  the  Pentice  was  in 

[The  regnal  year,  24  Hen.  VIII,  by  the  1543    (Morris,   204).      Oddly,    Canon 

way,  is  1532-3.]     But  the  monastery  is  Morris's  error  was  anticipated  in  a  copy 

called  'dissolved,'  which   it  was  not  of  the  proclamation  made  on  the  fly-leaf 

until  1541.  The  list  of  Mayors  (Morris,  of  HarL  MS.  2013  of  the  plays  (Deim- 

582)  gives  William    Snead   (1516-7),  ling,  i),  which  states  that  it  was  *  made 

William    Sneyde    (1531-2),    William  by  Wm  newall,  Clarke  of  the  pentice 

Sneyde,  jun.  (1543-4).     Obviously  two  [in  R]udio  24,  H.  8  [1532-3]-' 
generations  are  concerned.    The  second 


350  APPENDIX  W 

of  the  said  Pope  Clement  Bulls,  but  also  (erased)']  opon  payn  of 
enprisonment  of  their  bodies  and  makyng  fyne  to  the  Kyng  at 
Maister  Maires  pleasure.  And  God  save  the  Kyng  and  Mr.  Maire, 

&C.1' 

(6)  1 1 544-7 a.  The  documents  concerning  the  plays  copied  for 
Randle  Holme  out  of  the  'White  Book  of  the  Pentice  8'  are  (i)  a  list 
of  the  plays  and  the  crafts  producing  them  (cf.  p.  408);  (2)  a  note 
that  '  On  Corpus  Xpi  day  the  colliges  and  prestys  bryng  forth  a  play 
at  the  assentement  of  the  Maire' ;  (3)  a  note  that  all  the  arrangements 
detailed  are  subject  to  alteration  by  the  Mayor  and  his  brethren; 
(4)  aversion,  without  heading,  of  Newhall's  proclamation  which  entirely 
omits  the  allusions  to  Sir  Henry  Fraunces  and  the  pardons,  while 
retaining  that  to  Arneway ;  (5)  verses  headed  *  The  comen  bannes 
to  be  proclaymed  and  Ryddon  with  the  Stewardys  of  every  occupacon.' 
These  are  printed  in  Morris,  307.  They  give  a  list  of  ihe  plays 
(cf.  p.  408),  and  add  that  there  will  be  a  '  solempne  procession '  with 
the  sacrament  on  Corpus  Christi  day  from  *  Saynt  Maries  on  the 
Hill '  to  '  Saynt  Johns/  together  with  '  a  play  sett  forth  by  the  clergye 
In  honor  of  the  fest/  The  passage  referring  to  Corpus  Christi  is 
marked  by  Randle  Holme's  copyist  as  '  Erased  in  the  Booke  V  The 
only  historical  statement  in  the  Banns  is  that 

'Sir  John  Arnway  was  maire  of  this  citie 
When  these  playes  were  begon  truly/ 

(c)  1 1551-1572.     The  later  Banns,  given  most  fully  in  Rogers's 
Breauarye  of  Chester  (cf.  Furnivall,  xx),  but  also  more  or  less  imperfectly 
in  MSS.  h  and  B  of  the  plays  (Deimling,  i.  2),  were  probably  written 
for  one  or  other  of  the  post-Reformation  performances,  but  not  that 
of  1575,  as  they  contemplate  a  Whitsun  performance,  while  that  of 
1575  was  after  Midsummer.     They  state  that 

'  some  tymes  there  was  mayor  of  this  Citie 
Sir  John  Arnway,  Knyght,  who  most  worthilye 
contented  hym  selfe  to  sett  out  in  playe 
The  devise  of  one  done  Rondall,  moonke  of  Chester  abbe.' 

(d)  1609.     The  Breauarye  itself,  in  an  account  probably  due  to 

1  I  reproduce  Canon   Morris's    text  pageant '  of  our  lady  thassumpcon  '  not 

literatim.     But  he  does  not  explain  the  in  the  list  of  plays,  are  perhaps  rather 

square   brackets,  and  I  do  not  under-  earlier, 

stand  them.  8  Harl.  MS.  2150,  ff.  85b-88b. 

a  The  '  proclamation '  in  the  White  *  It  is  this  entry  which  shows  that 

Book  is  clearly  a  revision  of  the  1544  Harl.   MS.    2150  is  not   the   *  White 


version.   On  the  other  hand,  the  Corpus      Book/  but  a  copy.     The  official  cata- 
Christi   procession  was   suppressed  in      logue  of  the  Harlei 
*547*     The  *  Banns/  which  include  a      doubt  on  this  point. 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  351 

the  elder  Rogers,  who  may  have  himself  seen  some  of  the  later 
performances,  says  (Furnivall,  xviii)  : — '  Heare  note  that  these  playes 
of  Chester  called  y6  whitson  playes  weare  the  woorke  of  one  Rondoll, 
a  monke  of  ye  Abbaye  of  Sfc  Warburge  in  Chester,  who  redused  y« 
whole  history  of  the  byble  into  Englishe  storyes  in  metter,  in  ye 
englishe  tounge ;  and  this  moncke,  in  a  good  desire  to  doe  good, 
published  ye  same,  then  the  firste  mayor  of  Chester,  namely  Sir  lohn 
Arneway,  Knighte,  he  caused  the  same  to  be  played  ["  anno  domini, 
i329"]V  In  a  list  of  Mayors  contained  in  the  same  MS.  is  given 
(Furnivall,  xxv),  under  the  year  1328  and  the  mayoralty  of  Sir  John 
Arneway,  *  The  whitson  playes  Inuented,  in  Chester,  by  one  Rondoll 
Higden,  a  monke  in  Chester  abbaye.' 

(e)  1628.     On  the  cover  of  MS.  Hot  the  plays  (Harl  MS.  2124) 
is  this  note : — '  The  Whitsun  playes  first  made  by  one  Don  Randle 
Heggenet,  a  Monke  of  Chester  Abbey,  who  was  thrise  at  Rome,  before 
he  could  obtain  leaue  of  the  Pope  to  haue  them  in  the  English  tongue. 

The  Whitsun  playes  were  playd  openly  in  pageants  by  the  Cittizens 
of  Chester  in  the  Whitsun  Weeke. 

Nicholas  the  fift  Then  was  Pope  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  1447. 

Ano  1628. 

Sir  Henry  ffrancis,  sometyme  a  Monke  of  the  Monestery  of  Chester, 
obtained  of  Pope  Clemens  a  thousand  daies  of  pardon,  and  of  the 
Bishop  of  Chester  40  dayes  pardon  for  every  person  that  resorted 
peaceably  to  see  the  same  playes,  and  that  every  person  that  disturbed 
the  same,  to  be  accursed  by  the  said  Pope  untill  such  tyme  as  they 
should  be  absolued  therof/ 

(f)  1669.     Randle  Holme  made  a  note  upon  his  copy  of  the 
*  White  Book  of  the  Pentice'  (Harl.  2150,  f.  86*>),  of  the  'Whitson 
plaies  .  .  .  being  first  presented  and  putt  into  English  by  Rand.  Higden, 
a  monck  of  Chester  Abbey/ 

(g)  Seventeenth  century.     A  '  later   hand '   added   to   the  copy  of 
NewhalPs  proclamation  on  the  fly-leaf  of  MS.  h  (1600)  of  the  plays: 

'  Sir  lo  Arnway,  maior  1327  and  1328,  at  which  tyme  these  playes 
were  written  by  Randall  Higgenett,  a  monk  of  Chester  abby,  and 
played  openly  in  the  witson  weeke.' 

(K)  Seventeenth  century.  An  account  of  the  plays  amongst  Lord  De 
Tabley's  MSS. 2  assigns  them  to  *  Randall  Higden,  a  monk  of  Chester 
Abbey,  A.D.  1269.' 

1  So  printed  by  Furnivall,  possibly  as      in  Harl  1948. 
an  addition  to  the  text  of  Harl.  1944,          *  Hist.  MSS.  i.  49. 
from  the  shorter  copy  of  the  Breauarye 


352  APPENDIX  W 

Up  to  a  certain  point  these  fragments  of  tradition  are  consistent 
and,  a  priori,  not  improbable.  About  1328  is  just  the  sort  of  date  to 
which  one  would  look  for  the  formation  of  a  craft-cycle.  Randall 
or  Randulf  Higden1,  the  author  of  the  Polychronicon,  took  the  vows 
at  St.  Werburgh's  in  1299  and  died  in  1364.  An  accident  makes 
it  possible  also  to  identify  Sir  Henry  Francis,  for  he  is  mentioned  as 
senior  monk  of  Chester  Abbey  in  two  documents  of  May  5,  1377,  and 
April  17,  1382.  The  occurrence  of  the  name  of  this  quite  obscure 
person  in  a  tradition  of  some  200  years  later  is,  I  think,  evidence  that 
it  is  not  wholly  an  unfounded  one.  It  is  true  that  Newhall's  proclama- 
tion states  that  Francis  'devised  and  made'  the  plays,  whereas  the 
Banns  of  1575  and  the  later  accounts  assign  the  ' devise'  to  'done 
Rondall.'  But  this  discrepancy  seems  to  have  afforded  no  difficulty 
to  the  writer  of  1628,  who  clearly  thought  that  Heggenet  'made'  the 
plays,  and  Francis  obtained  the  'pardon*  for  them.  The  Pope 
Clement  concerned  is  probably  Clement  VI  (1342-52),  but  might 
be  the  Antipope  Clement  VII  (1378-94).  The  one  point  which 
will  not  harmonize  with  the  rest  is  that  about  which,  unfortunately, 
the  tradition  is  most  uniform,  namely,  the  connexion  of  the  plays 
with  the  mayoralty  of  Sir  John  Arneway.  For  neither  Higden  nor 
Francis  could  have  worked  for  a  mayor  whose  terms  of  office  extended 
from  1268  to  1277.  But  even  this  difficulty  does  not  appear  to  be 
insoluble.  I  find  from  Canon  Morris's  invaluable  volume  that  a  later 
mayor  bearing  a  name  very  similar  to  Arneway's,  one  Richard  Erneis 
or  Herneys,  was  in  office  from  1327  to  1329,  precisely  at  the  date 
to  which  the  tradition,  in  some  of  its  forms,  ascribes  the  plays.  Is 
it  not  then  probable  that  to  this  Richard  Herneys  the  establishment  of 
the  plays  is  really  due,  and  that  he  has  been  confused  in  the  memory 
of  Chester  with  his  greater  predecessor,  the  '  Dick  Whittington '  of 
the  city,  John  Arneway  or  Hernwey?  I  am  glad  to  be  the  means 
of  restoring  to  him  his  long  withheld  tribute  of  esteem. 

The  Records. 

If  the  plays  were  actually  established  in  1327-9,  the  first  hundred 
years  of  their  history  is  a  blank.  The  earliest  notice  in  any  record  is 
in  1462,  when  the  Bakers'  charter  refers  to  their  'play  and  light  of 

1  C.  L.  Kingsford  in  D.  N.  B.  s.v.  in  Rogers's  list  of  Mayors,  is  an  earlier 

Higden.     Mr.  Kingsford  does  not  think  form  in  the  tradition  than  *  Heggenett/ 
that  *  Randle  Heggenett,'  the  author  of         a  Ormerod,   /fist,  of  Cheshire    (ed. 

the  Chester  Plays,  can  be  identified  with  Helsby),  iii.  651 ;  Morris,  315. 
Higden.    Bat  *  Higden/  which  occurs 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS   353 

Corpus  Christi/  The  Saddlers1  charter  of  1471  similarly  speaks 
of  their  '  paginae  luminis  et  ludi  corporis  Christi  V  It  will  be  observed 
that  the  play  is  here  called  a  Corpus  Christi  play.  The  term  'Whitson 
Playe'  first  occurs  in  a  record  of  I52O2,  but  there  is  no  doubt  that 
during  the  sixteenth  century  the  regular  season  for  the  performances 
was  Whitsuntide.  As  the  'White  Book'  (ti544)  still  speaks  of 
*  pagyns  in  play  of  Corpus  Xpi  V  it  is  possible  that  a  cyclical  play 
was  so  called,  whether  actually  given  on  Corpus  Christi  day  or  not. 
It  is  also,  I  think,  possible  that  the  Chester  plays  may  have  been 
transferred  from  Corpus  Christi  to  Whitsuntide  in  order  to  avoid 
clashing  with  the  procession,  without  quite  losing  their  old  name ; 
and  this  may  be  what  is  meant  by  the  statement  on  the  cover  of 
MS.  '  H '  of  the  plays  that  they  were  '  playd  openly  ...  in  the  Whitsun 
Weeke'  in  1447.  It  was  in  1426  that  a  question  as  to  the  clashing  of 
procession  and  plays  arose  in  York  (cf.  p.  400). 

Nearly  all  the  extant  notices  of  the  plays  belong  to  the  sixteenth 
century.  Originally  annual,  they  became  occasional  at  the  Reforma- 
tion. They  can  be  traced  in  1546,  1551,  1554,  1561,  1567  (at 
Christmas),  1568,  1569,  1572,  and  1575.  The  two  last  performances 
aroused  considerable  opposition.  In  1572  Mayor  John  Hankey 
'would  needs  have  the  playes  go  forward,  against  the  wills  of  the 
Bishops  of  Canterbury,  York  and  Chester.'  Apparently  an  inhibition 
was  sent  by  Archbishop  Grindal;  'but  it  came  too  late/  In  1575, 
under  Mayor  Sir  John  Savage,  the  plays  were  subjected  to  revision, 
and  such  of  them  as  were  thought  suitable  given  '  at  the  cost  of  the 
inhabitants'  on  Sunday,  Monday,  Tuesday,  and  Wednesday  after 
Midsummer.  This  performance  was  '  to  the  great  dislike  of  many, 
because  the  playe  was  in  on  parte  of  the  Citty.J  It  was  also  in  direct 
contravention  of  inhibitions  from  the  Archbishop  and  the  Earl  of 
Huntingdon.  As  a  result  both  Hankey  and  Savage  were  cited  before 
the  Privy  Council,  but  the  aldermen  and  common  council  took  the 
responsibility  upon  themselves,  and  apparently  nothing  further  came 
of  the  matter 4. 

Probably  1575  was  the  last  year  in  which  the  plays  were  given 
as  a  whole.  A  performance  in  1600  has  been  alleged8,  but  this  date 
is  probably  taken  from  the  heading  of  the  Banns  in  MS.  *  h '  of  the 
plays,  which  runs : — 

1  Morris,    316.     The    Painters    and          a  Ibid. 
Glaziers*  charter  is  quoted  as  calling          8  HarL  MS.  2150,  f.  85  b. 
them  'tyrne  out  of  minde  one  brother-          4  Morris,  318;  Fumivall,  xxv ;  Hist. 

hood  for  the  ...  plaie  of  the  Shepperds*  JI/SS.  viii.  i.  363,  366. 
Wach,'  but  no  date  is  given.  *  Pennant,  Wales,  i.  145. 

CHAMBERS.    II  A    til 


354  APPENDIX  W 

'  The  reading  of  the  banes,  1600. 

The  banes  which  are  reade  Beefore  the  beginning  of  the  playes  of 
Chester  1600. 

4  June  1600.' 

Doubtless  1600  is  the  date  of  the  transcript,  as  it  is  repeated  after 
the  signature  to  several  of  the  plays.  It  is  quite  possible  that  this 
manuscript  was  made  in  view  of  an  intended  performance.  George 
Bellin,  the  scribe,  seems  to  have  been  of  a  Chester  family.  But  if  so, 
the  intention  was  frustrated,  for  the  annalists  declare  that  Henry 
Hardware,  mayor  in  1600  *  would  not  suffer  any  Playes.'  It  is  to 
be  noted  also  that  David  Rogers,  whose  Breauarye  was  completed  in 
1609  and  certainly  contains  matter  subsequent  to  the  death  of  his 
father  in  1595,  states  that  1575  was  the  last  time  the  plays  were 

played  \ 

Mode  of  Performance. 

The  Banns  were  proclaimed  on  St.  George's  day  by  the  city  crier, 
with  whom  rode  the  Stewards  of  each  craft.  The  Mayor's  proclama- 
tion against  disturbers  of  the  peace  was  read  upon  the  Roodee.  The 
plays  themselves  lasted  through  the  first  three  week-days  of  Whitsuntide. 
Nine  were  given  on  the  Monday,  nine  on  the  Tuesday,  and  seven 
on  the  Wednesday.  The  first  station  was  at  the  Abbey  gates,  the 
next  by  the  pentice  at  the  high  cross  before  the  Mayor,  others  in 
Watergate  Street,  Bridge  Street,  and  so  on  to  Eastgate  Street. 
Scaffolds  and  stages  were  put  up  to  accommodate  the  spectators,  and 
in  1528  a  law-suit  is  recorded  about  the  right  to  a  'mansion,  Rowme, 
or  Place  for  the  Whydson  plaies/  Rogers  describes  the  '  pagiente '  or 
'  cariage '  as 

'  a  highe  place  made  like  a  howse  with  ij  rowmes,  being  open  on  ye 
tope :  the  lower  rowme  they  apparrelled  &  dressed  them  selues ;  and 
in  the  higher  rowme  they  played;  and  they  stood  vpon  6  wheeles 
\HarL  1944.  It  is  "4  wheeles"  in  Harl  1948].' 

The  term  '  pageant '  is  used  at  Chester  both  for  the  vehicle  and  for 
the  play  performed  on  it;  but,  contrary  to  the  custom  elsewhere, 
more  usually  for  the  latter.  The  vehicle  is  generally  called  a  'carriage.' 
It  was  kept  in  a  *  caryadghouse '  and  occasionally  served  two  crafts 
on  different  days.  The  expenses  of  carriage,  porters,  refreshments, 
actors,  and  rehearsals  fell,  as  shown  by  the  extant  Accounts  of  the 
Smiths'  company,  on  the  crafts.  They  were  met  by  a  levy  upon  each 
member  and  journeyman.  Vestments  were  hired  from  the  clergy; 
both  minstrels  and  choristers  were  in  request  for  songs  and  music. 

1  Furnivall,  xxiii,  xxviii. 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS   355 

The  Corporation  supervised  the  performances,  questions  as  to  the 
incidence  of  the  burden  upon  this  or  that  craft  coming  before  the 
Pentice  court.  In  1575  the  Smiths  submitted  two  alternative  plays 
for  the  choice  of  the  aldermen.  The  authoritative  copy  or  '  originall 
booke '  of  the  plays  seems  to  have  belonged  to  the  city.  The  Smiths 
paid  for  reading  the  '  Regenall/  '  an  Rygynall '  or  *  orraginall.'  In 
1568  one  'Randall  Trevor,  gent/  seems  to  have  lost  the  book. 
There  is  an  interesting  allusion  to  the  unprofessional  quality  of  the 
actors,  in  the  copy  of  the  later  Banns  preserved  by  Rogers.  The 

plays  are  not 

c  contryued 

In  such  sorte  &  cunninge,  &  by  such  playeres  of  price, 
As  at  this  day  good  playeres  &  fine  wittes  coulde  devise, 

By  Craftes  men  &  meane  men  these  Pageauntes  are  played 

And  to  Commons  and  Contryemen  acustomablye  before. 

If  better  men  &  finer  heades  now  come,  what  canne  be  saide? 

But  of  common  and  contrye  playeres  take  thou  the  storye; 

And  if  any  disdaine,  then  open  is  ye  doore 

That  lett  him  in  to  heare;   packe  awaye  at  his  pleasure; 

Oure  playeinge  is  not  to  gett  fame  or  treasure1.' 

Exceptional  Performances. 

In  1567  'Richard  Button,  mayor,  kept  a  very  worthy  house  for 
all  comers  all  the  tyme  of  Christmas  with  a  Lorde  of  Misrule  and 
other  pastymes  in  this  city  as  the  Whitson  Plays.' 

Single  plays  from  the  cycle  were  similarly  used  for  purposes  of 
special  entertainment.  In  1488  was  the  Assumption  before  Lord 
Strange  at  the  High  Cross;  in  1497  the  Assumption  before  Prince 
Arthur  at  the  Abbey  gates  and  the  High  Cross;  in  1515  the  Assumption 
again  together  with  the  Shepherds'  play  in  St.  John's  churchyard.  In 
1576,  the  Smiths  had  'our  plas'  (the  Purification}  'at  Alderman 
Mountford's  on  Midsomer  Eve.'  Finally,  in  1578,  Thomas  Bellin, 
mayor,  caused  the  Shepherds'  play  '  and  other  triumphs '  to  be  played 
at  the  high  cross  on  the  Roodee  before  the  Earl  of  Derby,  Lord 

Strange,  and  others2. 

Other  plays. 

The  play  by  the  'colliges  and  prestys'  on  Corpus  Christi  day 
mentioned  in  the  '  White  Book '  and  in  the  '  Banes '  preserved  therein 
has  already  been  noted. 

1  D.  Rogers,  Breauarye,  in  Furnivall,  xviii ;  Morris,  303. 
8  Morris,  322,  353;  Furnivall,  xxvi. 

A  a  2 


356  APPENDIX  W 

In  1529  King  Robert  of  Sicily  was  shown  at  the. High  Cross. 
This  is  doubtless  the  play  on  the  same  subject  referred  to  in  a 
fragmentary  letter  to  some  'Lordshypp'  among  the  State  Papers 
as  to  be  played  on  St.  Peter's  day  at  the  cost  of  some  of  the  companies. 
It  was  said  to  be  'not  newe  at  thys  time,  but  hath  bin  before  shewen, 
evyn  as  longe  agoe  as  the  reygne  of  his  highnes  most  gratious  father 
of  blyssyd  memorye,  and  yt  was  penned  by  a  godly  clerke/ 

In  1563  'upon  the  Sunday  after  Midsommer  day,  the  History  of 
Eneas  and  Queen  Dido  was  play'd  in  the  Roods  Eye.  And  were  set  out 
by  one  William  Croston,  gent,  and  one  Mr.  Man,  on  which  Triumph 
there  was  made  two  Forts,  and  shipping  on  the  Water,  besides  many 
horsemen  well  armed  and  appointed/ 

The  entertainment  of  Lords  Derby  and  Strange  by  Thomas  Bellin 
in  1578  included  a  'comedy'  by  the  'scollers  of  the  freescole'  at  the 
mayor's  house.  Was  this  theatrical  mayor  a  relative  of  George  Bellin, 
the  scribe  of  MSS.  '  W'  and  'h'  of  the  Chester  plays? 

In  1589  King  Ebranke  with  all  his  Sons  was  shown  before  the  Earl 
of  Derby  at  the  High  Cross '. 

The  Midsummer  Show. 

This  was  doubtless  in  its  origin  a  folk  procession.  Traditionally, 
it  was  founded  in  1498  and  only  went  in  years  when  there  were  no 
Whitsun  plays.  The  crafts  were  represented  by  personages  out  of 
their  plays,  'the  Doctors  and  little  God*  riding  for  the  Smiths,  the 
Devil  for  the  Butchers,  Abraham  and  Isaac  for  the  Barbers,  Balaam 
and  his  Ass  for  the  Bricklayers,  and  so  forth.  It  does  not  appear  that 
the  '  carriages '  were  had  out.  Other  features  of  the  '  Show '  were 
four  giants,  an  elephant  and  castle,  an  unicorn,  a  camel,  a  luce,  an 
antelope,  a  dragon  with  six  naked  boys  beating  at  it,  morris-dancers, 
the  '  Mayor's  Mount '  and  the  '  Merchants'  Mount,'  the  latter  being  of 
the  nature  of  a  hobby-ship.  In  1600,  Mayor  Henry  Hardware, 
a  *  godly  zealous  man/  would  not  let  the  '  Graull '  go  at  Midsummer 
Watch,  but  instead  a  man  in  white  armour.  He  suppressed  also  '  the 
divill  in  his  fethers/  a  man  in  woman's  clothes  with  another  devil 
called  '  cuppes  and  cans/  '  god  in  stringes/  the  dragon  and  the  naked 
ooys,  and  had  the  giants  broken  up.  But  next  year  the  old  customs 
were  restored.  The  Midsummer  Show  again  suffered  eclipse  under 
the  Commonwealth,  but  was  revived  at  the  Restoration  and  endured 
until  i6782. 

1  Morris,    322;     Furnivall,    xxvi;      »•   9  Morris,  334;  Furnivall,  xxiii ;  Fen- 
Collier,  i.  112.  wick,  Hist,  of  Chester 9  370. 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  357 

CoGGESHALL,   ESSEX. 

Lord  Howard  rewarded  the  players  of  'Kokesale'  or  'Coksale'  on 
Dec.  26,  1481,  and  Dec.  25,  1482  (Appendix  E,  vii). 

COLCHESTER,  ESSEX. 

The  Chelmsford  (q.v.)  wardrobe  was  twice  hired  by  Colchester 
men  during  1564-6 ;  also  by  William  Monnteyne  of  Colchester  in 

1566. 

COLESHILL,  WARWICKSHIRE. 

The  Musores  de  Coleshille1  played  at  Maxstoke  Priory  between  1422 
and  1461  (Appendix  E,  ii). 

COVENTRY,  WARWICKSHIRE. 

[Authorities. — The  facts  are  taken,  where  no  other  reference  is  given,  from 
T.  Sharp,  A  Dissertation  on  the  Pageants  or  Dramatic  Mysteries  Anciently 
Performed  at  Coventry  (1825),  and  J.  B.  Gracie,  The  Weavers'  Pageant 
(1836 :  Abbotsford  Club).  The  latter  accounts  of  J.  O.  Halliwell-Philhpps, 
Outlines  of  the  Life  of  Shakespeare  (ninth  edition,  1890),  i.  335,  ii.  289, 
and  M.  D.  Harris,  Life  in  an  Old  English  Town,  319,  add  a  little.  The 
Leet-Book  and  other  municipal  archives  used  by  Sharp  are  described  by 
Harris,  377 ;  his  private  collection  passed  into  that  of  Mr.  Staunton  at 
Longbridge  House,  and  thence  into  the  Shakespeare  Memorial  Library  at 
Birmingham,  where  it  was  burnt  in  1879.  It  included  two  craft-plays,  the 
account-books  of  the  Smiths,  Cappers,  Drapers,  and  Weavers,  and  one  or 
two  MSS.  (one  of  which  is  referred  to  as  *  Codex  Hales  ')  of  a  set  of  brief 
local  seventeenth-century  Annales,  of  which  other  texts  are  printed  by 
Dugdale,  Hist,  of  Warwickshire,  i.  147,  and  Hearne,  Fordnn's  Scoti- 
chronicon,  v.  1438.  Several  versions  of  these  Annales  are  amongst  the 
manuscripts  of  the  Coventry  Corporation  (cf.  E.  S.  Hartland,  Science  of 
Fairy  Tales,  75).  On  their  nature,  cf.  C.  Gross,  BibL  of  Municipal  History, 
xviii.] 

Corpus  Christi  Craft-Plays. 

The  earliest  notice  is  a  mention  of  the  '  domum  pro  le  pagent 
pannarum'  in  a  deed  of  1392.  There  must  therefore  be  an  error,  so 
far  as  the  pageants  go,  in  the  statement  of  the  Annals,  under  the 
mayoral  year  1416-7,  'The  pageants  and  Hox  tuesday  invented, 
wherein  the  king  and  nobles  took  great  delight  V  Henry  V  was  more 
than  once  at  Coventry  as  prince,  an  1404  for  example,  and  in  1411. 
His  only  recorded  visit  as  king  was  in  1421,  too  early  for  Corpus 
Christi  or  even  Hox  Tuesday  2.  There  is  frequent  reference  to  the 
plays  in  corporation  and  craft  documents  of  the  fifteenth  century.  In 

1  Sharp,  8.  same  dates.  The  entry  in  the  Leet 
8  C.  L.  Kingsford,  Henry  V,  346,  Book  (Harris,  139)  brings  him  to  Co- 
says  that  he  reached  Coventry  alone  on  ventry  on  March  21  and  with  the  queen. 
March  15,  and  joined  Katharine  at  But  this  was  Good  Friday.  If  the  Leet 
Leicester  on  March  19.  Ramsay,  K  Book  is  right,  he  might  have  remained 
and  L.  i.  290,  quoting  J.  E.  Tyler,  for  Hox  Tuesday,  April  I. 
Henry  of  Monmouth^  ii.  28,  gives  the 


358  APPENDIX  W 

1457  they  were  seen  by  Queen  Margaret,  who  '  lodged  at  Richard 
Wodes,  the  grocer/  whither  the  corporation  sent  an  elegant  collation, 
including  '  ij  cofyns  of  counfetys  and  a  pot  of  grene  gynger.'  With 
her  were  the  Duke  and  Duchess  of  Buckingham,  Lord  and  Lady 
Rivers,  the  elder  and  younger  Lady  of  Shrewsbury,  and  '  other  mony 
moo  lordes  and  ladyes/  They  were  seen  also  by  Richard  III  in  1485 
and  twice  by  Henry  VII.  The  first  occasion  was  on  St.  Peter's  day 
(June  29)  in  1486,  and  the  second  in  1493,  when  say  the  Annals, 
rather  oddly  (cf.  p.  420),  *  This  yeare  the  King  came  to  se  the 
playes  acted  by  the  Gray  Friers,  and  much  commended  them/  In 
1520  the  Annals  record  'New  playes  at  Corpus  Christi  tyde,  which 
were  greatly  commended/  In  1539  the  mayor  of  Coventry,  writing 
to  Cromwell,  told  him  that  the  poor  commoners  were  at  such  expense 
with  their  plays  and  pageants  that  they  fared  the  worse  all  the  year 
after1.  In  the  sixteenth  century  the  Coventry  plays  were  probably 
the  most  famous  in  England.  The  C.  Mery  Talys  (1526)  has  a  story 
of  a  preacher,  who  wound  up  a  sermon  on  the  Creed  with  '  Yf  you 
beleue  not  me  then  for  a  more  suerte  &  suffycyent  auctoryte  go  your 
way  to  Couentre  and  there  ye  shall  se  them  all  playd  in  Corpus  Cristi 
playe  V  And  John  Heywood,  in  his  Foure  PP>  speaks  of  one  who 

'  Oft  in  the  play  of  Corpus  Cristi 
He  had  played  the  deuyll  at  CouentryV 

Foxe,  the  martyrologist,  records  that  in  1553  J°hn  Careless,  in 
Coventry  gaol  for  conscience  sake,  was  let  out  to  play  in  the  pageant 
about  the  city.  There  is  some  confusion  here,  as  Careless  was  only 
in  gaol  in  Coventry  for  a  short  time  in  November  before  he  was  sent 
to  London 4. 

When  the  Annals  say  that  in  1575-6  *  the  Pageants  on  Hox  Tuesday 
that  had  been  laid  down  eight  years  were  played  again/  there  is 
probably  some  confusion  between  'Hox  Tuesday'  and  'the  Pageants/ 
for  the  account-books  show  that  the  latter  were  played  regularly, 
except  in  1575,  until  1580,  when  the  Annals  report  them  as  'again 
laid  down.'  In  1584  a  different  play  was  given  (cf.  mfra),  and 
possibly  also  in  1591,  although  the  fact  that  the  songs  of  the  Taylors 
and  Shearmen's  pageant  are  dated  1591  rather  suggests  that  after 
all  the  regular  plays  may  have  been  revived  that  year.  Some  of 
the  pageants  were  sold  in  1586  and  1587,  but  the  Cappers  preserved 

1  Brewer,  xiv  (i),  77.  (Manly,  i.  510). 

8  C.  Mery  7afys,  Ivi  (ed.  Oesterley,  *  *  Foxe,vi  411;  viii.  170;  Maitland, 

i oo).  Essays  on  the  Reformation^  24, 
5  Heywood,    The    Foure   PPt    831 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  359 

the  properties  of  their  play  in  1597,  and  the  Weavers  had  still  players' 
apparel  to  lend  in  1607.  According  to  the  Annals,  by  1628  the 
pageants  had  *  bine  put  downe  many  yeares  since/ 

The  plays  were  given  annually  and  in  one  day  at  the  feast  of  Corpus 
Christi.  Contrary  to  the  custom  of  the  northern  towns,  there  were 
only  some  ten  or  twelve  pageants,  each  covering  a  fairly  wide  range  of 
incident  (cf.  p.  423).  Nor  can  the  performances  be  shown  to  have 
been  repeated  at  more  than  three  or  four  stations.  '  Gosford  Street,' 
c  Mikel '  or  '  Much  Park  Street  end '  and  '  Newgate '  are  recorded,  and 
in  one  of  these  may  have  been  the  house  of  Richard  Wodes,  where 
Queen  Margaret  lay.  The  Drapers  only  provided  three  '  worlds  '  for 
their  pageant,  and  probably  one  was  burnt  at  each  station.  Accord- 
ing to  the  Annals,  part  of  the  charges  of  the  plays  was  met  by  the 
enclosure  of  a  piece  of  common  land  (possibly  to  build  pageant  houses 
upon).  Otherwise  they  fell  wholly  upon  the  crafts,  to  some  one  of  which 
every  artisan  in  the  town  was  bound  to  become  contributory  for  the 
purpose.  The  principal  crafts  were  appointed  by  the  Leet  to  produce 
the  pageants,  and  with  each  were  grouped  minor  bodies  liable'  only  for 
fixed  sums,  varying  from  3^.  4</.  to  i6s.  Sd.  In  1501  an  outside  craft, 
the  Tilemakers  of  Stoke,  is  found  contributing  $s.  to  a  pageant. 
These  combinations  of  crafts  varied  considerably  from  time  to  time. 
Within  the  craft  the  necessary  funds  were  raised,  in  part  at  least,  by 
special  levies.  Strangers  taking  out  their  freedom  were  sometimes 
called  upon  for  a  contribution.  Every  member  of  the  craft  paid  his 
'  pagent  pencys/  In  several  crafts  the  levy  was  is.  Amongst  the 
Smiths  it  must  have  been  less,  as  they  only  got  from  2s.  2d.  to  3^.  4^. 
in  this  way,  whereas  the  Cappers  in  1562  collected  22^.  4</.  In  1517 
William  Pisford  left  a  scarlet  and  a  crimson  gown  to  the  Tanners  for 
their  play,  together  with  $s.  4^.  to  each  craft  that  found  a  pageant. 
The  total  cost  of  the  Smiths'  play  in  1490  was  £3  *js.  $%d.  In 
1453  we  find  the  Smiths  contracting  with  one  Thomas  Colclow  to 
have  c  the  rewle  of  the  pajaunt '  for  twelve  years,  and  to  produce 
the  play  for  a  payment  of  46^.  Sd.  A  similar  contract  was  made  in 
1481.  But  as  a  rule,  the  crafts  undertook  the  management  themselves, 
and  the  account-books  studied  by  Sharp  afford  more  detailed  informa- 
tion as  to  the  mode  of  production  than  happens  to  be  available  for  any 
other  of  the  great  cycles. 

It  is  therefore  worth  while  to  give  some  account  of  the  chief  objects 
of  expenditure.  First  of  all  there  was  the  pageant  itself.  The  name 
appears  in  every  possible  variety  of  spelling  in  Coventry  documents. 
Dugdale,  on  the  authority  of  eye-witnesses,  describes  the  pageants  as 


360  APPENDIX  W 

'  Theaters  for  the  severall  Scenes,  very  large  and  high,  placed  upon 
wheels/  Painted  cloths  were  used  *  to  lap  aboubt  the  pajent/  and 
there  was  a  carved  and  painted  top,  adorned  with  a  crest,  with  vanes, 
pencils,  or  streamers.  On  the  platform  of  the  pageant  such  simple 
scenic  apparatus  as  a  seat  for  Pilate,  a  pillar  for  the  scourging, 
a  '  sepulchre/  and  the  like,  was  fixed.  The  Weavers'  pageant  seems 
to  have  had  an  '  upper  part '  representing  the  Temple ;  also  divisions 
described  in  the  stage  directions  as  '  the  for  pagand '  and  '  the  tempull 
warde.'  The  Cappers'  pageant  was  fitted  up  with  a  'hell-mouth/ 
The  Drapers  also  had  a  '  hell-mouth/  with  a  windlass,  and  fire  at  the 
mouth,  and  a  barrel  for  the  earthquake,  and  three  worlds  to  be  set 
afire.  '  Scaffolds,'  distinct  from  the  pageant  itself,  were  drawn  round 
with  it.  These,  according  to  Sharp,  were  for  spectators,  but  they  may 
have  been  supplementary  stages,  made  necessary  by  the  number  of 
episodes  in  each  play  at  Coventry.  Certainly  the  action  was  not 
wholly  confined  to  the  pageant,  for  in  the  Shearmen  and  Taylors' 
play, '  Here  Erode  ragis  in  the  pagond  &  in  the  strete  also  ' ;  and  again, 
'  the  iij  Kyngis  speykyth  in  the  strete/  The  pageant  was  constantly 
in  need  of  repairs.  A  pageant-house  had  to  be  built  or  hired  for  .. 
On  the  day  of  the  feast  it  was  cleaned,  strewn  with  rushes;  and  the 
axle  was  greased  with  soap.  Men  were  paid  to  '  drive '  or  '  horse '  it, 
and  the  Cappers  expected  their  journeymen  to  undertake  this  job. 

The  players  received  payments  varying  with  the  importance  of  their 
parts.  The  sums  allowed  by  the  Weavers  in  1525  ranged  from  lod. 
to  zs.  4d.  Minstrels,  both  vocalists  and  instrumentalists,  were  also 
hired,  and  in  1573  one  Fawston,  evidently  an  artist  of  exceptional 
talent,  received  from  the  Smiths,  besides  ^d.  '  for  hangyng  Judas,' 
another  4^.  '  for  Coc  croyng.'  The  Drapers  paid  as  much  as  3*.  \d. 
'  for  pleayng  God/  and  5$.  '  to  iij  \vhyte  sollys '  or  '  savyd  sowles/  $s. 
1  to  iij  blake  sollys/  or  l  dampnyd  sowles/  1 6d.  '  to  ij  wormes  of  con- 
scyence,'  and  the  like.  Payments  also  occur  for  speaking  the  pro- 
logue, preface,  or  *  protestacyon/ 

The  corporation  exercised  control  over  the  players,  and  in  1440 
ordered  under  a  penalty  of  2os.  'quod  Robertus  Gfie  et  omnes  alii 
qui  ludunt  in  festo  Corporis  Christi  bene  et  sufficienter  ludant  ita  quod 
nulla  impedicio  fiat  in  aliquo  ioco/  In  1443,  an  order  forbade 
members  of  certain  crafts  to  play  in  any  pageant  except  their  own 
without  the  mayor's  licence. 

The  players  required  refreshment  at  intervals  during  the  day,  and 
probably  the  craftsmen  who  attended  the  pageant  took  their  share. 
Further  expenses,  both  for  refreshment,  and  for  the  hire  of  a  room  or 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS   361 

hall,  were  incurred  at  rehearsals.  The  Smiths  in  1490  had  their 
first  '  reherse '  in  Easter  week,  and  their  second  in  Whitsun  week. 

Each  craft  had  its  own  '  orygynall '  or  '  play-boke/  and  paid  for 
making  the  necessary  copies,  for  setting  or  'pricking'  songs,  for 
'  beryng  of  ye  Orygynall '  or  prompting,  and  occasionally  for  bringing 
the  text  up  to  date.  Thus  the  Smiths  had  a  'new  rygenale'  in  1491, 
and  in  1573  a  '  new  play/  by  which  is  apparently  meant  an  additional 
scene  to  their  existing  play  (cf.  p.  423).  The  Drapers  added  '  the 
matter  of  the  castell  of  Emaus '  in  1540.  The  Weavers  paid  5^.  '  for 
makyng  of  the  play  boke '  in  1535,  and  the  colophon  of  their  extant 
text  shows  it  to  have  been  '  newly  translate '  in  that  year  by  Robert 
Croo.  This  was  a  regular  theatrical  man  of  all  work.  The  matter  of 
the  Shearmen  and  Taylors'  play  was  '  nevly  correcte '  by  him  in  the 
same  year.  In  1557  he  got  2os.  from  the  Drapers  'for  makyng  of 
the  boke  for  the  paggen.'  The  Smiths  paid  him  in  1563  'for  ij  leves 
of  our  pley  boke/  And  between  1556  and  1562  he  further  assisted 
the  Drapers,  by  playing  God,  mending  the  *  devells  cottes/  supplying 
a  hat  for  the  Pharisee,  and  manufacturing  the  requisite  c  iij  worldys/ 

Finally,  there  was  the  not  inconsiderable  cost  of  costumes  and 
properties,  including  the  gloves  for  the  performers  which  figure  so 
invariably  in  mediaeval  balance  sheets.  Further  details  as  to  these 
and  all  other  objects  of  expenditure  than  I  have  here  room  for  will  be 
found  in  the  invaluable  volumes  of  Mr.  Sharp. 

The  Destruction  of  Jerusalem. 

In  1584,  four  years  after  the  ordinary  Corpus  Christi  plays  were 
laid  down,  the  Annals  record  c  This  year  the  new  Play  of  the  Destruc- 
tion of  Jerusalem  was  first  played/  This  is  confirmed 'by  the  accounts 
of  the  corporation,  which  include  a  sum  of  £13  6s.  8d.  'paid  to 
Mr.  Smythe  of  Oxford  the  xvth  daye  of  Aprill  1584  for  hys  paynes 
for  writing  of  the  tragedye/  This  was  one  John  Smythe,  a  scholar 
of  the  Free  School  in  Coventry  and  afterwards  of  St.  John's  College, 
Oxford.  The  play  was  produced  at  considerable  expense  upon  the 
pageants  of  the  crafts,  but  the  day  of  performance  is  not  stated. 
From  the  detailed  accounts  of  the  Smiths  and  the  Cappers,  Mr.  Sharp 
infers  that  it  was  based  upon  the  narrative  of  Josephus. 

In  1591,  the  old  Corpus  Christi  plays  seem  to  have  been  proposed 
for  exhibition,  as  the  MS.  of  the  Shearmen  and  Taylors'  songs  bears 
the  date  of  May  13  in  that  year.  But  on  May  19  the  corporation 
resolved  '  that  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  the  Conquest  of  the  Danes, 
or  the  historic  of  K[ing]  E[dward]  the  X  [Confessor],  at  the  request 


362  APPENDIX  W 

of  the  Comons  of  this  Cittie  shal  be  plaied  on  the  pagens  on  Mid- 
somer  daye  &  St.  Peters  daye  next  in  this  Cittie  &  non  other  playes.' 
The  two  last-named  plays  may  have  been  inspired  by  the  traditional 
interpretations  of  the  Hox  Tuesday  custom  (cf.  vol.  i.  p.  154).  Which 
was  chosen  does  not  appear ;  but  some  performance  or  other  was  given. 
Several  of  the  crafts  had  by  this  time  sold  their  pageants.  Those  who 
had  not  lent  them ;  and  all  compounded  for  the  production  of  a  scene 
by  the  payment  of  a  sum  down.  This  appears  to  have  gone  to  one 
Thomas  Massey,  who  contracted  for  the  production.  He  had  already 
supplied  properties  in  1584.  In  1603  he  quarrelled  with  the  corpora- 
tion about  certain  devices  shown  on  the  visit  of  the  Princess  Elizabeth 
to  Coventry.  In  1606  he  hired  some  acting-apparel  from  the 
Weavers'  company l. 

Miscellaneous  Plays. 

The  Annals  record : — 

1490-1.  '  This  year  was  the  play  of  St.  Katherine  in  the  little  Park. 

1504-5.  'This  yeare  they  played  the  play  of  St.  Crytyan  in  the 
little  parke  V 

In  1511,  one  of  the  pageants  at  the  entry  of  Henry  VIII  had 
a  '  goodly  Stage  Play '  upon  it s. 

The  Dyers  in  1478,  the  Cappers  in  1525,  and  the  Drapers  in  1556, 
1566,  and  1568  appear  to  have  had  plays  at  their  dinners.  Probably 
'  the  Golden  Fleece/  for  which  the  Cappers  paid  the  inevitable  Robert 
Crowe  and  two  others,  was  a  play 4. 

The  '  lusores  de  Coventry '  played  at  Maxstoke  Priory  between  1422 
and  1461  (Appendix  E,  ii).  'Certain  Players  of  Coventrye1  were  at 
court  in  1530  (Appendix  E,  viii). 

Towards  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century  occur  notices  of  travelling 
'  players  of  Coventrie/  They  were  at  Bristol  and  Abingdon  in  1570, 
and  at  Leicester  in  1569  and  1571.  At  Abingdon  they  are  described 
as  *  Mr.  Smythes  players  of  Coventree.'  John  Smythe,  the  writer  of 
the  Destruction  of  Jerusalem,  was  only  seven  years  old  in  1570. 
Mr.  Halliwell-Phillipps  would  read  '  the  Smythes'  players  V 

The  Corpus  Chris  It  Procession. 

The  procession  or  '  Ridyng '  on  Corpus  Christi  day  is  first  mentioned 
in  the  Leet  Book  in  1444,  and  in  1446  is  an  order  *  quod  le  Ruydyng 
in  festo  Corporis  Christi  fiat  prout  ex  antiquo  tempore  consueverint.' 

*  *  Sharp,  12,  39,  64,  75,  78  ;  Weavers'          3  Sharp,  157  ;  Hearne,  loc.  cit. 
Play^  21.  *  Sharp,  216. 

2  Sharp,  9  ;  Hearne,  Forduns  Scoti-  *    5  Sharp,    209;     Halliwell-Phillipps, 

chrontcon,  v.  1450.  Outlines,  ii.  296. 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS   363 

It  took  place  early  in  the  day  after  a  {  breakfast.'     The  craft-guilds 
rode  in  it,  and  provided  minstrels  and  torchbearers.     The  Trinity 
Guild  seems  to  have  borne  a  crucifix,  and  the  Guild  of  Corpus  Christi 
and  St.  Nicholas  the  host  under  a  canopy.     The  accounts  of  the 
Smiths  include  the  following  items : — 
*  1476.  Item  ffor  hors  hyre  to  Herod,  iijd. 
1489.  Item  payd  for  Aroddes  garment  peynttyng  that  he  went 

a  prossasyon  in,  xxd/ 

The  other  extant  guild  accounts  throw  no  light  on  the  presence  of 
representatives  of  the  plays  in  the  procession ;  but  the  Corpus  Christi 
guild  itself  provided  dramatic  personages. 

'1501.  payd  for  a  Crown  of  sylver  &  gyld  for  the  Mare  on  Corpus 

Christi  day,  xliij9  ixd. 
I539-  Pen7  bred  for  the  appostells,  vjd. 
beiff  for  the  appostles,  viijd. 
to  the  Marie  for  hir  gloves  and  wages,  ij8. 
the  Marie  to  offer,  jd. 
Kateryne  &  Margaret,  iiijd. 
viij  virgyns,  viijd. 

to  Gabriell  for  beryng  the  lilly,  iiijd. 
to  James  &  Thomas  of  Inde,  viijd. 
to  x  other  .apostells,  xxd. 

1540.  for  makyng  the  lilly,  iij8  iiijd. 

1541.  to  Gabryel  for  beryng  the  light  [lilly?]  iiijd. 
xij  torches  of  wax  for  the  apostles. 

1544.  a  new  coat  &  a  peir  of  hoes  for  Gabriell,  iijX  iiij.1 ' 

CROXTON,  NORFOLK  (?). 
See  s.  v.  Texts  (i),  Croxton  Play,  The  Sacrament. 

DAVENTRY,  NORTHAMPTONSHIRE. 

The  '  lusores  de  Daventry '  played  at  Maxstoke  Priory  between  1422 
and  1461  (Appendix  E,  ii). 

DUBLIN,  IRELAND. 

The  version  of  the  Quern  quaeritis  used  at  the  Church  of  St.  John 
the  Evangelist  in  the  fourteenth  century  is  printed  in  Appendix  R. 

The  Chain  Book  of  the  City  contains  the  following  memorandum, 
apparently  entered  in  1498. 

Corpus  Christi  day  a  pagentis  : — 

'  The  pagentis  of  Corpus  Christi  day,  made  by  an  olde  law  and 

1  Sharp,  159. 


364  APPENDIX  W 

confermed  by  a  semble  befor  Thomas  Collier,  Maire  of  the  Citte  of 
Divelin,  and  Juries,  Baliffes  and  commones,  the  iiiith  Friday  next  after 
midsomer,  the  xiii.  yere  of  the  reign  of  King  Henri  the  Vllth  [1498]  : 

'Glovers:  Adam  and  Eve,  with  an  angill  followyng  berryng  a 
swerde.  Peyn,  xl.j. 

'Corvisers:  Caym  and  Abell,  with  an  auter  and  the  ofference. 
Peyn,  xl.j. 

'  Maryners,  Vynters,  Shipcarpynderis,  and  Samountakers :  Noe,  with 
his  shipp,  apparalid  acordyng.  Peyn,  xl.s. 

'  Wevers :  Abraham  [and]  Ysack,  with  ther  auter  and  a  lambe  and 
ther  offerance.  Peyn,  xl.s. 

<  Smythis,  Shermen,  Bakers,  Sclateris,  Cokis  and  Masonys :  Pharo, 
with  his  hoste.  Peyn,  xl.s. 

'Skynners,  House-Carpynders,  and  Tanners,  and  Browders:  for 
the  body  of  the  camell,  and  Oure  Lady  and  hir  chil[d]e  well  aperelid, 
with  Joseph  to  lede  the  camell,  and  Moyses  with  the  children  of 
Israeli,  and  the  Portors  to  berr  the  camell.  Peyn,  xl.s.  and  Steyners 
and  Peyntors  to  peynte  the  hede  of  the  camell.  [Peyn,]  xl.s. 

*  [Goldsmy]this :  The  three  kynges  of  Collynn,  ridyng  worshupfully, 
with  the  offerance,  with  a  sterr  afor  them.     Peyn,  xl.s. 

'  [Hoopers] :  The  shep[er]dis,  with  an  Angill  syngyng  Gloria  in 
excelsis  Deo.  Peyn,  xl.s. 

'  Corpus  Christ!  yild :  Criste  in  his  Passioun,  with  three  Maries,  and 
angilis  berring  serges  of  wex  in  ther  hands.  [Peyn,]  xl.s. 

*  Taylors :  Pilate,  with  his  fellaship,  and  his  lady  and  his  knyghtes, 
well  beseyne.     Peyn,  xl.s. 

'Barbors:  An[nas]  and  Caiphas,  well  araied  acordyng.  [Peyn,] 
xl.s. 

'  Courteours:  Arthure,  with  [his]  knightes.     Peyn,  xls. 
'Fisshers:  The  Twelve  Apostelis.     Peyn,  xl.s. 
'  Marchauntes  :  The  Prophetis.     Peyn,  xl.^. 

*  Bouchers  :  tormentours,  with  ther  garmentis  well  and  clenly  peynted. 
[Peyn,]  xl.s. 

1  The  Maire  of  the  Bulring  and  bachelers  of  the  same :  The  Nine 
Worthies  ridyng  worshupfully,  with  ther  followers  accordyng.  Peyn, 
xl.s. 

'The  Hagardmen  and  the  husbandmen  to  berr  the  dragoun  and 
to  repaire  the  dragoun  a  Seint  Georges  day  and  Corpus  Christi  day. 
Peyn,  xl.s.f 

This  list  is  immediately  followed  *by  a  second,  practically  identical 
with  it,  of  *  The  Pagentys  of  Corpus  Christi  Processioun/ 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  365 

These  pageants,  though  the  subjects  are  drawn  from  the  usual 
Corpus  Christi  play-cycle  (with  the  addition  of  King  Arthur  and  the 
nine  Worthies),  appear,  from  their  irregular  order,  to  be  only  dumb- 
show  accompaniments  of  a  procession.  In  1569  the  crafts  were 
directed  to  keep  the  same  order  in  the  Shrove  Tuesday  ball  riding 
(cf.  vol.  i.  p.  150),  'as  they  are  appointed  to  go  with  their  pageants 
on  Corpus  Christi  daye  by  the  Chayne  Boke  V 

The  same  intermixture  of  profane  and  sacred  elements  marks  the 
late  and  scanty  records  of  actual  plays  in  Dublin. 

*  Tho.  Fitzgerald,  Earl  of  Kildare  and  Lord  Lieutenant  of  Ireland  in 
the  year  1528,  was  invited  to  a  new  play  every  day  in  Christmas, 
Arland  Usher  being  then  mayor,  and  Francis  Herbert  and  John 
Squire  bayliffs,  wherein  the  taylors  acted  the  part  of  Adam  and  Eve ; 
the  shoemakers  represented  the  story  of  Crispin  and  Crispinianus ;  the 
vintners  acted  Bacchus  and  his  story ;  the  Carpenters  that  of  Joseph 
and  Mary ;  Vulcan,  and  what  related  to  him,  was  acted  by  the  Smiths ; 
and  the  comedy  of  Ceres,  the  goddess  of  corn,  by  the  Bakers.  Their 
stage  was  erected  on  Hoggin  Green  (now  called  College  Green),  and 
on  it  the  priors  of  St.  John  of  Jerusalem,  of  the  blessed  Trinity,  and 
All  Hallows  caused  two  plays  to  be  acted,  the  one  representing  the 
passion  of  our  Saviour,  and  the  other  the  several  deaths  which  the 
apostles  suffered2/  In  1541  there  were  'epulae,  comoediae,  et  cer- 
tamina  ludicra '  when  Henry  VIII  was  proclaimed  King  of  Ireland. 
These  included  '  the  nine  Worthies/  On  the  return  of  Lord  Sussex 
from  an  expedition  against  James  MacConnell  in  1557,  'the  Six 
Worthies  was  played  by  the  city  V 

A  seventeenth-century  transcript  of  a  lost  leaf  of  the  Chain  Book 
has  the  following  order  for  the  St.  George's  day  procession : — 

'The  Pageant  of  St.  George's  day,  to  be  ordered  and  kept  as 
hereafter  followeth : 

'  The  Mayor  of  the  yeare  before  to  finde  the  Emperour  and  Empress 
with  their  followers,  well  apparelled,  that  is  to  say,  the  Emperor,  with 
two  Doctors,  and  the  Empress,  with  two  knights,  and  two  maydens  to 
beare  the  traynes  of  their  gownes,  well  apparelled,  and  [the  Guild  of] 
St.  George  to  pay  their  wages. 

1  J.  T.  Gilbert,  Calendar  of  Ancient  8  Walker,  loc.  cit. ;  Sir  James  Ware, 
Records  of  Dublin ,  i.  239;  ii.  54.     Cf.  Annales  Rerum  Ilibern.  (1664),  161 ; 
Davidson,  a 2 a,  and  in  Modern  Language  Variorum,  iii.  30,  from  MS.  in  Trin. 
Notes,  vii.  339.  Coll.  Dublin.     W.  F.  Dawson,  Christ- 

2  Harris,  Hist,  of  Dublin,  147  ;  J.  C.  mas:  its  Origin  and  Associations,  52, 
Walker,  Hist.  Essay  on  the  Irish  Stage  says  that  Henry  II  kept  Christmas  at 
(Trans.  Roy.  Irish  Acad.  ii  (1788),  2.  Hogges  in  1171  with  'miracle  plays.' 
75),  from  MS.  of  Robert  Ware.  But  I  cannot  find  the  authority  for  this. 


366  APPENDIX  W 

•  Item  :  Mr.  Mayor  for  the  time  being  to  find  St.  George  a-horseback, 
and  the  wardens  to  pay  three  shillings  and  four  pence  for  his  wages 
that  day.  And  the  Bailives  for  the  time  being  to  find  four  horses, 
with  men  upon  them,  well  apparelled,  to  beare  the  pole-axe,  the 
standard,  and  the  Emperor  and  St.  George's  sword. 

'  Item  :  The  elder  master  of  the  yeald  to  find  a  mayd  well  aparelled 
to  lead  the  dragon  ;  and  the  Clerk  of  the  Market  to  find  a  good  line 
for  the  dragon. 

1  Item  :  The  elder  warden  to  find  St.  George,  with  four  trumpettors, 
and  St.  George's  [Guild]  to  pay  their  wages. 

'  Item  :  the  yonger  warden  to  finde  the  king  of  Dele  and  the  queene 
of  Dele,  and  two  knightes  to  lead  the  queene  of  Dele,  with  two 
maydens  to  beare  the  trayne  of  her  goune,  all  wholy  in  black 
apparell,  and  to  have  St.  George's  chappell  well  hanged  and 
apparelled  to  every  purpose  with  cushins  .  .  .  russhes  and  other 
necessaries  belonging  for  said  St.  George's  day1.1 

DUNSTABLE,   BEDFORDSHIRE. 

One  Geoffrey,  a  Norman,  was  'apud  Dunestapliam,  expectans 
scholam  S.  Albani  sibi  repromissam;  ubi  quendam  ludum  de 
S.  Katerina  (quern  Miracula  vulgariter  appellamus)  fecit;  ad  quae 
decoranda  petiit  a  Sacrista  S.  Albani,  ut  sibi  capae  chorales  accommo- 
darentur,  et  obtinuit/  Unfortunately  the  '  capae  '  were  burnt.  This 
must  have  been  early  in  the  twelfth  century,  as  Geoffrey  in  grief 
became  a  monk,  and  was  Abbot  of  St.  Albans  by 


EDINBURGH,  SCOTLAND. 

The  civic  records  show  traces  of  municipal  plays  in  1554,  but  it  is 
not  clear  that  they  were  miracle-plays  proper  or  of  long  standing. 
Sir  David  Lyndsay's  Satyre  of  the  Thrie  Estaitis  was  played  in  the 
Greenside  between  1550  and  1559  (cf.  p.  442).  On  June  15,  1554, 
a  payment  was  made  to  Sir  William  Makdougall,  '  maister  of  werk/  for 
those  'that  furneist  the  grayth  to  the  convoy  of  the  moris  to  the 
Abbay  and  of  the  play  maid  that  saxnyn  day  the  tent  day  of  Junii 
instant/  Makdougall  was  to  deliver  to  the  dean  of  guild  the  '  hand- 
scenye  [ensign]  and  canves  specifiit  in  the  said  tikkit  to  be  kepit  to 
the  behuif  of  the  town/  Sums  were  also  paid  this  summer  for  *  the 
playing  place  '  or  '  the  play  field  now  biggand  in  the  Grenesid/ 

1  Gilbert,  op.  cit.  i.  242.  S.  Albani  (R.  S.),  i.  73  ;  Bulaeus,  Hi- 

1  Matthew  Paris,  Gesta  Abbot.  S.  "  storia  Unwersitatis  Parisiensis^vi.  226  j 
Altoni,  ap.  H.  T.  Riley,  Gcsta  Abbatum  Collier,  i  13. 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  367 

On  Oct.  12  Walter  Bynnyng  was  paid  for  'the  making  of  the  play 
graith*  and  for  painting  the  'handsenye*  and  'playariss  facis/  He 
was  to  'mak  the  play  geir  vnderwrittin  furthcumand  to  the  town, 
quhen  thai  haif  ado  thairwith,  quhilkis  he  has  now  ressauit ;  viz.  viij 
play  hattis,  ane  kingis  crown,  ahe  myter,  ahe  fulis  hude,  ane  septour, 
ane  pair  angell  wingis,  twa  angell  hair,  ane  chaplet  of  tryvmphe.' 

On  Dec.  28  '  the  prouest,  baillies  and  counsale  findis  it  necessar  and 
expedient  that  the  litill  farsche  and  play  maid  be  William  Lauder  be 
playit  afoir  the  Quenis  grace  V  I  trace  a  note  of  regret  for  the  doubt- 
ful morals  and  certain  expense  of  the  entertainments  which  the 
presence  in  Edinburgh  of  the  newly-made  Regent,  Mary  of  Lorraine, 
imposed  upon  the  burghers. 

EASTERFORD,  ESSEX. 

Lord  Howard  rewarded  the  players  of c  Esterforde '  on  Jan.  7, 1482 
(Appendix  E,  vii).  This  place  is  now  known  as  Kelvedon. 

FOLKESTONE,  KENT. 

Folkestone  players  were  at  New  Romney  in  1474,  and  at  Lydd 
in  1479. 

FOSTON,  LEICESTERSHIRE. 

In  1561  the  players  of  'Fosson'  borrowed  'serten  stufe'  from  the 
churchwardens  of  St.  Martin's,  Leicester 2. 

FYFIELD,  OXFORDSHIRE. 
See  s.  v.  SHIPTON. 

GARBOLDISHAM,  NORFOLK. 
'Garblesham  game'  was  at  Harling  (q.v.)  in  1457. 

GREAT  CHART,  KENT. 
'Chart'  players  were  at  New  Romney  in  1489. 

HADLEIGH,  ESSEX. 

Lord  Howard  rewarded  the  'Plaiers  of  Hadley'  on  Dec.  27,  1481 

(Appendix  E,  vii). 

HALSTEAD,  ESSEX. 

There  was  a  play  in  the  church  in  1529 8. 

HAM  STREET,  KENT. 
Ham  players  were  at  Lydd  in  1454. 

1  J.  D.  Marwick,  Records  of  Edin-         *  Kelly,  19. 
burgh  (Scottish  Burghs  Record  Soc.)>  ii-         '  Pearson,  ii.  413. 
193  sqq. 


368  APPENDIX  W 

HANNINGFIELD,  ESSEX. 

'John  Walker  of  Hanfild'  hired  the  Chelmsford  (q.v.)  wardrobe 
in  1572. 

HARLING,  NORFOLK. 

In  1452  the  wardens  paid  for  the  *  original  of  an  Interlude  pleyed 
at  the  Cherch  gate/  In  1457  payments  were  made  for  'Lopham 
game/  and  'Garblesham  game,'  in  1463  for  'Kenningale  game/  in 
1467  to  the  'Kenyngale  players1.' 

HASCOMBE,  SURREY. 

Amongst  the  Loseley  MSS.  is  a  deposition  of  i57f : 
'Coram  me  Henr.  Goringe,  an  xij°  die  Januar.  1578.  George 
Longherst  and  John  Mill  exd  sayeth,  that  on  Sondaye  last  they  were 
together  at  widow  Michelles  house,  in  the  parish  of  Hascombe,  and 
there  delyvered  their  mares  to  kepe  till  they  came  agayne,  and  sayde 
that  they  wold  goo  to  Hascombe  Churche,  to  a  kynge  playe  wch  then 
was  there.  And  sayeth  y*  they  went  thither  and  there  contynued 
about  an  houre,  at  which  tyme  the  sonne  was  then  downeV 

The  date  suggests  a  performance  on  Jan.  6.  Evidently  a  May 
'  kynge  playe '  is  out  of  the  question ;  but  a  Twelfth  Night  King,  or 
a  '  Stella '  belated  in  the  afternoon,  are  both  possible. 

HEREFORD,  HEREFORDSHIRE. 

On  April  30,  1440,  John  Hauler  and  John  Pewte  sued  Thomas 
Sporyour  in  the  city  court  *de  placito  detencionis  unius  libri  de 
lusionibus,  prec.  iis.  iiijrf.3' 

The  Register  of  the  Corporation  for  1503  contains  a  list  of 

'  The  paiants  for  the  procession  of  Corpus  Christi : 

Furst,  Glovers.     Adam,  Eve,  Coyne  and  A  dell  (erased). 

Eldest  seriant.     Cayne,  Abell,  and  Moysey,  Aron. 

Carpenters.    Noye  ship. 

Chaundelers.    Abram,  Isack,  Moysey  cum  iiii°r  pueris. 

Skynners.    Jesse. 

Flacchers.     Salutacon  of  our  Lady. 

Vynteners.     Nativite  of  our  Lord, 

Taillours.    The  iii  Kings  of  Colen. 

The  belman.    The  purificacon  of  our  Lady,  with  Symyon. 

1  L.  G.  Bolingbroke,  Pre-Eliz.  Plays         a  N  and  Q.  xii.  210;  Kelly,  68. 
and    Players    in     Norfolk     (Norfolk  *       s  Hist.  MSS.  xiii.  4.  300. 
Archaeology,  xi.  338). 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS   369 

Drapers.     The  .  .  .  (blank)  deitours,  goyng  with  the  good  Lord. 

Sadlers.     Fleme  Jordan. 

Gardeners.     The  castell  of  Israeli. 

Walkers.  The  good  Lord  ridyng  on  an  asse  ("judging  at  an 
assize/'  in  Johnson!)  with  xii  Appostelles. 

The  tanners.     The  story  of  Shore  Thursday. 

Bochours.     The  takyng  of  our  Lord. 

The  eldest  seriant.  The  tormentyng  of  our  Lord  with  iiii  tor- 
mentoures,  with  the  lamentadon  of  our  Lady  [and  Seynt  John  the 
evaungelist :  faintly  added  by  another  hand\ 

[Cappers.     Portacio  crucis  usque  montem  Oilverii:  added.] 

Dyers.  lesus  pendens  in  cruce  [altered  by  the  second  hand  from 
Portacio  crucis  et  lohanne  evangelista  portante  Mariam]. 

Smythes.     Longys  with  his  knyghtes. 

The  eldest  seriant.     Maria  and  Johannes  evangelista  (interlined). 

Barbours.     Joseth  Abarmathia. 

Dyers.     Sepultura  Christi. 

The  eldest  seriant.     Tres  Mariae. 

Porters.     Milites  armati  custodes  sepulcri. 

Mercers.  Pilate,  Cayfes,  Annas,  and  Mahounde.  [This  last  name 
has  been  partly  erased.] 

Bakers.     Knyghtes  in  harnes. 

Journeymen  cappers.     Seynt  Keterina  with  tres  (?)  tormentors  V 

At  a  law  day  held  on  Dec.  10,  1548,  it  was  agreed  that  the  crafts 
who  were  '  bound  by  the  grantes  of  their  corporacions  yerely  Jp  bring 
forthe  and  set  forward  dyvers  pageaunttes  of  ancient  history  in  the 
processions  of  the  cytey  upon  the  day  and  fest  of  Corpus  Xpi, 
which  now  is  and  are  omitted  and  surceased'  should  instead 
make  an  annual  payment  towards  the  expense  of  repairing  walls, 
causeways,  &c.a  The  1503  list  seems  to  concern  a  dumb-show 
only,  and  it  cannot  be  positively  assumed  that  the  lusiones  of  1440 
were  a  Corpus  Christi  play. 

In  1706  a  labourer  went  through  the  city  in  the  week  before  Easter, 
being  Passion  week,  clothed  in  a  long  coat  with  a  large  periwig,  with 
a  great  multitude  following  him,  sitting  upon  an  ass,  to  the  derision  of 
our  Saviour  Jesus  Christ's  riding  into  Jerusalem,  to  the  great  scandal 
of  the  Christian  religion,  to  the  contempt  of  our  Lord  and  his  doctrine, 
and  to  the  ill  and  pernicious  example  of  others 8. 

1  Hist.  MSS.  xiii.  4.  288. 

8  R.  Johnson,  Ancient  Customs  of  Hereford  (ed.  2.  1882),  119. 

8  Hist.  MSS.  xiiL  4.  352. 

CHAMBERS     II  B   b 


370  APPENDIX  W 

HERNE,  KENT. 
Herne  players  were  at  New  Romney  in  1429. 

HEYBRIDGE,  ESSEX. 

The  churchwardens'  accounts  for  1532  show  a  play,  with  'a  fool' 
and  *  pagent  players/  apparently  in  the  church  *. 

HIGH  EASTER,  ESSEX. 
High  Easter  men  hired  the  Chelmsford  (q.  v.)  wardrobe  in  1570-2. 

HIGH  HALDEN,  KENT. 
'Haldene'  players  were  at  New  Romney  in  1499. 

HOLBEACH,  LINCOLNSHIRE. 

In  1548  the  churchwardens  paid  v«  viijd  for  the  'costs  of  the  iij  kyngs 

of  Coloyne  V 

HULL,  YORKSHIRE. 

The  accounts  of  the  Trinity  House,  a  guild  of  master  mariners  and 
pilots,  contain  entries  concerning  a  play  of  Noah. 
'  1483.  To  the  minstrels,  vjd. 

To  Noah  and  his  wife,  j«  vjd. 

To  Robert  Brown  playing  God,  vjd. 

To  the  Ship-child,  jd. 

To  a  shipwright  for  clinking  Noah's  ship,  one  day,  vijd. 

22  kids  for  shoring  Noah's  ship,  ijd. 

To  a  man  clearing  away  the  snow,  jd. 

Straw,  for  Noah  and  his  children,  ijd. 

Mass,  bellman,  torches,  minstrels,  garland,  &c.,  vj8. 

For  mending  the  ship,  ijd. 

To  Noah  for  playing,  j9. 

To  straw  and  grease  for  wheels,  £d. 

To  the  waits  for  going  about  with  the  ship,  vjd. 
1494.  To  Thomas  Sawyr  playing  God,  xd. 

To  Jenkin  Smith  playing  Noah,  j8. 

To  Noah's  wife,  viijd. 

The  "blerk  and  his  children,  j*  vjd. 

To  the  players  of  Barton,  viijd. 

For  a  gallon  of  wine,  viijd. 

For  three  skins  for  Noah's  coat,  making  it,  and  a  rope  to 

hang  the  ship  in  the  kirk,  vijg. 

* 

1  Nichols,  Extracts  from  Churchwardens*  Accounts,  175. 
9  W.  Sandys,  Christinas  Carols^  xc. 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  371 

To  dighting  and  gilding  St.  John's  head,  painting  two 
tabernacles,  beautifying  the  boat  and  over  the  table, 
vija  ij<*. 

Making  Noah's  ship,  v1*  viip. 
Two  wrights  a  day  and  a  half,  j8  vj<*. 
A  halfer  (rope)  4  stone  weight,  iiij8  viijd. 
Rigging  Noah's  ship,  viij<V 

Hadley,   the   historian   of  Hull,   extracts   these   items  '  from  the 
expences  on  Plough-day/  and  says,  '  This  being  a  maritime  society, 
it  was  celebrated   by  a  procession  adapted  to  the   circumstance1/ 
There  are  continental  parallels  for  ship-processions  at  spring  feasts 
(vol.  i.  p.  121);    but  evidently  that  at  Hull  had  been  assimilated, 
perhaps   under    the    influence    of    Beverley,    to    a    miracle-play  or 
pageant.     A  recent  writer,  apparently  from  some  source  other  than 
Hadley,  says  that  the  entries  in  the  accounts  run  from  before  1421  to 
1529.     Amongst  his  additional  extracts  are: — 
'  A  payr  of  new  mytens  to  Noye,  iiijd. 
Amending  Noye  Pyleh,  iiijd. 
Nicholas  Helpby  for  wryt*  the  pley,  vijd. 
A  rope  to  hyng  the  shipp  in  ye  kyrk,  ijd. 
Takyng  down  shype  and  hyngyng  up  agayn,  ij8. 
Wyn  when  the  shype  went  about,  ijd. 
1421.     New  shype,  vlj  viij8  iiijd  V 

HYTHE,  KENT. 
Hythe  players  were  at  New  Romney  in  1399  and  at  Lydd  in  1467. 

IDBURY,  OXFORDSHIRE. 
See  s.  v.  SHIPTON. 

IPSWICH,  SUFFOLK. 

In  1325  the  former  Guild  Merchant  was  reconstituted  as  a  Guild 
of  Corpus  Christi.  The  Constitution  provides  for  a  procession,  on 
Corpus  Christi  day,  unless  it  is  hindered  'pro  qualitate  temporisV 

The  notices  in  the  seventeenth-century  Annals  of  the  town  point  to 
a  play  as  well  as  a  procession  4.  The  Guild  included  all  the  burgesses ; 

1  G.  Hadley,  Hist,  of  Kingston  upon  Hist.  MSS.  ix.  i.  245. 
.#W/(J788),  823.  4  Nathaniel  Bacon,   The  Annalls  of 

2  W.  Andrews,    Historic    Yorkshire,  Ipswich,  1654  (ed.  W.  H.  Richardson, 
43;  Curiosities  of  the  Church,  19.  1884),  102  and  passim.  Some  additional 

3  J.  Wodderspoon,  Memorials  of  the  notices   are   in  Hist,  MSS.  ix.  i.  241 
Ancient  Town  of  Ipswich  (1850),  161 ;  sqq. 

B  b  2 


372  APPENDIX  W 

each  paying  i6d.  a  year  and  attending  the  dinner  on  Corpus  Christi 
day. 

In  1443  the  common  marsh  was  devised  '  to  maintaine  and  repaire 
the  pageants  of  the  Guilde/ 

In  1445  J.  Causton  was  admitted  burgess  on  condition  of  maintaining 
for  seven  years  'the  ornaments  belonging  to  Corpus  X1  pageant 
and  the  stages,  receiving  the  Charges  thereof  from  the  farmers  of  the 
Common  Marshe  and  the  Portmen's  medow,  as  the  Bayliffs  for  the 
time  being  shall  think  meete.'  Arrears  were  paid  to  J.  Caldwell  for 
his  charge  of  '  Corpus  Chr.  pageant.1 

In  1491  an  order  was  made,  laying  down, '  Howe  euery  occupacion 
of  craftsmen  schuld  order  themselves  in  the  goyng  with  their  pageantes 
in  the  procession  of  Corpus  Christi/  The  list  closes  with  the  *  Friers 
Carmelites/  '  Friers  Minors/  and  '  Friers  Prechors/  The  subjects  of 
the  pageants  are  unfortunately  not  given.  The  pageant  cost  455.  id. 

In  1492  *  areres  of  ye  Pageant*  were  paid,  and  '  kepers  of  the 
Ornaments  and  utensiles  of  Corpus  Christi  appointed/ 

In  1493,  Z494»  r495»  J49^  orders  were  made  for  the  provision  of 
the  *  pageant/  In  1495  there  was  a  grant  of  £3  n.  o  for  it.  In 
1496  it  was  '  at  the  charge  of  such  as  have  been  used/ 

In  1502  *  Corpus  Christi  pageant  shall  hereafter  be  observed,  and 
a  convenient  artificer  shall  be  intertained  to  that  end,  and  shall  have 
40J/  Each  Portman  was  to  pay  is.  4^.,  each  of  the c  twenty-four '  Sd. ; 
the  other  6s.  8d.  to  be  levied.  '  Noe  Bayliff  shall  interrupt  or  hinder  the 
pageant,  unless  by  order  of  the  great  court  or  uppon  special  cause.' 
Collectors  for  the  pageant  were  chosen. 

In  1504  the  'collectors  for  the  play  of  Corpus  Christi'  were  'to 
make  a  free  burgess  for  their  expences  at  Corpus  Christi  play/  These 
collectors  are  again  mentioned  in  1505  and  1506,  and  in  the  latter 
year  '  ornaments '  and  '  stageing  for  Corpus  Christi  play/ 

In  1509  all  inhabitants  are  to  have  '  their  Tabernas  and  attendance 
at  the  f/east  of  Corpus  Christi '  and  '  everyone  shall  hold  by  the  order 
of  their  procession,  according  to  the  Constitutions/ 

In  1511  a  contribution  is  ordered  to  a  pageant  of  St.  George,  and 
the  Corpus  Christi  dinner  and  pageant  are  laid  aside. 

From  1513  to  1519  the  play  is  ordered  to  be  laid  aside  in  every 
year  except  1517.  In  1520  it  '  shall  hold  this  yere/  and  the  pageant 
is  ordered  to  be  ready.  It  is  laid  aside  in  1521  until  further  order, 
and  the  master  of  the  pageant  called  '  the  shipp '  is  to  have  the  same 
ready  under  forfeiture  of  £1.0.*  It  is  'deferred'  in  1522  and  Maid 
aside  for  ever '  in  1531. 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS   373 

Probably  it  was  never  revived.  But  there  is  an  order  for  the  pro- 
cession with  the  Sacrament  in  1540,  and  in  1542  this  had  its 
*  pageants '  to  which  each  householder  was  rated  at  id. 

In  1552  the  guild  is  held  on  the  Sunday  after  Trinity  Sunday,  and 
similar  meetings  continue  until  1644. 

On  a  possible  performance  of  Bale's  King  John  at  the  visit  of 
Elizabeth  to  Ipswich  in  1561  see  Texts  (iii),  s.  v.  Bale. 

IXWORTH,  SUFFOLK. 

Thetford  Priory  made  a  payment  '  in  regard  to  Ix worth  play/  in 
1507-8  (Appendix  E,  iii). 

KELVEDON,  ESSEX. 
See  s.v.  EASTERFORD. 

KENDAL,  WESTMORELAND. 

The  '  Boke  of  Record/  a  municipal  register  begun  at  the  incorpora- 
tion in  1575,  refers  to  the  Corpus  Christi  play  by  the  crafts  as 
established  at  that  date.  On  Feb.  14,  1575,  the  corporation  forbade 
feasts  of  more  than  twelve  guests ; 

*  Such  lyke  ...  as  have  bene  comonlye  used  at  ...  metyings  of 
men  off  Occupacyons  aboute  orders  for  their  severall  pagiands  off 
Corpus  xpi  playe  .  .  .  exceptyd  and  reserved/ 

An  order  'ffor  the  playe'  of  Sept.  22,  1586,  forbade  the  alderman 
to  give  permission  for  the  acting  of  the  play  in  any  year  without  the 
consent  of  his  brethren  V 

The  plays  lasted  into  the  seventeenth  century.  Thomas  Heywood 
says  in  1612,  that,  'to  this  day/  Kendall  holds  the  privilege  of  its  fairs 
and  other  charters  by  yearly  stage-plays2.  And  Weever,  about  1631, 
speaks  of — 

*  Corpus  Christi  play  in  my  countrey,  which  I  have  scene  acted  at 
Preston,  and  Lancaster,  and  last  of  all  at  Kendall,  in  the  beginning  of 
the  raigne  of  King  James;   for  which  the  Townesmen   were   sore 
troubled ;  and  upon  good  reasons  the  Play  finally  supprest,  not  onely 
there,  but  in  all  other  Townes  of  the  Kingdome  V 

In  the  MS.  life  of  the  Puritan  vicar  of  Rotherham,  John  Shaw,  is 
a  description  of  how  he  spoke  to  an  old  man  at  Cartmel  of  salvation 
by  Christ : — 

'  Oh  Sir/  said  he, '  I  think  I  heard  of  that  man  you  speak  of  once  in 
a  play  at  Kendall,  called  Corpus  Christ's  play,  where  there  was  a  man 

1  R.  S.  Ferguson,  A  Boke  of  Record ...         a  See  s.  v.  Manningtree. 
of  Kirkbie  Kendall  (Cumb.  and  Westm.         *  Weever,  Funeral  Monuments  t  405. 
Arch,  and  Ant.  See.),  91,  136. 


374  APPENDIX  W 

on  a  tree,  and  blood  ran  down,  &c.    And  afterwards  he  professed  he 
could  not  remember  that  he  ever  heard  of  salvation  by  Jesus,  but  in 

that  play  V 

KENNINGHALL,  NORFOLK. 

1  Kenningale  game '  was  at  Harling  (q.  v.)  in  1463,  and  the '  Kenyng- 
ale  players'  in  1467. 

KILKENNY,  IRELAND. 

John  Bale,  in  his  description  of  his  brief  episcopate  of  Ossory,  gives 
an  account  of  the  proclamation  of  Queen  Mary,  at  Kilkenny,  on  August 
20,  1553,  'The  yonge  men,  in  the  Forenone,  played  a  Tragedye  of 
God's  Promyses  in  the  olde  Lawe,  at  the  Market  Crosse,  with  Organe, 
Plainges,  and  Songes  very  aptely.  In  the  Afternone  agayne  they 
played  a  Commedie  of  Sanct  Johan  Baptistes  Preachinges,  of  Christes 
Baptisynge,  and  of  his  Temptacion  in  the  Wildernesse,  to  the  small 
contentacion  of  the  Prestes  and  other  Papistes  there  V 

These  plays  are  extant ;  cf.  Texts  (iii),  s.  v.  Bale. 

KING'S  LYNN,  NORFOLK. 

There  was  a  Corpus  Christi  guild  as  early  as  1400,  and  the  Tailors' 
Ordinances  of  1449  require  them  to  take  part  in  the  Corpus  Christi 
procession ;  but  I  do  not  find  evidence  of  regular  annual  plays.  The 
Chamberlains'  Accounts  for  1385,  however,  include: — 

*iij8  iiijd  to  certain  players,  playing  an  interlude  on  Corpus  Christi  day/ 

'  iijs  iiijd  paid  by  the  Mayor's  gift  to  persons  playing  the  interlude 
of  St.  Thomas  the  Martyr.' 

And  those  for  1462 — 

*  iijB  paid  for  two  flagons  of  red  wine,  spent  in  the  house  of  Arnulph 
Tixonye,  by  the  Mayor  and  most  of  his  brethren,  being  there  to  see 
a  certain  play  at  the  Feast  of  Corpus  Christi.'  In  the  same  year  the 
Skinners  and  Sailors  '  of  the  town  '  received  rewards  '  for  their  labour 
about  the  procession  of  Corpus  Christi  this  year  V 

In  1409-10  Lady  de  Beaufort  came  to  see  a  play4. 

See  also  s.  v.  MIDDLETON. 

KINGSTON-ON-THAMES,  SURREY. 
On  May  20,  1505,  Henry  VII  made  a  payment 
'  To  the  Players  of  Kingeston  toward  the  bilding  of  the  churche 
steple,  in  almasse,  iij»  iiijd  V 

1  I.  Disraeli,  Curiosities  of  Literature,  s  Hist.  MSS.  xi.  3.  165,  223,  224. 

Second  Series,  iii.  343.  The  original  documents  appear  to  be 

1  Bale,  Vocacyon  to  Ossory  (1553),  in*  in  Latin. 

Harltian    Miscellany    (ed.    1745),  vl  *  Harrod,  King's  Lynn  Records  t  87. 

402 ;  ^ed.  1808),  i.  345.  •  Ct  Appendix  E  (yni). 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS   375 

The  churchwardens'  accounts  for  1505-6  include 
'  That  we,  Adam  Backhous  and  Harry  Nycol,  amountyd  of  a 
play,  41'-' 

A  few  later  items  relate  to  plays  at  Easter. 
'  1513-4.     For  thred  for  the  resurrection,  jd. 

For  3  yards  of  dorneck  for  a  player's  cote,  and  the 

makyng,  xvd. 
1520-1.    Paid  for  a  skin  of  parchment  and  gunpowder  for  the  play 

on  Ester-day,  viij<*. 
For  bred  and  ale  for  them  that  made  the  stage  and  other 

thinges  belonginge  to  the  play,  j*  ijd. 
1565.     Recd.  of  the  players  of  the  stage  at  Easter,  j»  ijd  ob.1 ' 

LANCASTER. 

A  Corpus  Christi  play  was  acted  within  the  lifetime  of  Weever, 
who  was  bom  1576,  and  wrote  1631 a. 

LANCHIRE(?),  ESSEX. 

'  Somers  of  Lanchire '  hired  the  Chelmsford  (q.v.)  wardrobe  in  1566. 
But  I  can  find  no  such  place. 

LANGLEY,  OXFORDSHIRE. 
See  s.  v.  SHIPTON. 

LAVENHAM,  SUFFOLK. 

The  Earl  of  Surrey  rewarded  the  players  of  *  Lanam '  on  Jan.  8, 
1492  (Appendix  E,  vii). 

LECONFIELD,  YORKSHIRE. 

The  list  of  customary  rewards  given  by  the  fifth  Earl  of  Northumber- 
land to  his  servants,  drawn  up  1 152 2,  includes  : — 

'  Them  of  his  Lordschipes  Chapell  if  they  doo  play  the  Play  of  the 
Nativite  uppon  Cristynmes-Day  in  the  mornynge  in  my  Lords  Chapell 
befor  his  Lordship,  xx». 

. . .  Them  of  his  Lordship  Chappell  and  other,  if  they  doo  play  the 
play  of  Resurrection  upon  Esturday  in  the  morning  in  my  Lords 
Chapell,  xx'V 

LEEDS,  YORKSHIRE. 

Ten  Brink,  ii.  256,  says  that  Leeds  formed  a  centre  '  for  the  art  of 
the  cyclic  plays,  which  were  represented  yearly ' ;  and  Ward,  L  55, 

1  Lysons,  Environs  of  London,   i.         a  Sec  s.  v.  Kendal. 
239.  *  Percy,  N.H.  B.  343,  345- 


376  APPENDIX  W 

that  at  Leeds  '  the  religious  drama  was  assiduously  cultivated  by  the 
citizens/  I  cannot  find  any  authority  for  this,  and  can  only  suggest 
that  it  is  a  misapprehension  of  an  entry  in  the  Catalogue  of  Ralph 
Thoresby's  manuscripts  appended  to  his  Ducatus  Leodensis  (1715), 
517.  This  was  copied  by  Sharp,  141.  But  it  refers  to  the  York 
Plays,  then  in  Thoresby's  possession. 

LEICESTER. 

The  Hall  book  of  the  Corporation  contains  the  following  entries  :  — 
1477,  March  26.  'The  pleyers  the  which  pleed  the  passion  play 
the  yere  next  afore  brought  yne  a  byll  the  whiche  was  of  serten  devties 
of  mony  and  whedr  the  passion  shulbe  put  to  crafts  to  be  bounden  or 
nay.  And  at  yfc  tyme  the  seid  pleyers  gaff  to  the  pachents  yr  mony 
which  that  thei  had  getten  yn  playng  of  the  seid  play  euer  fore  to  that 
day  and  all  yr  Rayments  wh  al  othr  maner  of  stuff  y*  they  had  at  that 
tyme.  And  at  the  same  Common  Halle  be  the  advyse  of  all  the 
Comons  was  chosen  thies  persones  after  named  for  to  have  the  gydyng 
and  Rule  of  the  said  play'  [19  persons  with  2  'bedalls'  named]  *. 

1495,  Friday  after  xijte  day.  '  Y*  ys  ordent  agreyt  stabelechyd  & 
acte  for  the  comon  well  of  the  towne  and  of  seche  guds  as  ys  yn  a  store 
hows  in  the  Setterday  marcat  yfc  ys  to  say  wodde  tymber  and  vdyr 
playyng  germands  yf  ther  be  ony  her  hys  chosyn  to  be  oucrsears 
thereof  [6  names]2. 

It  is  not  clear  on  what  day  the  Passion  play  took  place.  There 
were  great  processions  on  Whit  Monday  from  the  churches  of 
St.  Martin  and  St.  Mary  to  that  of  St.  Margaret,  and  in  these  the 
Twelve  Apostles  figured  3. 

The  accounts  of  the  same  churches  show  plays  apparently  distinct 
from  the  Passion  play. 
St.  Marys. 

1491.     Paid  to  the  Players  on  New-year's  day  at   even  in  the 

church,  vjd. 
1499.     Paid  for  a  play  in  the  church,  in  Dominica  infra  Octavam 

Epiphaniae,  ij8. 
1504.     Paid  for  mending   the  garment  of  Jesus  and  the  cross 

painting,  j8  iijd. 

Paid  for  a  pound  of  hemp  to  mend  the  angels  heads,  iiijd. 
Paid  for  linen  cloth  for  the  angels  heads,  and  Jesus  hoose, 
making  in  all,  ixd. 


1  Kelly.  27,  187.  M.  Bateson,  /toottfr     of  Leicestershire  t  iv.  L  App.  378,  9. 
cf  Leicester,  ii.  297;  J.  Nichols,  History         a  Kelly,  188.  8  Kelly,  7. 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS   377 

1507.     Paid  for  a  pound  of  hemp  for  the  heads  of  the  angels,  iijd. 

Paid  for  painting  the  wings  and  scaff,  &c.,  viijd  \ 
These  entries  suggest  a  Quern  quaeriti$>  but  perhaps  only  a  puppet- 
show. 

St.  Martins. 
1492.         Paid  to   the  players  on  New-year's  day   at  even  in  the 

church,  vjd. 
1 546-7.     Pd«  for  makynge  of  a  sworde  &  payntynge  of  the  same  for 

Harroode. 

1 555-6.     Pd.  to  the  iij  shepperds  at  Whytsontyde,  vjd. 
1559-60.  Pd.  to  ye  plears  for  ther  paynes. 
1561.         Rd.  for  serten  stufe  lent  to  the  players  of  Fosson 2. 

In  1551  the  Corporation  came  not  to  a  feast  *  because  of  the  play 
that  was  in  the  church3/ 

LICHFIELD,  STAFFORDSHIRE. 

The  Cathedral  Statutes  of  Bishop  Hugh  de  Nonant  (1188-98) 
provide  for  the  Pastores  at  Christmas  and  the  Quern  quaeritis  and 
Peregrini  at  Easter. 

'  Item  in  nocte  Natalis  representacio  pastorum  fieri  consueuit  et  in 
diluculo  Paschae  representacio  Resurreccionis  dominicae  et  repre- 
sentacio peregrinorum  die  lunae  in  septimana  Paschae  sicut  in  libris 
super  hijs  ac  alijs  compositis  continetur.' 

Similarly  in  the  account  of  the  officium  of  the  Succentor  it  is  pro- 
vided : 

'  Et  prouidere  debet  quod  representacio  pastorum  in  nocte  Natalis 
domini  et  miraculorum  in  nocte  Paschae  et  die  lunae  in  Pascha  congrue 
et  honorifice  fiantV 

LINCOLN. 

About  1244  Bishop  Grosseteste  names  'miracula'  amongst  other 
Mudi'  which  the  archdeacons,  so  far  as  possible,  are  to  exterminate 
in  the  diocese 5. 

Chapter  computi  for  1406,  1452,  and  1531  include  entries  of  pay- 
ments, 'In  serothecis  emptis  pro  Maria  et  Angelo  et  Prophetis  ex 
consuetudine  in  Aurora  Natalis  Dfii  hoc  anno  V 

'In  1420  tithes  to  the  amount  of  88  8d  were  assigned  to  Thomas 
Chamberleyn  for  getting  up  a  spectacle  or  pageant  ("  cuiusdam  ex- 

1  Kelly,  14,  16.  4  Lincoln  Statutes,  ii.  15,  33. 

8  Kelly,  15,   18,  19,  ao ;  T.  North,  5  Cf.  vol.  i.  p.  91. 

Accounts    of    Churchwardens    of  Sf.  6  Wordsworth,  126,  and  in  Lincoln 

Martin's,  a,  ai,  74,86,  87.  Statutes,  ii.  Iv.     The  entry  given  for 

8  Kelly,  193.  1453  in  the  latter  omits  '  et  Prophetis.' 


378  APPENDIX  W 

cellentis  visus ")  called  Rubum  quern  viderat  at  Christmas  ...  An 
anthem  sung  at  Lauds  on  New  Year's  day  .  . .  begins  thus l '  (cf. 
Sarum  Breviary,  ccxciii).  Was  this  spectacle  a  Moses  play  forming 
part  of,  or  detached  from,  an  Or  do  Prophetarum  ? 

A  set  of  local  annals  (1361-1515)  compiled  in  the  sixteenth  century 
records  the  following  plays  : — 

1397-8.  Ludus  de  Pater  Noster  Ivi  anno. 

1 4 1  o-i  i .  Ludus  Pater  Noster. 

1424-5.  Ludus  Pater  Noster. 

1441-2.  Ludus  Sancti  Laurentii. 

1447-8.  Ludus  Sanctae  Susannae. 

1452-3.  Ludus  de  Kyng  Robert  of  Cesill. 

M55-6.  Ludus  de  Sancta  Clara. 

1456-7.  Ludus  de  Pater  Noster. 

1471-2.  Ludus  Corporis  Christi. 

1473-4.  Ludus  de  Corporis  Christi. 

Canon  Rock,  apparently  quoting  the  same  document,  also  mentions 
a  '  Ludus  de  Sancto  lacoboV 

On  Dec.  13,  1521,  the  Corporation  'agreed  that  Paternoster  Play 
shall  be  played  this  year  V 

In  1478-80  the  Chapter  Curialitaies  include  'In  commun'  canoni- 
corum  existent'  ad  videndum  ludum  Corporis  Christi  in  camera 
lohannis  Sharpe  infra  clausum,  17*  nd  V 

But  the  Corpus  Christi  play,  although  so  called,  would  appear  not 
to  have  been  played  upon  Corpus  Christi  day,  but  to  be  identical 
with  the  visus  or  'sights'  of  St.  Anne's  day  (July  26).  These  are 
mentioned  almost  yearly  in  the  city  minute-books  of  the  early  sixteenth 
century,  and  appear  to  have  been  cyclic  and  processional.  They 
certainly  included  Noah's  Ship,  the  Three  Kings  of  Cologne,  the 
Ascension,  and  the  Coronation  of  the  Virgin.  The  Corporation 
ordered  them  to  be  played ;  the  mayor  and  the  '  graceman/  or  chief 
officer  of  the  guild  of  Saint  Anne,  directed  them ;  the  guild  priest  gave 
bis  assistance  in  the  preparations.  In  1517  Sir  Robert  Denyer  was 
appointed  on  condition  of  doing  this.  Garments  were  often  borrowed 
from  the  priory  and  the  local  magnates.  In  1521  Lady  Powys  lent 
a  gown  for  one  of  the  Maries,  and  the  other  had  a  crimson  gown  of 
velvet  belonging  to  the  guild.  Each  craft  was  bound  under  penalty  to 
provide  a  pageant.  In  1540  some  of  the  crafts  had  broken  their 

1  Wordsworth,  ia6.  *       8  Leach,  loc.  cit.  224. 

1  A.  F.  Leach,  in  Furnivall  Afu-         *  Wordsworth,  139. 
cdlany,  323 ;  Rock,  ii.  430. 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  379 

pageants  and  were  ordered  to  restore  them.  In  the  same  year  a  large 
door  was  made  at  the  late  school-house  that  the  pageants  might  be 
sent  in,  and  ^d.  was  charged  for  housing  every  pageant,  '  and  Noy 
schippe  i2d.'  In  1547  the  valuables  of  the  procession  were  sold,  but 
the  'gear'  (i.e.  the  theatrical  properties)  still  existed  in  1569.  During 
the  Marian  reaction  in  1554  and  1555  '  ft  was  ordered  that  St.  Anne's 
Gild  with  Corpus  Christi  Play  shall  be  brought  forth  and  played  this 
year  V 

The  friendly  relations  of  the  Cathedral  Chapter  to  the  civic  play 
are  noteworthy.  In  1469  the  chapter  paid  the  expenses  of  the  vt'sus 
of  the  Assumption  given  on  St.  Anne's  day  in  the  nave  of  the  church. 
In  1483  it  was  similarly  agreed  to  have  *  Ludum,  sive  Serimonium,  de 
Coronatione,  sive  Assumptione,  beatae  Mariae,  prout  consuetum  fuerat, 
in  navi  dictae  Ecclesiae.'  This  was  to  be  played  and  shown  in  the 
procession  to  be  made  by  the  citizens  on  St.  Anne's  day.  Apparently 
the  crafts  played  the  earlier  plays  of  the  cycle  during  the  progress  of 
the  St.  Anne's  procession  through  the  streets,  and  the  Chapter  gave 
the  Assumption  as  a  finale  to  the  whole  in  the  cathedral  itself.  But 
their  interest  extended  beyond  their  own  visus.  In  1488  Robert  Clarke 
received  an  appointment,  because  '  he  is  so  ingenious  in  the  show  and 
play  called  the  Ascension,  given  every  year  on  St.  Anne's  Day  V 

Under  Elizabeth  a  new  play  appears.  In  1564  the  Corporation 
ordered  '  that  a  standing  [i.e.  non-processional  ?]  play  of  some  story  of 
the  Bible  shall  be  played  two  days  this  summertime.'  The  subject 
chosen  was  Tobias,  and  the  place  the  Broadgate.  Some  of  the  pro- 
perties, e.g.  *  Hell  mouth,  with  a  nether  chap,'  were  possibly  the  old 
'  gear*  of  St.  Anne's  guild.  In  1567  '  the  stage-play  of  the  story  of 
Toby '  was  again  played  at  Whitsuntide 8. 

LITTLE  BADDOW,  ESSEX. 

Little  Baddow  men  hired  the  Chelmsford  (q.v.)  wardrobe  during 
1564-6. 

LONDON. 

William  Fitzstephen  (t  1170-82),  in  a  description  of  London  pre- 
fatory to  his  Vita  of  St.  Thomas  &  Becket,  says : — 

'  Lundonia  pro  spectaculis  theatralibus,  pro  ludis  scenicis,  ludos  habet 

1  Leach,  loc.  cit.  224;  Lincoln  Sta-  6954,  p.  152.     The  latter  has  'Sere- 

tutes,  ii.  ccliv ;  Hist.  MSS.  xiv.  8.  25.  nomium '  (for  Ceremonium).  Mr.  Leach 

1  Wordsworth,  141;  Leach,  loc.  cit.  reads     'Sermonium'     and     translates 

223,  from   Chapter  Act  Book,  A.   31,  'speech/ 

f.  1 8  ;  Shaks.  Soc.  Papers,  iii.  40,  from  »  Leach,  loc.  cit.  227 ;    Gentleman's 

copy  of  same  document  in  liar  I.  MS.  Magazine,  liv.  103. 


380  APPENDIX  W 

sanctiores,  representationes  miraculorum  quae  sancti  confessores 
operati  sunt,  seu  representationes  passionum  quibus  claruit  constantia 
martyrum V 

Nothing  more  is  heard  of  plays  in  London  until  1378,  when  the 
scholars  of  St.  Paul's  petitioned  Richard  II, 

'  to  prohibit  some  unexpert  people  from  representing  the  History  of 
the  Old  Testament,  to  the  great  prejudice  of  the  said  Clergy,  who  have 
been  at  great  expence  in  order  to  represent  it  publickly  at  Christmas  V 

The  chronicler  Malvern  records  that  in  1384, — 

*  Vicesimo  nono  die  Augusti  clerici  Londoniae  apud  Skynneres- 
welle  fecerunt  quendam  ludum  valde  sumptuosum,  duravitque  quin- 
que  diebus  V 

In  1391  Malvern  again  records, — 

'Item  xviijo  die  lulii  clerici  Londonienses  fecerunt  ludum  satis 
curiosum  apud  Skynnereswell  per  dies  quatuor  duraturum,  in  quo  tarn 
vetus  quam  novum  testamentum  oculariter  ludendo  monstrabant  V 

In  1393,  according  to  the  London  Chronicle,  'was  the  pley  of 
seyirt  Katerine  V 

Other  chronicles  record  a  play  in  1409  : — 

'This  yere  was  the  play  at  Skynners  Welle,  whiche  endured 
Wednesday,  Thorsday,  Friday,  and  on  Soneday  it  was  ended  V 

The  accounts  of  the  royal  wardrobe  show  that  a  scaffold  of  timber 
was  built  for  the  King  (Henry  IV),  prince,  barons,  knights,  and  ladies 
on  this  occasion,  and  that  the  play  showed, — 

1  how  God  created  Heaven  and  Earth  out  of  nothing,  and  how  he 
created  Adam  and  so  on  to  the  Day  of  Judgment  V 

Finally,  the  Grey  Friars  Chronicle  mentions  a  yet  longer  play  in 
1411  : — 

1  J.  C.  Robertson,  Materials  for  the  to  be  paid  them  of  his  gift  on  account 

Hist.  ofBecket  (R.  S.),  lii.  o.  Of  the  play  of  the  Passion  of  our  Lord 

8  Dodsley,  Collection  of  Old  Plays  and  the  Creation  of  the  World  by  them 

(1744),    i.    xii.    I    cannot    trace    the  performed  at  Skynner  Well,  after  the 

original  authority.  Feast  of  Bartholomew  last  past.'    But 

8  Malvern,  Continuator  to  Higden's  the  dates  do  not  quite  agree,  and  there 

Polychronicon  (ed.  J.  R.  Lumby  in  R.S.),  may  have  been  a  play  at  Bartholomew- 

ix«  47-  tide  1390  as  well  as  that  of  July,  1391. 

4  Malvern,  loc.  cit.  ix.  259.  Probably          5  London  Chronicle,  80. 
this  is  the  play  for  which  the  Issue  Roll  of         6  London  Chronicle,  91.    The  Cott. 

the  Exchequer  for  Easter—Michaelmas,  MS.     reads    <  Clerkenwelle '    for    the 

1391  (F.  Devon,  Issues  of  the  Exchequer,  'Skynners  Welle*  of  the  Harl.  MS. 

Hen.  Ill-Hen.   VI,  244),  records  on  Gregory's  Chronicle  (Hist.  Coll.  of  a 

July  11, 1391,  a  payment  'to  the  Clerkes  Citizen  of  London,  Camden  Soc.),  105, 

of  the  Parish  Churches  and  to  divers  also    mentions    '  the    grette    playe   at 

other  clerkes  of  the  City  of  London,  inf  Skynners  Welle*  in  1409. 
money  paid  to  them  in  discharge  of  £10         *  J.  H.  Wylie,  Hist,  of  Henry  IV > 

which  the  Lord  and  King  commanded  iv.  213, 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  381 

'  This  year  beganne  a  gret  pley  from  the  begynnyng  of  the  worlde 
at  the  skynners'  welle,  that  lastyd  vij  dayes  contynually ;  and  there 
ware  the  moste  parte  of  the  lordes  and  gen ty lies  of  YnglondV 

The  performers  in  most,  if  not  all,  of  this  group  of  plays  were  the 
clerks  in  minor  orders  who  naturally  abounded  in  London.  The 
Guild  of  St.  Nicholas  of  Parish  Clerks  had  existed  since  1233.  In 
1442  they  received  a  charter,  which  refers  to  'diversis  charitatis  et 
pietatis  operibus  per  ipsos  annuatim  exhibitis  et  inventisV  These 
opera  possibly  include  the  plays,  which  may  have  become  annual 
between  1411  and  1442.  They  seem  to  have  been  given  at  various 
times  of  year,  and  hard  by  the  well,  variously  described  as  Skinners 
Well  or  Clerkenwell.  The  Priory  of  St.  Bartholomew  is  not  far,  and 
the  plays  may  have  had  some  connexion,  at  one  time  or  another,  with 
the  famous  Bartholomew  Fair 3.  It  was  probably  the  double  name  of 
the  well  that  led  Stowe  to  say  that '  the  skinners  of  London  held  there 
certain  plays  yearly,  played  of  Holy  Scripture  V 

There  is  another  gap  of  a  century  in  the  history  of  these  greater 
London  plays.  But  on  July  20,  1498,  Henry  VII  rewarded  'the 
pleyers  of  London'  (Appendix  E,  viii),  and  of  1508  the  annalist  of 
Henry  VII,  Bernard  Andrew,  says : — 

'  Spectacula  vero  natalis  divi  lohannis  vespere  longe  praeclarissima 
hoc  anno  ostensa  fuerunt,  quemadmodum  superioris  mensis  huiusque 
aliquot  festis  diebus  pone  Christi  ecclesiam  circa  urbis  pomaria  divinae 
recitatae  fuere  historiae  V 

Some  of  the  London  churches  had  their  own  plays,  as  may  be  seen 
from  their  churchwardens'  accounts.  Those  of  St.  Margaret's,  South- 
wark,  have  the  following  entries : — 

'  1444-5.  Peid  for  a  play  vpon  Seynt  Lucy  day  [Dec.  13],  and  for 
a  pley  vpon  Seynt  Margrete  day  [July  20],  xiij8  iiijd. 

1445-6.     [Similar  entry.] 

1447-8.    Also  peid  for  a  pley  vpon  Seynt  Margrete  day,  vij8. 

1449-50.    Item,  peyd  vpon  Seynt  Lucy  day  to  the  Clerkes  for 
a  play,  vj»  viijd. 

1450-1.     [Similar  entry.] 

1451-2.    Fyrste,  peyd  to  the  Pleyrs  vpon  Seynt  Margretes  day, 
vij8. 

1  J.     G.     Nichols,      Grey     Friars         s  H.  Morley,  Memoirs  of  Bartholo- 

Chronicle  (Camden  Soc.\  12  ;  R.  How-  mew  Fair,  15. 
lett,  Monumenta  Franciscana  (R.S.),  »•          *  Stowe,  Survey,  7. 
164.  5  Andrew,  Annales  Henr. 

8  J.  Christie,  Some  Account  of  Parish  121. 
Clerks,  24,  71. 


382  APPENDIX  W 

Also  peyd  for  hyryng  of  Germentes  xiiijd. 

1453-7  and  1459  [a  pky  on  St.  Margaret's  day  in  each  year1]/ 

Towards  the  end  of  Henry  VIII's  reign  the  Revels  office  was  able 
to  borrow  '  frames  for  pageants '  from  the  wardens  of  St.  Sepulchre's2. 

Probably  the  guild  of  Parish  Clerks  made  it  a  profession  to  supply 
such  church  plays  as  these  for  a  regular  fee.  They  were  employed 
also  at  the  feasts  of  the  city  guilds.  The  Brewers,  for  instance,  had 
plays  in  1425  and  1433,  anc*  in  1435  paid  '4  clerkis  of  London,  for 
a  play  V  The  Carpenters  paid  iiijfl  iiijd  for  a  play  in  1490  *.  London 
players  occasionally  performed  before  Henry  VII.  Besides  '  the 
players  of  London'  in  1498,  he  rewarded  in  1501  the  players  at 
'Myles  endeV 

Attempts  were  made  to  revive  religious  plays  during  the  Marian 
reaction.  On  June  7,  1557,  'be-gane  a  stage  play  at  the  Grey  freers 
of  the  Passyon  of  Cryst  V  On  St.  Olave's  day,  July  29,  in  the  same 
year  'was  the  church  holiday  in  Silver  street;  and  at  eight  of  the 
clock  at  night  began  a  stage  play  of  a  goodly  matter,  that  continued 
until  xij  at  mydnyght,  and  then  they  mad  an  end  with  a  good  song  V 

The  last  such  play  in  London  was  '  the  acting  of  Christ's  Passion 
at  Elie  house  in  Holborne  when  Gundemore  [Gondomar]  lay  there, 
on  Good-Friday  at  night,  at  which  there  were  thousands  present8/ 
This  would  be  between  1613  and  1622. 

Midsummer  Watch. 

A  '  marching  watch '  was  kept  on  the  eves  of  Midsummer  and 
SS.  Peter  and  Paul  (June  29)  until  1538,  and  revived,  for  one  year 
only,  in  1548.  Some  2,000  men  went  in  armour;  lamps  and  bonfires 
were  lit  in  the  streets,  and  *  every  man's  door  shadowed  with  green 
birch,  long  fennel,  St  John's  wort ;  orpine,  white  lilies  and  such  like, 
garnished  upon  with  garlands  of  beautiful  flowers/  It  seems  to  have 
been  customary  for  the  guilds  to  which  the  Lord  Mayor  and  Sheriffs 
for  the  year  belonged  to  furnish  pageants.  Stowe  says  that  '  where 
the  mayor  had  besides  his  giant  three  pageants,  each  of  the  sheriffs  had 
besides  their  giants  but  two  pageants,  each  their  morris  dance/  In 

1  Collier,  in  Skakesp.   Soe.   Papers,  in  the  thirty-eighth  year  of  his  reign, 

iii.  40.     The   *  pagents '  on  a  roll   of  8  Herbert,  hist,  of  Livery  Companies, 

vellum  belonging  to  the  Holy  Trinity  i.  80. 

Guild  in    St.   Botolph's,    Bishopsgate  4  E.  B.  Jupp,  Hist,  of  Carpenters' 

(1-1463),  were  probably  only  paintings  Company,  198. 

with  descriptive  verses  (Hone,  81).  5  Collier,  i.  51. 

1  Kempe,7i.  The  date  given,  Shrove-  »     fl  Machyn,  138. 

tide,  38  Hen.  VIII,  must  be  wrong,  as  the  7  Machyn,  145. 

king  died  before  Shrovetide  (Feb.  20-2)  '  Prynne,  117. 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  383 

1505  the  Grocers  had  '  a  pageant  for  the  maire  [Sir  John  Wyngar]  at 
Midsomer/  In  1510  Henry  VIII,  disguised  as  a  groom,  came  to  see 
the  Midsummer  Watch,  and  on  St.  Peter's  eve  came  openly  with  the 
queen.  There  were  '  diverse  goodlie  shewes,  as  had  beene  accustomed.' 
In  1522  the  Drapers  resolved  *  that  there  shall  be  no  Mydsom*  pageant 
becaus  there  was  so  many  pageants  redy  standyng  for  the  Emperors 
coming  into  London/  and  *  for  divers  considerations '  to  '  surcease  the 
said  pageants  and  find  xxx  men  in  harness  instead/  But  later  they 
decided  to  '  renew  all  the  old  pageants  for  the  house ;  including  our 
newe  pageant  of  the  Goldyn  Flees  for  the  mayr  against  mydsomr ; 
also  the  gyant,  lord  Moryspyks,  and  a  morys  daunce,  as  was  used 
the  last  year.'  The  account-books  mention  Lord  Moryspyks  or 
'  Marlingspikes/  and  a  '  king  of  the  Moors/  with  a  '  stage  '  and  '  wyld 
fire/  In  1523,  the  King  of  Denmark  being  in  London,  the  Drapers 
allowed  the  Sheriff  two  pageants,  c  but  to  be  no  precedent  hereafter/ 
They  paid  '  for  garnyshyng  and  newe  repay  ring  of  th'  Assumpcion, 
and  also  for  making  a  new  pageant  of  St.  Ursula/  The  King  of 
Denmark  was  duly  brought  to  see  the  watch.  In  1524  they  again  had 
a  pageant,  the  nature  of  which  is  not  specified l. 

LOPHAM,  NORFOLK. 
'Lopham  game'  was  at  Harling  (q.v.)  in  1457. 

LOUTH,  LINCOLNSHIRE. 

An  inventory  of  documents  in  the  rood-loft  in  1516  includes  the 
'hole  Regenall  of  corpus  xfi  play.'  In  1558  the  corporation  paid 
for  a  play  '  in  the  markit-stede  on  corpus  xfi  day/ 

LYDD,  KENT. 

The  town  accounts  show  a  play  of  St.  George  on  July  4,  1456,  and 
payment  to  the  'bane  cryars*  of  'our  play'  in  1468.  In  1422  the 
Lydd  players  acted  at  New  Romney,  and  in  1490  the  chaplain  of  the 
guild  of  St.  George  at  New  Romney  went  to  see  a  play  at  Lydd, 
with  a  view  to  reproducing  it.  Between  1429  and  1490  the  New 
Romney  players  acted  often  at  Lydd,  and  also  players  of  Ruckinge 
(1431),  Wytesham  (1441),  Ham  (1454),  Hythe  (1467),  Folkestone 
(1479),  Rye  (I48o),  Stone  (1490).  Unnamed  players  were  in  the  high 
street  in  14  85'. 

LYNEHAM,  OXFORDSHIRE. 

See  s.  v.  SHIPTON. 

1  Stowe,  Annales,  489  ;  Survey,  38 ;         •  R.  W.  Goulding,  Louth  Records. 
Herbert,  i.    197,  454;    Brand-Ellis,  i.         8  Hist.  MSS.  v.  517. 
166. 


384  APPENDIX  W 

MALDEN,  ESSEX. 
The  Chelmsford  (q.  v.)  play  was  shown  at  Maiden  in  1562. 

MANNINGTREE,  ESSEX. 

John  Manningham,  of  the  Middle  Temple,  wrote  in  his  Diary,  on 
Feb.  8,  1602,  'The  towne  of  Manitree  in  Essex  holds  by  stage  plays  V 
So  Hey  wood,  in  his  Apology  for  Actors  (1612),'  To  this  day  there  be 
townes  that  hold  the  priviledge  of  their  fairs  and  other  charters  by 
yearly  stage-plays,  as  at  Manningtree  in  Suffolke,  Kendall  in  the  North, 
and  others  V  There  are  further  allusions  to  these  plays  in  T.  Nash, 
The  Choosing  of  Valentines, 

*a  play  of  strange  moralitie, 
Showen  by  bachelrie  of  Manning-tree, 
Whereto  the  countrie  franklins  flock-meale  swarme 3 ' ; 
and  in  Dekker,  Seven  Deadly  Sins  of  London  (1607),  '  Cruelty  has  got 
another  part  to  play ;  it  is  acted  like  the  old  morals  at  Manning-tree  V 

MAXSTOKE,  WARWICKSHIRE. 

The  accounts  of  Maxstoke  Priory  (a  house  of  Augustinian  canons) 
for  1430  include,  'pro  ientaculis  puerorum  eleemosynae  exeuntium  ad 
aulam  in  castro  ut  ibi  ludum  peragerent  in  die  Purificationis,  xiv^. 
Unde  nihil  a  domini  [Clinton]  thesaurario,  quia  saepius  hoc  anno  mini- 
stralli  castri  fecerunt  ministralsiam  in  aula  conventus  et  Prioris  ad  festa 
plurima  sine  ullo  regardo  V 

MIDDLETON,  NORFOLK. 

In  1444  the  corporation  of  Lynn  (q.  v.)  showed  a  play  with  Mary 
and  Gabriel  before  Lord  Scales 6. 

MlLDENHALL,    SUFFOLK. 

Thetford  Priory  made  a  payment  to  '  the  play  of  Mydenale '  in 
1503-4  (Appendix  E,  iii). 

MILE  END,  MIDDLESEX. 

Henry  VII  rewarded  'the  Pleyers  at  Myles  End'  on  Aug.  6,  1501 
(Appendix  E,  viii). 

MILTON,  OXFORDSHIRE. 
See  s.v.  SHIPTON. 

MOREBATH,  DEVONSHIRE. 

The  churchwardens'  accounts  record  an  Easter  play  at  some  date 
between  1520  and  1574  7. 

1  Manninghants    Diary     (Camden  *  Dekker's  Plays  (ed.  Pearson). 

Soc.)>  130.  *  Hazlitt-Warton,  iii.  312. 

9  Heywood,     Apology   for     Actqrs  6  Harrod,  Kings  Lynn  Records,  88. 

(Shakespeare  Soc ),  61.  7  W.     Hobhouse,     Churchwardens? 

3  Quoted  in  Variorum^  xvi.  395.  Accounts  (Somerset  Record  Soc.),  209. 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS   385 

NAYLAND,  ESSEX. 

Richard  More,  of  Nayland,  hired  the  Chelmsford  (q.v.)  wardrobe  in 
1566. 

NEWCASTLB-ON-TYNE,  NORTHUMBERLAND. 

The  craft-plays  on  Corpus  Christi  day  are  mentioned  in  several 
fifteenth-century  ordinaries,  the  earliest  being  that  of  the  Coopers  in 
142^.  The  last  years  in  which  performances  can  be  proved  to  have 
been  given  are  1561  and  1562.  Ordinaries  dated  from  1578  to  1589 
stipulate  for  a  performance  by  the  crafts  'whensoever  the  generall 
plaies  of  the  town  of  Newcastle,  antiently  called  the  Corpus  Christi 
plays,  shall  be  plaied,'  or  the  like.  The  determination  of  this  point 
rested  with  the  Corporation.  The  Goldsmiths  drew  up  an  'invoic  of 
all  the  players  apperell  pertainyng  to*  them  in  159!.  The  cost 
of  the  plays  fell  on  the  crafts,  who  took  fixed  contributions  from  their 
members.  The  Taylors  in  1536  required  iijd  from  each  hireling,  and 
vijd  from  each  newly  admitted  member.  The  Fullers  and  Dyers  paid 
9J.  in  1561  for  'the  play  lettine  '  to  four  persons. 

The  mentions  of  '  bearers  of  the  care  and  batieres  '  of  them  '  that 
wated  of  the  paient  *  and  of  '  the  carynge  of  the  trowt  and  wyn  about 
the  town  '  seem  to  show  that  the  plays  were  processional.  On  the 
other  hand  the  one  extant  play  (cf.  p.  424)  ends  with  a  remark  of  the 
Diabolus  to  *  All  that  is  gathered  in  this  stead/  Perhaps  the  pageants 
first  took  part  in  the  Corpus  Christi  procession  proper  and  afterwards 
gathered  in  a  field.  The  Mercers'  ordinary  of  1480  shows  that  the 
procession  was  '  by  vij  in  morning/  and  the  plays  were  certainly  in 
the  evening,  for  it  was  deposed  in  a  law-suit  at  Durham  in  1569  that 
Sir  Robert  Brandling  of  Newcastle  said  on  Corpus  Christi  day,  1562, 
that  '  he  would  after  his  dinner  draw  his  will,  and  after  the  plays  would 
send  for  his  consell,  and  make  it  up  '  (Norfolk  Archaeology  >  iii.  18). 

For  the  list  of  plays,  so  far  as  it  can  be  recovered,  see  p.  424.  The 
ordinary  of  the  Goldsmiths  (1536)  requires  their  play  (Kynges  of 
Coleyn)  to  be  given  at  their  feast1. 

NEW  ROMNEY,  KENT. 

There  are  many  notices  of  a  play  in  the  town  accounts  between 
1428  and  1560.  In  1456  the  wardens  of  the  play  of  the  Resurrection 
are  mentioned.  In  1463  the  jurats  paid  Agnes  Ford  6s.  8d.  'for  the 

1  F.  Holthausen,  Das  Noahspiel  van  kenzie,  Hist,  of  N.  (1827),  ii.  664,707; 

N.  upon   T.  (1897),  ii  ;    H.  Bourne,  F.  W.  Dendy,  Newcastle  Gilds  (Surtees 

Hist,  of  N.   (1736),   139;   J.  Brand,  Soc.),  i.  4;  ii.  161,  164,  171. 
Hist,  of  N.  (1789),  ii.  369;   E.  Mac- 


CHAMBKRS.    H 


886  APPENDIX  W 

play  of  the  Interlude  of  our  Lord's  Passion!  From  1474  the  banns 
of  the  play  are  mentioned.  In  1477  the  play  was  on  Whit-Tuesday. 
In  1518  the  Lord  Warden  of  the  Cinque  Ports  forbade  the  play,  but 
it  was  revived  elaborately  in  1560.  The  accounts  mention  the 
purchase  of  copes  and  vestures  from  the  corporation  of  Lydd,  and 
refer  to  '  a  fool/  *  the  Cytye  of  Samarye,'  '  our  last  play,'  '  the  iijtjl 
play/  'the  iiijth  play/  and  the  'bane  cryers.'  No  crafts  are  mentioned  : 
perhaps  the  play  was  produced  by  the  corporation  itself.  The  per- 
formances may  have  been  on  Crockhill  or  Crockley  Green.  '  Playstool ' 
is  a  common  name  for  a  bit  of  land  in  Kent.  Performances  were 
often  given  in  other  towns:  see  s.v.  LYDD.  The  play  seems  to  have 
been  only  a  Passion  and  Resurrection  play,  and  not  a  complete  cycle. 
*Le  Playboke'  is  mentioned  from  1516.  It  is  in  an  Elizabethan 
inventory  of  town  records.  A  second  play  of  St.  George  was  probably 
started  in  1490  when  a  chaplain  of  the  guild  of  St.  George  went  to  see 
the  Lydd  St.  George  play,  with  a  view  to  reproducing  it.  In  1497  the 
chaplains  received  the  profits  of  the  play.  Players  from  the  following 
towns  are  found  acting  at  New  Romney :  Hythe  (1399),  Lydd  (1422), 
Wittersham  (1426, they  'shewed  th'  interlude'),  Herne  (1429),  Ruckinge 
(1430),  Folkestone  (1474),  Appledore  (1488),  Chart  (1489),  Rye 
(1489),  Wye  (1491),  Brookland  (1494),  Halden  (1499),  Bethersden 
(1508) \ 

NORTHAMPTON,  NORTHAMPTONSHIRE. 

Brotanek  (Angtia,  ?cxi.  21)  conjectures  that  the  Abraham  and  Isaac 
of  the  Dublin  MS.  may  come  from  Northampton  (cf.  p.  427),  and 
hints  at  an  explanation  of  the  '  N.  towne '  in  the  prologue  to  the  Ludus 
Caventriae  as  '  Northampton]  towne'  (cf.  p.  421). 

But  the  only  allusion  even  remotely  suggesting  miracle-plays  that 
I  can  find  in  the  printed  civic  records  is  in  1581,  in  which  year  some 
interrogatories  as  to  St.  George's  Hall  contain  a  deposition  by  an  old 
man  to  the  effect  that  he  had  known  the  hall  fifty  years,  and  that  the 
mayor  and  chamberlains  had  been  wont  to  lay  therein  pageants,  &c.a 

NORWICH,  NORFOLK. 

Whitsun  Plays. 

J.  Whetley  writes  from  Norwich  on  Corpus  Christi  even  (May  20), 
1478,  to  Sir  John  Paston  in  London,  of  ^  visit  of  Lord  Suffolk  to 
Hellesden, '  at  hys  beyng  ther  that  daye  ther  was  never  no  man  that 

1  W.  A.  Scott-Robertson, ' The  Passion  xvii.  28. 

Play  and  Interludes  at  New  Rofoncy  a  C.   A.  Markham  and  J.  C.  Cox, 

(Archatologia  Cantiana,  xiii.  216)  ;  Northampton  Borough  Records,  ii.  184. 
Hist.  MSS.  v.  533  ;  Arch.  Cantiana, 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS   387 

playd  Herrod  in  Corpus  Crysty  play  better  and  more  agreable  to  hys 
pageaunt  than  he  dud  V 

I  do  not  kn6w  whether  it  is  fair  to  infer  from  this  that  in  1478  the 
Norwich  plays  were  not  at  Whitsuntide,  but  at  Corpus  Christi ;  but 
this  would  account  for  J.  Whetley's  trope. 

On  Sept,  21,  1527,  the  guild  of  St.  Luke,  composed  of  painters, 
braziers,  plumbers,  &c.,  made  a  presentment  to  the  Assembly  of  the 
town  that, — 

'  where  of  longtime  paste  the  said  Guylde  of  Seynt  Luke  yerly  till 
nowe  hath  ben  used  to  be  kept  and  holden  within  the  citie  aforesaid 
upon  the  Mundaye  in  pentecoste  weke  at  which  daye  and  the  daye 
next  ensuyng  many  and  divers  disgisyngs  and  pageaunts,  as  well  of 
the  lieffs  and  martyrdoms  of  divers  and  many  hooly  Saynts,  as  also 
many  other  light  and  feyned  figurs  and  picturs  of  other  persones 
and  bests ;  the  sight  of  which  disgisings  and  pageaunts,  as  well  yerly 
on  the  said  Mondaye  in  pentecoste  weke  in  the  time  of  procession 
then  goyng  about  a  grett  circuitte  of  the  forsaid  citie,  as  yerly  the 
Tuysday  in  the  same  weke  [serving]  the  lord  named  the  Lord  of 
Misrule  at  Tumlond  within  the  same  citie,  hath  ben  and  yet  is  sore 
coveted,  specially  by  the  people  of  the  countre.' 

The  presentment  goes  on  to  show  that  much  resort  and  profit  have 
accrued  to  the  city,  but  all  the  cost  has  fallen  on  the  guild,  which  '  is 
almost  fully  decayed ' ;  and  urges  an  order, — 

<  that  every  occupacion  wythyn  the  seyd  Citye  maye  yerly  at  the 
said  procession  upon  the  Mondaye  in  Pentecost  weke  sette  forth  one 
pageaunt.' 

It  was  agreed  that  each  craft  should  play, — 

'  one  such  pageaunt  as  shalbe  assigned  and  appoynted  by  Master 
Mair  and  his  brethern  aldermen,  as  more  playnly  appereth  in  a  boke 
thereof  made." 

In  the  same  hand  is  a  list  of  crafts  and  plays  (cf.  p.  425)*. 

Some  extracts  made  in  the  eighteenth  century  from  the,  now  lost, 
books  of  the  Grocers'  Company,  contain  (a)  two  versions  of  their  play 
on  The  Fall,  dating  from  1533  anc*  I5^5  respectively  (cf.  p.  425),  and 
(&)  various  notices  of  the  same  from  the  Assembly  Book. 

The  latter  begin  in  1534,  when  '4  Surveyors  of  ye  Pageant'  with 
a  '  Bedell '  were  chosen,  and  an  assessment  of  22J.  lorf.  made  for  the 
pageant  and  the  Corpus  Christi  procession.  The  expenses  include, 
besides  repairs  to  the  pageant,  fees  to  actors,  refreshments,  &c., — 

1  Fasten  Letter*,  iii.  217.  Early    Norwich     Pageants    {Norfolk 

a  H.  Harrod,  Particulars  concerning     Archaeology,  iiL  3). 

CC  2 


388  APPENDIX  W 

4  It.  to  Sr  Stephen  Prowet  for  makyng  of  a  newe  ballet,  i2<*. 

House  ferme  for  ye  Pageant,  a8.' 

The  pageant  went  in  1535  and  1536.  In  1537  it  'went  not  at 
Wytsontyde/  but  went  in  October  '  in  y6  Processyon  for  y«  Byrthe  of 
Prynce  Edward/  From  1538  to  1546  it  went,  the  assessment  for 
pageant  and  procession  being  about  20$.  to  30^.  As  to  1547  the  record 
is  not  clear.  Then  there  is  a  gap  in  the  extracts,  and  from  1556 
onwards  the  c  Gryffon/  '  Angell/  and  '  Pendon '  of  the  Corpus  Christi 
procession,  with  flowers,  grocery,  and  fruit '  to  garnish  y«  tre  w*V  &£•> 
appear  alone  in  the  accounts.  In  1559  was  '  no  solemnite'  at  all.  In 
1563  it  was  agreed  that  .the  pageant  should  be  'preparyd  ageynst  y® 
daye  of  Mr  Davy  his  takyng  of  his  charge  of  ye  Mayralltye/  with 
a  '  devyce '  to  be  prepared  by  the  surveyors  at  a  cost  of  6s.  8d.  The 
play  cannot  have  quite  lapsed,  for  in  1565  a  new  version  was  written 
(cf.  p.  425).  It  was  apparently  contemplated  that  it  might  be  played 
either  alone  or  in  a  cycle.  To  the  same  year  belongs  the  following 

'Inventory  ofy*p'ticulars  appartaynyng  toy*  Company  ofy*  Grocer \r, 
a.d.  ij6f. 

A  Pageant,  y*  is  to  saye,  a  Howse  of  Waynskott  paynted  and  buylded 
on  a  Carte  w^  fowre  whelys. 

A  square  topp  to  sett  over  ye  sayde  Howse. 

A  Gryffon,  gylte,  w*  a  fane  to  sette  on  ye  sayde  toppe. 

A  bygger  Iron  fane  to  sett  on  ye  ende  of  ye  Pageante. 

iiij*x  iij  small  Fanes  belongyng  to  y*  same  Pageante. 

A  Rybbe  colleryd  Red. 

A  cote  &  hosen  wfc  a  bagg  &  capp  for  dolor,  steyned. 

2  cotes  &  a  payre  hosen  for  Eve,  stayned. 
A  cote  &  hosen  for  Adam,  Steyned. 

A  cote  w*  hosen  &  tayle  for  y®  serpente,  steyned,  w*  a  w*  heare. 
A  cote  of  yellow  buckram  w*  y«  Grocers'  arms  for  ye  Pendon 
bearer. 

An  Angell's  Cote  &  over  hoses  of  Apis  Skynns. 

3  paynted  clothes  to  hang  abowte  ye  Pageant. 
A  face  &  heare  for  y«  Father. 

2  hearys  for  Adam  &  Eve. 

4  head  stallis  of  brode  Inkle  wth  knopps  &  tassells, 
6  Horsse  Clothes,  stayned,  w*  knopps  &  tassells. 
Item,  Weights,  &c/ 

There  is  a  final  memorandum  that  in  1570  the  pageant  was  broken 
to  pieces  for  six  years  '  howse  ferm '  due.  There  had  been  no  '  semblye 
nor  metynge '  of  the  Company  for  eight  years.  The  pageant  had 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS   389 

stood  for  six  years  in  a  '  Gate  bowse/  and  then  c  at  y*  Black  Fryers 
brydge  in  open  strete/  where  it  became  'so  weather  beaten,  y*  y« 
cheife  parte  was  rotton1.' 

Processions. 

There  were  three  notable  annual  processions  at  Norwich. 

(a)  The  Corpus  Christi  Procession,  in  which  the  crafts  were  held 
to  take  part  in  1489,  and  which  appears,  as  above  stated,  in  the 
Grocers'  records  until  1558.  They  seem  to  have  been  represented 
by  the  '  griffon '  from  the  top  of  their  pageant,  a  banner  with  their 
arms,  a  crowned  angel,  and  an  emblematic  '  tree '  of  fruit  and  grocery 
(possibly  the  ( tree  of  knowledge ') 2. 

(£)  The  Procession  of  the  Guild  of  S.  Thomas  &  Becket  on  the  day 
of  his  Translation  (July  7)  to  his  chapel  in  the  wood.  Here  interludes 
were  played 8. 

(c)  The  Riding  of  the  Guild  of  St.  George  on  his  day  (April  23). 
This  dates  from  at  least  1408,  and  a  good  many  details  as  to  it  are 
preserved  *. 

NUNEATON,  WARWICKSHIRE. 

The  Musores  de  Eaton'  played  at  Maxstoke  Priory  between  1422 
and  1461  (Appendix  E,  ii). 

OXFORD,  OXFORDSHIRE. 

The  following  extracts  from  the  Bursars'  computi  of  Magdalen 
College  point  to  a  Quern  quaeritis  of  the  longer  type,  with  the  '  Noli  me 
tangere'  episode. 

1486-7.  '  pro  factura  sepulturae  erga  pascham.    xijd.' 

1506-7.  '  pro  scriptura  lusi '  of  St.  Mary  Magdalen.    xd.' 

[There  were  further  payments  in  connexion  with  this  play,  and  for 
music.] 

1509-10.  'pro  pane,  cibo  et  aliis  dads  pueris  ludentibus  in  die 
Paschae  .  ,  .  xvijd  ob.' 

i5I4-5«  'pro  carnibus  consumptis  in  capella  tribus  noctibus  ante 
Pascha  et  in  tempore  Nativitatis.  ij8.' 

1518-9.  'pro  tinctura  et  factura  tunicae  eius  qui  ageret  partem 
Christi  et  pro  crinibus  mulieribus.  ijfl  vjd.' 

1536-7.  'pro  carbonibus  consumptis  -in  sacrario  per  qustodes 
sepulchri,  et  per  pueros  in  festis  hiemalibus.1 

[Repeated  in  other  years.] 

1  R.  Fitch,  Norwich  Pageants  :  The  Norfolk,  iii.  176. 
Grocers'  Play,  in  Norfolk  Archaeology,         *  Blomfield,  iv.  426. 
v.  8,  and  separately.  *  Cf.  vol.  i.  p.  222. 

9  Fitch,  op.  cit. ;  Blomfield,  Hist,  of 


390  APPENDIX  W 

A  chapel  inventory  of  1495  includes  'unum  frontale  .  .  .  et  unum 
dorsale  cum  quibus  solet  sepulcrum  ornari.' 

The  same  accounts  (cf.  p.  248)  show  items  for  plays  in  the  hall  at 
various  seasons,  and  for  the  Boy  Bishop  at  Christmas l. 

The  churchwardens  of  St.  Peter's  in  the  East  kept  between  1444 
and  1600  a  stock  of  players'  garments,  and  let  them  out  on  hire2. 

PENRHYN,  CORNWALL. 
See  Texts  (i),  Cornish  Plays,  Origo  Mundi. 

PERRANZABULO,  CORNWALL. 

The  earliest  historical  notice  of  plays  in  Cornwall  is  by  Richard 
Carew  in  1602  : — 

'The  Guary  miracle,  in  English,  a  miracle-play,  is  a  kinde  of 
Enterlude,  compiled  in  Cornish  out  of  some  Scripture  history,  with 
that  grossenes  which  accompanied  the  Romanes  vetus  Comoedia.  For 
representing  it  they  raise  an  earthen  Amphitheatre  in  some  open  field, 
hauing  the  Diameter  of  his  enclosed  playne  some  40  or  50  foot.  The 
Country  people  flock  from  all  sides,  many  miles  off,  to  hear  and  see  it : 
for  they  haue  therein,  deuils  and  deuices,  to  delight  as  well  the  eye  as 
the  eare;  the  players  conne  not  their  parts  without  booke,  but  are 
prompted  by  one  called  the  Ordinary,  who  followeth  at  their  back  with 
the  book  in  his  hand,  and  telleth  them  softly  what  they  must  pronounce 
aloud/ 

Whereupon  Carew  has  a  story  of  a  '  pleasant  conceyted  gentleman ' 
who  raised  laughter  by  repeating  aloud  all  the  Ordinary's  asides  to 
himself. 

One  Mr.  Scawen  (ti66o)  describes  the  Guirremears  as — 

'  solemnized  not  without  shew  of  devotion  in  open  and  spacious 
downs,  of  great  capacity,  encompassed  about  with  earthen  banks,  and 
in  some  part  stonework  of  largeness  to  contain  thousands,  the  shapes 
of  which  remain  in  many  places  to  this  day,  though  the  use  of  them 
long  since  gone.' 

Bp.  Nicholson,  writing  in  1700,  says  that  the  plays  were : — 

*  called  Guirimir,  which  Mr  Llhuyd  supposes  a  corruption  of  Guari- 
mirkle,  and  in  the  Cornish  dialect  to  signify  a  miraculous  play  or 
interlude.  They  were  composed  for  begetting  in  the  common  people 
a  right  notion  of  the  Scriptures,  and  were  acted  in  the  memory  of  some 
not  long  since  deceased.1 

The  eighteenth-century  antiquary,  Borlase,  identifies  the  places  in 

1  Cf.  Appendix  E  (v). 

a  W.  Hobhouse,  Churchwardens'  Accounts  (Somerset  Record  Soc.),  232. 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS   391 

which  the  miracle-plays  were  given  with  those  known  as  '  rounds/  or, 
in  Cornish,  pldn  an  guare.  Of  these  he  describes  and  figures  two. 
That  of  St.  Just  was  of  stone,  126  feet  in  diameter,  with  seven  rows  of 
seats  inside.  It  was  much  decayed  when  Norris  wrote  in  1859.  That 
of  Perranzabulo,  or  Piran-sand,  was  of  earth,  130  feet  in  diameter, 
with  a  curious  pit  in  the  centre,  joined  to  the  outer  ring  by  a  narrow 
trench.  Borlase  thought  that  this  was  used  for  a  Hell l.  It  was  more 
likely  filled  with  water  for  Noah's  ship  to  float  upon. 

The  Ordinalia  printed  by  Mr.  Norris  take  the  Cornish  plays  back 
to  at  least  the  fourteenth,  if  not  the  thirteenth  century.  The  circular 
diagrams  in  the  manuscript  exactly  fall  in  with  the  round  pldn  an 
guare  described  by  Borlase  and  others.  They  show  a  ring  of  eight  loci 
or  sedes  (cf.  p.  83),  for  which  the  terms  used  in  the  stagfc-directions  are 
pulpita  or  tenti,  with  an  open  circular  space  in  the  middle,  which  the  stage- 
directions  call  \hzplatea.  The  action  is  partly  at  thepu7pifa,  partly  in  the 
platea.  A  new  character  often  marks  his  appearance  by  strutting  about 
his pulpitum,  or  perhaps  around  the  ring — Hie  pompabit  Abraham,  &c. 

In  the  English  stage-directions  to  the  later  (before  1611)  Creation  of 
the  World,  the  platea  becomes  the  playne>  and  for  pulpitum  the  term 
room  is  used.  The  manager  of  the  play  is  the  '  conveyour/  Some  of 
the  directions  are  curious  and  minute.  At  the  opening,  '  The  father 
must  be  in  a  clowde,  and  when  he  speakethe  of  heaven  let  ye  levys 
open.1  Within  is  a  *  trone/  which  Lucifer  tries  to  ascend.  After  the 
fight,  *  Lucifer  voydeth  &  goeth  downe  to  hell  apareled  fowle  wtb  fyre 
about  hem  turning  to  hell  and  every  degre  of  devylls  of  lether  & 
spirytis  on  cordis  runing  into  ye  playne  and  so  remayne  ther/  Mean- 
while are  got  ready  '  Adam  and  Eva  aparlet  in  whytt  lether  in  a  place 
apoynted  by  the  conveyour  &  not  to  be  sene  tyll  they  be  called  &  thei 
knell  &  ryse.'  Paradise  has  '  ii  fayre  trees  in  yt '  and  a  '  fowntaine ' 
and  'fyne  flowers/  which  appear  suddenly.  Similarly,  a  little  later, 
'  Let  fyshe  of  dyuers  sortis  apeare  &  serten  beastis  as  oxen  kyne  shepe 
&  such  like/  Lucifer  incarnates  as  '  a  fyne  serpent  made  wth  a  virgyn 
face  &  yolowe  heare  vpon  her  head/  Presently  comes  the  warning, 
'  ffig  leaves  redy  to  cover  ther  members/  and  at  the  expulsion,  '  The 
garmentis  of  skynnes  to  be  geven  to  adam  and  eva  by  the  angell. 
Receave  the  garmentis.  Let  them  depart  out  of  paradice  and  adam 
and  eva  following  them.  Let  them  put  on  the  garmentis  and  shewe 
a  spyndell  and  a  dystaff?  The  Cain  and  Abel  scene  requires  'a 

1  Norris,  ii.  452  ;  E.  H.  Pedler  in  2),  207  ;  Nat.  Hist,  of  Cornwall,  295  ; 

Norris,  ii.  507  ;  Carew,  Survey  of  Corn-  T.  F.  Ordish,  Early  London  Theatres, 

wall ;  D .  <J  il  bert ,  History  of  Cornwall ;  15. 
Borlase,  Antiquities  of  Cornwall  (ed. 


892  APPENDIX  W 

chawbone'  ('Cain's  jawbone,  that  did  the  first  murder').  Seth  is  led 
to  Paradise  and  '  Ther  he  vyseth  all  thingis,  and  seeth  ij  trees  and  in 
the  one  tree  sytteth  mary  the  virgyn  &  in  her  lappe  her  son  jesus 
in  the  tope  of  the  tree  of  lyf,  and  in  the  other  tree  ye  serpent  w°k 
caused  Eva  to  eat  the  appell/  When  Adam  dies,  his  soul  is  taken 
'to  lymbo/  and  he  is  buried  'in  a  fayre  tombe  wth  som  churche 
songis  at  hys  buryall.'  The  Noah  scene  requires  '  tooles  and  tymber 
redy,  wth  planckis  to  make  the  arcke,  a  beam  a  mallet  a  calkyn  yre[n] 
ropes  mass[t]es  pyche  and  tarr/  Presently  €  let  rayne  appeare '  and 
'a  raven  &  a  culver  ready.'  When  the  flood  ends,  'An  alter  redy 
veary  fayre,'  at  which  'som  good  church  songes'  are  sung,  and 
'  a  Rayne  bowe  to  appeare.'  Like  the  earlier  plays,  this  ends  with  a 
call  on  the  minstrels  to  pipe  for  a  dance. 

A  study  of  the  place  names  in  the  Ordinalia  led  Mr.  Pedler  to 
suggest  that  they  probably  belonged  to  the  neighbourhood  of  Penrhyn, 
and  may  have  been  composed  at  the  collegiate  house  of  Glasney.  The 
St.  Meriasek  play  is  assigned  by  Mr.  Stokes  to  Camborne,  of  which 
that  saint  was  patron.  It  ends  with  an  invocation  of  St.  Meriasek, 
St.  Mary  of  Camborne,  and  the  Apostles. 

PRESTON,  LANCASHIRE. 

A  Corpus  Christi  play  was  acted  within  the  lifetime  of  Weever,  who 
was  born  1576  and  wrote  1631  *. 

I  find  no  trace  of  plays  at  the  meetings  of  the  Guild  Merchant, 
although  there  was  always  a  great  procession,  which  from  1762  or 
earlier  included  such  allegorical  figures  as  Adam  and  Eve  for  the 
Tailors,  Vulcan  for  the  Smiths,  &c.a 

READING,  BERKSHIRE. 

The  churchwardens'  accounts  of  St.  Lawrence's  record  '  a  gaderyng 
of  a  stage-play*  in  1498. 

In  1507  a  play  of  Adam  and  Eve  was  held  on  '  the  Sonday  afore 
Bartylmastyde '  '  in  the  Forbury.'  *  There  was  a  '  schapfold/  but 
'pagentts'  were  also  used.  A  Corpus  Christi  procession  is  also 
mentioned  in  1509,  1512,  and  1539. 

In  1512  also  was  the  'play  of  Kayme,'  and  in  1515,  'Cayme's 
pageaunt*  in  the  market-place. 

On  May  i,  1499,  and  again  in  1539,  was  the  Kings  of  Cologne. 
This  was  distinct,  no  doubt,  from  the  '  king  play/  with  its  '  tree/  '  king 

1  Sces.v.  Kendal. 

*  W.  A.  Abram,  Memorials  of  the  Preston  Guilds^  18,  ai,  61,  99. 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS   893 

game/  or  'kyng  ale/  which  took  place  at  Whitsuntide  (cf.  vol.  i. 
p.  173)*  But  the  date,  May  i  (for  which  cf.  Abingdon),  is  curious  for 
a  miracle-play,  and  must  have  been  influenced  by  the  folk  feast. 

A  payment  for  'rosyn  to  the  resurrecyon  pley'  (possibly  for  making 
a  blaze:  cf.  p.  23,  note  5)  occurs  in  1507,  and  in  1533-5  payments 
to  *Mr  Laborne'  'for  reforming  the  Resurrecon  pley/  and  'for  a 
boke  '  of  it. 

In  1508  was  a  'pageaunt  of  the  Passion  on  Easter  Monday1.' 

RUCKINGE,  KENT, 
Ruckinge  players  were  at  New  Romney  in  1430,  and  Lydd  in 


RYE,  SUSSEX. 
Rye  players  were  at  Lydd  in  1480,  and  at  New  Romney  in  1489. 

SABSFORD(?),  ESSEX. 

'Sabsforde  men1  hired  the  Chelmsford  (q.v.)  wardrobe  in  1562, 
1563,  and  1566.     But  I  can  find  no  such  place. 

SAFFRON  WALDEN,  ESSEX. 

'  Men  of  Waldyne  '  hired  the  Chelmsford  (q.  v.)  wardrobe  during 
1564-6. 

ST.  JUST,  CORNWALL. 
See  s.  v.  PERRANZABULO. 

SALISBURY,  WILTSHIRE. 

A  cathedral  inventory  of  1222  includes  :  — 

'  Coronae  ij  de  latone  ad  representations  faciendas/ 

These  latten  '  coronae  '  may,  I  suppose,  have  been  either  crowns  for 

the  Magi,  or  *  stellae  V 

The  churchwardens'  accounts  of  St.  Edmund's  for  1461  include  an 

item  *  for  all  apparel  and  furniture  of  players  at  the  Corpus  Christi  V 

SHELFHANGER,  NORFOLK. 

Thetford  Priory  made  a  payment  '  in  regard  to  Schelfanger  play  ' 
in  1507-8  (Appendix  E,  iii). 

1  C.  Kerry,  History  of  St.  Lawrence^  *  W.  H.  R.  Jones,   Vctus  Registrum 

Heading,  233.     Extracts  only  from  the  Sarisburiense  (R.S.),  "•  129. 

accounts  are  given;  a  full  transcript  8  Col.    State    Papers,    Dom.    AddL 

would  probably  yield   more  informa-  (1580-1625;,  101. 
tion. 


394  APPENDIX  W 

SHIPTON,  OXFORDSHIRE. 

It  was  decided  (t  1220-28),  as  part  of  an  award  concerning  the 
rights  of  collation  to  the  churches  of  Shipton  and  Bricklesworth,  both 
being  prebends  in  Sarum  cathedral,  as  follows : — 

*  Actiones  autem,  si  quae  competant,  in  villa  de  Fifhide  et  de  Idebire 
cedant  canonico  de  Brikeleswrth.     Actiones  vero,  si  quae  competant, 
in  villa  de  Mideltone  et  de  Langele,  cedant  canonico  de  Schiptone. 
Emolumentum  vero  actionum,  si  quae  competant,  in  villa  de  Linham 
aequaliter  inter  se  dividant  V 

The  editor  of  the  Sarum  Charters  can  only  explain  actiones  as 
'  plays/  Ducange  gives  the  word  in  the  sense  of  spectacula. 

All  the  places  named,  Fyfield,  Idbury,  Milton,  Langley,  and  Lyne- 
ham,  are  in  Wychwood,  and  may  have  formed  in  the  thirteenth  century, 
if  they  do  not  all  now,  part  of  the  parish  of  Shipton-under- Wychwood. 

SHREWSBURY,  SHROPSHIRE. 

The  civic  orders  and  accounts  refer  occasionally  to  plays.  The 
first  on  record  was  given  before  Prince  Arthur  in  1495.  In  1516  the 
abbot  of  Shrewsbury,  in  1533  the  bishop  of  Exeter,  and  in  1542  the 
royal  commissioners  were  present.  The  subject  in  1516  was  the  mar- 
tyrdoms of  Saints  Feliciana  and  Sabina.  In  1518  it  was  the  Three 
Kings  of  Cologne.  In  1510,  1518,  1533,  1553,  and  1556  the  per- 
formances were  at  Whitsuntide.  The  bailiffs,  according  to  a  notice 
in  1556,  'set  forward'  the  plays,  and  the  'lusores'  belonging  to  the 
town,  who  are  mentioned  in  1527  and  1549,  were  perhaps  the  per- 
formers. The  locality  was,  in  1542,  the  churchyard  of  St.  Chad's. 
In  1495,  1516,  and  1533  ^  was  ^e  quarry  outside  the  walls,  where  it 
is  stated  in  1570  that  'the  plases  have  bin  accustomyd  to  be  usydV 
Here  there  were  traces  of  a  seated  amphitheatre  as  late  as  17 79s. 
Thomas  Ashton  became  master  of  the  free  school  in  1561,  and  he 
produced  plays  in  the  quarry.  Elizabeth  was  to  have  been  at  his 
Julian  the  Apostate  in  1565,  but  came  too  late.  In  1567  he  gave  the 
Passion  of  Christ*.  An  undated  list  of  Costs  for  the  Play  includes 
'  a  desert's  (disarcfs)  hed  and  berd/  '  vi  dossen  belles '  for  a  morris, 
1  gonne  poudor '  and  other  attractions  for  a  devil 6. 

Shrewsbury  Show. 
The  craft-guilds  took  part  in  the  Corpus  Christi  procession,  and 

1  Jones  and  Macray,  Salisbury  Char-  4  Phillips,  aoi. 

/*rj(R.S.),  xi,  103.  *  Owen1  and     Blakeway,    hist,    of 

1  Cf.  Appendix  E  (vi).  Shrewsbury,  L  328. 

*  Phillips,  Hut.  of  Shrewsbury,  aoi. 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS   395 

the  guild  of  Mercers  inflicted  a  penalty  of  1 2</.  on  brethren  who  on 
that  feast  should  '  happen  to  ride  or  goe  to  Coventre  Faire  or  elleswhere 
out  of  the  town  of  Shrewesburye  to  by  or  sell1/  Until  about  1880 
Shrewsbury  Show  was  held  on  the  Monday  after  Corpus  Christ!  day. 
The  crafts  had  tableaux  which,  after  the  Reformation  at  least,  were 
emblematic  rather  than  religious 2 ;  thus — 

Tailors.     Adam    and   Eve    or  Painters.     Rubens. 

Elizabeth.  Bricklayers.    King  Henry  VIII. 

Shearmen.     St.  Blasius  or  Ed-  Shoemakers.     SS.  Crispin  and 

ward  IV.  Crispinian. 

Skinners   and   Glovers.     King  Barbers.     St.  Katharine. 

of  Morocco.  Bakers.     Venus  and  Ceres. 
Smiths.     Vulcan. 

SLEAFORD,  LINCOLNSHIRE. 

The  accounts  of  the  guild  of  Holy  Trinity  for  1480  include  : — 

'  It.  payd  for  the  Ryginall  of  ye  play  for  ye  Ascencon  &  the  wrytyng 
of  spechys  &  payntyng  of  a  garmet  for  god,  iij8.  viijd.8 ' 

Miss  Toulmin  Smith  finds  in  the  same  accounts  for  1477,  a  'kyngyng/ 
i.  e.  Three  Kings  of  Cologne  on  Corpus  Christi  day 4 ;  but  I  read  the 
entry : — 

'  It.  payd  for  the  ryngyng  of  ye  same  day,  ijd/ 

Oliver,  the  historian  of  the  guild,  reads  '  hymnall '  for  '  Ryginall '  in 
the  1480  entry.  He  also  asserts  that  there  was  a  regular  Corpus 
Christi  play  by  the  crafts.  This  seems  improbable  in  a  place  of  the 
size  of  Sleaford,  and  in  fact  Oliver's  elaborate  description  is  entirely 
based  upon  data  from  elsewhere,  especially  the  Gubernacio  Ludi  of 
Beverley  (cf.  p.  340)*. 

STAPLEFORD,  ESSEX. 

'Men  of  Starford'  hired  the  Chelmsford  (q.v.)  wardrobe  during 
1564-6.  I  find  no  Starford,  but  a  Stapleford  Tawney  and  a  Stapleford 
Abbots  in  Essex. 

STOKE  BY  NAYLAND,  ESSEX. 

Sir  John  Howard '  jafe  to  the  pleyeres  of  Stoke,  ij8 '  on  Jan.  12,  1466. 
Lord  Howard  '  paid  to  the  pleirs  of  Turton  Strete  xxd '  on  Aug.  29, 

1  Shropshire  Arch.  Soc.  Trans,  viii.  from    1477   to  1545  are  in  this  MS. ; 

273.  but  most  of  them  are  very  summary. 

1  F.  A.  Hibbert,  Influence  and  De-  *  York  Plays,  Ixv. 

velopment    of  English    Craft    Guilds  '  G.  Oliver,  Hist,  oj  Holy   Trinity 

(1891),  113.  Guild  at  Sleaford  (1837),  5°>  68»  73. 

J  Add.  MS.  28,533,  flf.  ir,  a.   Computi  82. 


396  APPENDIX  W 

1481.  Thorington  is  still  the  name  given  to  part  of  Stoke.  There  is 
also  an  independent  township  so  named  in  Essex. 

On  May  22,  1482,  Lord  Howard  'yaff  to  the  cherche  on  Whitson 
Monday  at  the  pley  x8.' 

On  Jan.  2,  1491,  the  Earl  of  Surrey  paid  iij8  iiijd  'in  reward  to  the 
panget '  [?  pageant]  *. 

STONE,  KENT. 
Stone  players  were  at  Lydd  in  1490. 

TEWKBSBURY,  GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 

The  churchwardens'  accounts  in  ^578  mention  payments  for  'the 
players'  geers,  six  sheep-skins  for  Christ's  garments';  and  an  inventory 
of  1585  includes  '  eight  heads  of  hair  for  the  Apostles,  and  ten  beards, 
and  a  face  or  vizier  for  the  Devil  V 

TINTINHULL,  SOMERSET. 

The  churchwardens*  accounts  for  1451-2  include  a  receipt: — 
1  de  incremento  unius  ludi  vocati  Christmasse  play8/ 

WAKEFIELD,  YORKSHIRE. 
See  Texts  (i),  Towneley  Plays. 

WIMBORNE  MINSTER,  DORSETSHIRE. 

Players  of  '  Wymborne  Minster'  Were  rewarded  by  Henry  VII  on 
Jan.  i,  1494  (Appendix  E,  viii). 

WINCHESTER,  HAMPSHIRE. 

The  early  use  of  the  Quern  quatritis  ia  the  liturgy  of  the  cathedral 
served  by  the  Benedictines  of  St.  Swithin's  Priory  has  been  fully  dis- 
cussed in  Chapter  xviii  and  Appendix  O. 

In  1486,  Henry  VII  was  entertained  at  dinner  on  a  Sunday  in  the 
castle  with  a  performance  of  Christi  descmstis  ad  inferos  by  the  '  pueri 
eleemosynarii '  of  the  monasteries  of  St.  Swithin's  and  Hyde4. 

WINDSOR,  BERKS. 

On  May  24,  1416,  Henry  V  invested  the  Emperor  Sigismund  with 
the  Garter,  the  annual  feast  being  deferred  from  April  23  for  that  pur- 
pose. Mr.  John  Payne  Collier  says,  '  A  chronicle  in  the  Cottonian 

1  Cf.  Appendix  E  (vii).  the    possession    of    the    Ecclesiastical 

1  Collier,  ii.  67.  Commissioners  ( York  Plays,  Ixv).   The 

8  Hothouse,  184.  date  is  given  as  1487  by  Hazlitt-Warton, 

*  Hazlitt-Warton,     iii.     163,     from  but  the  visjt  is  said  to  be  that  '  on  occa- 

Register   of   St.    Swithin's.      This    is  sion  of  the  birth  of  Prince  Arthur/ which 

amongst  the  Wulvuey  MSS.,  now  in  took  place  in  the  autumn  of  1486. 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS   397 

collection  gives  a  description  of  a  performance  before  him  and 
Henry  V,  on  the  incidents  of  the  life  of  St.  George.  The  representa- 
tion seems  to  have  been  divided  into  three  parts,  and  to  have  been 
accomplished  by  certain  artificial  contrivances,  exhibiting,  first,  "the 
armyng  of  Seint  George,  and  an  Angel  doyng  on  his  spores  [spurs]"; 
secondly,  "  Seint  George  riding  and  fightyng  with  the  dragon,  with 
his  spere  in  his  hand " ;  and,  thirdly,  "  a  castel,  and  Seint  George 
and  the  Kynges  daughter  ledyng  the  lambe  in  at  the  castel  gates." 
Here  we  have  clearly  the  outline  of  the  history  of  St.  George  of 
Cappadocia,  which  often  formed  the  subject  of  a  miracle-play ;  but 
whether,  in  this  instance,  it  was  accompanied  with  dialogue,  or  was 
(as  is  most  probable)  merely  a  splendid  dumb  show,  assisted  by 
temporary  erections  of  castles,  &c.,  we  are  not  informed'  This 
performance  is  accepted  from  Collier,  i.  29,  by  Ward,  i.  50,  Pollard,  xx, 
and  other  distinguished  writers.  They  ought  to  have  known  him  better. 
The  authority  he  quotes,  Cotton.  MS.  Calig.  B.  II,  is  wrong.  But 
in  Cotton.  MS.  Julius  B.  I,  one  of  the  MSS.  of  the  London  Chronicle, 
is  the  following  passage,  '  And  the  first  sotelte  was  our  lady  armyng 
seint  George,  and  an  angel  doyng  on  his  spores ;  the  ijde  sotelte  was 
seint  George  ridyng  and  fightyng  with  the  dragon,  with  his  spere  in 
his  hand;  the  iijde  sotelte  was  a  castel,  and  seint  George,  and  the 
kynges  doughter  ledynge  the  lambe  in  at  the  castel  gates.  And  all 
these  sotelties  were  served  to  the  emperor,  and  to  the  kyng,  and  no 
ferther:  and  other  lordes  were  served  with  other  sotelties  after  theire 
degrees  V  The  representation,  then,  was  in  cake  or  marchpane.  The 
term  'soteltie'  is  surely  not  uncommon2.  But  it  has  led  a  French  scholar 
into  another  curious  mistake.  According  to  M.  E.  Picot '  La  sotelty 
parait  n'avoir  6t6  qu'une  simple  farce,  comme  la  sotternie  nlerlandaise8.' 
A  mumming  by  Lydgate  in  1429-30  seems  to  have  introduced 
a  'miracle*  of  St.  Clotilda  and  the  Holy  Ampulla  (cf.  vol.  i.  p.  397). 

WITHAM,  ESSEX. 

1  Barnaby  Riche  of  Witham '  hired  the  Chelmsford  (q.  v.)  wardrobe 
in  1566. 

WlTTKRSHAM,   KENT. 

Wittersham  players  were  at  New  Romney  in  1426  and  Lydd  in  144 1. 

WOODHAM  WALTER,  ESSEX. 

'Mrs.  Higham  of  Woodham  Walter'  hired  the  Chelmsford  (q.v.) 
wardrobe  in  1570-2. 

1  London  Chronicle,  159.  Sutteltics  erga  Natale.' 

1  Cf.  c.  g.  Durham  Accounts,  i.  95,         *  E.  Picot,  in  Romania,  vii.  245. 
101,   105    '  Soteltez  .  .  .  Sutiltez  .  .  . 


398  APPENDIX  W 

WOODKIRK,  YORKSHIRE. 
See  Jexts,  (i)  Townehy  Plays. 

WORCESTER,  WORCESTERSHIRE. 

A  cathedral  inventory  of  1576  includes: — 

'players  gere 

A  gowne  of  freres  gyrdles.  A  woman's  gowne.  A  Kfl  cloke  of 
Tysshew.  A  Jerkyn  and  a  payer  of  breches.  A  lytill  cloke  of 
tysshew.  A  gowne  of  silk.  A  Jerkyn  of  greene,  2  cappes,  and  the 
devils  apparell  V 

There  was  a  Corpus  Christi  play,  mentioned  in  1467  and  1559.  It 
consisted  of  five  pageants,  maintained  by  the  crafts,  and  was  held 
yearly,  if  the  corporation  so  decided.  In  1584  a  lease  of  the  'vacant 
place  where  the  pagantes  do  stand '  was  granted  for  building,  and  there 
was  a  building  known  as  the  'Pageant  House1  until  17 38*. 

WREXHAM,  DENBIGHSHIRE. 

The  corporation  of  Shrewsbury  saw  a  play  by  '  quibusdam  inter- 
lusoribus  de  Wrexam'  in  1540  (Appendix  E,  vi). 

WRITTLE,  ESSEX. 

'  Parker  of  Writtell '  twice  hired  the  Chelmsford  (q.  v.)  wardrobe 
during  1570-2.  See  also  p.  184,  n.  2. 

WYCOMBE,  BUCKINGHAMSHIRE. 

Henry  VII  rewarded  players  of  Wycombe  on  Dec.  31,  1494 
(Appendix  E,  viii). 

WYE,  KENT. 

Wye  players  were  at  New  Ronrney  in  1491. 

WYMONDHAM,  NORFOLK. 

An  account  of  the  *  husbands  for  the  wache  and  play  of  Wymond- 
ham/  made  up  to  June,  1538,  includes  payments  for  'the  play/ 
'devyls  3hoes/  'the  giant,'  a  man  'in  armour/  'the  revels  and 
dance's8/  It  was  at  this  play  on  July  i,  1549,  that  Kett's  rebellion 
broke  out.  According  to  Alexander  Neville,  the  '  ludi  ac  spectacula 
.  . .  antiquitus  ita  instituta '  lasted  two  days  and  nights ;  according  to 
Holinshed, c  one  day  and  one  night  at  least  V 

1  Hist.  AfSS.  xiv.  8,  187.  8  Norfolk  Archaeology,  ix.  145 ;  xi. 

*  Halliwell-Phillipps,  i.  342  ;    Toul-      346. 

min  Smith,  Ordinances  of  Worcester  in         *  A.  itfevyllus,  De  furoribus  Norfol- 
English  Guilds^  385,  407  (E.  E.  T.  S.).       (unsium   Ketto    Dace    (1575),!.  18; 

Holinshed  (1587),  iii.  1028. 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  399 

YARMOUTH,  NORFOLK. 

The  churchwardens'  accounts  of  St.  Nicholas's  contain  items  between 
1462  and  1512  for  'making  a  new  star,'  'leading  the  star/  'a  new 
balk  line  to  the  star  and  ryving  the  same  star/  In  1473  an^  1486 
are  mentioned  plays  on  Corpus  Christi  day;  in  1489,  a  play  at 
Bartholomew  tide ;  in  1493,  a  game  played  on  Christmas  day1. 

YORK,  YORKSHIRE. 

[Authorities. — The  chief  are  R.  Davies,  Municipal  Records  of  the  City 
of  York  (1843);  L.  Toulmin  Smith,  York  Plays  (1885).  From  one  or 
other  of  these  all  statements  below,  of  which  the  authority  is  not  given, 
are  taken.  The  municipal  documents  used  are  enumerated  in  York 
Plays,  ix.  The  earliest  date  from  1371.  F.  Drake,  Eboracum  (1736) ; 
R.  H.  Skaife,  Guild  of  Corpus  Christi  (Surtees  Soc.) ;  H.  T.  Riley,  in 
Hist.  MSS.  Comm.  i.  109 ;  M.  Sellers,  City  of  York  in  the  Sixteenth 
Century,  in  Eng.  Hist.  Rev.  ix.  275  ;  and  some  craft-guild  documents  in 
Archaeological  Review,  i.  221 ;  Antiquary,  xi.  107 ;  xxii.  266 ;  xxiii.  27, 
may  also  be  consulted.] 

Liturgical  Plays. 

The  traditional  Statutes  of  York  Cathedral,  supposed  to  date  in 
their  present  form  from  about  1255,  provide  for  the  Pastor es  and  the 
Stella. 

4  Item  inueniet  [thesaurarius]  Stellas  cum  omnibus  ad  illas  pertinen- 
tibus,  praeter  cirpos,  quos  inueniet  Episcopus  Puerorum  futurorum 
[?  fatuorum],  vnam  in  nocte  natalis  Domini  pro  pastoribus,  et  ijw 
in  nocte  Epiphaniae,  si  debeat  fieri  presentacio  iijum  regumV 

Corpus  Christi  Plays. 

The  first  mention  is  in  1378,  when  part  of  a  fine  levied  on  the 
Bakers  is  assigned  'a  la  pagine  des  ditz  Pestours  de  corpore  cristi/ 
In  1394  a  civic  order  required  all  the  pageants  to  play  in  the  places 
'antiquitus  assignatis/  in  accordance  with  the  proclamation,  and 
under  penalty  of  a  fine.  In  1397  Richard  II  was  present  to  view 
the  plays.  In  1415  the  town  clerk,  Roger  Burton,  entered  in  the 
Liber  Memorandorum  a  copy  of  the  Ordo  paginarum  ludi  Corporis 
Christi,  which  was  a  schedule  of  the  crafts  and  their  plays,  together 
with  the  Proclamacio  ludi  corporis  cristi  facienda  in  vigilia  corporis 
cristi.  At  this  date  the  plays  were  given  annuattm.  About  1440 
the  existing  manuscript  of  the  plays  was  probably  written.  It  was 
a  'register/  drawn  up  from  the  'regynalls'  or  'origenalls'  in  the 
possession  of  the  several  crafts,  and  kept  by  the  city8.  Halfway 

1  L.    G.    Bolingbroke,    in    Norfolk     Sarum,  i.  xxii*. 
Archaeology \  xi.  334.  *  C£  p.  409. 

*  Lincoln  Statutes,  ii.  98;  cf.  Use  of 


400  APPENDIX  W 

through  the  sixteenth  century  performances  become  irregular.  In 
1535  the  Creed  play,  in  1558  the  Paternoster  play  was  given 
instead.  In  1548  'certen  pagyauntes  . . .  that  is  to  say,  the  deyng 
of  our  lady,  the  assumption  of  our  lady,  and  the  coronacion  of  our 
lady/  were  cast  out.  In  1550  and  1552  the  play  was  suppressed  on 
account  of  the  plague,  half  the  ' pageant  silver'  in  1552  being  given 
to  the  sick.  In  1562  the  corporation  attempted  in  vain  to  defer  it 
to  St.  Barnabas  day.  In  1564,  1565,  and  1566  it  was  not  given,  on 
account  of  war  and  sickness.  In  1568  there  was  a  dispute  as  to 
whether  it  should  be  played,  and  it  was  ordered  that  it  must  be 
'perused  and  otherwaise  amended'  first.  In  1569  it  was  given  on 
Whit-Tuesday.  It  then  seems  to  have  lain  dormant  until  1579,  when 
the  Council  made  an  order  that  it  should  be  played  but  *  first  the 
booke  shalbe  caried  to  my  Lord  Archebisshop  [Edwin  Sandys]  and 
Mr.  Deane  [Mathew  Hutton]  to  correcte,  if  that  my  Lord  Arche- 
bisshop doo  well  like  theron.'  Various  notes  upon  the  'register,' 
addressed  to  a  '  Doctor/  and  indicating  that  this  or  that  play  had  been 
revised,  were  probably  written  at  this  time.  In  1580  the  citizens 
petitioned  for  the  play,  and  the  mayor  replied  that  the  request  would 
be  considered.  There  is  no  proof  that  any  performance  took  place 
after  this  date;  although  the  Bakers  were  still  choosing  'pageant- 
masters'  in  I6561. 

The  ordering  of  the  plays  about  1415  was  as  follows:  Yearly  in 
the  first  or  second  week  in  Lent,  the  town  clerk  copied  the  '  sedulae 
paginarum '  from  the  Ordo  in  the  Liber  Memorandorum  and  delivered 
it  to  the  crafts  'per  yj  servientes  maioris  ad  clavam.'  On  the  eve 
of  Corpus  Christi  a  proclamation  of  mayor  and  sheriffs  forbade 
:  distorbaunce  of  the  kynges  pees,  and  ye  play,  or  hynderyng  of  ye 
processioun  of  Corpore  Christi/  It  went  on  to  direct  that  the  pageants 
must  be  played  at  the  assigned  places,  that  the  men  of  the  crafts  are 
to  come  forth  in  customary  array  and  manner,  '  careynge  tapers  of  ye 
pagentz/  that  there  shall  be  provided  'good  players,  well  arayed 
and  openly  spekyng/  and  that  all  shall  be  ready  to  start  *  at  the 
mydhowre  betwix  iiijth  and  Vth  of  the  cloke  in  the  mornynge,  and 
then  all  oyer  pageantz  fast  followyng  ilk  one  after  oyer  as  yer  course 
is,  without  tarieng/  Fines  are  imposed  for  any  neglect  or  failure. 
At  this  date  the  play  and  the  Corpus  Christi  procession  were  on  the 
same  day.  In  1426  it  is  recorded  that  a  Franciscan  preacher, 
William  Melton,  while  commending  the  play, '  affirmando  quod  bonus 
erat  in  se  et  laudabilis  valde/  urged  that  it  should  be  put  on  the  day 

1  York  Playst  xxxv,  xli;  Arch.  Revitw>  L  331. 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  401 

before  Corpus  Christi,  so  as  not  to  interfere  with  the  ecclesiastical 
feast !.  This  seems  to  have  been  agreed  to,  but  the  arrangement 
did  not  last.  The  procession  was  under  the  management  of  a  Corpus 
Christi  guild,  founded  in  1408,  and  the  statutes  of  this  guild  dated 
in  1477  show  that  it  was  then  the  procession  which  was  displaced, 
falling  on  the  Friday  after  Corpus  Christi  day2. 

Thus  the  plays  were  essentially  the  affair  of  the  whole  community, 
and  the  c6ntrol  of  them  by  the  mayor  and  council  may  be  further 
illustrated.  In  1476  the  council  made  an  order  regulating  the  choice 
of  actors,  and  laid  down — 

'  That  yerely  in  the  tyme  of  lentyn  there  shall  be  called  afore  the 
maire  for  the  tyme  beyng  iiij  of  the  moste  connyng  discrete  and  able 
players  within  this  Citie,  to  serche,  here,  and  examen  all  the  plaiers 
and  plaies  and  pagentes  thrughoute  all  the  artificers  belonging  to 
Corpus  XH  Plaie.  And  all  suche  as  thay  shall  fynde  sufficiant  in 
personne  and  connyng,  to  the  honour  of  the  Citie  and  worship  of  the 
saide  Craftes,  for  to  admitte  and  able;  and  all  other  insufficiant 
personnes,  either  in  connyng,  voice,  or  personne  to  discharge,  ammove, 
and  avoide.  And  that  no  plaier  that  shall  plaie  in  the  saide  Corpus  X^ 
plaie  be  conducte  and  reteyned  to  plaie  but  twise  on  the  day  of 
the  saide  playe;  and  that  he  or  thay  so  plaing  plaie  not  ouere 
twise  the  saide  day,  vpon  payne  of  xl*  to  forfet  vnto  the  chaumbre 
as  often  tymes  as  he  or  thay  shall  be  founden  defautie  in  the 
same/ 

By  'twise'  is  probably  meant  'in  two  distinct  pageants';  for  each 
pageant  repeated  its  performance  at  several  stations.  In  1394  these 
stations  were  'antiquitus  assignatis/  In  1399  the  commons  petitioned 
the  council  to  the  effect  that  Me  juer  et  les  pagentz  de  la  jour  dc 
corpore  cristi '  were  not  properly  performed  on  account  of  the  number 
of  stations,  and  these  were  limited  to  twelve.  In  later  years  there 
were  from  twelve  to  sixteen,  and  from  1417  the  corporation  made 
a  profit  by  letting  to  prominent  citizens  the  right  to  have  stations 
opposite  their  houses.  A  list  of  'Leases  for  Corpuscrysty  Play1 
in  1554,  for  instance,  shows  twelve  stations  bringing  in  from  xiijd 
to  iij8  riijd  each,  while  nothing  was  charged  for  the  places  'at  the 
Trinitie  yaits  where  the  clerke  kepys  the  register/  'at  the  comon 
Hall  to  my  Lord  Maior  and  his  bredren,'  'at  Mr.  Bekwyth's  at 

1  Drake,    Eboracum,     App.     xxix;  A.  W.  Ward  (ed.  2,  1899),  i.  53,  trans- 

Davics,     243 ;      York     Plays,     xxxiv.  late    '  professor     of    holy    pageantry.' 

Melton  is  called  '  sacrae  paginae  pro-  The   '  sacred    page/  however,    is    the 

fessor,'  which  Drake  and  many  light-  Bible,  and  the  title -S.T.P.,  or  D.D. 

heaited   scholars  after  hhn,  down  to  a  Davies,  245. 

CHAMBERS     II  D    (1 


402  APPENDIX  W 

Hosyerlane  end,  where  as  my  Lady  Mayres  and  her  systers  lay1 
and  'uppon  the  Payment/ 

Outward  signs  of  the  civic  control  were  the  '  vexilla  ludi  cum  armis 
civitatis,'  which  were  set  up  at  the  stations  by  order  of  the  mayor  on 
Corpus  Christi  eve.  Apparently  the  city  claimed  also  to  put  its  mark 
on  the  pageants  themselves,  for  in  an  agreement  of  1422  merging  the 
pageants  of  the  Shoemakers,  Tilemakers,  Hayresters,  and  Millers  it 
was  declared,  '  quod  nulla  quatuor  artium  praedictarum  ponet  aliqua 
signa,  arma,  vel  insignia  super  paginam  praedictam,  nisi  tantum  arma 
huius  honorabilis  civitatis/  But  the  more  important  crafts,  who  had  a 
pageant  to  themselves,  may  not  have  been  subject  to  this  restriction. 

Although  the  corporation  profited  from  the  '  dimissio  locorum  ludi 
Corporis  Christi/  they  did  not  meet  many  of  the  expenses.  They 
paid  for  the  services  of  the  minstrels  employed,  and  for  refreshments 
for  themselves  and  for  important  visitors  to  the  town.  They  occasion- 
ally helped  out  the  resources  of  a  poor  craft.  The  following  extract 
from  the  Chamberlains'  accounts  for  1397  seems  to  be  quite 
exceptional : — 

'  Expens*  in  festo  de  Corpore  Xp'  L 

Item :  pro  steyning  de  iiijor  pannos  ad  opus  paginae,  iiij8. 

Et  pro  pictura  paginae,  ij». 

Et  pro  vexillo  novo  cum  apparatu,  xij8  ijd. 

Et  in  portacione  et  reportacione  meremii  ad  barras  coram  Rege,  ij8  jd. 

Et  pro  xx  fursperres  ad  barras  praedictas  coram  Rege,  v«  xd. 

Et  pro  xix  sapplynges  emptis  de  lohanne  de  Craven  pro  barris 
praedictis,  vj8  viijd. 

Et  viij  portitoribus  ducentibus  et  moventibus  paginam,  vg  iiijd. 

Et  lanitori  Sanctae  Trinitatis  pro  pagina  hospitanda,  iiijd. 

Et  ludentibus,  iiijd. 

Et  ministrallis  in  festo  de  Corpore  Xp'i,  xiij8  iiij^ 

Et  in  pane,  cervisiis,  vino,  et  carnibus,  et  focalibus  pro  maiore  et 
probis  hominibus  in  die  ad  ludum,  xviij*  viijd. 

Et  in  ministrallis  domini  Regis  ac  aliorum  dominorum  supervenien- 
tibus,  vip  vij8  iiijd. 

Et  ministris  camerae  in  albo  panno  et  rubeo  pro  adventu  Regis, 
Iviij*  x<V 

Certainly  the  corporation  did  not  themselves  provide  a  *  pagina '  in 
1415  or  later  years.  I  think  that  in  1397  they  prepared  one  for  some 
allegorical  performance  of  welcome,  distinct  from  the  play  itself,  to 
Richard  II.  The  king  was  evidently  placed  at  the  gate  of  Trinity 
Priory,  where  was  the  first  station  as  late*  as  1569. 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  403 

But  the  bulk  of  the  cost  fell  upon  the  crafts.    They  had  to  build, 
repair, decorate,  and  draw  the  pageant  (Latin, pagina\  English, pagtaunt, 
paiaunt)  pachent,  pagendt,  pagyant^  padgin>  padgion,  paidgion,  padzhand, 
&c.,  &c.).    They  had  to  house  it  in  one  of  the  'pageant  howses' 
which  until  recently  gave  a  name  to  *  Pageant  green/  and  for  each  of 
which  a  yearly  rent  of  xijd  seems  to  have  been  the  usual  charge. 
They  had  also  doubtless  to  provide  dress  and  refresh  the  actors ;  and 
some  of  their  members  were  bound  personally  to  conduct  the  pageant 
on  its  journey.     The  fully  organized  craft-guilds  appointed  annual 
'  pageant-masters/  and  met  the  ordinary  charges  by  a  levy  of '  pageant- 
silver'  upon  each  member  according  to  his  status.     The  amounts 
varied  from  id.  to  &/.,  and  were  supplemented  by  the  proceeds  of  fines 
and  payments  on  admissions  and  on  setting  up  shop.     Smaller  guilds 
were  often  grouped  together,  and  produced  one  pageant  amongst  three 
or  four  of  them.     Even  the  unincorporated  trades  did  not  escape.    In 
1483  four   Innholders  undertook  the  responsibility  of  producing  a 
pageant  for  eight  years  on  condition  of  a  fixed  payment  of  ^d.  from 
each  innholder  in.  the  city.     Exceptional  expenses  were  sometimes  met 
in  exceptional  ways.     The  Mercers  gave  free  admission  into  their 
fraternity  to  one  Thomas  Drawswerd,  on  condition  that  he  should 
1  mak  the  Pagiant  of  the  Dome  ...  of  newe  substanciale  for  vij  marks 
and  the  old  pageant/     In  1501  the  Cartwrights  made  four  new  wheels 
to  a  pageant,  and  were  thereupon  discharged  from  further  charges  for 
6d.  a  year.     Evidently  the  obligation  of  producing  a  pageant  was 
considered  an  onerous  one,  and  as  trades  rose  and  fell  in  York,  the 
incidence  of  it  upon  this  or  that  trade  or  trades  was  frequently  altered. 
All  such  rearrangements  came  before  the  civic  authorities,  and  many 
of  them  are  upon  record.    Naturally  they  involved  some  corresponding 
revision,  piecing  together,  or  splitting  up  of  plays  (cf.  p.  412).     I  only 
find  one  example  of  a  play  produced  by  any  other  body  than  a  craft. 
The  Hospital  of  St.  Leonard  produced  the  play  of  the  Purification  in 
1415,  but  had  ceased  to  do  so  some  time  before  1477.     It  is  to  be 
noted  that  in  1561  the  Minstrels  took  their  place  with  the  other  crafts, 
and  became  responsible  for  the  Herod  play  3. 

Pater-Nosier  Play. 

Wyclif  in  his  De  Officio  Pas  for  alt,  cap.  15  (1378),  says  that, — 
'  herfore  freris  han  taujt  in  Englond  j?e  Paternoster  in  Englijcsh 
tunge,  as  men  seyen  in  J>e  pleye  of  Yorke  V 

1  Antiquary,  xxiii.  29.  8  Wyclif,  English  Works,  ed.  Mathew 

8  York  Plays,  xxi,  125  ;  E.H.R.  ix.      (E.  E.  T.  S.),  429. 
285. 

D  d  a 


404  APPENDIX  W 

The  reference  here  is  to  a  performance  distinct  from  the  Corpus 
Christi  play.  The  preamble  to  a  return  of  the  ordinances  and  so  forth 
of  the  guild  '  Orationis  Domini/  made  in  1389,  states  that 

'  Once  upon  a  time,  a  Play  setting  forth  the  goodness  of  the  Lord's 
Prayer  was  played  in  the  city  of  York ;  in  which  play  all  manner  of 
vices  and  sins  were  held  up  to  scorn,  and  the  virtues  were  held  up  to 
praise.' 

The  guild  was  formed  to  perpetuate  this  play,  and  the  members  were 
bound  to  produce  it  and  accompany  it  through  the  streets.  In  1389 
they  had  no  possessions  beyond  the  properties  of  the  play  and  a  chest. 
A  computes  of  the  guild  for  1399  contains  an  entry  of  an  old  debt  of 
2s.  2d.y  owed  by  John  Downom  and  his  wife  for  entrance  fee : — 

'  Seel  dictus  Johannes  dicit  se  expendisse  in  diuersis  expensis  circa 
ludum  Accidiae  ex  parte  Ric.  Walker  ij8  jd,  ideo  de  praedicto  petit 
allocari  V 

It  would  appear  that  by  1488  the  guild  had  been  converted  to  or 
absorbed  in  a  guild  of  the  Holy  Trinity,  which  was  moreover  the  craft- 
guild  of  the  Merchants  or  Mercers.  Certainly  in  that  year  this  guild 
chose  four  pageant-masters  to  bring  forth  the  Paternoster  play.  They 
were  to  bring  in  the  pageants  <  within  iiij  days  next  after  Corpus  Christi 
Day2/  In  1488  the  Paternoster  play  was  presumably  a  variant  for 
the  usual  Corpus  Christi  plays.  It  was  similarly  played  on  Corpus 
Christi  day  in  1558.  The  management  was  in  the  hands  of  one  of  the 
few  unsuppressed  guilds,  that  of  St.  Anthony;  but  the  corporation 
gathered  '  pageant  silver '  from  the  crafts  and  met  the  charges.  A 
;  bayn/  or  messenger,  rode  to  proclaim  the  play  on  St.  George's  day, 
and  another  on  Whit  Monday.  Another  performance  took  place  on 
Corpus  Christi  day  (now  called  c  Thursday  next  after  Trinitie  Sonday '), 
1572.  The  book  was  '  perused,  amended  and  corrected/  Neverthe- 
less, on  July  30  the  council  sent  a  <  trewe  copie '  of  it,  at  his  request, 
to  the  Archbishop  [Grindal]  of  York,  and  although  in  1575  they  sent 
a  deputation  to  urge  him  to  appoint  a  commission  to  reform  '  all  suche 
the  play  bookes  as  perteyne  this  cittje  now  in  his  grace's  custodie/ 
there  is  no  proof  that  his  grace  complied. 

Creed  Play. 

As  already  stated,  the  guild  of  Corpus  Christi  had  nothing  to  do 
with  the  regular  craft-plays.  But  in  1446,  William  Revetor,  a  chantry 
priest  and  \\arden  of  the  guild,  bequeathed  to  it  a  Mudus  incompara- 

1   y*>*  Plays,  xxix;  Tonlmin,  English  digs  (E.E.T.S.),  137* 
a  Antiquary,  xxii.  265. 


REPRESENTATIONS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS    405 

bilis '  called  the  *  Crede  play,'  to  be  performed  every  tenth  year  *  in 
variis  locis  dictae  civitatis/    An  inventory  of  1465  includes : — 

'Liber  vocatus  Originale  continens  Articulos  Fidei  Catholicae  in 
lingua  anglicana,  nuper  scriptum,  appreciatum  x11. 

Et  alius  liber  inveteratus  de  eodem  ludo,  c8. 

Et  alius  liber  de  eodem  anglice  vocatus  Crede  Play  continens  xxij 
quaternos/ 
There  were  also  many  banners  and  properties,  amongst  which 

'  Et  xij  rotulae  nuper  scriptae  cum  articulis  fidei  catholicae,  apprec' 
iij8  iiijd. 

Et  una  clavis  pro  sancto  Petro  cum  ij  peciis  unius  tunicae  depictae, 
apprec*  xijd. 

Et  x  diademata  pro  Xp'o  et  apostolis  cum  una  larva  et  aliis  noveni 
cheverons,  vjX* 

Various  performances  of  the  Creed  play  are  recorded.  In  1483  it 
was  given  on  Sunday,  September  7,  before  Richard  III,  by  order  of 
the  Council, '  apon  the  cost  of  the  most  onest  men  of  every  parish  in  thys 
Cite.'  From  1495  decennial  performances  can  be  traced,  generally 
about  Lammas  (August  i),  and  'at  the  common  hall/  In  1535  the 
Corpus  Christi  play  proper  was  omitted,  and  the  crafts  contributed 
'  pageant  silver '  to  the  Creed  play  at  Lammas.  But  they  refused  to 
give  way  to  it  again  in  1545.  The  guild  was  suppressed  in  1547,  and 
the  '  original  or  regestre '  passed  into  the  hands  of  the  hospital  of 
St.  Thomas.  In  1562  the  corporation  proposed  the  Creed  play  as 
a  possible  alternative  for  '  th'  ystories  of  the  old  and  new  testament '  on 
St.  Barnabas  day;  and  in  1568  they  again  designed  to  replace  the 
regular  Corpus  Christi  play  by  it^  But  first  they  submitted  it  to  the 
Dean  of  York,  Matthew  Hutton,  who,  in  a  letter  still  extant,  advised 
that — 

'  thogh  it  was  plawsible  to  yeares  ago,  and  wold  now  also  of  the 
ignorant  sort  be  well  liked,  yet  now  in  this  happie  time  of  the  gospel), 
I  knowe  the  learned  will  mislike  it,  and  how  the  state  will  beare  with 
it,  I  knowe  not/ 

Consequently  the  book  was  €  delyveryd  in  agayn,'  and  no  more  is 
heard  of  it. 

Mr.  Davies  suggests  that  the  play  probably  fell  into  twelve  scenes, 
in  each  of  which  one  of  the  apostles  figured.  If  so,  there  is  perhaps 
an  allusion  to  a  performance  of  it  in  a  letter  of  Henry  VIII  to  the 
justices  of  York  in  which  he  speaks  of  a  riot  which  took  place — 

*  at  the  acting  of  a  religious  interlude  of  St.  Thomas  the  Apostle 
made  in  the  said  city  on  the  23**  of  August  now  last  past .  . .  owing 


406  APPENDIX  W 

to  the  seditious  conduct  of  certain  papists  who  took  a  part  in  preparing 
for  the  said  interlude/ 

He  requires  them  to  imprison  any  who  in  '  performing  interludes 
which  are  founded  on  any  portions  of  the  Old  or  New  Testament '  use 
language  tending  to  a  breach  of  the  peace l. 

St.  George  Riding. 

In  April,  1554,  the  Council  made  an  order  for  '  Seynt  George  to 
be  brought  forth  and  ryde  as  hath  been  accustomed/  and  the  following 
items  in  the  accounts  show  that  the  personages  in  the  procession  were 
much  the  same  as  at  Dublin  (q.  v.) : — 

*  to  the  waites  for  rydyng  and  playing  before  St.  George  and  the 
play.' 

'to  the  porters  for  beryng  of  the  pagyant,  the  dragon  and  St. 
Xp'ofer.' 

1  to  the  King  and  Quene  [of  Dele]  that  playd/ 

1  to  the  May  [the  Maid].' 

''to  John  Stamper  for  playing  St.  George  V 

Midsummer  Show. 

As  the  regular  plays  waned,  the  'show'  or  '  watch'  of  armed  men  on 
Midsummer  eve  became  important.  There  is  an  ordinance  for  it  in 
1581.  In  1584  it  took  place  in  the  morning,  and  in  the  afternoon 
John  Grafton,  a  schoolmaster,  gave  at  seven  stations  a  play  with 
'certaine  compiled  speaches/  for  which  the  council  allowed  him  to 
have  *  a  pageant  frame/  Apparently  the  Baker's  pageant  was  repaired 
for  the  purpose.  In  1585  Grafton  borrowed  the  pageants  of  the 
Skinners,  Cooks,  Tailors,  Innholders,  Bakers,  and  Dyers,  and  gave 
another  play.  Grafton's  account  for  1585  mentions  '  the  hearse/  c  the 
angell/  '  the  Queene's  crowne/  '  the  childe  one  of  the  furyes  bare/ 
He  got  iij8,  vjs,  viijd  for  his  pains 8. 

1  Halliwell,  Letters  of  the  Kings  of        *  Davies,  263. 

England*  i.  354,  from  a  Latin  original         8  Davies,    273 ;    Arch.    Review ',   L 
in  the  Bodl.  Rawtiwon  AfSS.  aai. 


407 
X 

TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  AND  EARLY  TUDOR 
INTERLUDES 

I.  MIRACLE-PLAYS. 

CHESTER  PLAYS. 

Manuscripts. 

(i)  Hg.  1 1475-1500.  Hengwrt  MS.  229,  in  the  library  of 
Mr.  Wynne  of  Peniarth,  containing  Play  xxiv  (Antichrist)  only. 
Probably  a  prompter's  copy,  as  some  one  has  '  doubled  it  up  and 
carried  it  about  in  his  pocket,  used  it  with  hot  hands,  and  faded 
its  ink/ 

(ii)  D.  1591.  Devonshire  MS.,  in  the  library  of  the  Duke  of 
Devonshire,  written  by  *  Edward  Gregorie,  a  scholar  of  Bunbury/ 

(iii)  W.  1592.  Brit.  Mus.  Addl  MS.  10,305.  Signed  at  the 
end  of  each  play  'George  Bellin/ 

(iv)  h.  1600.  Brit.  Mus.  Harl.  MS.  2013,  also  signed  after  some 
of  the  plays  by  '  George  Bellin '  or  '  Billinges/  A  verse  proclamation 
or  '  banes '  is  prefixed,  and  on  a  separate  leaf  a  copy  of  the  prose 
proclamation  made  by  the  clerk  of  the  pentice  in  1544  (cf.  p.  349) 
with  a  note,  in  another  hand. 

(v)  B.  1604.  Bodl.  MS.  175,  written  by  'Gulielmus  Bedford,' 
with  an  incomplete  copy  of  the  '  banes/ 

(vi)  H.  1607.  Brit.  Mus.  Harl.  MS.  2124,  in  two  hands,  the 
second  being  that  of  '  Jacobus  Miller/  An  historical  note,  dated  1628, 
is  on  the  cover. 

(vii)  M.  MS.  in  Manchester  Free  Library,  containing  fragment  of 
Play  xix  (Resurrection)  only. 

[The  MSS.  D,  W,  h,  B  are  derived  from  a  common  source,  best 
represented  by  B.  MS.  H  varies  a  good  deal  from  this  group,  and 
is  the  better  text.  MS.  Hg  is  probably  related  to  H.] 

Editions. 

(a)  1818.  Plays  iii,  x  (Noah,  Innocents)  and  Banes;  J.  H.  Mark- 
land,  for  Roxburghe  Club  (No.  1 1). 

(b)  1836.    Play  xxiv  (Antichrist)',    J.  P.  Collier,  Five  Miracle- 
Plays. 

(c)  1838.    Plays  iii,  xxiv  (Noah,  Antichrist)  ;  W.  Marriott,  English 
Miracle-Plays. 


408  APPENDIX  X 

(d)  1843-7,  1853.     Cycle;   Thomas  Wright,  from  MS.  W,  for 
Shakespeare  Society. 

(e)  1883.     Part  of  Play   xix   (Resurrection),    from    MS.  M,  in 
Manchester  Guardian ,  for  May  19,  1883. 

(f)  1890.     Plays  iii,  part  of  iv  (Noah,  Isaac);  Pollard,  8. 

(g)  1893-.     Cycle  (vol.   i   with   Introduction,  Banes    and   Plays 
i-xiii  only  issued  by  1902) ;  H.  Deimling,  from  MS.  H  (with  colla- 
tion), for  E.  E.  T.  S.  (Extra  Series,  Ixii). 

(h)  1897.  Plays  v,  xxiv  (Prophetae,  Antichrist) ;  Manly,  i.  66, 
170,  from  (g)  and  MS.  Hg  respectively. 

[F.  J.  Furnivall,  Digty  Plays,  xx,  prints  eighteen  additional  lines  to 
the  Banns  as  given  by  Deimling  from  MSS.  h,  B.  These  are  from 
a  copy  in  Rogers' s  Breviary  of  Chester  (cf.  p.  350),  HarL  MS.  1944. 
A  distinct  and  earlier  (pre-Reformation)  Banns  is  printed  by  Morris, 
307,  from  HarL  MS.  2150  (cited  in  error  as  2050),  which  is  a  copy  of 
the  White  Book  of  the  Pentice  belonging  to  the  City  of  Chester.] 

The  Cycle. 

The  list  of '  pagyns  in  play  of  Corpus  Xpi '  contained  in  the  '  White 
Book  of  the  Pentice '  (HarL  MS.  2150,  f.  85  b),  and  given  apparently 
from  this  source,  by  Rogers  (Furnivall,  xxi),  makes  them  twenty-five 
in  number,  as  follows  : — 

i.  The  fallinge  of  Lucifer.  xiv.  The  cominge  of  Christe  to 

ii.  The  creation  of  ye  worlde.  lerusalem. 

iii.  Noah  &  his  shipp.  xv.  Christs    maundy  with    his 

iv.  Abraham  &  Isacke.  desiples. 

v.  Kinge    Balack    &   Balaam  xvi.  The  scourginge  of  Christe. 

with  Moyses.  xvii.  The  Crusifienge  of  Christ. 

vi.  Natiuytie  of  our  Lord.  xviii.  The  harrowinge  of  hell, 

vii.  The  shepperdes  offeringe.  xix.  The  Resurrection, 

viii.  Kinge  Harrald  &  y®  mounte  xx.  The  Castle  of  Emaus  &  the 

victoriall.  Apostles. 

ix.  Ye  3  Kinges  of  Collen.  xxi.  The  Ascention  of  Christe. 

x.  The    destroyeinge    of  the  xxii.  Whitsonday  ye  makeinge  of 

Childeren  by  Herod.  the  Creede. 

xi.  Purification  of  our  Ladye.  xxiii.  Prophetes  before  ye  day  of 

xii.  The pinackle, withy6 woman  Dome. 

of  Canan.  xxiv.  Antecriste. 

xiii.  The  risinge  of  Lazarus  from  xxv.  Domes  Daye, 
death  to  liffe. 

The  list  of  plays  contained  in  the  pre-Reformation  Banns  is  the 


TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  409 

same  as  this,  with  one  exception.  Instead  of  twenty-five  plays  it  has 
twenty-six.  After  Wyt  Sondqy  is  inserted  the  play  'of  our  lady 
thassumpcon/  to  be  brought  forth  by  '  the  worshipfull  wyves  of  this 
towne/  This  play  of  The  Assumption  was  given  in  1477,  and  as 
a  separate  performance  in  1488,  1497,  and  1515  (Morris,  308,  322, 
323).  Doubtless  it  was  dropped,  as  at  York,  out  of  Protestantism. 
The  post-Reformation  Banns  and  the  extant  MSS.  of  the  cycle  have 
it  not.  Further,  they  reduce  the  twenty-five  plays  of  the  *  White 
Book f  list  to  twenty-four,  by  merging  the  plays  of  the  Scourging  and 
Crucifixion  into  one.  In  MSS.  B,  W,  h,  the  junction  is  plainly 
apparent  (see  Deimling,  i.  ix;  Wright,  ii.  50).  In  MS.  H  there  is  no 
break  (Deimling,  i.  xxiv). 

Literary  Relations. 

Wright,  i.  xiv,  and  Hohlfeld,  mAnglta,  xi.  223,  call  attention  to  the 
parallels  between  the  Chester  plays  and  the  French  Mystere  du  Viel 
Testament  and  to  the  occurrence  in  them  of  scraps  and  fragments  of 
French  speech.  The  chief  of  these  are  put  into  the  mouths  of  Octavian, 
the  Magi,  Herod,  and  Pilate,  and  may  have  been  thought  appropriate  to 
kings  and  lordings.  They  may  also  point  to  translation  from  French 
originals.  Davidson,  254,  suggests  that  the  earliest  performances 
at  Chester  were  in  Anglo-Norman,  and  points  to  the  tradition  of 
MS.  H  (cf.  p.  351)  as  confirming  this.  There  are  slight  traces  of 
influence  upon  some  of  the  Chester  plays  by  the  York  cycle  (Hohlfeld, 
loc.  cit.  260;  Davidson,  287).  Hohlfeld,  in  M.L.N.  v.  222,  regards 
Chester  play  iv  as  derived  from  a  common  original  with  the  Brome 
Abraham  and  Isaac.  H.  Ungemacht,  Die  Quellen  der  fiinf  ersten 
Chester  Plays,  discusses  the  relation  of  the  plays  to  the  Brome  play 
and  the  French  mysteres^  and  also  to  the  Vulgate,  the  Fathers, 
Josephus,  and  the  Cursor  Mundi. 

YORK  PLAYS. 
Manuscripts. 

($)Brit.Mus.Addl.MS.  35,290, recently AshburnhamMS.  i37,fully 
described  by  L.  T.  Smith,  York  Plays,  xiii.  The  MS.  dates  from  about 
1430-40,  and  appears  to  be  a  'register'  or  transcript  made  for  the 
corporation  of  the  'origenalls'  in  the  hands  of  the  crafts.  In  1554 
the  '  register '  was  kept  by  the  clerk  at  the  gates  of  the  dissolved  Holy 
Trinity  Priory.  After  the  plays  ceased  to  be  performed  it  got  into  the 
hands  of  the  Fairfaxes  of  Denton.  In  1695  it  belonged  to  Henry 
Fairfax,  and  its  ownership  can  be  traced  thence  to  the  present  day. 


410  APPENDIX  X 

(ii)  Sykes  MS.  in  possession  of  the  York  Philosophical  Society, 
fully  described  in  York  Plays,  455.  This  is  of  the  early  sixteenth 
century.  It  contains  only  the  Scriveners'  play,  of  *  The  Incredulity 
of  Thomas/  is  not  a  copy  from  the  Ashburnham  MS.,  and  may  be  an 
'  origenall/  or  a  transcript  for  the  prompter's  use.  It  has  a  cover  with 
a  flap,  and  has  been  folded  lengthwise,  as  if  for  the  pocket. 

Editions. 

(a)  1797.  Play  xlii  (Incredulity  of  Thomas],  from  Sykes  MS.,  in 
J.  Croft,  Excerpta  Antiqua,  105. 

(b)  1859.  Pky  xlii  (Incredulity  of  Thomas),  from  Sykes  MS.,  ed. 
J.  P.  Collier,  in  Camden  Miscellany,  vol.  iv. 

(c)  1885.   Cycle,  from  Ashburnham  MS.,  in  L.  Toulmin  Smith, 
York  Plays. 

(d)  1890.  Play  i  (Creation  and  the  Fall  of  Lucifer),  from  York 
Plays,  in  Pollard,  i. 

(e)  1897.  Plays  xxxviii,  xlviii  (Resurrection^  Judgment  Day),  from 
York  Plays,  in  Manly,  i.  153,  198. 

The  Cycle. 

The  subjects  of  the  forty-eight  plays  and  one  fragment  contained  in 
the  Ashburnham  MS.  are  as  follows : — 

i.  The  Barkers.     The  Creation,  Fall  of  Lucifer, 

ii.  Playsterers.     The  Creation  to  the  Fifth  Day. 

iii.  Cardmakers.     God  creates  Adam  and  Eve. 

iv.  Fullers.    Adam  and  Eve  in  the  Garden  of  Eden, 

v.  Cowpers.     Man's  disobedience  and  Fall, 

vi.  Armourers.    Adam  and  Eve  driven  from  Eden, 

vii.  Glovers.     Sacrificium  Cayme  et  Abell. 

viii.  Shipwrites.    Building  of  the  Ark. 

ix.  Fysshers  and  Marynars.    Noah  and  the  Flood. 

x.  Parchmyners  and  Sokebynders.    Abraham's  Sacrifice. 

xi.  The  Hoseers.    The  Israelites  in  Egypt,  the  Ten  Plagues, 

and  Passage  of  the  Red  Sea. 

xii.  Spicers.    Annunciation,  and  visit  of  Elizabeth  to  Mary, 

xiii.  Pewtereres  and  Foundours.    Joseph's  trouble  about  Mary. 

xiv.  Tille-thekers.    Journey  to  Bethlehem :  Birth  of  Jesus. 

xv.  Chaundelers.     The  Angels  and  the  Shepherds, 

xvi.  Masonns.    Coming  of  the  three  Kings  to  Herod, 

xvii.  Goldsmyths.    Coming  of  the  three  Kings,  the  Adoration. 

'  xviii.  Marchalfo.    Flight  into  Egypt. 


TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  411 

xix.     Gyrdillers  and  Naylers.     Massacre  of  the  Innocents. 
xx.     Sporiers  and  Larimers.     Christ  with  the  Doctors  in  the 

Temple. 

xxi.     Barbours.    Baptism  of  Jesus, 
xxii.     Smythis.    Temptation  of  Jesus, 
xxiii.     Concurs.     The  Transfiguration, 
xxiv.     Cappemakers.    Woman    taken    in    Adultery.     Raising    of 

Lazarus. 

xxv.     Skynners.     Entry  into  Jerusalem, 
xxvi.     Cutteleres.     Conspiracy  to  take  Jesus, 
xxvii.     Baxteres.     The  Last  Supper, 
xxviii.     Cordewaners.     The  Agony  and  Betrayal. 
xxix.     Bowers  and  Flecchers.    Peter  denies  Jesus  :  Jesus  examined 

by  Caiaphas* 
xxx.     Tapiterers  and  Couchers.    Dream  of  Pilate's  Wife:  Jesus 

before  Pilate. 

xxxi.    Lytsteres.     Trial  before  Herod, 
xxxii.     Cokts  and  Waterlederes.    Second  accusation  before  Pilate: 

Remorse  of  Judas  :  Purchase  of  Field  of  Blood, 
xxxiii.     Tyllemakers.     Second  trial  continued :  Judgment  on  Jesus, 
xxxiv.     Shermen.     Christ  led  up  to  Calvary. 
xxxv.     Pynneres  and  Paynters.     Crucifixio  Christi. 
xxxvi.     Bocheres.     Mortificacio  Christi. 
xxxvii.     Sadilleres.     Harrowing  of  Hell, 
xxxviii.     Carpenteres.     Resurrection :  Fright  of  the  Jews. 
xxxix.     Wyne-drawers.    Jesus  appears  to  Mary  Magdalen  after  the 

Resurrection. 

xl     The  Sledmen.    Travellers  to  Emmaus. 
xli.     HatmakerS)  Masons,  and  Laborers*     Purification  of  Mary: 

Simeon  and  Anna  prophesy, 
xlii.     Escreueneres.    Incredulity  of  Thomas, 
xliii.     Tailoures.    The  Ascension, 
xliv.    Potteres.    Descent  of  the  Holy  Spirit 
xlv.    Draperes.     The  Death  of  Mary, 
xlvi.     Wefferes.    Appearance  of  our  Lady  to  Thomas, 
xlvii.     Osteleres.    Assumption  and  Coronation  of  the  Virgin, 
xlviii.     Merceres.    The  Judgement  Day. 
(Fragment.)    Inholders.    Coronation  of  our  Lady. 

The  majority  of  these  plays  were  entered  in  the  register  about  1440. 
The  fragment  of  a  later  play  on  The  Coronation  of  Our  Lady  was 
added  at  the  end  of  the  fifteenth  century.  It  was  doubtless  intended 


412  APPENDIX  X 

to  supersede  xlvii.  Adam  and  Eve  in  the  Garden  of  Eden  (iv)  and 
The  Purification  of  Mary,  Simeon  and  Anna  prophesy  (xli)  were 
inserted  in  1558.  The  former  is  probably  of  the  same  date  as  the 
rest ;  the  latter  is  thought  by  the  editor  to  be  later.  It  is  misplaced 
both  in  the  MS.  and  the  printed  text.  It  should  follow  xvii,  but  there 
was  no  room  for  it  in  the  MS.  Some  notes,  probably  written  when 
the  plays  were  submitted  to  the  Dean  of  York  in  1579,  state  that  xii, 
xviii,  xxi,  xxviii  had  been  rewritten  since  the  register  was  compiled. 

The  register  does  not  represent  quite  all  the  plays  ever  performed  at 
York.  Spaces  are  left  for  The  Marriage  at  Cana  and  Christ  in  the 
House  of  Simon  the  Leper,  which  were  never  written  in;  and  the 
corporation  archives  refer  to  a  play  of  Fergus  or  Portacio  Corporis 
Mariae,  which  came  between  xlv  and  xlvi  and  was  '  laid  apart '  in 
1485  ;  and  to  a  scene  of  Suspencio  ludae,  which  was  in  1422  an 
episode  of  xxxiii.  In  other  respects  the  contents  of  the  register  agree 
substantially  with  the  fifty-one  plays  of  the  Ordo  paginarum  entered 
by  the  Town  Clerk  in  the  Liber  Memorandorum  in  I4I51  and  with  the 
fifty-seven  plays  of  a  second  Ordo  of  uncertain  date  which  comes  a  little 
later  in  the  same  Liber a.  The  three  lists  show  some  variations  in  the 
grouping  of  the  subject-matter  into  pageants,  due  to  the  constant 
shifting  of  responsibility  amongst  the  crafts. 

Literary  Relations. 

Davidson,  252  sqq.,  attempts  to  trace  the  growth  of  the  York  plays 
out  of  a  parent  cycle,  from  which  the  Towneley  and  Coventry  plays 
borrowed.  The  biblical  and  apocryphal  sources  are  discussed  by 
L.  Toulmin  Smith,  Fork  Plays,  xlvii;  A.  R.  Hohlfeld,  in  Anglia^  xi. 
285;  P.  Kamann,  Die  Quellen  der  York-Spiele,  in  Anglia,  x.  189; 
F.  Holthausen,  in  Arch.f.d.  Studium  d.  neueren  Sprachen  und  Litter  aiur, 
Ixxxv.  425  ;  Ixxxvi.  280;  W.  A.  Craigie,  in  Furnivall  Miscellany,  52. 
I  have  not  been  able  to  see  O.  Herrtrich,  Studien  zu  den  York  Plays 
(Breslau  Diss.  1886).  There  are  textual  studies  by  F.  Holthausen 
as  above,  and  in  Philologische  Studien  (Sievers-Festgabe),  1896  ; 
E.  Kalbing,  in  Englische  Studien,  xvi.  279 ;  xx.  179  ;  J.  Hall,  in  Eng. 
Stud.  ix.  448;  Zupitza,  in  Deutsche  Litter -aturzeitung,  vi.  1304; 
K.  Luick,  in  Anglia,  xxii.  384. 

TOWNELEY  PLAYS. 

Manuscript. 

Written  in  the  second  half  of  the  fifteenth  century,  formerly  in  the 
1  Printed  in  York  Plays,  xix.  *  Printed  in  Davies,  233. 


TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  413 

library  of  Towneley  Hall,  long  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  Quaritch,  the 
bookseller,  and  now  in  that  of  Major  Coates,  of  Ewell,  Surrey.  There 
are  thirty-two  plays  in  all,  but  twenty-six  leaves  are  missing. 

Editions. 

(a)  1822.    Play  xxx  (Indicium);  F.  Douce,  for  Roxburghe  Club 
(Publications,  No.  16). 

(b)  1836.     Play  xiii  (Secunda  Pasforum);    ].  P.  Collier,  in  Five 
Miracle-Plays. 

(c)  1836.     Complete  cycle;  for  Surtees  Soc.  (It  is  uncertain  whether 
the  editor  was  J.  Raine,  J.  Hunter,  or  J.  S.  Stevenson.) 

(d)  1838.    Plays  viii,  xiii,  xxiii,  xxv,  xxx  (Pharao,  Secunda  Pasforum, 
Crucifixio,  Extractio  Animarum  ab  Inferno,  ludicium) ;  W.  Marriott, 
English  Miracle-Plays. 

(e)  1867.     Play  iii  (Processus  Noe  cum  filiis\  E.  Matzner,  Alteng- 
lische  Sprachproben,  360. 

(f)  1875.     Play  ii  (Mactacio  Abel)]  T.  Valke,  Der  Tod  des  Abel 
(Leipzig). 

(g)  1885.     Plays  viii,  xviii,  xxv,  xxvi,  xxx  (Pharao,  Pagina  Doc  to- 
rum,  Extraccio  Animarum,  Resurreccio  Domini,  ludicium) ;  L.Toulmin 
Smith,  York  Plays,  68,   158,  372,  397,   501  (not  quite  in  full,  for 
comparison  with  corresponding  York  plays). 

(h)  1890.     Play  xiii  (Secunda  Pasforum),  abridged;  Pollard,  31. 

(i)  1897.  Cycle,  G.  England  and  A.  W.  Pollard,  for  E.E.T.S. 
(Extra  Series,  Ixxi). 

(k)  1897.  Plays  iii,  v,  vi,  xiii  (Processus  Noe,  Isaac,  lacob,  Secunda 
Pastorum)  from  (i)  ;  Manly,  i.  13,  58,  94. 

The  Cycle. 

There  are  thirty-two  extant  plays,  as  follows : — 

i.  The  Creation  (The  Bar-  viii.  Pharao   (the   Litsters    or 

kers,  Wakefeld).  Dyers), 

ii.  Mactacio  Abel  (The  Glo-  ix.  Cesar  Augustus. 

vers).  x.  Annunciacio. 

iii.  Processus  Noe   cum  filiis  xi.  Salutacio  Elezabeth. 

(Wakefeld).  xii.  Una     pagina     Pastorum 

iv.  Abraham  (incomplete).  (Prima). 

v.  [Isaac].  xiii.  Alia  eorundem  (Secunda). 

vi.  lacob.  xiv.  Oblacio  Magorum. 

vii.  Processus      Prophetarum  xv.  Fugacio  losep  &  Mariae  in 

(incomplete),  Egyptum. 


414  APPENDIX  X 

xvi.  Magnus  Herodes.  xxv.  Extraccio  Animarum. 

xvii.  Purificacio  Mariae  (incom-  xxvi.  Resurreccio  Domini. 

plete  at  end).  xxvii.  Peregrini  (the  Fishers), 

xviii.  Pagina  Doctorum  (incom-  xxviii.  Thomas  Indiae  (et  Resur- 

plete  at  beginning).  reccio  Domini), 

xix.  Johannes  Baptista.  xxix.  Ascencio  Domini  (incom- 

xx.  Conspiracio  (et  Capcio).  plete). 

xxi.  Coliphizacio.  xxx.  ludicium. 

xxii.  Fflagellacio.  xxxi.  Lazarus, 

xxiii.  ProcessusCrucis(etCruci-  xxxii.  Suspencio  ludae   (incom- 

fixio).  plete). 
xxiv.  Processus  Talentorum. 

Plays  xxxi  and  xxxii  (a  fragment)  are  obviously  misplaced.  The 
former  should  come  between  xix  and  xx;  the  latter,  which  is  added  to 
the  MS.  in  an  early  sixteenth-century  hand,  between  xxii  and  xxiii. 
Probably  two  plays  at  least  are  lost.  Twelve  leaves  are  missing  after 
Play  i,  and  twelve  more  after  Play  xxix.  These  doubtless  contained 
plays  of  The  Fall  and  Pentecost. 

Literary  Relations. 

The  Towneley  Cycle  is  a  composite  one  (Ten  Brink,  ii.  257 ;  iii. 
274;  Davidson,  253 ;  England-Pollard,  xxi).  Mr.  Pollard  distinguishes 
three  fairly  well-marked  strata,  and  this  classification  is  probably  not 
exhaustive.  There  are  (a)  a  group  of  plays  of  the  ordinary  didactico- 
religious  type  ;  (b)  a  group  derived  from  the  York  plays  in  an  earlier 
form  than  the  extant  text ;  (c)  a  group  written  by  a  single  writer  of 
marked  power  and  a  bold  sense  of  humour.  The  plays  of  this  group 
include  iii,  xii,  xiii,  xiv,  xxi,  and  are,  for  literary  quality,  the  pick  of 
the  vernacular  religious  drama.  Mr.  Pollard  considers  the  cycle 
practically  complete  by  about  1420.  The  horned  female  headdress 
(xxx.  269)  which  led  the  Surtees  editor  to  put  the  composition  in 
1388,  is  found  in  miniatures  of  the  later  date.  The  relation  of  the 
cycle  to  that  of  York  is  also  studied  by  Davidson,  271  sqq.,  and  A.  R. 
Hohlfeld,  in  Angha,  xi.  253,  285.  Ten  Brink,  ii.  244 ;  iii.  274,  thinks 
that  a  much  earlier  (late  thirteenth  century)  play  is  preserved  in  Plays 
v  and  vi  (Isaac  and  lacob).  I  agree  with  Mr.  Pollard  that  this  con- 
jecture lacks  proof. 

A.  Ebert  has  a  study,  Die  englischen  Mysterien,  mit  besonderer 
BerUcksichtigung  der  Townley-Sammlung,  in  Jahrbuch  f.  rom.  u.  engl. 
Lit.  i.  44,  131.  The  folk-lore  incident  of  the  Secunda  Pastorum  is 
supplied  with  parallels  by  E.  Kolbing,  in  England- Pollard,  xxxi,  and 


TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  415 

by  H.  A.  Eaton,  in  M.L.N.  xiv.  265,  from  The  Merry  Tales  of  Gotham 
(H.  Oesterley,  A  Hundred  Merry  Tales  (1526),  No.  xxiv;  Hazlitt, 
Shakespeare' s  Jest-Books,  iii.  4).  There  is  an  allusion  to  the  'foles  of 
Gotham/  in  Play  xii.  180.  J.  Hugienen,  in  M.L.N.  xiv.  255,  finds  in 
Play  iv.  49  an  adaptation  of  the  French  Viel  Testament ',  9511. 

The  Locality. 

Douce  described  the  manuscript  for  the  sale  of  Towneley  MSS.  in 
1814  as  supposed  to  have  *  belonged  to  the  Abbey  of  Widkirk,  near 
Wakefield,  in  the  county  of  York/  In  his  Roxburghe  Club  edition  of 
the  Indicium  he  substitutes  the  name  of  the  Abbey  of  Whalley,  near 
Towneley  Hall.  How  far  either  of  these  statements  or  conjectures 
rests  upon  Towneley  family  tradition  is  unknown.  Widkirk  is  merely 
another  form  (cf.  Prof.  Skeat,  in  Athen&um  for  Dec.  2,  1893)  of  Wood- 
kirk,  also  called  West  Ardsley,  a  small  place  four  miles  north  of 
Wakefield.  There  was  not,  strictly  speaking,  an  abbey  at  Woodkirk, 
but  a  small  cell  of  Augustinian  canons,  dependent  upon  the  great  house 
of  St.  Oswald  at  Nostel. 

The  MS.  itself  seems  to  bear  witness  to  a  connexion  of  the  plays 
with  the  crafts  of  Wakefield.  Play  i  is  headed  '  Assit  Principio,  Sancta 
Maria,  Meo.  Wakefeld/  In  the  margin  of  Play  ii  is  written  *  Glover 
Pag.'  in  a  later  hand.  Play  iii  is  headed  '  Processus  Noe  cum  filiis. 
Wakefeld.'  In  the  margin  of  Play  viii  is  *  Litsters  Pagonn '  in  a  later 
hand,  and  further  down,  in  a  third  hand,  is  '  lyster  play.'  Under  the 
title  of  Play  xxvii  is  c  fysher  pagent '  in  a  later  hand.  Further  in 
Play  xiii  is  a  mention  of '  Horbury  Shroges/  Horbury  being  a  village 
two  or  three  miles  from  Wakefield,  and  a  '  crokyd  thorne '  which  may 
be  a  'Shepherd's  Thorn*  near  Horbury  in  Mapplewell.  These 
indications  are  spread  over  the  three  groups  of  plays  distinguished  by 
Mr.  Pollard,  and  certainly  suggest  that  the  whole  cycle  belonged  to 
the  Wakefield  crafts.  On  the  other  hand,  I  find  no  hint  of  any  plays 
in  the  local  histories  of  Wakefield.  The  evidence  for  a  connexion 
with  Wakefield  is  strengthened  by  M.  H.  Peacock,  The  Wakefield 
Mysteries,  in  Anglia,  xxiv.  509,  from  which  it  appears  that  there  are 
places  called  Thornhill  and  Thornes  to  the  E.  and  W.  respectively  of 
Horbury.  Play  ii,  line  367  *  bery  me  in  gudeboure  at  the  quarell  hede' 
points  to  Goodybower  Close  in  Wakefield,  which  once  had  a  quarry. 
Play  xxiv,  line  155  'from  this  towne  vnto  lyn'  suggests  at  least  a 
borrowing  from  East  Anglia, 

Perhaps  we  may  combine  the  data  of  the  manuscript  and  of  tradition 
by  supposing  that  the  plays  were  acted  by  the  crafts  of  Wakefield,  not 


416  APPENDIX  X 

in  the  town  at  Corpus  Christi  or  Whitsuntide,  but  at  one  of  the  great 
fairs  which  the  canons  of  Nostel  held  under  charter  at  Woodkirk  about 
the  feasts  of  the  Assumption  (Aug.  15)  and  the  Nativity  (Sept.  8)  of  the 
Virgin.  These  fairs,  run  into  one  continuous  horse  fair,  and  known 
from  a  local  family  of  Legh,  as  Lee  fair,  lasted  until  quite  recently  *. 

LUDUS  COVENTRIAE. 

Manuscript. 

Brit.  Mus.  Cotton  MS.  Vespasian  D.  viii.  Forty-two  plays,  the  last 
incomplete.  On  f.  ioov  is  the  date  1468.  At  the  beginning  is  written 
*  Robert  Hegge,  Dunelmensis '  and  before  the  twenty-ninth  play  '  Ego 
R.  H.  Dunelmensis,  Possideo :  Ou  KT^O-IS  oXXa  xpijw/  On  the  fly-leaf, 
in  an  Elizabethan  hand,  is  '  The  plaie  called  Corpus  Christi/  and  in 
the  hand  of  Cotton's  librarian,  Richard  James,  *  Contenta  Novi  Testa- 
menti  scenice  expressa  et  actitata  olim  per  monachos  sive  fratres 
mendicantes:  vulgo  dicitur  hie  liber  Ludus  Coventriae,  sive  ludus 
Corporis  Christi :  scribitur  metris  Anglicanis.'  The  following  account 
was  given  by  a  later  librarian,  Dr.  Smith,  in  his  printed  catalogue 
(1696)  of  the  Cottonian  MSS. :  '  A  collection  of  plays,  in  Old  English 
metre:  h.e.  Dramata  sacra,  in  quibus  exhibentur  historiae  veteris 
&  N.  Testamenti,  introductis  quasi  in  scenam  personis  illic  memoratis 
quas  secum  invicem  colloquentes  pro  ingenio  finget  Poeta.  Videntur 
olim  coram  populo,  sive  ad  instruendum  sive  ad  placendum,  a 
Fratribus  mendicantibus  representata.' 

Editions. 

(a)  1830.    Plays  i-v  (Fall  of  Lucifer,  Days  of  Creation  and  Fall  of 
Adam,  Cain  and  Abel,  NoaKs  Flood,  Abraham  and  Isaac)  in  Dugdale, 
Monasticon  Anglicanum  (ed.  2).  vi,  pt.  3,  1534. 

(b)  1836.     Play  x  (Betrothal  of  Mary),  Collier,  Five  Miracle-Plays. 

(c)  1838.    Plays  xii,  xiv  (Doubt  of  Joseph,  Trial  of  Mary),  William 
Marriott,  English  Miracle-Plays. 

(d)  1841.    Cycle:    J.   O.   Halliwell[-Phillipps]    for    Shakespeare 
Society. 

(e)  1890.    Play  xi  (Annunciation},  Pollard,  44. 

(f)  1897.    Plays    iv,    xi    (Noah's    Flood,   Annunciation],    Manly, 
i.  31,  82. 

(g)  A  new  edition  of  the  complete  cycle  is  promised  in  the  '  Extra 
Series'  of  the  Early  English  Text  Society. 

1  W.  Andrews,  Yorkshire  in  Olden  Ttmts,  105,  146. 


TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS 


417 


The  Cycle. 

The  text  is  not  definitely  divided  up  into  plays  in  the  MS.,  although 
some  such  indication  as  an  Explicit  occasionally  helps.  Probably 
the  following  division  is  correct.  HalliweU's  is  clearly  wrong,  but 
for  convenience  of  reference  I  give  his  numbers  in  brackets. 


Noah's  Flood  (H.  iv). 
Abraham      and      Isaac 

(H.  v). 

Moses  (H.  vi). 
vii.    Prophets  (H.  vii). 


i.    Fall    of   Lucifer  (Halli-  iv. 

well,  i).  v. 

ii.    Days  of  Creation.  Fall  of 

Adam  (H.  i,  ii).  vi. 

iii.     Cain  and  Abel  (H.  iii). 
Then  a  prologue  by  Contemplacio,  promising  a  '  matere '  of '  the 
modyr  of  mercy '  from  her  conception  to  the  meeting  with  Elizabeth, 
and  a  '  conclusyon/ 

viii.    Joachim  andAnna(H.viii).  x.     Betrothal  of  Mary  (H.  x). 

ix.     Mary    in    the    Temple  xi.     Annunciation  (H.  xi). 

(H.  ix). 

Opens  with  scene  between  Contemplacio,  Virtutes,  Pater,  Veritas, 
Misericordia,  lusticia,  Pax,  Filius. 

xii.     Doubt  of  Joseph  (H.  xii).        xiii.     Visit  to  Elizabeth  (H.xiii). 
This  group  of  plays  closes  with  the  promised  *  conclusyon/  namely 
A.ve  regina  coelorum/  and  Contemplacio  disappears, 
xiv.    Trial  of  Mary  (H.  xiv).          xxiii.     Temptation  (H.  xxii). 
xv.    Nativity  (H.  xv). 
xvi.     Pas/ores  (H.  xvi). 
xvii.     Magi  (H.  xvii). 
xviii.     Purification  (H.  xviii). 

Slaughter   of  Innocents 

(H.  xix). 

Death  of  Herod  (H.  xix). 
Dispute      in       Temple 

(H.  xx). 
Baptism  (H.  xxi). 


xxiv. 


Woman  Taken  in  Adul- 
tery (H.  xxiii). 
Lazarus  (H.  xxiv). 
Conspiracy      of      Jews 

(H.  xxv). 
xxvii.     Entry     into     Jerusalem 

(H.  xxvi). 

Last  Supper  (H.  xxvii). 
Mount    of    Olives    (H. 

xxviii). 

Another  group  of  scenes  begins.  Contemplacio,  called  in  the  stage 
direction  'an  exposytour,  in  doctorys  wede/  reappears;  and  after 
a  procession  has  'enteryd  into  the  place,  and  the  Herowdys  taken 
his  schaffalde  and  Pylat  and  Annas  and  Cayphas  here  schaffaldys,' 


'Be  the  leve  and  soferauns  of  allemythty  God, 
We  intendyn  to  procede  the  matere  that  we  lefte  the  last  jere; 


xix. 

XX. 

xxi. 
xxii. 


xxv. 

xxvL 


xxvm. 
xxix. 


CHAMBKHS.    It 


£  e 


418  APPENDIX  X 

The  last  jere  we  shewyd  here  how  oure  Lord  for  love  of  man 
Cam  to  the  cety  of  JherusSem  mekely  his  deth  to  take  ; 
And  hoy  he  made  his  mawnd£. 

Now  wold  we  procede,  how  he  was  browth  than 

Beforn  Annas  and  Cayphas,  and  sythe  beforn  Pylate: 

And  so  forth  in  his  passybn  how  mekely  he  toke  it  for  man.' 

This  group  does  not  well  bear  splitting  up  into  plays.     The  action  is 
continuous,  although  it  takes  place  now  at  one  scaffold,  now  at  another. 
xxx.  Herod  desires  to  see  Christ.  The  Condemnation  (H. 

Trial   before  Caiaphas      -  xxxi,  xxxii). 

(H.  xxix,  xxx).  xxxiii.  Crucifixion(H.  xxxii,  xxxiii). 

xxxi.  Death  of  Judas.  Christ  be-     xxxiv.  Longinus.    Burial  of  Christ 
fore  Pilate  and  Herod  (H.  xxxiv). 

(H.  xxx).  xxxv.  Harrowing  of  Hell/  Re- 

xxxii.  Pilate's     Wife's     Dream.  surrection  (H.  xxxv). 

Here,  possibly,  the  group  ends.     Then  follow : — 
xxxvi.  Quern  fuaerifis(H.xxxvi).          xl.  Ascension  (H.  xxxix). 
xxxvii.  ffortulanus(H.xxxvi\).  xli.  Pentecost  (H.  xl). 

xxxviii.  Pcregrini  (H.  xxxviii).  xlii.  Assumption      of      Virgin 

xxxix.  Incredulity    of   Thomas  (H.  xli). 

(H.  xxxviii). 

The  Assumption  play,  according  to  Halliwell,  is  inserted  in  a  hand 
of  the  time  of  Henry  VIII. 
xliii.     Doomsday  (H.  xlii). 
A  few  lines  appear  to  be  missing  at  the  end. 
In  dividing  the  plays,  I  have  been  helped  by  a  prologue  which 
is  put  in  the  mouths  of  three  Vexillatores.     Says  Primus: — 
'We  purpose  us  pertly  stylle  in  this  prese, 
The  pepyl  to  plese  with  pleys  full  glad. 
Now  lystenyth  us,  lovely,  bothe  more  and  lesse, 
Gentyllys  and  jemanry  of  goodly  lyff  lad, 

This  tyde.' 

The  Vextllatores  then  take  turns  to  describe  the  'ffyrst  pagent/ 
1  secunde  pagent,'  and  so  on,  up  to  '  the  xltt  pagent.'  This  should  be 
'  xlii/  but  by  a  slip  two  numbers  are  used  twice.  The  prologue  ends : — 

'A  Sunday  next,  yf  that  we  may, 
At  vj  of  the  belle  we  gynne  oure  play, 
In  N.  towne,  wherfore  we  pray, 

That  God  now  be  joure  spede.    Amen' 


TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  419 

The  prologue  so  far  agrees  with  the  plays  that  it  must  have  been 
written  for  them;  but  it  was  not  written  for  them  as  they  stand. 
It  gives  some  of  the  incidents,  especially  of  the  trial  scenes,  in  a 
different  order  from  the  text.  Plays  viii,  xiii,  xviii,  xxvi,  and  xlii 
are  omitted  altogether.  Of  these  xlii  is  a  late  interpolation  in  the 
text;  but  the  fact  that  the  numbers  viii  and  xiii  are  skipped  over 
in  the  enumeration,  although  the  order  in  which  the  Vexittatores 
speak  proceeds  regularly,  shows  that  the  prologue  is  later  in  date 
than  the  text,  and  contemplates  the  omission  of  existing  plays. 

The  Problem. 

The  exact  nature  of  the  Ludus  Coventriae  is  a  nice  literary  point. 
It  is  much  doubted  whether  they  have  anything  to  do  with  Coventry 
at  all.  Cotton's  librarians  regarded  them  as  Coventry  plays,  acted 
not  by  craft-guilds,  but  by  monks  or  begging  friars.  But  what  was 
their  authority?  The  earliest  possessor  of  the  MS.  who  can  be 
traced  is  Robert  Hegge,  a  Durham  man  by  birth,  and  a  Fellow  of 
C.C.  C.,  Oxford.  Hegge  died  in  1629,  and  piobably  the  MS.  then 
passed  into  Sir  Robert  Cotton's  collection  through  Richard  James, 
who  happened  to  be  also  a  C.  C.  C.  man,  and  was  in  the  habit  of 
picking  up  finds  for  Cotton  in  Oxford1.  The  note  on  the  MS. 
may  represent  a  tradition  as  to  its  origin  gathered  by  James  from 
Hegge. 

With  this  note  should  be  compared  the  following  passage  in 
Dugdale*s  History  of  Warwickshire,  referring  to  the  house  of  Fran- 
ciscans or  Grey  Friars  at  Coventry : — 

'Before  the  suppression  of  the  monasteries,  this  city  was  very 
famous  for  the  Pageants  that  were  play'd  therein,  upon  Corpus-Christi- 
day ;  which  occasioning  very  great  confluence  of  people  thither  from 
far  and  near,  was  of  no  small  benefit  thereto ;  which  Pageants  being 
acted  with  mighty  state  and  reverence  by  the  Friers  of  this  House, 
had  Theaters  for  the  severall  Scenes,  very  large  and  high,  placed  upon 
wheels,  and  drawn  to  all  the  eminent  parts  of  the  City,  for  the  better 
advantage  of  Spectators :  And  contain'd  the  story  of  the  New-Testament, 
composed  into  Old  English  Rithme,  as  appearcth  by  an  antient  MS. 
intituled  Ludus  Corporis  Christi  or  Ludus  Coventriae '  [in  bibl.  Cotton, 
sub  effigie  Vesp.  D.  9], 

'  I  have  been  told  by  some  old  people,  who  in  their  younger  years 
were  eye-witnesses  of  these  Pageants  so  acted,  that  the  yearly  con- 

1  D.N.B.  s.v.  Hegge.  Poems  of  T.  Fowler, Hist,  of  C.C. C.  175,  183, 
Richard  James  (ed.  Grosart,  xxii);  394. 

E  e  a 


420  APPENDIX  X 

fluence  of  people  to  see  that  shew  was  extraordinary  great,  and 
yielded  no  small  advantage  to  this  City1/ 

Dugdale,  it  is  to  be  observed,  has  the  MS.  as  one  of  his  authorities, 
but  he  goes  further  than  the  librarians  by  ascribing  the  plays  to  a 
particular  house  of  friars.  Unfortunately  his  account  will  not  hold 
water.  He  was  born  in  1605,  and  educated  for  five  years  in  Coventry. 
Now  there  could  have  been  no  plays  performed  by  the  Grey  Friars 
after  1538,  for  they  were  suppressed  in  that  year.  But  the  craft-plays 
survived,  with  great  Mat,  until  1580,  and  it  is  manifest  that  it  is  these 
plays  which  his  informants  described  to  him.  They  were  acted  on 
Corpus  Christi  day,  obviously  leaving  no  room  for  Grey  Friars  plays 
on  the  same  day.  The  craft-plays  seem  to  have  been  confined  to  the 
history  of  the  New  Testament  (cf.  p.  423),  but  the  Ludus  Coventriae 
&  not.  There  is,  however,  a  not  very  trustworthy  bit  of  evidence 
which  makes  it  just  possible  that  the  Grey  Friars  did  act,  not  at 
Corpus  Christi,  but  at  Whitsuntide.  This  is  the  statement  of  the 
Coventry  Annals  that  in  1492-3,  Henry  VII  came  to  see  the  plays 
acted  by  the  Grey  Friars 2.  But  the  Annals  only  date  from  the  seven- 
teenth century,  and  they  are  not  trustworthy  (cf.  p.  358)  as  to  the 
history  of  the  plays.  I  incline  to  think  that  the  Grey  Friars  connexion 
is  an  Oxford  guess  of  Hegge  or  his  friends,  which  has  found  its  way 
alike  into  the  accounts  of  Richard  James  and  Dugdale,  and  into  the 
Annals.  But  is  the  connexion  of  the  plays  with  Coventry  also  part 
of  the  guess,  inspired  by  the  fact  that  the  Coventry  mysteries,  and 
these  alone,  obtained  literary  notice  in  the  sixteenth  century?  Or 
have  we  Coventry  guild-plays  to  deal  with  ?  The  Ludus  Coventriae 
is  quite  distinct  from  the  two  extant  Coventry  plays  (p.  422);  but 
those  are  of  the  sixteenth  century,  and  appear  to  represent  a  recension 
in  1535  of  'new  plays'  produced,  according  to  the  Annals,  in  1520 
(p.  358).  So  far  as  this  goes,  the  Ludus  Coventriae  might  be  the 

1  Dugdale,  Hist,  of  W.  (1656),  116.  statement  and  describes  as  '  not  older 

A  not  materially  different  version,  from  than  the  beginning  of  Charles  Fs  reign.' 

Dugdale's  MSS.,   is   given  by  Sharp,  He  does  not  give  the  full  entry.     Is  it 

Dissertation,    218.      Nor   does   Sharp,  the  basis  of  Mr.  Fretton's  addition  to 

in  the  account  of  the  Grey  Friars  in  his  the  1871  ed.  of  Sharp's  Hist,  and  Antiq. 

Hist,  and  Antiq,  of  Coventry  (1817),  of  Cov.  202  '1492.     Henry  7th  and  his 

add  any  information  as  to  their  plays.  Queen  saw  the  Plays  at  Whitsuntide '  ? 

*  Hearne,  Fordurts  Scotichronicon,  v.  Can  *  by  the  Gray  Friers '  mean  '  at  a 
1493  (from  MS.  of  Annals,  penes  station  by  the  convent '  ?  In  the  Car- 
Thomas  Jesson  of  Ch.  Ch.)  'This  penters*  accounts  for  1453  is  an  item  *  for 
yeare  the  King  came  to  se  the  playes  the  mynstrell  at  the  frer*.'  This,  says 
acted  by  the  Gray  Friers  and  much  Sharp,  Diss.  213,  relates  to  the  craft's 
commended  them.  The  mayoral  list  annual  dinner  held  at  the  White  Friars, 
in  this  text  of  the  Annals  got*  to  1675.  There  is  no  other  possible  allusion  to 
It  is  probably  another  that  Sharp,  friars*  pfays  in  Mr.  Sharp's  extracts. 
Diss.  5,  quotes  as  making  the  same 


TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  421 

discarded  fifteenth-century  cycle  of  the  Coventry  crafts.  Ten  Brink 
points  out  certain  features  in  the  Ludus  which  seem,  from  the  Cappers' 
accounts  extracted  by  Sharp,  to  have  existed  also  at  Coventry  \  On 
the  other  hand,  the  Coventry  plays,  unlike  the  Ludus  >  seem  to  have  been 
confined  to  the  New  Testament.  The  Ludus  does  not  give  those 
opportunities  for  showing  off  artisanship  which  are  characteristic  of 
other  craft-cycles2.  And,  strongest  of  all,  while  the  Coventry  plays 
were  processional,  a  study  of  the  Ludus  will  make  it  quite  clear  that 
it  was  intended  for  a  stationary  performance.  The  'pagents'  con- 
templated by  the  prologue  can  only  be  episodes  artificially  distinguished 
in  a  practically  continuous  action.  Often  there  is  no  well-marked 
break  between  pageant  and  pageant.  The  same  personages  appear 
and  reappear  in  more  than  one ;  and  the  whole  performance  evidently 
takes  place  in  and  around  a  '  place '  or  locus  interludii  (Halliwell,  44) 
upon  which  are  situated  various  'scaffolds'  or  'stages8,'  a  heaven, 
a  hell,  a  temple,  a  sepulchrum,  and  so  forth.  The  navis  for  Noah 
is  practicable,  and  can  come  and  go. 

If  the  plays  are  not  from  Coventry,  can  they  be  located  elsewhere  ? 
They  have  been  ascribed  to  Durham,  but  merely,  I  think,  because 
Robert  Hegge  was  '  Dunelmensis/  Mr.  Pollard  follows  Ten  Brink 
in  assigning  their  dialect  and  scribal  peculiarities  to  the  North-East 
Midlands,  and  in  ascribing  them  to  a  strolling  company4.  They 
regard  '  N.  towne '  in  the  prologue  as  a  common  form  (N  =  '  nomen,' 
as  in  the  Church  Catechism  and  Marriage  Service).  As  to  the  dialect 
I  offer  no  opinion;  I  am  sorry  not  to  have  been  able  to  see 
M.  Kramer,  Sprache  und  Heimath  der  Coventry- Plays.  But  I  do 
not  think  that  the  strolling  company  is  proved.  The  vexillatores  may 
be  merely  proclaimers  of  banns  sent  round  the  villages  hard  by  the 
town  where  the  play  was  given.  And  '  N.'  may  be  an  abbreviation 
for  a  definite  town  name.  Northampton  (q.v.)  has  been  suggested; 
but  would  not  scan.  Norwich  (q.v.)  would;  and  these  might  con- 
ceivably be  a  cycle  played  by  the  guild  of  St.  Luke  at  Norwich  before 
the  crafts  took  the  responsibility  for  the  Whitsun  plays  from  it.  But 
the  elaborate  treatment  of  the  legends  of  the  Virgin  suggests  a  per- 
formance, like  that  of  the  Lincoln  plays,  and  of  the  Massacre  of  the 
Innocents  in  the  Digby  MS.)  on  St.  Anne's  day  (July  26).  It  is  to  be 

1  Ten  Brink,  iii.  276  ;  Sharp,  45.  4  Ten  Brink,  ii.  283  ;  Pollard,  xxxvii. 

3  Hohlfeld,  in  Anglia,  xi.  228.  Hohlfeld  (Anglia,  xi.   228)  combines 

8  The  term  '  pageant '  is  once  used  hi  twp  theories  by  suggesting    that    the 

the    stage-directions    (Halliwell,   132)  Coventry  Grey  Friars  were  driven  by 

'Hie  intrabit  pagentum  de  purgatione  the  popularity  of  the  rival  craft-plays  to 

Mariae  et  Joseph.'  travel. 


422  APPENDIX  X 

observed  that  both  these  examples  are  in  the  E.  Midland  area  to 
which  philologists  assign  the  text  of  the  Ludus  Covcntriae. 

Literary  Relations. 

Ten  Brink,  ii.  283,  calls  attention  to  the  composite  character  of  the 
cycle,  in  which  groups  of  various  origin  are  placed  side  by  side 
without  much  attempt  at  imposing  a  literary  unity  upon  them.  He 
thinks,  however,  that  £11  the  plays  received  their  form  in  the  same  part 
of  England,  and  considers  the  dialect  to  be  that  of  the  North-East 
Midlands.  In  a  note  (iii.  276)  he  finds  an  analogy  in  the  treatment 
of  certain  themes  between  the  Ludus  Covenlriae  and  the  Coventry 
plays  proper.  Davidson,  259,  thinks  that  the  author  might  have  been 
'  connected  with  one  of  the  great  religious  houses  of  the  Fen  District/ 
Hohlfeld  (Anglia,  xi.  219)  has  some  interesting  remarks  on  the  cycle. 
It  may  be  observed  that  Plays  xxx-xxxv  in  my  grouping  are  evidently 
taken  from  a  cycle  of  which  only  a  part  was  given  in  each  year.  The 
Purification  and  Presentation  in  the  Temple  of  the  Digby  MS.  affords 
a  parallel  example.  Possibly  Plays  viii-xiii  in  which,  as  in  Plays 
xxx-xxxv,  Contemplacio  appears,  have  the  same  source. 

COVENTRY  PLAYS. 

[See  also  account  of  Ludus  Coventriae.} 
Manuscripts. 

A  copy,  probably  the  '  original '  of  the  Shearmen  and  Tailors'  play, 
was  in  the  possession  of  Thomas  Sharp.  It  is  described  in  a  colophon 
as  '  T[h]ys  matter  nevly  correcte  by  Robert  Croo  the  xiiijth  day  of 
marche  fenysschid  in  the  yere  of  owre  lorde  god  MCCCCC  &  xxxiiij*0 
[I53tl<>  At  the  end  are  three  songs,  with  the  date  1591.  A  similar 
copy  of  the  Weavers'  play  '  nevly  translate  be  Robert  Croo  in  the  yere 
of  oure  Lorde  God  Mlv°  xxxiiij*0  .  .  .  yendide  the  seycond  day  of 
Marche  in  yere  above  sayde,'  was  'unexpectedly  discovered  in  1832,' 
and  a  transcript  made  by  Sharp.  This  also  has  songs  at  the  end, 
but  no  date.  The  collections  of  Sharp  passed  into  the  Staunton 
collection  at  Longbridge  House,  and  thence  into  the  Shakespeare 
Memorial  Library  at  Birmingham,  where  they  were  burnt  in  1879. 

Editions. 

(a)  1817.  Shearmen  and  Tailors'  Play.  Thos.  Sharp  in  a  series, 
separately  paged,  of  Illustrative  Papers  of  the  History  and  Antiquities 
of  the  City  of  Coventry.  [Reprinted  1871  under  editorship  of 
W.  G.  Fretton.] 


TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  428 

(b)  1825.     Shearmen  and  Tailors*  Play.    Reprinted  from  (a)  by 
Thomas  Sharp,  with  full  illustrative  matter,  .in  A  Dissertation  on  the 
Coventry  Mysteries,  83. 

(c)  1836.    Weavers1  Play.     ].  B.  Grade  for  the  Abbotsford  Club. 

(d)  1838.  Shearmen  and  Tailors'  Play.    William  Marriott,  English 
Miracle-Plays. 

(e)  1897.     Shearmen  and  Tailors'  Play.     Manly,  i.  120,  from  (b). 

(f)  1902.     Weavers'  Play.    Edited  from  (c)  by  F.  Holthausen,  in 
Anglia,  xxv.  209. 

(?)  X9°3-  Shearmen  and  Tailors'  Play.    A.  W,  Pollard,  in  Fifteenth 
Century  Prose  and  Verse  (English  Garner),  245. 
(h)  Both  plays  are  being  edited  by  H.  Craig  for  the  E.  E.  T.  S. 

The  Cycle. 

The  Shearmen  and  Tailors'  Play  has  a  prologue  by  'Isaye  the 
profet/  Then  follow  in  order,  the  Annunciation,  the  Doubt  of  Joseph, 
the  Journey  to  Bethlehem,  the  Nativity  and  Shepherds,  a  dialogue  of 
two  'Profettis/  Herod  and  the  Magi,  the  Flight  to  Egypt,  the  Massacre 
of  the  Innocents.  The  Weavers?  Play  must  have  followed  next  in 
the  cycle.  It  opens  with  a  dialogue  of  two  ' Profetae'.  Then  come 
the  Presentation  in  the  Temple  and  the  Dispute  with  the  Elders. 
The  subjects  of  four  of  the  other  plays  can  be  pretty  clearly 
identified.  The  Smiths'  accounts  show  them  to  have  played  the  Trial 
and  Crucifixion,  to  which  was  added  in  1573  the  'new  play'  of  the 
Death  of  Judas ;  the  Descent  from  the  Cross  passed  through  various 
hands  from  the  Pinners  and  Needlers  in  1414  to  the  Coopers  in  1547 ; 
the  Cappers'  accounts  point  to  the  Resurrection,  Harrowing  of  Hell, 
and  Quern  quaeritis,  with  from  1540  the  'Castell  of  Emaus';  and  those 
of  the  Drapers  to  Doomsday.  It  is  difficult  to  say  how  many  plays 
remain  unidentified.  The  crafts  were  grouped  and  regrouped,  and 
the  total  number  of  plays  may  have  varied.  But  it  would  seem  that 
besides  the  crafts  already  named,  the  Mercers,  Whittawers,  Girdlers, 
Cardmakers,  and  Tanners  were  playing  in  the  middle  of  the  fifteenth 
century.  The  'jest'  quoted  on  p.  358  points  to  a  Pentecost  play 
with  the  '  xij  Articles  of  the  Creed/  similar  to  that  of  Chester.  It  is 
noticeable  that  no  Old  Testament  play  can  be  established  at  Coventry. 

Literary  Relations. 

These  plays,  of  which  the  Weavers'  Play  was,  until  recently,  difficult 
to  procure,  have  been  but  little  studied.  Two  communications  by 
C.  Davidson  and  A.  R.  Hohlfeld  in  Modern  Language  Notes,  vii.  184, 


424  APPENDIX  X 

308,  call  attention  to  the  fact  that  the  larger  part  of  the  dialogue 
in  the  Dispute  in  the  Temple  scene  is  practically  the  same  as  that 
common  to  the  York,  Towneley,  and  Chester  plays  (cf.  York  Plays, 
158,  and  A.  R.  Hohlfeld  in  Anglia,  xi.  260), 

NBWCASTLE-UPON-TYNE. 
Manuscript. 

The  Shipwrights'  Play  of  Noah's  Ark  was  in  the  hands  of  its  first 
editor,  Henry  Bourne;  but  is  not  known  to  be  now  preserved 
(Holthausen,  32). 

Editions. 

(a)  1736.     Noatis  Ark;    or,   The  Shipwrights'  Ancient  Play  or 
Dirge;   in  H.  Bourne,  Hist,  of  Newcastle,  139. 

(b)  1789.     Reprint  of  (a)  in  J.  Brand,  Hist,  of  Newcastle,  ii.  373. 

(c)  1825.     Reprint  of  (a)  in  T.  Sharp,  Dissertation  on  Coventry 
Mysteries,  223. 

(d)  1897.     F.  Holthausen,  in  Goteborgs  Hogskola's  Arsskrift,  and 
separately. 

(e)  1899.     R.  Brotanek,  in  Anglia,  xxi.  165. 

Both  (d)  and  (e)  are  founded  on  Bourne's  text ;  but  Brotanek  has 
endeavoured  to  restore  what  he  considers  to  have  been  the  probable 
MS.  text.  This  he  dates,  conjecturally,  at  about  1425-50. 

The  Cycle. 

The  Shipwrights'  play  deals  with  the  Making  of  the  Ark,  but  stops 
short  of  the  Deluge.  The  personages  are  Deus,  Angelus,  Diabolus, 
Noah,  Uxor  Noah.  The  subjects  of  most  of  the  plays  of  the  other 
crafts  can  be  recovered,  as  follows : — 

Creation  of  Adam.  Baptism. 

Noah's  Ark.  Last  Supper. 

Offering  of  Isaac.  Bearing  of  Cross. 

Israel  in  Egypt.  Burial  of  Christ. 

Kings  of  Cologne.  Descent  into  Hell. 

Flight  into  Egypt.  Burial  of  Our  Lady. 

Of  these,  two,  the  Creation  of  Adam  and  the  Flight  into  Egypt,  were 
maintained,  in  1454,  by  one  craft,  the  Bricklayers  and  Plasterers.  The 
Merchant  Adventurers,  in  1552,  paid  for  'fyve  playes,  whereof  the 
towne  must  pay  for  the  ostmen  playe/  There  are  six  guilds  whose 
plays  are  not  known ;  so  that  the  total  number  may  have  been  as 
many  as  twenty-three1, 

1  Holthausen,  16.  * 


TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  425 

The  accounts  of  the  Merchant  Adventurers  also  include  in  1554 
and  1558  charges  in  and  about '  Hoggmaygowyk '  or  '  Hogmagoge  V 
I  do  not  think,  with  Holthausen,  that  this  was  one  of  the  Corpus 
Christi  plays.  I  think  it  was  a  spring  or  summer  folk-feast.  One  of 
the  London  '  giants '  is  Gogmagog. 

NORWICH. 
Manuscript. 

The  extracts,  made  early  in  the  seventeenth  century  from  the 
Grocers' Book,  and  in  the  possession  (1856)  of  Mr.  Fitch,  included  two 
versions  of  the  play  of  the  Fall.  The  first  was  copied  into  the  Book 
*n  I533«  It  is  headed  The  Story  of  y*  Creacon  of  Eve,  ufy*  expell- 
yng  of  Adam  $  Eve  out  of  Paradyce.  It  ends  with  a  (  dullfull  song/ 
perhaps  the  'newe  ballet'  paid  for  in  1534  (cf.  p.  388).  It  appears 
to  have  a  lacuna.  The  second  version  is  '  newely  renvid  &  accord- 
ynge  unto  ye  Skrypture,  begon  thys  yere  A°  1565.  A°  7  Eliz/  It  is 
quite  a  new  text.  It  is  provided  with  two  speeches  by  a  Prolocutor, 
one  to  be  used  '  when  ye  Grocers  Pageant  is  played  w*  owte  eny 
other  goenge  befor  y V  the  other  for  use  '  yf  ther  goeth  eny  other 
Pageants  before  y*/  The  former  speaks  of  the  ( Pageants  apparellyd 
in  Wittson  dayes '  that '  lately  be  fallen  into  decayes.' 

Editions. 

(a)  1856.  Robert  Fitch  in  Norfolk  Archaeology,  v.  8,  and  separately. 

(b)  1897.  Manly,  i.  i,  from  (a). 

The  Cycle. 

The  Grocers'  play  begins  in  both  versions  with  the  creation  of  Eve. 
The  first  ends  with  the  expulsion  from  Paradise.  The  dramatis 
personae  are  Pater,  Adam,  Eva,  Serpem.  In  the  second  is  added  an 
Angel,  and  after  the  expulsion  Adam  and  Eve  depart  'to  ye  nether  parte 
of  ye  Pageants,'  are  threatened  by  Dolor  and  Myserye,  and  comforted 
by  the  Holy  Ghost. 

A  list,  dating  probably  from  1527,  makes  it  possible  to  complete  the 
outline  of  the  cycle 2 : — 

Creation  off  the  world.  Abraham  &  Isaak. 

Paradyse  [Grocers*  play].  Moises    &    Aaron,    with    the 

Helle  Carte.  Children  of  Israel  &  Pharo 

Abell  &  Cain.  with  his  Knyghts. 

Noyse  Shipp.  Conflict  off  David  and  Golias. 

1  F.  W.  Denby,  Newcastle  Gilds  (Surtees  Soc.),  "•  165,  168. 
8  Norfolk  Archaeology,  iii.  3. 


426  APPENDIX  X 

The  Birth  off  Christ  with  Shep-         The  Resurrection. 

herds  and  iij  Kyngs  of  Colen.         The  Holy  Cost. 
The  Baptysme  of  Criste. 

ABRAHAM  AND  ISAAC  (Dublin  MS.). 
Manuscript. 

Trinity  College,  Dublin,  MS.  D.  iv.  18,  f.  i6v.  In  the  same  hand 
are  a  list  of  mayors  and  bailiffs  of  Northampton]  up  to  1458  and 
a  brief  chronicle,  in  which  Northampton]  recurs. 

Editions. 

(a)  1836.  J.  P.  Collier,  in  Five  Miracle-Plays. 

(b)  1899.  R.  Brotanek,  in  Anglia,  xxi.  21. 

Literary  Relations. 

The  play  has  probably  no  connexion  with  Dublin,  beyond  the  fact 
that  the  MS.  is  there.  Brotanek  conjectures  from  the  character  of 
the  MS.  that  it  belongs  to  Northampton  (cf.  p.  386).  The  dialect 
appears  to  be  South  Midland  of  about  the  first  half  of  the  fifteenth 
century,  and  the  text  to  be  based  on  the  corresponding  play  (xi)  in  the 
Viel  Testament  (Julleville,  Les  Myst.  ii.  363). 

ABRAHAM  AND  ISAAC  (Brome  MS.). 
Manuscript. 

'The  Book  of  Brome/  a  commonplace  book  of  1470-80  in  the 
possession  of  Sir  Edward  Kerrison  of  Brome  Manor,  Norfolk. 

Editions. 

(a)  1884.  L.  T.  Smith,  in  Anglia,  vii.  316. 

(b)  1886.  L.  T.  Smith,  in  A   Commonplace  Book  of  the  Fifteenth 
Century. 

(c)  1887.  W.  Rye,  in  Norfolk  Antiquarian  Miscellany,  iii.  i. 

(d)  1897.  Manly,  i.  41,  from  (a)  and  (b). 

Literary  Relations. 

The  play  is  465  lines  long.  There  is  an  epilogue  by  a  Doctor,  but 
no  title  or  prologue,  and  nothing  to  show  that  it  was,  or  was  not,  part 
of  a  cycle.  The  text  is  probably  derived  Jrom  a  common  source  with 
that  of  the  corresponding  Chester  play:  cf.  Pollard,  185;  A.  R. 
Hohlfeld,  in  M.L.  N.  v.  222. 

F.  Holthausen  has  some  critical  notes  on  the  text  in  Anglia,  xiii.  361. 


TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  427 

CROXTON  PLAY:  THE  SACRAMENT. 
Manuscript. 

Trinity  College,  Dublin,  MS.  F.  4.  20,  of  the  latter  half  of  the  fifteenth 
century. 

Editions. 

(a)  1 86 1.  Whitley  Stokes,  in  Transactions  of  Philological  Society, 
1 860- 1  (Appendix). 

(b)  1897.  Manly,  i.  239. 

There  is  a  prologue  by  two  Vexillatores,  ending — 

'And  y*  place  yow,  thys  gaderyng  that  here  ys, 

At  Croxston  on  Monday  y*  shall  be  sen  ; 
To  see  the  conclusyon  of  this  lytell  processe 
Hertely  welcum  shall  yow  bene. 

Now,  mynstrell,  blow  vp  with  a  mery  stevyn ! ' 

Then  comes  a  title  :  '  Here  after  foloweth  the  Play  of  the  Conversyon 
of  Ser  Jonathas  the  Jewe  by  Myracle  of  the  Blyssed  Sacrament/ 
The  play  is  927  lines  long,  with  occasional  lines  in  Latin.  It  ends 
with  a  Te  Deum.  The  colophon  runs :  '  Thus  endyth  the  Play  of  the 
Blyssyd  Sacrament,  whyche  myracle  was  don  in  the  forest  of  Aragon, 
in  the  famous  cite  Eraclea,  the  yere  of  ower  Lord  God  Mkxcc.lxi,  to 
whom  be  honower.  Amen  I '  This  account  of  the  event  on  which  the 
play  is  founded  is  confirmed  by  11.  56-60  of  the  prologue.  The  date 
of  composition  cannot  therefore  be  earlier  than  1461,  and  probably  is 
not  much  later.  After  the  colophon  is  a  list  of  the  dramatis  personae, 
who  are  twelve  in  all,  and  the  note  '  IX  may  play  it  at  ease/  signed 
'  R.C.*  The  name  Croxton  is  common  to  places  in  Norfolk,  Cam- 
bridgeshire, Leicestershire,  and  other  counties.  Further  identification 
may  perhaps  be  helped  by  11.  540-1 — 

'Inquyre  to  the  Colkote,  for  ther  ys  hys  loggyng, 
A  lytylle  besyde  Babwelle  Mylle.' 

The  stage-directions  imply  a  'place/  with  'stages'  for  the  chief 
players,  a  'tabyll/  and  a  'chyrche'  (11.  149,  288,  305,  445). 

F.  Holthausen  has  some  textual  criticism  on  the  play  in  Englische 
Studien,  xvi.  150,  and  Anglia,  xv.  198. 

SHREWSBURY  FRAGMENTS. 

On  these,  which  are  transitional  between  the  liturgical  play  and  the 
miracle-play  proper,  cf.  p.  90. 


428  APPENDIX  X 

DIGBY  PLAYS. 

[Authorities. — The  best  edition  is  that  of  Dr.  Furnivall.  The  careful 
study  by  K.  Schmidt,  published  partly  as  a  Berlin  dissertation  (1884), 
partly  in  Anglia,  viii  (1885),  371,  should  be  consulted.] 

Manuscript. 

Bodleian  Dig  by  MS.  133.  The  dramatic  contents  of  this  com- 
posite manuscript  are  as  follows: — (i)  f.  37.  The  Conversion  of  St. 
Paul.  This  is  written  in  a  single  hand,  except  that  a  second  has 
inserted  on  f.  45  a  scene  between  two  devils,  Belial  and  Mercury. 
At  the  end  (f.  50*),  is '  ffinis  conuercionis  sancti  pauhV  There  is  a  pro- 
logue, headed  Poeta,  against  which  has  been  written  in  a  later  hand 
*  Myles  Blomefyldc/  Schmidt,  JDz'ss.  6,  identifies  a  Miles  Blomefylde  as 
a  monk  of  Bury  born  in  1525.  (ii)  f.  95.  St.  Mary  Magdalen,  written 
in  the  second  hand  of  (i).  At  the  beginning  are  the  initials  M.  B. ; 
at  the  end  (f.  145)  'Explycit  oreginale  de  sancta  Maria  magdalena.' 
(iii)  f.  146.  Massacre  of  Innocents  and  Purification,  written  in  the  first 
hand  of  (i).  At  the  beginning  is  '  candelmes  day  &  the  kyllynge  of 
the  children  of  Israeli,  anno  domini  1512  ';  at  the  end  *  Anno  domini 
Millesimo,  cccccxij/  and  after  a  list  of  *  The  Namys  of  the  Pleyers '  the 
entry  '  Ihon  Parfre  ded  wryte  thys  booke.'  None  of  these  notes  seem 
to  be  in  the  hand  of  the  text,  (iv)  f.  1 58.  Fragment  of  morality  of  Mind, 
Will,  and  Understanding,  found  complete  in  the  Macro  MS.  (c£  p.  437), 
in  a  hand  apparently  distinct  from  those  of  (i),  (ii),  (iii).  This  also 
has  *  M.  B/  at  the  beginning. — The  texts  in  the  MS.  are  probably 
early  sixteenth-century  copies  of  late  fifteenth-century  plays.  There 
is  nothing  to  show  that  Parfre  or  Blomfield  was  concerned  in  the 
authorship.  They  may  have  been  the  copyists.  If  Blomfield  was 
really  the  monk  of  Bury  born  in  1525,  he  was  probably  only  an  owner 
of  the  MS. 

Editions. 

(a)  1773.   Massacre  of  Innocents,  in  T.  Hawkins,   Origin  of  the 
English  Drama. 

(b)  1835.  Massacre  of  Innocents,  Conversion  of  St.  Paul,  St.  Mary 
Magdalen,  in   T.  Sharp,  Ancient  Mysteries  from  the  Digby  Manu- 
scripts (Abbotsford  Club). 

(c)  1838.  Massacre  of  Innocents,  in  W.  Marriott,  English  Miracle- 
Plays. 

(d)  1882.  Complete  series  in  F.  J.  Furnivall,  The  Digby  Mysteries 
(New  Shakspere  Soc.,  reprinted  in  1896  for  E.  E.  T.  S.). 

(e)  1890.  St.  Mary  Magdahn  (part  only),  from  (d),  in  Pollard,  49. 

(f)  1897.  Conversion  of  St.  Paul,  from  ((f),  in  Manly,  i.  215. 


TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  429 

The  Plays. 

The  plays  appear  to  have  been  accidentally  brought  together  in  one 
MS.,  and  should  be  treated  separately  for  the  purposes  of  literary 
history. 

A.  Conversion  of  St.  Paul. 

Schmidt,  Diss.  28,  assigns  this  to  an  East  Midland  author,  and 
a  Southern  scribe.    The  play  opens  with  a  prologue  by  the  Poeta  who 
speaks  of*  owr  processed    In  the  first  scene  or '  station/  Saul  starts  for 
Damascus  and  '  rydyth  forth  with  hys  seruantes  a-bout  the  place  & 
owt  of  the  place/    There  is  a  'conclusyon '  by  the  'Poeta — si  placet/ — 
'  ffynally  of  this  stacon  we  mak  a  conclusyon, 
besechyng  thys  audyens  to  folow  and  succede 
with  all  your  delygens  this  generall  processyon/ 
After  a  stage-direction  '  ffinis  Istius  stacionis,  et  altera  sequitur,'  the 
Poeta  introduces  another  '  prosses,' — 

'  Here  shalbe  brefly  shewyd  with  all  our  besynes 
At  thys  pagent  saynt  poullys  conuercyon/ 

This  scene  takes  place  outside  and  in  Damascus.  There  is  a  tempest, 
and  'godhed  spekyth  in  heuyn/  Saul  meets  Ananias,  and  'thys 
stacion '  is  concluded  by  the  Poeta,  and  c  ffinis  istius  secunde  stacionis 
et  sequitur  tarcia/ 

Again  the  Poeta  calls  on  the  audience  *  To  vnderstond  thys  pagent 
at  thys  lytyll  stacion/  Saul  returns  to  Jerusalem,  preaches  and  plans 
to  escape  over  the  wall  in  a  basket.  Here  the  later  hand  inserted  the 
devil  scene.  The  Poeta  has  his  '  Conclusyo/  which  ends  : — 

'  Thys  lytyll  pagent  thus  conclud  we 
as  we  can,  lackyng  lytturall  scyens ; 
besechyng  yow  all  of  hye  and  low  degre, 
owr  sympylnes  to  hold  excusyd,  and  lycens, 
That  of  Retoryk  haue  non  intellygens; 
Commyttyng  yow  all  to  owr  lord  Ihesus, 
To  whoys  lawd  ye  syng, — Exultet  celum  laudibus/ 
The  play,  but  for  the  devil  scene,  follows  closely  the  biblical  narrative. 
It  was  probably  written  for  a  small  village,  and  for  scene  had  zplafea, 
and  two  loca,  for  Damascus  and  Jerusalem  (with  possibly  a  third  for 
heaven).    The  audience  moved  with  the  actors  from  one  '  station '  or 
*  pageant '  to  the  other,  and  back  again.    A  later  hand  has  inserted 
marginal  directions  for  a  '  Daunce '  at  various  points  in  the  speeches 
of  the  Poeta. 


480  APPENDIX  X 

B.  St.  Mary  Magdalen. 

Schmidt,  Anglia>  viii.  385,  assigns  this  to  a  West  Midland  author 
and  Kentish  scribe.  Furnivall,  53,  thinks  the  dialect  East  Midland. 
The  plot  covers  the  whole  legendary  life  of  the  Magdalen,  as  it  appears 
in  the  Golden  Legend.  The  characters  are  very  numerous,  and  include 
Satan  and  other  devils,  with  allegorical  figures  such  as  the  '  Kyngs  of 
the  World  and  the  Flesch '  and  the  '  Seven  Dedly  Synnes/  The 
action  is  not  in  any  way  divided  in  the  manuscript,  and  implies  an 
elaborate  stationary  mise  en  seine  with  various  loca.  These  include  the 
'  castell  of  Maudleyn '  or  Magdalum,  thrones  for  the  Imperator,  who 
opens  the  play  by  calling  for  silence,  Herod  and  Pilate,  '  a  stage,  and 
Helle  ondyr-neth  that  stage '  for  '  the  prynse  of  dylles/  Jerusalem  with 
a <  place/  an  '  erbyr '  or  arbour,  a  tavern,  the  '  howse  of  symont  leprovs/ 
a  sepulchrum  for  Lazarus,  and  another  for  the  Quern  quaeritis  and  Hortu- 
lanus  scenes  which  are  introduced,  a  palace  for  the  King  of '  Marcylle ' 
(Marseilles),  a  heathen  temple,  a  '  hevyne '  able  to  open,  a  lodge 
for  the  Magdalen  in  Marcylle,  another  castle,  a  rock,  and  a  wilderness. 
There  is  also  a  practicable  ship  which  goes  to  and  from  Marcylle  (1. 1395 
'  Here  xall  entyre  a  shyp  with  a  mery  song' ;  1.  1445  '  Her  goth  the 
shep  owt  of  the  place';  1.  1717  'Ett  tune  navis  venit  in  placeam'; 
1.  1797  '  tune  remigat  a  montem ';  1.  1879  '  et  tune  navis  venit  ad- 
circa  plateam';  1.  1915  'et  tune  remigant  a  monte';  1.  1923  'Here 
goth  the  shep  owjt  ofe  the  place ').  The  play  ends  with  a  Te  Deum ; 
but  the  following  lines,  added  after  the  Explicit,  suggest  that  the 
author  had  readers  as  well  as  spectators  in  mind%: — 
'yff  Ony  thyng  Amysse  be, 
blame  connyng,  and  nat  me : 
I  desyer  the  redars  to  be  my  frynd, 
yff  ther  be  ony  amysse,  that  to  amend.' 

C.  Massacre  of  the  Innocents. 

Assigned  by  Schmidt,  Dt'ss.  18,  to  a  Midland  author  and  Southern 
scribe.  Against  the  title  of  the  play  has  been  written,  in  a  hand  identi- 
fied as  that  of  the  chronicler  Stowe,  *  the  vij  booke/  Evidently  the 
play  was  one  of  a  series,  spread  over  successive  years,  and  given  on 
Saint  Anne's  day  (July  26).  This  is  shown  by  the  opening  speech  of 
a  Potta,  from  which  I  extract : — 

'This  solenne  fest  to  be  had  in  remembraunce 
Of  blissed  seynt  Anne  moder  to  our  lady, 

The  last  yeer  we  shewid  you  in  this  place 


TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  481 

how  the  shepherdes  of  Cristes  birth  made  letificacion, 

And  thre  kynges  that  came  fro  ther  Cuntrees  be  grace 

To  worshipe  lesu,  with  enteer  deuocion; 

And  now  we  purpose  with  hooll  affeccion 

To  procede  in  oure  mater  as  we  can, 

And  to  shew  you  of  our  ladies  purificacion 

That  she  made  in  the  temple,  as  the  vsage  was  than. 

ffrendes,  this  processe  we  purpose  to  pley  as  we  can 

before  you  all,  here  in  your  presens, 

To  the  honour  of  god;  our  lady,  &  seynt  Anne, 

besechyng  you  to  geve  vs  peseable  Audiens 

And  ye  menstrallis,  doth  your  diligens, 

&  ye  virgynes,  shewe  summe  sport  &  plesure, 

These  people  to  sol&s,  &  to  do  go'd  reuerens, 

As  ye  be  appoynted;  doth  your  besy  cure  1 

f  Et  tripident.' 

The  action  includes  tKe  Wrath  of  Herod,  with  a  comic  knight,  Watkin, 
the  Flight  into  Egypt,  the  Massacre  of  the  Innocents,  the  Death  of 
Herod,  the  Purification.  The  stage-directions  mention  a  '  place '  and 
a  '  tempill.'  In  the  latter  are  the  virgins,  who  '  tripident '  with  Anne 
at  the  end.  The  Poeta  excuses  the  l  rude  eloquens '  and  '  sympyll 
cunnyng '  of  his  company,  promises  *  the  disputacion  of  the  doctours ' 
for  next  year,  and  calls  on  the  minstrels  and  virgins  for  a  final  dance. 

D.  Morality  of  Wisdom. 
See  Texts  (ii),  s.  v.  Macro  Morals. 

BURIAL  AND  RESURRECTION. 

Manuscript. 

Bodleian  MS.  e  Museo,  160,  f.  140.  Furnivall,  vii.  166,  asserts 
that  this  once  formed  part  of  the  Digby  MS.  133,  but  offers  no  proof. 
The  copy  seems  to  date  from  the  early  fifteenth  century.  After  the 
Explicit,  in  a  later  hand,  is  '  written  by  me  .  .  . ' ;  unfortunately  the 
name  is  torn  off.  Lines  here  and  there  in  the  earlier  part  of  the  piece 
have  been  crossed  out. 

Editions. 

(a)  1843.  Wright  and  Halliwell,  Reliquiae  Antiquae,  ii.  124. 

(b)  1882.  F.  J.  Furnivall,  The  Digby  Plays,  171  (New  Shakspere 
Soc.,  reprinted  1896  for  E.  E.  T.  S.). 

See  study  by  K.  Schmidt  in  Anglia,  viii.  393. 


432  APPENDIX  X 

The  Play. 

Schmidt  assigns  the  play  to  a  writer  whose  dialect  was  a  mixture 
of  Northern  and  East  Midland  forms ;  Morris  to  a  Northern  author 
and  West  Midland  scribe.  Ten  Brink,  ii.  287,  also  thinks  it  to  be 
Northern,  and  to  date  from  1430-60.  Apparently  the  author  set  out 
to  write,  not  a  drama,  but  a  narrative  poem,  mainly  in  dialogue.  The 
first  fifteen  lines  are  headed  *  The  prologe  of  this  treyte  or  meditatione 
off  the  buryalle  of  Criste  &  mowrnynge  therat/  and  contain  a  request 
to  '  Rede  this  treyte/  The  first  419  lines  have  a  few  narrative  phrases 
introducing  the  speeches,  such  as  '  Said  Maudleyn/  '  Said  Joseph/ 
At  this  point  the  writer  seems  to  have  stopped  these,  crossed  out  such 
as  he  had  already  written,  and  inserted  in  the  margin  of  his  second 

page  — 

'  This  is  a  play  to  be  playede,  on  part  on  gudfriday  after-none,  &  the 
other  part  opon  Esterday  after  the  resurrectione,  In  the  morowe, 
but  at  the  begynnynge  ar  certene  lynes  [the  prologue]  which  must  no* 
be  saide  if  it  be  plaiede,  which  (.  . .  a  line  cut  off)! 

The  Good  Friday  scene  is  an  elaborate  planctus.    It  is  opened  by 
Joseph  of  Arimathea,  and  the  three  Maries.    Then  comes  Nicodemus, 
and  the  body  of  Christ  is  taken  from  the  cross.     The  Virgin  Mary 
enters  with  St.  John,  and  the  plane/us  is  resumed.     The  body  is  laid 
in  the  sepulchre,  and  the  scene  is  closed  with — 
'Thus  her  endes  the  most  holy 
Beriall  of  the  body  of  Crist  lesu/ 
The  Easter  morning  scene  begins  with — 

'Her  begynnes  his  resurrection 

On  pashe  daye  at  Morn/ 

It  contains  a  Quern  quaeritis,  a  scene  of  lamentation  between  Peter, 
Andrew,  and  John,  a  Hortulanus,  with  a  second  apparition  to  all  three 
Maries.  They  sing  the  first  part  of  the  Victimae  paschati,  '  in  canti- 
fracto  vel  saltern  in  pallinodio/  and  the  Apostles  come  in  for  the 
dialogue  part.  Then  the  tidings  are  announced,  and  Peter  and  John 
visit  the  sepulchre ;  after  which,  '  Tune  cantant  omnes  simul  Scimus 
Christum  veil  aliam  sequentiam  aut  ympnum  de  resurrectione/ 

UNIDENTIFIED  PLAYS. 

(i)  C.  Hastings,  Le  Thtdtre  Fran  fats  et  Anglais  >  167,  says: — 

1 II  existe,  en  plus  des  quatre  cycles  de  Mystferes  dont  nous  avons 

parl£  dans  les  chapitres  pr£c£dents,  une  cinquteme  collection  (manu- 

scrit),  propri£t£  d'un  simple  particulier,  W.  Nicholls/ 


TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  433 

(ii)  W.  C.  Hazlitt,  Manual  for  the  Collector  and  Amateur  of  Old 
English  Plays  >  274,  says: — 

'Mr.  F.  S.  Ellis  told  me  (Dec.  10,  1864)  that  a  gentleman  at 
Leipsic  then  had  a  fragment  of  a  large  sheet  on  which  was  printed  in 
types  formed  from  a  block  and  of  a  very  large  size  an  English  Miracle- 
Play.  In  its  perfect  state  it  seems  to  have  been  intended  to  attach 
to  a  church  door  or  any  other  suitable  place/ 

CORNWALL. 
i.  Origo  Mundi:  Passio  Domini:  Resurrexio  Domini. 

Manuscripts. 

(i)  BodL  MS.  791.  Fifteenth  century,  with  some  alterations  and 
additional  stage-directions  in  a  later  hand.  The  text  is  Cornish,  not 
earlier  in  date  than  the  fourteenth  century.  Mr.  Pedler  (Norris,  ii.  506) 
puts  it,  not  very  convincingly,  at  the  end  of  the  thirteenth. 

(ii)  BodL  MS.  28,556.  Seventeenth-century  copy  of  (i),  with  an 
English  translation  of  the  larger  part  of  the  text  by  John  Keigwyn, 
of  Mousehole,  1695. 

Edition. 

1859.  In  Edwin  Norris,  The  Ancient  Cornish  Drama>  from  (i), 
with  modern  translation  by  the  editor. 

Analysis. 

The  text  forms  three  dramas,  intended,  as  the  closing  words  of  the 
first  two  show,  for  performance  on  three  consecutive  days.  At 
the  end  of  each  is  a  diagram  of  the  disposition  of  the  pulpita  or  tenti 
(cf.  p.  391)  for  the  day.  The  action  on  each  day  is  continuous,  but 
for  the  sake  of  comparison  I  divide  it  into  scenes.  These  are 
sometimes  indicated  by  a  Hie  incipit  or  similar  formula, 
(i)  Hie  Incipit  Ordinale  de  Origine  Mundi. 

Fall  of  Lucifer  (line  48).  Moses  in  the  Wilderness  (i  jog- 

Creation    and    Fall    of    Man  1898). 

(I<-437)-  David  and  the   Rods  (1899- 

Cain  and  Abel  (438-633).  2104). 

Seth  in  Paradise,  and  Death  of        David  and  Bathsheba  (2105- 

Adam  (634-916).  2376). 

Noah    and   the    Flood  (917-         Building  of  the  Temple  (237  7- 

1258).  2628). 

Abraham    and    Isaac    (1259-         Prophecy  of  Maximilla  (2629- 

1394).  2778). 

Moses  and  the  Exodus  (1395-         Bridge    over    Cedron   (2779- 
1708).  2824). 

CHAMBERS.    II  F    f 


484  APPENDIX  X 

The  diagram  gives  Celum,  Tortores,  Infernum,  Rex  PAarao,  Rex 
Dauid,  Rex  Salomon],  Abraham,  Or/us. 

(2)  Hie  Indpit  Passio  Domini  Nostri  Jhesu  Christi. 

Temptation  (1-172).  Condemnation      (1817-2533), 

Entry  into  Jerusalem  (17  3-3  30).  including — 

Cleansing  of  the  Temple  (331-  Dreamof Pilate's Wife(i 907- 

392).  1968,  2193-2212). 

Healing  of  Bartimaeus  (393-  Cross    brought  from    Cedron 

454).  (2534-2584). 

Jesus  in  House  of  Simon  the  Bearing  of  the  Cross  (2585- 

Leper  (455-552).  2662). 

Conspiracy  of  Jews  (533-584).  Crucifixion  (2663-2840). 

Treachery  of  Judas  (585-616).  Casting  of  Lots  (2841-2860). 

Last  Supper  (617-930).  Death   of  Jesus  (2861-3098), 
Gethsemane  (931-1200),  including — 

Jesus  before  Caiaphas  (1200-  Plane tus    Mariae    (2925- 

1504).  2954). 

Remorse  and  Death  of  Judas  Longinus  (3003-3030). 

(1505-1566).  Harrowing  of  Hell  (3031- 

Jesus    before    Pilate    (1567-  3°78). 

1616).  *     Descent    from    Cross   (3099- 

Jesus    before    Herod    (1617-  3201). 

1816).  Burial  (3202-3216). 

The  diagram  gives  Celum,  Tortores^  Doctores>  Pilatus>  Herodes, 
Princeps  Annas ,  Cayaphas,  Centurio. 

(3)  Hie  Indpit   Ordinale  de  Resurrexione  Domini  Nostri  Jhesu 
ChristL 

Release  of  Joseph  and  Nico-  Incredulity  of  Thomas  (893- 
demus  (1-96,  307-334,625-  1230,  1345-1586). 

662).  Peregrini  (1231-1344). 

Harrowing  of   Hell,   resumed  Death  of  Pilate  (1587-2360), 
( 9  7-306).  including — 

Setting  of  Watch  (335-422).  Veronica     and     Tiberius 

Resurrection  (423-678).  1587-2360). 

Quern  quaeritis  (679-834).  Ascension  (2361-2630). 

Hortulanus  (835-892). 

The  diagram  gives  Cdum>  Tortores^  Infernum,  Pilatus,  Imperator, 
Josep  Abar\imat\  Nichodemus,  Mihtes. 

At  the  end  of  (i)  and  (3)  the  minstrels  are  directed  to  pipe  for 
a  dance. 


TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  435 

Locality. 

Mr.  Norris  prints  an  opinion  of  Mr.  Pedler  that  the  place-names 
suggest  the  neighbourhood  of  Penrhyn,  and  that  the  plays  may  have 
been  composed  in  the  collegiate  house,  hard  by,  of  Glasney. 

ii.  Creation  of  the  World. 
Manuscripts. 

(i)  BodL  219,  with  colophon  'Heare  endeth  the  Creadon  of  the 
worlde  w^h  noyes  flude  wryten  by  William  Jordan:  the  xii*h  of 
August,  i6n/  The  text  is  Cornish,  with  English  stage-directions 
containing  forms  earlier  than  1611. 

(ii)  BodL  31,504  (MS.  Corn.  C.  i).  Copy  of  (i),  with  English 
translation  by  John  Keigwyn,  1693,  written  by  '  H.  Usticke/ 

iii)  HarL  1867.     Similar  copy  of  (i),  with  Keigwyn's  translation. 

(iv)  MS.  belonging  (in  1864)  to  J.  C.  Hotten  the  bookseller,  con- 
taining also  a  copy  of  the  narrative  Passion  or  Mount  Calvary. 

Editions. 

(a)  1827.     The  Creation  of  the  World,  with  Noah's  Flood.     Edited 
from  (iii)  by  Davies  Gilbert  (with  Keigwyn's  translation). 

(b)  1864.     Gwreans  an  Bys.     The  Creation  of  the  World.     Edited 
from  (i),  with  a  [new]  translation  by  Whitley  Stokes,  as  appendix  to 
Transactions  of  Philological  Society  (1863). 

The  Play. 

The  text  is  headed  '  The  first  daie  [of]  ye  playe '  and  ends  with 
a  direction  to  minstrels  to  pipe  for  dancing,  and  an  invitation  to 
return  on  the  morrow  to  see  the  Redemption.  It  is,  therefore,  probably 
unfinished.  It  appears  to  be  based,  with  certain  additions,  on  the 
Origo  Mundi.  It  is  continuous,  but  may  be  divided  as  follows : — 
Creation  and  Fall  of  Lucifer  Death  of  Cain  (1431-1726). 

(I-334)«  Visit    of    Seth     to     Paradise 

Temptation    and    Fall    (335-  (1727-1964). 

1055).  Death  of  Adam  (1965-2093). 

Cain  and  Abel.     Birth  of  Seth         Seth  and  Enoch  (2094-2210). 
(1056-1430).  Noah's  Flood  (2211-2530). 

iii.  St.  Meriasek. 

Manuscript. 

In  Hengwrt  MSS.  of  Mr.  Wynne  at  Peniarth.  Cornish  Ordinale 
de  Vita  Sancti  Mereadoci  Episcopi  et  Confessoris,  written  by  '  dominus 
Hadton'  in  1504.  At  the  end  is  a  circular  diagram. 

F  f  a 


436  APPENDIX  X 

Edition. 

1872.  jBeunans  Meriasek:  The  Life  of  Saint  Meriasek.  Edited  and 
translated  by  Whitley  Stokes. 

Locality. 

Mr.  Stokes  suggests  Camborne,  of  which  place  St.  Meriasek  was 
patron.  The  play  invokes  St.  Meriasek  and  St.  Mary  of  Camborne 
at  the  close. 

II.  POPULAR  MORALITIES. 

THE  PRIDE  OF  LIFE. 

Manuscript. 

Written  in  two  hands  of  the  first  half  of  the  fifteenth  century  on 
blank  spaces  of  a  Computus  of  Holy  Trinity  Priory,  Dublin,  for  1343, 
preserved  in  the  Irish  Record  Office,  Dublin  (Christ  Church  collection). 

Editions. 

1891.  J.  Mills  in  Proceedings  of  Royal  Soc.  of  Antiquaries  of 
Ireland. 

1898.  Brandl,  2. 

Cf.  H.  Morley,  English  Writers,  vii.  1730. 

The  play  was  probably  written  early  in  the  fifteenth  century.  The 
dialect  is  that  of  the  South  of  England,  not  far  from  London,  modified 
by  Northern  scribes. 

Only  a  fragment  (502  11.)  is  preserved,  but  a  prologue  gives  the  plot. 
There  is  no  title;  but  *  [A  mensjke  gam  schal  gyn  &  ende'  (1.  7),  and 
1  [Of  Kyng  of]  lif  I  wol  jou  telle '  (1.  1 7).  The  extant  characters  are 
Rex  Vivusy  Primus  Miles  Fortitude,  Secundus  Miles  Sam'tac,  Regina, 
Nuntius  Mirth,  Episcopus.  The  King  rejoices  with  Mirth  and  his 
soldiers,  and  Queen  and  Bishop  vainly  call  on  him  to  repent.  Later 
in  the  play  Death  and  Life  strove  for  the  King,  and  Death  took  him. 
He  was  claimed  by  the  '  ffendis/  but  '  oure  lady  mylde '  prayed  to 
have  him. 

The  play  was  out  of  doors  (1.  10);  the  King  had  a  tentorium  which 
could  be  closed  (1.  306) ;  the  Bishop  sat  on  his  '  se '  (sedes) ;  and  so 
probably  with  the  other  actors,  except  Mirth,  who  perhaps  came 
in  'oure  |>e  lake1  (1.  269);  cf.  Brandl,  xix. 

MACRO  MORALS. 

Manuscripts. 

(a)  Macro  MS.,  formerly  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  Cox  Macro,  now 
in  that  of  Mr.  Gurney,  of  Keswick  Hall,  Norfolk.  The  MS.  appears 


TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  437 

from  a  gloss  in  Mankind  (1.  674 ;  cf.  Brandl,  xxvi),  naming  King 
Edward,  to  have  been  written  during  the  reign  of  Edward  IV  (1461- 
1483).  At  the  end  of  two  of  the  plays  is  the  name  of  Hyngham,  a 
monk,  to  whom  the  MS.  belonged. 

(b)  Digby  MS.  133,  on  which  cf.  p,  428,  has  on  f.  158  the  first 
754  lines  of  Mind,  Will,  and  Understanding.  The  handwriting  is 
said  to  be  the  same  as  that  of  the  Macro  MS.  (Collier,  ii.  207). 

[A  complete  edition  of  the  three  moralities  of  the  Macro  MS.  has 
long  been  contemplated  by  the  E.  E.  T.  S.] 

i.  The  Castle  of  Perseverance. 

Edition.  1890.    Pollard,  64  (408  lines  only). 

Pollard  dates  the  play  not  later  than  the  middle  of  the  reign  of 
Henry  VI.  It  contains  about  3,500  lines. 

The  subject  is  the  struggle  of  good  and  bad  qualities  for  Humanum 
Genus.  On  the  one  side  are  Malus  Angelus  and  Mundus,  Belial,  and 
Caro,  aided  by  the  Seven  Deadly  Sins  and  Voluptas,  Stultitia,  Detractio: 
on  the  other  Bonus  Angelus,  with  Confessio,  Schrift,  Penitencia,  and 
the  Six  Divine  Graces.  Amongst  other  episodes  Humanum  Genus  is 
besieged  in  the  Castle  of  Perseverance.  At  the  end  Misericordia, 
lustitia,  Pax,  Veritas,  dispute  in  heaven,  and  Pater  sedens  in  trono 
inclines  to  mercy. 

The  indications  of  mise  en  seine  are  very  valuable.  On  the  first  leaf 
of  the  MS.  is  a  diagram  of  the  playing  place,  reproduced  by  Sharp,  23. 
There  is  a  large  circle  with  a  double  circumference,  in  which  is 
written,  *  This  is  the  watyr  a  bowte  the  place,  if  any  dyche  may  be 
mad  ther  it  schal  be  pleyed;  or  ellys  that  it  be  stronglye  barryd  al 
a  bowte :  &  lete  nowth  ower  many  stytelerys  be  withinne  the  plase/ 
Within  the  circle  is  a  rude  representation  of  a  castle,  and  above,  *  This 
is  the  castel  of  perseveranse  that  stondyth  in  the  myddys  of  the  place ; 
but  lete  no  men  sytte  ther  for  lettynge  of  syt,  for  ther  schal  be  the  best 
of  all.'  Beneath  the  castle  is  a  small  bed,  with  the  legend, '  Mankynde 
is  bed  schal  be  under  the  castel,  &  ther  schal  the  sowle  lye  under  the 
bed  tyl  he  schal  ryse  &  pleye/  At  the  side  is  a  further  direction, 
*  Coveytyse  cepbord  schal  be  at  the  ende  of  the  castel,  be  the  beddys 
feet/  Outside  the  circle  are  written  five  directions  for  scaffolds, 
'Sowth,  Caro  skaffold  —  West,  Mundus  skaffold  —  Northe,  Belial 
ekaffold— North  Est,  Coveytyse  skaffold— Est,  deus  skaffold/  At 
the  foot  of  the  page  are  some  notes  for  costume :  '  &  he  that  schal 
pley  belyal,  loke  that  he  have  gunne  powder  brennyng  in  pypys  in  his 


438  APPENDIX  X 

hands  and  in  his  ers,  and  in  his  ars  whanne  he  gothe  to  batayle.    The 
iiij  dowters  schul  be  clad  in  mentelys,  Mercy  in  wyth,  rythwysnesse 
in  red  al  togedyr,  Trewthe  in  sad  grene,  &  Pes  al  in  blake,  and  they 
schul  pleye  in  the  place  al  to  gedyr  tyl  they  brynge  up  the  sowle.' 
There  is  a  prologue  by  two  vexillatores,  who  declare — 

'These  percell  in  propyrtes  we  spose  us  to  playe, 
This  day  sevenenyt  before  you  in  syth, 

At  N  on  the  grene  in  ryal  aray.' 
They  add  that  they  will '  be  onward  be  underne  of  the  day '  (9  a.m.). 

ii.  Mindj  Will,  and  Understanding. 
Editions. 

1835.  T.  Sharp,  Ancient  Mysteries  (Abbotsford  Club,  754  lines  from 
Digby  MS.). 

1837.  W.  B.  D.  D.  Turnbull  (Abbotsford  Club,  the  rest  from 
Macro  MS.). 

1882.  F.  J.  Furnivall,  Digby  Plays,  139  (754  lines  only). 

Lucifer  seduces  Mind,  Will,  and  Understanding.  These  are  the 
three  parts  of  Anima,  who  enters  with  devils  running  from  under  her 
skirts.  Everlasting  Wisdom  effects  a  re-conversion.  There  are  a 
number  of  mute  persons  attendant  on  the  chief  characters,  whose 
coming  and  going,  '  dysgysyde/  create  scenic  effects,  as  in  a  masque. 
There  are  minstrels  and  a  hornpipe,  songs  and  dances.  At  one  point 
Lucifer  snatches  up  'a  shrewde  boy'  (perhaps  from  the  audience), 
and  carries  him  off.  An  allusion  to  the  Holborn  quest  suggests 
a  London  origin,  but  Schmidt  (Anglia,  viii.  390)  thinks  the  dialect  to 
be  that  of  the  north  border  of  the  West  Midlands. 

iii.  Mankind. 

Editions. 

1897.  Manly,  L  315. 

1898.  Brandl,  37. 

,  The  text  is  901  lines  long.  A  list  of  place-names  (1.  491)  makes  it 
probable  that  it  belongs  to  the  borders  of  Norfolk  and  Cambridgeshire. 

Mercy  and  Mischief,  the  latter  helped  by  Nought,  New  Gyse, 
Nowadays,  and  the  devil  Titivillus,  essay  in  turns  to  win  the  soul 
of  Mankind. 

The  scene  is  divided.  Part  represents  a  tavern,  of  which  Titivillus 
is  host;  part  a  'deambulatorye'  outside.  A  reference  to  the  spectators 
(1.  29)  runs,  'O  je  souerens,  J>at  sytt,  and  je  brotherne,  )?at  stondo 
ryghte  wppe ' :  cf.  Brandl,  xxxii. 


TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  439 

THE  SUMMONING  OF  EVERYMAN. 

Editions. 

[1509-1530.]  Richard  Pynson  (fragment  in  B.  M.). 

[1509-1530.]  Richard  Pynson  (fragment  in  BodL). 

[1521-1537.]  John  Skot.  'Here  begynneth  a  treatyse  how  the  hye 
fader  of  heuen  sendeth  dethe  to  somon  euery  creature  to  come  and 
gyue  a  counte  of  theyr  lyues  in  this  Worlde,  and  is  in  maner  of  a 
morall  playe'  (B.  M.  and  Huth  Library). 

[1529-1537.]  John  Skot  (in  St.  Paul's  Churchyard). 

There  are  modern  editions  by  Hawkins  (i  773,  vol.  i),  Godeke  (1865), 
Hazlitt-Dodsley  (1874,  vol.  i),  Pollard  (1890,  part  only,  and  in  full  in 
Fifteenth  Century  Prose  and  Verse>  1903),  H.  Logeman,  Elckerlijk 
and  Everyman  (1892),  F.  Sidgwick  (1902).  Another  is  announced 
in  a  series  edited  by  I.  Gollancz. 

There  are  about  900  lines.  Pollard,  202,  assigns  the  text  to  the 
end  of  the  fifteenth  century;  Ten  Biink,  ii.  302,  to  the  reign  of 
Edward  IV.  Prof.  H.  Logeman,  Elckerlijk  (1892),  argues  the  play 
to  be  an  English  version  of  the  closely  similar  Dutch  Elckerlijk, 
attributed  to  Petrus  Dorlandus  of  Diest,  but  K.  H.  de  Raaf,  Spysghd 
der  Salicheyt  van  Elckerlijk  (1897),  would  invert  the  relation:  cf. 
Brandl,  xiv.  The  characters  are  Messenger,  God,  Death,  Everyman, 
Fellowship,  Kindred,  Goods,  Good  Deeds,  Knowledge,  Confession, 
Beauty,  Strength,  Discretion,  Five  Wits,  Angel,  Doctor.  The 
Messenger  prologizes.  God  sends  Death  for  Everyman,  who  finds 
that  no  one  will  accompany  him  save  Good  Deeds.  The  Doctor 
epilogizes.  There  are  no  indications  of  the  mise  en  sctne,  except  that 
there  was  a  central  scaffold  for  the  *  House  of  Salvation '  (Godeke, 
174,  200,  cf.  Brandl,  xx). 

THE  WORLD  AND  THE  CHILD. 

Editions. 

An  Oxford  bookseller,  John  Dome,  had  a  copy  of  '  mundus,  a  play ' 
in  1520*. 

1522.  Wynkyn  de   Worde.      'Here  begynneth    a  propre    newe 
Interlude  of  the  Worlde  and  the  chylde,  otherwyse  called  (Mundus 
&  Infans)  .  .  / 

1523.  Wynkyn  de  Worde. 

There  are  a  reprint  by  Lord  Althorp  (Roxburghe  Club,  1817)  and 
modern  editions  in  Hazlitt-Dodsley,  vol.  i;  Manly,  i.  353. 
1  Collectanea  (^Oxf.  Hist.  Soc.),  i.  130. 


440  APPENDIX  X. 

The  dramatis  persona*  are  Mundus  or  the  World,  Infans  or 
Dalliance  or  Wanton  or  Love-Lust  and  Liking  or  Manhood  or 
Shame  or  Age  or  Repentance,  Conscience,  Folly,  Perseverance. 
The  representative  of  Man  in  various  ages  is  alternately  won  over 
to  good  and  evil.  There  are  979  lines.  Collier,  il  224;  Pollard,  h, 
assign  the  play  to  the  reign  of  Henry  VII ;  Brandl,  xlii,  thinks  that  the 
use  of  the  Narrenmotif  points  to  a  date  of  composition  not  long  before 
that  of  publication.  Mundus  says, '  Here  I  sette  semely  in  se '  (1.  22), 
and  Manhood  'Here  in  this  sete  sytte  I'  (1.  285). 

JOHN  SKBLTON.     (Magnificence) 

Skelton  was  born,  probably  in  Norfolk,  about  1460.  He  studied  at 
Cambridge  and  acquired  fame  as  a  scholar.  Both  universities  honoured 
him  with  the  degree  of  poeta  laureatus.  He  was  tutor  to  Henry  VIII 
as  a  boy,  and  .became  rector  of  Diss  in  Norfolk  But  he  died  in 
sanctuary  at  Westminster  (1529),  driven  there  on  account  of  his  bitter 
satires  against  Wolsey.  In  his  Garland  of  Laurell  (pr.  1523),  a  late 
work,  he  has  a  list  of  his  writings,  including — 

4  Of  Vertu  also  the  souerayne  enterlude : 

'His  commedy,  Achademios  callyd  by  name: 
•        ••••••• 

And  of  Soueraynte  a  noble  pamphelet; 
And  of  Magnyfycence  a  notable  mater/ 

Bale,  ScriploreS)  i.  65 2,  ascribes  to  him  Comoediam  de  uirtute^  Lib.  i; 
De  magnificentia  comoediam,  Lib.  i ;  ITieatrales  ludosy  Lib.  i ;  De  bono 
or  dine  comoediam.  Lib.  i.  Magnificence  is,  however,  his  only  extant 
play. 

Warton  (Hazlitt-Warton,  iii.  287)  describes  a  piece  shown  him  by 
William  Collins,  the  poet,  at  Chichester,  about  1759.  He  says: — 

'  It  is  the  Nigramansir,  a  morall  Enterlude  and  a  pithie,  written  by 
Maister  Skelton  laureate,  and  plaid  before  the  King  and  other  estatys 
at  Woodstoke  on  Palme  Sunday.  It  was  printed  by  Wynkyn  de 
Worde  in  a  thin  quarto,  in*  the  year  1504.  It  must  have  been  pre- 
sented before  Henry  VII,  at  the  royal  manor  or  palace  at  Woodstock 
in  Oxfordshire,  now  destroyed.  The  characters  are  a  Necromancer 
or  conjurer,  the  devil,  a  notary  public,  Simony,  and  Philargyria  or 
Avarice.  It  is  partly  a  satire  on  some  abuses  in  the  church  . . .  The 
story,  or  plot,  is  the  trial  of  Simony  and  Avarice/ 

Warton  proceeds  to  describe  the  action  at  some  length.  Nothing 
further  is  known  of  the  play.  Ritson,  Bibliograptna  Poetica>  106,  said 


TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  441 

'  it  is  utterly  incredible  that  the  fftgramansir  . . .  ever  existed/  and 
Mr.  H.  E.  D.  Blakiston  (Eng.  Hist.  Ret),  for  April,  1896)  has  called 
attention  to  several  cases  in  which  Warton  showed  mala  fides  as 
a  literary  historian.  In  another  place  (iii.  310)  Warton  incidentally 
calls  the  piece  '  Skelton's  The  Trial  of  Simonie:  E.  G.  Duff,  Hand 
Lists  of  English  Printers,  Part  i,  knows  of  no  extant  copy. 

Magnificence. 
Editions. 

[1529-1533.]  John  Rastell.  *  Magnyfycence,  a  goodly  interlude 
and  a  mery,  deuysed  and  made  by  mayster  Skelton,  poet  laureate, 
late  deceasyd.1  Folio/ 

1533.  John  Rastell.     Quarto. 

1821.  J.  Littledale  (Roxburghe  Club). 

1843.  A.  Dyce,  Poetical  Works  of  Skelton,  i.  225. 

1890.  Pollard,  1 06  (extract). 

The  characters  are  Felicity,  Liberty,  Measure,  Magnificence,  Fancy, 
Counterfeit  Countenance,  Crafty  Countenance,  Cloked  Collusion, 
Courtly  Abusion,  Folly,  Adversity,  Poverty,  Despair,  Mischief,  Good 
Hope,  Redress,  Sad  Circumspection,  Perseverance.  The  plot  shows 
Magnificence  brought  low  by  evil  counsellors,  and  restored  by  good 
ones.  The  players  come  in  and  out  of  'the  place.'  There  are  2,596 
lines.  The  play  was  written  later  than  1515,  as  a  reference  to  the 
liberality  of  the  dead  Louis  of  France  (1.  283)  must  intend  Louis  XII 
who  died  in  that  year,  not  the  niggard  Louis  XL 

SIR  DAVID  LYNDSAY.     (Ane  Satyr e  of  the  Thrie  Estates?) 

Sir  David  Lyndsay  'of  the  Mount'  in  Fifeshire  was  born  in  1490. 
By  151 1  he  was  employed  in  the  royal  household,  first  as  an  actor  or 
musician,  then  as  '  Keeper  of  the  Kingis  Grace's  person.'  In  1529  he 
became  Lyon  King  at  Arms,  a  post  which  included  the  charge  of 
court  entertainments.  His  satire  did  not  spare  the  church,  and  he 
seems  to  have  been  in  sympathy  with  Knox  and  other  reformers,  but 
he  did  not  so  far  commit  himself  as  to  endanger  his  office,  which  he 
held  until  his  death  in  1555. 

The  Thrie  Estaitis. 
Performances. 

(i)  Jan.  6,  1540,  Linlithgaw,  before  James  V.  This  performance, 
the  first  of  which  there  is  any  satisfactory  evidence,  was  described  by 
Sir  W.  Eure  in  a  letter  to  Cromwell  (Ellis,  Original  Letters,  3rd  Series, 


442  APPENDIX  X 

iii.  275  ;  Brewer-Gairdner,  xv.  36),  enclosing  a  '  Copie  of  the  Nootes 
of  the  Interluyde/  The  version  seems  to  have  been  different  from 
that  now  extant.  '  Solaice '  figured  as  the  presenter.  Eure  mentions 
the  'scaffald'  and  *the  interluyds  of  the  Play/  He  adds  that,  as 
a  result,  James  V  admonished  the  Bishops  to  reform  their  ways. 

(ii)  June  7  (Whit- Tuesday),  1552,  Cupar  of  Fife.  The  Banna- 
tyne  MS.  (see  below)  has  the  'Proclamation  maid  at  Cowpar  of  Fyffe, 
upon  the  Castell-hill,  7  June,  beginning  at  seven.'  This  was  therefore 
the  extant  version.  The  year  is  fixed  by  an  incidental  reference  to 
the  day  (June  7)  as  Whit-Tuesday. 

("0  *  554  (?)» Edinburgh.  Henry  Charteris,  in  his  preface  toLyndsay's 
Warkis  of  1568  (Laing,  iii.  231),  says  of  the  '  makar's '  relations  to  the 
clergy,  '  Sic  ane  spring  he  gaif  thame  in  the  Play,  play  it  besyde 
Edinburgh,  in  presence  of  the  Quene  Regent,  and  ane  greit  part  of 
the  Nobilitie,  with  ane  exceding  greit  nowmer  of  pepill,  lestand  fra 
ix  houris  afoir  none  till  vj  houris  at  evin.'  The  Bannatyne  MS. 
gives  the  play  as  '  maid  in  the  Grenesyd  besyd  Edinburgh,'  and  '  in 
anno  155-  3eiris.'  Cf.  Appendix  W,  p.  366. 

Editions. 

(a)  1602.  Robert  Charteris.  'Ane  satyre  of  the  thrie  estaits,  in 
commendation  of  vertew  in  vituperation  of  vyce.  Maid  be  Sir  Dauid 
Lindesay  of  the  Mont,  alias,  Lyon  King  of  Armes/ 

Diligence,  as  presenter,  summons  the  three  estates  before  Rex 
Humanitas.  Many  '  Vycis '  and  other  allegorical  personages  appear 
before  the  Rex  on  his  'royall  sait.'  In  11.  1288-1411  comes  the  first 
interlude  (although  the  term  is  not  used  in  the  text)  of '  The  Sowtar  and 
Tailor.'  At  1.  1931  is  the  '  End  of  the  First  Part  of  the  Satyre/  with 
the  direction,  '  Now  sail  the  Pepill  mak  collatioun :  then  beginnis  the 
Interlude :  the  Kings,  Bischops,  and  principal  Players  being  out  of 
their  seats.1  This  interlude  introduces  the  Pauper,  Pardoner,  Sowtar, 
and  others.  Part  ii  begins  at  1.  2298.  At  1.  4283,  'Heir  sail  enter 
Folie,'  and  at  1.  4483,  '  Heir  sail  Folie  begin  his  Sermon,  as  followis.' 
The  theme  is,  of  course,  Slullorum  numerus  infinitus^  and  at  the 
close  the  preacher  names  recipients  of  his  '  Follie  Hattis  or  Hades ' 
(cf.  ch.  xvi).  At  1.  4629,  the  people  are  finally  dismissed  to  dance 
and  drink,  Diligence  calling  on  a  minstrel. 

(<*)  1-1568.  Bannatyne  MS.  (ed.  Hunterian  Club,  1873-1896, 
Part  iv). 

George  Bannatyne  included  in  his  collection  of  pieces  by  the 
Scots  *  makaris '  (a)  the  *  Proclamation '  at  Cupar  of  Fife  (see  above), 


TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  443 

(6)  a  preliminary  interlude,  not  in  Charteris's  edition,  of  a  Cottar,  an 
Auld  Man  and  his  Wife,  a  *  Fuill,'  &c. ;  (c)  seven  extracts  from  the 
play,  headed,  *  Heir  begynnis  Schir  Dauid  Lyndsay  Play  maid  in  the 
Grenesyd  besyd  Edinburgh,  quhilk  I  writtin  bot  schortly  be  Interludis, 
levand  the  grave  mater  thereof,  becaws  the  samyne  abuse  is  weill 
reformit  in  Scotland,  praysit  be  God,  quhairthrow  I  omittit  that 
principall  mater  and  writtin  only  Sertane  mirry  Interludis  thairof  verry 
pleasand,  begynnyng  at  the  first  part  of  the  Play.' 

1869.  F.  Hall,  Works  of  Lindsay,  Pt.  iv  (E.  E.  T.  S.     o.  s.  37). 

1879.  D-  Laing,  Works  of  Lindsay,  vol.  ii. 

[Other  editions  are  enumerated  by  Laing,  iii.  259.  There  is  an 
analysis  of  the  play  in  T.  F.  Henderson,  Scottish  Vernacular  Literature, 
219.] 

IIL  TUDOR  MAKERS  OF  INTERLUDES. 

HENRY  MEDWALL. 

Medwall  was  chaplain  to  John  Morton,  cardinal  and  Archbishop  of 
Canterbury  (1486-1500),  who  is  probably  the  'my  lord  '  of  Nature,  i. 
1438.  Besides  Nature,  he  wrote  an  interlude  'of  the  fyndyng  of 
Troth,  who  was  carried  away  by  ygnoraunce  and  ypocresy,'  played 
by  the  King's  players  before  Henry  VIII  at  Richmond  on  Jan.  6, 1514. 
The  '  foolys  part '  was  the  best,  but  the  play  was  too  long  to  please 
the  King  (cf.  p.  201).  See  also  s.  v.  Lucrece  (p.  458). 

Nature. 
Editions. 

[1530-4.]  William  Rastell.  '  A  goodly  interlude  of  Nature  compyled 
by  mayster  Henry  Medwall/  &c. 

1898.  Brandl,  73. 

There  are  two  'partes*  of  the  'processe'  (i.  1434).  The  first 
(1439  11.)  has  Mundus,  Worldly  Affection,  Man,  Nature,  Innocency, 
Reason,  Sensuality,  Privy  Council,  Pride,  a  Boy,  Shamefastness.  In 
the  second  (1421  11.),  on  a  different  day,  some  of  these  recur,  with 
Bodily  Lust,  Wrath,  Envy,  Sloth,  Gluttony,  Humility,  Charity,  Absti- 
nence, Liberality,  Chastity,  Good  Occupation,  and  Patience.  The 
personages  come  in  and  out  at  'dorys'  (i.  728)  and  sit  down  on 
'stole'  or  'chayr/  There  was  also  a  fire  (ii.  518  sqq.).  Probably 
the  scene  was  in  a  room.  At  the  end  'they  syng  some  goodly  ballet/ 

JOHN  HEYWOOD. 

John  Heywood  was  born  either  in  London  or  at  North  Mimms  in 
Hertfordshire,  about  1497.  He  is  claimed  as  a  member  of  Broadgates 


444  APPENDIX  X 

Hall,  afterwards  Pembroke  College,  Oxford.  From  about  1515  he 
was  employed  at  Court ;  in  1 5 1 9  he  is  called  a  '  singer/  later  a '  player  at 
virginals/  and  finally  he  was  master  of  a  company  of  children,  possibly 
the  singing-school  of  St.  Paul's.  His  advancement  with  Henry  VIII 
and  the  Princess  Mary  is  ascribed  to  Sir  Thomas  More,  whose  kins- 
man he  became.  More's  sister  Elizabeth  married  John  Rastell, 
lawyer  and  printer.  John  Heywood's  wife  was  their  granddaughter, 
Elizabeth.  It  may  be  added  that  their  daughter,  another  Elizabeth, 
was  the  mother  of  John  Donne.  Heywood  took  More's  line  in  Church 
matters,  but  conformed  to  the  Act  of  Supremacy.  He  was  in  high 
favour  under  Mary,  and  at  her  death  retired  to  Malines.  He  was  alive 
in  1577,  but  dead  in  1587. 

Heywood's  extant  interludes  are  all  early  work;  although  Bale, 
writing  in  1557  (Scriptores,  ed.  2,  ii.  no),  only  ascribes  to  him  De 
Aura,  comoediam;  fie  A  more,  tragoediam  ;  De  quadruplici  P.  The 
Pardoner  and  Friar,  which  mentions  Leo  X  as  alive,  must  be  before 
1521.  Love  and  the  Four  Ps  may  be  about  as  early :  the  rest  may 
belong  to  the  following  decade  (Brandl,  li).  In  1538  Heywood 
showed  a  play  of  children  before  Mary  (Madden,  62).  In  1539,  Wolsey 
paid  him  for  a  masque  of  Arthur's  Knights,  or  Divine  Providence, 
at  court  (Brewer,  xiv.  (2)  782).  In  1553  he  set  out  a  play  of  children 
at  court  (Loseley  MSS.  89).  At  Mary's  coronation  he  sat  in  a  pageant 
under  a  vine  against  the  school  in  St.  Paul's  Churchyard  and  made 
speeches  (Holinshed  (1808),  iv.  6). 

See  W.  Swododa,/.  Heywood  ah  Dramatiker  (if 


Plays. 
i.  The  Pardoner  and  the  Friar. 

Editions. 

*533>  Wyllyam  Rastell.     '  A  mery  Play  betwene  the  pardoner  and 
the  frere,  the  curate  and  neybour  Pratte.' 

There  are  modern  editions  in  F.  J.  Child,  Four  Old  Plays  (1848); 
Hazlitt-Dodsley,  vol.  i ;  Pollard,  114  (extract). 

The  scene  of  the  action  is  supposed  to  be  a  church.    About  1,000 
lines.    The  date  of  composition  was  under  Leo  X  (1513-1521). 

ii.  Lov€. 
Editions. 

1533*  William  Rastell.    'A  play  of  loue,  A  newe  and  mery  euterlude 
concerning  pleasure  and  payne  in  loue,  made  by  Ihofi  Heywood/ 
[Unique  copy  in  Magd  Coll.,  Camb.    See  Greg,  Plays,  143.] 


TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  445 

[1546-1586.]  John  Waley. 

[Unique  copy,  without  title-page,  in  Bodl.,  bound  with  Weather  and 
Four  Ps.  (Bodl.  4°,  P.  33,  Jur.).  Copies  of  these  three  plays,  with  one 
now  lost,  of  'Old  Custom/  are  mentioned  in  an  inventory  of  the  effects 
of  John,  Earl  of  Warwick,  1545-1550  (Hist.  JkfSS.  ii.  102).] 

1898.  Brandl,  159. 

Little  more  than  a  series  of  disputations  between  Lover  Loved,  Lover 
not  Loved,  Loved  not  Loving,  and  No  Lover  nor  Loved.  There  are 
1,573  lines.  Towards  the  end,  'Here  the  vyse  cometh  in  ronnynge 
sodenly  aboute  the  place  among  the  audiens  with  a  hye  copyn  tank 
on  his  bed  full  of  squybs  fyred/ 

iii.  Four  Ps. 
Editions. 

[1541-1547.]  William  Myddleton.  'The  playe  called  the  foure 
P.  P.  A  newe  and  very  mery  enterlude  of  A  palmer.  A  pardoner. 
A  poticary.  A  pedler.  Made  by  lohn  Heewood.' 

[1549-1569.]  William  Copland. 

1569.  John  Allde. 

There  are  modern  editions  in  W.  Scott,  Ancient  British  Drama, 
vol.  i  (1810)  :  Hazlitt-Dodsley,  vol.  i;  Manly,  i.  483. 

[Copyright,  with  that  of  Love  and  Weather  transferred,  Jan.  15, 1582, 
from  late  Sampson  Awdeley  to  John  Charlwood  (Arber,  ii.  405).  The 
Four  Pees  is  mentioned  with  other  early  plays  in  Sir  Thomas  More 
(Shakes.  Soc.  1844).] 

There  are  no  indications  of  mtse  en  seine.    There  are  1,236  lines. 

iv.   Weather. 
Editions. 

1533.  William  Rastell.  4  The  Play  of  the  wether.  A  new  and  very 
mery  enterlude  of  all  maner  wethers  made  by  lohn  Heywood/ 

[1564-1576.]  Anthony  Kytson. 

1898.  Brandl,  211.  1903.  Gayley,  19. 

The  characters  are  Jupiter,  Merry  Report,  '  the  vyce,'  Gentleman, 
Merchant,  Ranger,  Water  Miller,  Wind  Miller,  Gentlewoman,  Launder, 
A  Boy  ('the  lest  that  can  play').  All  in  turn  petition  different  weather 
from  Jupiter.  The  piece  is  1,255  lines  long.  Jupiter  has  his  '  thron' 

(1.  179). 

v.  John,  Tib  and  Sir  John. 

Editions. 

i53f.  William  Rastell.  'A  mery  play  between  lohan  lohan  the 
husbande,  Tyb  his  wyfe  and  Syr  Ihan  the  preest.' 

1819.  Chiswick  Press.        1898.  Brandl,  259.        1903.  Gayley,  61. 


446  APPENDIX  X 

The  action  proceeds  in  the  'place*  (1.  667),  which  represents 
Johan's  house  with  a  fire  (11.  399,  460).  The  door  of  the  priest's 
chamber  is  also  visible  (11.  316,  673).  There  are  680  lines. 

vi.   Witty  and  Witless. 

Manuscript. 
Harl.  MS.  367. 

Edition. 

1846.  F.  W.  Fairholt  (Percy  Soc.).  'A  dialogue  concerning  witty 
and  witless/ 

Thomas  Hacket  entered  the  '  pleye  of  wytles'  on  S.  R.  in  1560-1 
(Arber,  i.  154).  This  piece  is  a  mere  dialogued  dtbat  or  estrif. 

vii.  Gentleness  and  Nobility. 

[1516-1533.]  John  Rastell.  '  Of  Gentylnes  and  Nobylyte.  A  dya- 
loge  . . .  compilid  in  maner  of  an  enterlude  with  diuers  toys  and  gestis 
addyt  therto  to  make  mery  pastyme  and  disport.' 

1829.  J.  H.  Burn. 

This  resembles  Witty  and  Witless  in  character.  It  is  only  con- 
jecturally  assigned  to  Heywood.  The  copy  in  the  British  Museum  of 
Rastell's  edition  (C.  40,  i.  16)  has  a  mounted  woodcut  portrait  with  the 
initials  I.  H.,  but  I  do  not  know  whether  that  really  belongs  to  it. 

JOHN  BALE. 

[Authorities, — Collier,  i.  123;  ii.  159;  Ward,  i.  173;  Lives  of  Bale  in 
D.  N.  B.  (article  by  Mandell  Creighton)  and  Cooper,  Athenae  Canta- 
brigienses ;  his  own  works,  especially  Illustrium  Maioris  Britanniae 
Scriptorum  Catalogus  (1548,  ed.  2,  1557-9,  i.  704)  and  Vocacyon  to 
Ossory  (HarL  Miscellany,  ed.  1808,  i.  328) ;  editions  of  plays  named 
below,  especially  that  of  Schroer.] 

John  Bale  was  born  in  1495  at  Cove,  near  Dunwich,  in  Suffolk. 
He  was  placed  as  a  boy  in  the  Carmelite  convent  of  Norwich,  thence 
went  to  that  of  Holn,  or  Holm,  in  Northumberland,  and  finally  to 
Jesus  College,  Cambridge.  He  took  orders,  but  was  converted  to 
Protestantism  by  Lord  Wentworth,  and  married  a  '  faithful  Dorothy/ 
He  became  vicar  of  Thorndon,  in  Suffolk,  and  earned  the  protection  of 
Thomas  Cromwell  ob  editas  comoedias.  Cromwell's  accounts  (Brewer, 
xiv.  2.  337)  show  payments  to  him  for  plays  on  Sept.  8,  1538,  at 
St.  Stephen's,  Canterbury,  and  on  Jan.  31, 1539.  At  his  patron's  fall  in 
1540  he  fled  to  Germany,  and  joined  vigorously  in  polemic.  In  his 
Epistel  Exhortatorye  of  an  Inglyshe  Christian  (1544),  written  under  the 
pseudonym  of  Henry  Stalbridge,  he  says :  '  None  leave  ye  unvexed 
and  untrobled — no,  not  so  much  as  the  poore  minstrels,  and  players 
of  enterludes,  but  ye  are  doing  with  them.4  So  long  as  they  played 


TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  447 

lyes,  and  sange  baudy  songes,  blasphemed  God,  and  corrupted  men's 
consciences,  ye  never  blamed  them,  but  were  verye  well 'contented. 
But  sens  they  persuaded  the  people  to  worship  theyr  Lorde  God 
aryght,  accordyng  to  hys  holie  lawes  and  not  yours,  and  to  acknoledge 
Jesus  Chryst  for  their  onely  redeemer  and  saviour,  without  your  lowsie 
legerdemains,  ye  never  were  pleased  with  them/  He  returned  in  1547, 
and  in  1548  printed  in  his  Scriptores  the  following  list  of  his  '  in 
idiomate  materno,  comedias  sub  vario  metrorum  genere.1 

1.  'Lib.  14.  Vitam  D.  loannis  Baptistae. 

2.  Com.  i.  de  Christo  duodenni. 

3.  Com.  2.  de  baptismo  &  tentatione. 

4.  Com.  i.  de  Lazaro  resuscitate. 

5.  Com.  i.  de  consilio  pontificum. 

6.  Com.  i.  de  Simone  leproso. 

7.  Com.  i.  de  coena  Domini  &  pedum  lotione. 

8.  Com.  2.  de  passione  Christi. 

9.  Com.  2.  de  sepultura  &  resurrectione. 

10.  Lib.  2.  super  utroque  regis  coniugio. 

11.  Lib.  2.  de  sectis  Papisticis. 

12.  Lib.  2.  erga  Momos  et  Zoilos. 

13.  Lib.  2.  Proditiones  Papistarum. 

14.  Lib.  i.  contra  adulterantes  Dei  verbum. 

15.  Lib.  2.  de  loanne  Anglorum  rege. 

1 6.  Lib.  i.  de  imposturis  Thomae  Becketi. 

17.  Lib.  i.  de  magnis  Dei  prommionibus. 

1 8.  Lib.  i.  de predicatione  loann is. 

19.  Lib.  i.  de  Christi  tentatione. 

20.  Lib.  i.  Corruptions  legum  divinarum. 

21.  Lib.  i.  Amoris  imaginem. 

22.  Lib.  4.  Pammachii  tragoedias  transtuli/ 

As  Bale  gives  a  Latin  translation  of  the  opening  words  of  each  piece, 
his  five  extant  plays  can  be  identified  with  those  I  have  italicized.  It 
is  to  be  noted  that  Nos.  18  and  19  have  the  same  subject  as  No.  3, 
which  seems  to  form  part  of  a  complete  Passion  cycle  (Nos.  2-9). 

In  1547  Bale  was  made  rector  of  Bishopstoke,  Hants,  in  1551  of 
Swaffham,  Norfolk,  and  in  1553  Bishop  of  Ossory,  in  Ireland.  On  the 
day  of  the  proclamation  of  Queen  Mary  he  had  some  of  his  plays 
performed  at  the  market-cross  of  Kilkenny  (cf.  p.  374).  But  he  had 
to  take  refuge  at  Basle,  and  on  the  accession  of  Elizabeth  found 
himself  too  old  to  resume  his  see,  and  retired  on  a  prebend  in  Canter- 
bury Cathedral,  where  he  died  in  1563. 


448  APPENDIX  X 

Plays. 
L  God's  Promises. 

Editions. 

(0  I577-  '  A  Tragedye  or  enterlude  manyfestyng  the  chefe  promyses 
of  God  vnto  man  by  all  ages  in  the  olde  lawe,  from  the  fall  of  Adam 
to  the  incarnacyon  of  the  lorde  Jesus  Christ.  Compyled  by  John  Bale, 
An.  Do.  1538,  and  now  fyrst  imprynted  1577.  [List  of  characters.] 
Jo  An  Charlwoodfor  Stephen  Peek,  1577.' 

(ii)  n.d.  [Another  edition],  'Compyled  by  Johan  Bale,  Anno  Domini 
M.D.XVXXVHI/  B.  L. 

(iii)  1874.  Hazlitt-Dodsley,  i.  277  (and  in  all  earlier  editions  of 
Dodsley,  from  1744). 

A  prologue  by  Baleus  prolocutor  is  followed  by  seven  'Actes/  in 
which  Adam,  Noah,  Abraham,  Moses,  David,  Esaias,  lohannes  Baptista 
discourse  in  turn  with  Pater  Coekstis.  Each  Act  ends  with  one  of  the 
pre-Christmas  antiphons  known  as  the  seven  Oes  (cf.  vol.  i.  p.  344), 
to  be  sung  by  a  '  Chorus  cum  organis '  in  Latin  or  English.  Baleus 
Prolocutor  epilogizes,  ending  '  More  of  thys  matter  conclude  hereafter 
we  shall/  This  play  is  practically  a  Prophetae. 

ii.  John  Baptist. 
Editions. 

(i)  n.d.  *  A  Brefe  Comedy  or  Enterlude  of  Johan  Baptystes  preach- 
ynge  in  the  Wyldernesse;  openynge  the  craftye  assaultes  of  the 
hypocrytes,  with  the  gloryouse  Baptyme  of  the  Lorde  Jesus  Christ. 
Compyled  by  Johan  Bale,  Anno  M.D.XXXVIII.' 

(ii)  1744.  Harleian  Miscellany,  i.  97. 

Praefatio  by  Baleus  Prolocutor.  Then  Incipit  Comoedia.  Bale  has 
a  final  speech.  The  Interlocutores  are  Pater  Coekstis,  loannes  Baptista, 
Publicanus,  Pharisaeus,  lesus  Christus,  Turba  vulgaris,  Miles  armatus, 
Sadducaeus. 

iii.  Temptation. 

Editions. 

(i)  n.d.  '  A  brefe  Comedy  or  enterlude  concernynge  the  temptacyon 
of  our  Lorde  and  sauer  lesus  Christ,  by  Sathan  in  the  desart.  Com- 
pyled by  lohan  Bale,  Anno  M.D.XXXVIII.' 

(ii)  1870.  A.  B.  Grosart,  Miscellanies  of  Fuller  Worthies  Library, 
vol.  i. 

Praefatio  by  Baleus  Prolocutor.    Then  Incipit  Comoedia.   Bale  has 


TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  449 

a  final  speech.  The  other  Interlocutorcs  are  lesus  Chrisius,  Satan 
tentator,  Angelus  primus,  Angelus  alter.  The  play  calls  itself  an 
'Acte/ 

[These  three  plays  closely  resemble  each  other.  They  were  all 
written  at  Thorndon  in  1538,  and  are  markedly  Protestant  in  tone. 
They  were  also  all  performed  at  Kilkenny,  on  Aug.  20,  1553.] 

iv.  Three  Laws. 
Editions. 

(i)  n.d.  A  Comedy  concernynge  thre  lawes,  of  nature,  Moses,  and 
Christ,  corrupted  by  the  Sodomytes  Pharysees  and  Papystes.  Compyled 
by  Johan  Bale.  Anno  M.D.XXXVIII. 

Colophon :  Thus  endeth  thys  Comedy  [&c.].  Compyled  by  Johan 
Bale.  Anno  M.D.  xxxvm,  and  lately  inprented  per  Nicolaum  Bambur- 
gensem. 

(ii)  1562.  Edition  by  Thomas  Colwell. 

(iii)  A.  SchrSer,  in  Anglia,  v.  137. 

The  play  may  have  been  written  in  1538,  but  the  allusions  (11.  2073, 
2080)  to  King  Edward  and  the  Lord  Protector  show  that  it  was 
revised  after  1547.  It  is  not,  like  (i),  (ii),  and  (iii),  a  miracle-play,  but 
a  morality,  and  its  Protestantism  is  far  more  advanced  and  polemical 
than  theirs.  It  is  2,081  lines  long,  and  has  five  Ac/us,  with  the  usual 
Praefatio  by  Baleus  Prolocutor.  Tfre  other  Interlocutores  are  Deus 
pater,  Natura  lex,  Moseh  lex,  Christi  kx  vel  fcuangelium,  Infidelitas, 
Idololatria,Sodomismus,Ambitio,  Auaricia,  Pseudodoctrina,  Hypocrisis, 
Vindicta  Dei,  Fides  Christiana.  At  the  end  is  a  note  how  '  Into  fyue 
personages  maye  the  partes  of  thys  Comedy  be  deuyded/  and  another 
for  *  The  aparellypge  of  the  six  vyces  or  frutes  of  Infydelyte.' 

v.  King  John. 
Manuscript. 

In  possession  of  the  Duke  of  Devonshire,  found  amongst  papers 
probably  belonging  to  the  Corporation  of  Ipswich.  Written  in  two 
hands,  of  which  one  is  believed  to  be  Bale's. 

Editions. 

(i)    1838.  Ed.  J.  P.  Collier  for  Camden  Soc. 
(ii)    1890.  Extract  in  Pollard,  146. 
(iii)  1897.  Manly,  i.  525,  from  (i). 

'Kynge  Johan'  contains  2,656  lines,  but  is  divided  into  'ij  playes/ 
i.  e.  Acts.  At  1. 1 1 19  is  a  reference  to  '  the  seconde  acte '  and  a '  Finit 

CHAMBERS       11  Q   g 


450  APPENDIX  X 

Actus  Primus/  There  are  nineteen  personages — Kynge  Johan,  Yng- 
lond,  Clargy>  Sedycyon,  Cyvyle  Order  >  Stevyn  Langton,  Commynalte, 
Nobylyte,  Cardynall  Pandulphus^  Pryvat  Welth^  Dissimulacyon,  Ray- 
mundus,  Symon  of  Swywett,  Usurpyd  Power,  The  Pope,  Interpretour 
.(a  presenter),  Treasor,  Veryte,  Imperyatt  Ma/estye—but  these  are 
marked  with  brackets  to  show  that  they  can  be  taken  by  nine  actors. 
The  play  is  strongly  Protestant.  It  was  doubtless  written  before  1548, 
as  'Lib.  2.  de  loanne  Anglorum  Rege'  are  included  in  Bale's 
Scriptores  list  of  that  year.  Collier,  i.  123,  quotes  a  deposition  as 
to  'an  enterlude  concernyng  King  John*  performed  'in  Christmas 
tyme  [1538-9]  at  my  Lorde  of  Canterbury's'  which  was  certainly 
anti-Papal,  and  was  probably  Bale's,  But  the  extant  text  has 
undergone  a  later  revision,  for  the  prayer  at  the  end  is  for  Elizabeth. 
Fleay,  Hist,  of  Stage,  62,  conjectures  that  it  was  performed  upon  her 
visit  to  Ipswich  in  August,  1561.  There  was  probably  a  single  stage 
or  pageant.  The  characters  enter  and  go  out.  At  1.  1377  Sedycyon 
speaks  '  extra  locum ' ;  at  1.  785  is  the  phrase  '  Ye  may  perseyve  yt  in 
pagent  here  this  hower/ 

NICHOLAS  GRIMALD. 

Grimald  was  the  son  of  a  Genoese  clerk  in  the  service  of  Henry  VII. 
He  migrated  from  Christ's  College,  Cambridge,  to  Oxford,  where,  after 
a  short  stay  at  Brasenose,  he  became  Fellow  and  Lecturer  first  of 
Merton  in  1540,  then  of  Christ  Church  in  1547.  To  this  period 
belong  his  Latin  plays,  and  the  bulk  of  his  lyrics  and  other  poems  in 
Tottel' s  Miscellany.  He  was  widely  read  in  theology  and  scholarship, 
and  was  chosen  chaplain  to  Bishop  Ridley,  for  whom  he  did  much 
controversial  work.  Under  Mary  in  1555  he  was  imprisoned,  but 
escaped  by  a  recantation.  He  was  dead  before  1562.  Bale,  Scriptores 
(1557),  i.  701,  ascribes  to  him  amongst  other  writings: — 

Archiprophetae  tragoediam*  Protomartyrem. 

Famae  comoediam.  Athanasium9  seu  infamiam. 

Christum  nascentem.  Troilum  ex  Chaucero,  comoediam. 
Christum  redivivum. 

Of  these  the  first  and*  fourth  survive;  of  the  others  some  can  only  be 
conjecturally  put  down  as  plays. 

ti54p.  Christus  Redivivus. 
Editions. 

1543,  Gymnicus,  Cologne.  Christus  redivivus.  Comoedia  tragica, 
sacra  et  nova.  Authore  Nicolao  Grimaoldo. 


TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  451 

1899.  }•  M.  Hart,  in  Publications  of  the  Modern  Language  Associa- 
tion of  America,  xiv.  No.  3. 

The  dedication  is  dated,  'Oxoniae,  e  Collegio  Martonensi.  Anno 
1543  ' ;  but  according  to  the  account  of  the  play  given  therein  by  the 
author,  it  was  performed  by  the  pubes  of  B.N.C.  before  he  joined  Merton . 

1547.  Archipropheta. 

Manuscript. 
Brit.  Mus.  Royal  MS.  12  A.  46. 

Edition. 

1548.  Gymnicus,  Cologne.  Archipropheta,  Tragoedia  iam  recens  in 
lucem  edita.  Autore  Nicolao  Grimoaldo. 

The  dedication  is  dated  1547.  The  play  is  divided  into  Acts  and 
Scenes,  and  has  choruses.  It  deals  with  the  story  of  John  the  Baptist. 
Herford,  116,  suggests  a  possible  influence  from  the  Johannes  Decollates 
(1546)  of  Jakob  Schopper  of  Dortmund  (Bahlmann,  Lat,  Dr.  93). 

NICHOLAS  UDALL, 

[Authorities.— Bale,  Scriptores  (1557),  i.  717;  Ward,  1.254;  Pearson, 
ii.  413  ;  Kempe,  63,  90 ;  S.  L.  Lee,  s.v.  Udall  in  D.  N.  B. ;  T.  'Fowler, 
Hist,  of  C.C.C.  370;  Maxwell-Lyte,  Hist,  of  Eton  (3rd  ed.  1899),  117; 
J.  W.  Hales,  The  Date  of  the  First  English  Comedy,  in  Englische  Studien, 
xviii  (1893),  408  ;  E.  Fliigel,  Nicholas  UdalVs  Dialogues  and  Interludes, 
in  Furniv all  Miscellany  (1901),  81.] 

Life. 

Nicholas  Udall,  Uvedale,  Owdall,  Woodall,  or  Yevedall,  was  born  in 
Hampshire  in  1505,  and  educated  at  Winchester  and  Corpus  Christi 
College,  Oxford,  where  he  held  an  informal  lectureship  in  1526-8.  He 
was  an  early  Oxford  exponent  of  Lutheran  views.  In  1532  he  assisted 
Leland  in  preparing  verses  for  the  London  pageants  at  the  coronation 
of  Anne  Boleyn.  From  1533-7  he  was  vicar  of  Braintree,  Essex, 
and  not  improbably  wrote  the  play  of  Placidas,  alias  Sir  Eustace^ 
recorded  in  1534  in  the  churchwardens'  accounts.  But  from  1534  he 
was  also  head  master  of  Eton.  Thomas  Cromwell's  accounts  for  1538 
include  'Woodall,  the  schoolmaster  of  Eton,  for  playing  before 
my  Lord,  £5'  (Brewer,  xiv.  2.  334).  In  1541  he  left  Eton,  under  an 
accusation  of  theft  and  other  misbehaviour.  But  he  found  favour  with 
Katharine  Parr,  Somerset,  and  Edward  VI  through  literary  and  theo- 
logical work,  was  made  tutor  to  Edward  Courtenay  and  obtained  in 
1551  a  prebend  at  Windsor,  and  in  1553  the  living  of  Calborne,  Isle 
of  Wight.  He  had  not,  however,  so  far  committed  himself  on  the 
Protestant  side  as  to  make  it  impossible  to  conform  under  Mary.  He 


452  APPENDIX  X 

was  tutor  to  Bishop  Gardiner's  household,  and  either  in  1553  or  1554 
became  head  master  of  Westminster.  Here  he  remained  to  his  death 
in  1556.  A  letter  of  Mary  in  1554  states  that  he  had  'at  soondrle 
seasons '  shown  '  dialogues  and  enterludes  '  before  her,  and  requires 
the  Revels  office  to  provide  him  with  i  apparell '  for  his  '  devises '  at 
the  coming  Christmas.  The  Revels  accounts  for  the  year  mention 
4  certen  plaies '  made  by  him,  but  the  items  referring  to  them  cannot 
be  disentangled  from  those  for  masks  given  at  the  same  Christmas. 
Bale  does  not  mention  Udall  in  the  1548  edition  of  his  Scriptores,  but 
in  that  of  1557  he  gives  a  list  of  works  'Latine  et  Anglice/  including 
'  Comoedias  plures,  Lib.  i,'  and  adds  that  he  'transtulit'  forKatherine 
Parr,  '  tragoediam  de  papatu/  When  Elizabeth  was  at  Cambridge  on 
Aug.  8,  1564,  'an  English  play  called  Ezekias  made  by  Mr.  Udal' 
was  given  before  her  by  King's  College  men  (Nichols,  Progr.  of 
Eliz.  i.  1 86). 

Roister  Doister. 

Editions. 

[1566-7.  In  this  year  the  play  was  entered  on  the  Stationers' 
Registers  to  Thomas  Hacket,  and  to  this  edition  the  unique  copy, 
without  title-page  or  colophon,  presented  in  1818  to  the  Eton  College 
library,  probably  belongs.] 

1818.  Briggs. 

1821.  F.  Marshall. 

1830.  Thomas  White,  in  Old  English  Drama,  vol.  i. 

1847.  W.  D.  Cooper,  for  Shakespeare  Society. 

1869.  E.  Arber,  in  English  Reprints. 

1874.  Hazlitt-Dodsley,  iii.  53. 

1897.  J.  M.  Manly,  ii.  3  (based  on  Arber). 

1903.  E.  Fltigel,  in  C.  M.  Gayley,  Representative  English  Comedies, 
105. 

The  play  is  divided  into  Actus  and  Scenae,  and  is  called  in  a  prologue, 
which  refers  to  Plautus  and  Terence,  a  '  comedie,  or  enterlude.'  The 
prayer  at  the  end  is  for  a  'queene'  who  protects  the  'Gospell.' 
Probably  Elizabeth  is  meant.  This,  however,  must  be  later  in  date 
than  that  of  the  play  itself,  which  has  been  fixed  by  Prof.  Hales  to 
J553~4>  on  the  ground  that  a  passage  in  it  is  quoted  in  the  third 
edition  (1553  or  J554)  °f  T.  Wilson's  Rule  of  Reason,  but  not  in  the 
earlier  editions  of  1550-1  and  1552.  Prof.  Hales  thinks  that  Udall 
was  master  of  Westminster  as  early  as  1553,  and  wrote  it  for  the  boys 
there.  If  Wilson's  date  is  1554,  the  play  may  have  been  one  of  those 
given  at  court  in  the  Christmas  of  1553. 


TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  453 

IV.  LIST  OF  EARLY  TUDOR  INTERLUDES. 
Pre-Controversial  Moralities. 

The  dramatis  personae  are  all  abstractions,  with  an  occasional  moral 
type,  such  as  Hickscorner,  or  a  social  type,  such  as  a  Taverner. 

1.  1 1 486-1 50 1.  Henry  MedwalL     Nature, 
See  s.  v.  MedwalL 

2.  1*1513.  Hickscorner. 

[1501-35.]  W.  de  Worde.     Hyckescorner. 

[1546-86.]  J.  Waley. 

Fragments  of  unidentified  editions  are  described  by  Greg,  Plays,  139. 
On  Jan.  15, 1582,  the  copyright  was  transferred  from  the  late  Sampson 
Awdeley  to  John  Charlwood  (Arber,  ii.  405).  Modern  reprints  are  in 
Hawkins,  vol.  i ;  Hazlitt-Dodsley,  vol.  i ;  Manly,  vol.  i.  There  are 
1,026  lines.  Ten  Brink,  iii.  125,  dates  the  play  at  about  the  beginning 
of  the  sixteenth  century.  Collier,  ii.  227,  and  Ward,  i.  119,  place  it  in 
the  reign  of  Henry  VII,  whose  ship,  the  Regent,  is  named.  Brandl, 
xxviii,  notes  that  this  is  spoken  of  (1.  356)  as  sunk,  which  occurred  in 
1513.  This  is  one  of  the  '  auncient  Plays '  in  Captain  Cox,  cxviii. 

3.  1-1513-29.  Youth. 

[1546-86.]  J.  Waley.     Theterlude  of  Youth. 

[1549-69.]  W.Copland. 

Greg,  Plays,  141,  mentions  a  fragment  of  a  third  edition.  The  play  is 
printed  in  Hazlitt-Dodsley,  vol.  ii.  There  are  about  1,200  lines. 
Collier,  ii.  230;  Ward,  i.  126;  Pollard,  liv,  put  the  date  in  Mary's 
reign;  Brandl,  xxviii,  early  in  that  of  Henry  VIII.  Passages  are 
borrowed  from  Hickscorner.  This  is  named  in  Captain  Cox,  cxviii. 

4-  +1517.  John  Rastett.     The  Nature  of  the  Four  Elements. 

[1516-33.]  John  Rastell.  A  new  interlude  and  a  mery  of  the 
nature  of  the  .iiii.  elements  declarynge  many  proper  poynts  of  phylo- 
sophy  naturall  and  of  dyuers  strange  landys  and  of  dyuers  strannge 
effect  and  causis,  which  interlude,  if  the  whole  matter  be  played,  will 
contain  the  space  of  an  hour  and  a  half ;  but  if  you  list  you  may  leave 
out  much  of  the  said  matter,  as  ...  and  then  it  will  not  be  past  three 
quarters  of  an  hour  of  length. 

There  are  modern  editions  by  Halliwell  (Percy  Soc.  Ixxiv),  and  in 
Hazlitt-Dodsley,  vol.  i,  and  extracts  in  Pollard,  97.  There  are  about 
900  lines.  A  note  says  *  also,  yf  ye  lyst,  ye  may  brynge  in  a  Dys- 
guysinge/  and  a  direction  for  the  *  dance '  or  disguising  shows  that 
the  stage  was  a  '  hall/  The  date  is  fixed  by  Collier,  ii.  238 ;  Ward, 


454  APPENDIX  X 

i.  126;  Pollard,  205,  on  the  ground  that  the  discovery  of  America  is 
said  to  be  '  within  this  twenty  years '  and  by  '  Americus '  (i.  e.  Amerigo 
Vespucci,  1497).  The  authorship  has  been  doubted,  apparently  in 
ignorance  of  the  ascription  of  it  to  Rastell  by  Bale,  Scriptores  (1557), 
i.  660  '  Insignis  hie  Cosmographus,  de  trium  mundi  partium,  Asiae, 
Africae,  et  Europae  descriptione,  ingeniosissimam  ac  longissimam 
comoediam  primum  edidit,  cum  instrumentis  &  figuris,  quam  uocabat 
Naturam  naturatam.  Lib.  i.  Exuberant  diuinae  potentiae  gratia! 
The  opening  words  quoted  by  Bale  translate  those  of  the  play 
'  Thaboundant  grace  of  the  power  devyne/  Probably  Rastell  was  also 
the  printer,  although  the  unique  and  imperfect  copy  (B.M,  643,  b.  45) 
has  only  a  manuscript  imprint. 

5.  1 1 54 1-8.  John  Redford.     Wit  and  Science. 

Printed  by  Halliwell  (Shakespeare  Soc.,  1848)  and  Manly,  vol.  i, 
from  Brit.  Mus.  AddL  MS.  1 5,233,  which  is  imperfect  at  the  beginning, 
but  has  the  colophon  c  Thus  endyth  the  Play  of  Wyt  and  Science, 
made  by  Master  Jhon  Redford.' 

There  are  1,059  lines.  The  final  prayer  is  for  the  'Kyng  and 
Quene.'  Brandl,  Ixxii,  dates  the  play  between  1541,  when  the 
'  gaillard/  which  is  mentioned,  was  first  danced  in  England,  and  the 
death  of  Katharine  Parr  in  1548.  It  was  adapted  in  more  than  one 
Elizabethan  interlude ;  cf.  Brandl,  loc.  cit. ;  J.  Seifert,  Wit-  und  Science- 
Moralitdten  (1892);  and  p.  200,  n.  2.  Redford  was  at  one  time 
Master  of  the  St.  Paul's  song-school.  The  MS.  also  contains  songs 
and  fragments  of  other  moralities  by  him. 

Pseudo-Interludes :  Disputations. 

6.  1 1 5  2 1 .  John  Hey  wood.     Love. 

7.  11521-31.  John  Heywood.      Witty  and  Witless. 

8.  1 1521-3 1 .  John  Heywood  (?).     Gentleness  and  Nobility. 
See  s.  v.  Heywood. 

Pseudo-Interlude:  Banns. 

9-  ti5O3.  W.  Dunbar.  The  Droichis  Part  of  the  Play.  Printed 
in  Dunbar's  Works  (ed.  J.  Small,  for  Scottish  Text  Soc.),  ii.  314. 

One  MS.  is  headed  '  Ane  Littill  Interlud  of  the  Droichis  Part  of  the 
[Play]  ' ;  another,  and  the  fuller,  '  Heir  followis  the  maner  of  the 
crying  of  ane  playe.'  Both  have  at  the  end  *  Finis  off  the  Droichis 
Pairt  of  the  Play.' 

There  are  176  lines.  The  Droich  (dwarf)  enters  to  an  'amyable 
audiens  *  in  Edinburgh,  *  to  cry  a  cry.'  He  calls  himself  '  Welth,'  and 
bids 


TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  455 

*  ge  noble  merchandis  ever  ilkane 
Address  jow  furth  with  bow  and  flane 

In  lusty  grene  lufraye, 
And  follow  furth  on  Robyn  Hude/ 

The  piece  is  clearly  a  '  banns '  for  a  May-game ;  cf.  vol.  i.  p.  174.  The 
S.  T.  S.  editors  (i.  ccxxxiii),  think  it  was  written  for  the  reception  of 
Princess  Margaret  in  1503. 

Pseudo-Interlude :  Translation. 

10.  Necromantia. 

[1516-33.]  John  Rastell.  Necromantia.  A  dialog  of  the  poet 
Lucyan,  for  his  fantesye  faynyd  for  a  mery  pastyme.  And  furst  by 
hym  compylyd  in  the  Greke  tonge.  And  after  translated  owt  of  the 
Greke  into  Latyn,  and  now  lately  translated  out  of  Laten  into  Englissh 
for  the  erudicion  of  them,  which  be  disposyd  to  lerne  the  tongis. 
Inter  locutores,  Menippus  and  Philonides. 

R.  G.  C.  Proctor,  in  Hand  Lists  of  English  Printers,  Pt.  ii,  distinguishes 
two  editions,  one  certainly,  the  other  probably,  printed  by  Rastell. 
Hazlitt,  Manual^  164,  describes  the  translation  as  'after  the  manner  of 
an  interlude/  The  Latin  and  English  are  in  parallel  columns,  and 
Collier,  ii.  280,  who  saw  a  fragment  in  the  Douce  collection,  thought 
that  it  was  *  a  modern  Latin  play,  possibly  by  Rightwise.'  Bale, 
Scriptores  (1557),  i.  656,  says  that  More  translated  Lucian's  'Menippum, 
seu  Necromantiam^  Dial.  i.  Salue  atrium^  domusque  uesti\bulum~\  ' ;  but 
the  reference  is  probably  to  the  Latin  version  of  this  and  other  dialogues 
published  in  1506. 

Faroes  of  Mediaeval  Type, 

n.  ti53i.  John  Heywood.     The  Pardoner  and  the  Friar. 

12.  ti52 1.  John  Heywood.     The  Four  Ps. 

13.  1 1 5 2 1 -3 1 .  John  Heywood.     The  Weather. 

14.  1 1 52 1-31.  John  Heywood.    John^  Tib  and  Sir  John. 
See  s.  v.  Heywood. 

Translation  from  Spanish. 

15.  Calisto  and  Mdibaea. 

[1516-33.]  John  Rastell.  A  new  comodye  in  englysh  inmaner  Of 
an  enterlude  ryght  elygant  &  full  of  craft  of  rethoryk  wherein  is  shewd 
&  dyscrybyd  as  well  the  bewte  &  good  propertes  of  women  as  theyr 
vycys  &  euyll  codiciSs  with  a  morall  coclusion  &  exhortacyon  to 
vertew. 


456  APPENDIX  X 

A  modern  reprint  is  in  Hazlitt-Dodsley,  vol.  i.  The  dramatis 
personae  are  Calisto,  Melibaea,  Sempronio,  Celestina,  Parmeno.  Tae 
play  is  a  partial  English  version  through  the  Italian  of  the  Spanish 
Celestina  (1492)  of  Fernando  Rojas  de  Montalvan  and  Rodrigo  Costa. 
A  later  translation  is  J.  Mabbe,  Celestina  (1630),  ed.  J.  Fitzmaurice 
Kelly  in  Tudor  Translations ;  cf.  J.  G.  Underbill,  Spanish  Literature 
in  the  England  of  the  Tudors,  65,  375. 

Translation  from  Classical  Latin. 

1 6.  Terence.  Andria. 

[1516-33.]  John  Rastell  (?).  Terens  in  englyssh.  The  translacyon 
out  of  Latin  into  englysh  of  the  furst  comedy  of  tyrens  callyd  Andria. 

Translations  from  Neo-Latin. 

I7»  I537-     Ther sites. 

[1558-63.]  John  Tysdale.  A  new  Enterlude  called  Thersytes. 
This  Enterlude  Folowynge  Dothe  Declare  howe  that  the  greatest 
boesters  are  not  the  greatest  doers. 

There  are  modern  editions  in  J.  Haslewood,  Two  Interludes  (Rox- 
burghe  Club,  1820);  F.  J.  Child,  Four  Old  Plays  (1848);  Hazlitt- 
Dodsley,  vol.  i;  also  a  facsimile  by  H.  S.  Ashbee  (1876)  and  extracts 
in  Pollard,  126.  There  are  915  lines.  The  dramatis  personae  are 
Thersites,  Mulciber,  Miles,  Mater,  Telemachus.  Mulciber  has  'a  sharp 
sword  made  in  the  place/  and  Mater  *  the  place  which  is  prepared  for 
her/  The  date  is  fixed  by  a  prayer  for  Prince  Edward,  born  Oct.  12, 
1537,  and  Queen  Jane  Seymour,  who  died  Oct.  24,  1537.  Bolte,  in 
Vahlen-Festschri/t,  594,  says  that  the  piece  is  translated  from  the 
Thersites  of  J.  Ravisius  Textor,  printed  in  his  Dialogi  (1651),  239. 
The  first  edition  of  the  Dialogi  was  in  1530  (Bahlmann,  Lat.  Dr.  31). 

1 8.  ti56o.   Thomas  Ingelend.     The  Disobedient  Child. 

[Probably  an  Elizabethan  play,  but  included  here  on  account  of  its 
relation  to  Thersites.] 

[1561-75.]  Thomas  Colwell.  A  pretie  and  Mery  new  Enterlude: 
called  the  Disobedient  Child.  Compiled  by  Thomas  Ingelend  late 
Student  In  Cambridge. 

There  are  modern  editions  by  Halliwell  (Percy  Soc.  xxiii)  and  in 
Hazlitt-Dodsley,  vol.  ii.  The  closing  prayer  is  for  Elizabeth.  Bolte, 
loc.  cit.,  considers  this  a  translation  of  the  luvenis,  Pater,  Uxor  of 
Ravisius  Textor  (Dialogi,  71).  Brandl,  Ixxiii,  finds  in  it  the  influence 
of  the  Studentes  (1549)  of  Christopherus  Stymmelius  (Bahlmann,  Lat. 
Dr.  98). 


TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  457 

Farces  on  Classical  Models. 

*9-  1  1550-3.   W.  Stevenson  (1).     Gammtr  Gurtoris  Needle. 

I575-  Thomas  Colwell.  A  Ryght  Pithy,  Pleasaunt  anp  merie 
Comedie  :  Intytuled  Gammer  gurton's  Nedle  :  Played  on  Stage,  not 
longe  ago  in  Christes  Colledge  in  Cambridge.  Made  by  Mr  S.  Mr 
of  Art. 

1  66  1.  Thomas  Johnson. 

There  are  modern  editions  in  Hawkins,  vol.  i;  W.  Scott,  Ancient 
British  Drama  (1810),  vol.  i;  Old  English  Drama  (1830),  vol,  i; 
Hazlitt-Dodsley,  vol.  iii  ;  Manly,  vol.  ii.  The  latest  is  by  H.  Bradley 
in  C.  M.  Gayley,  Representative  English  Comedies  (1903). 

The  play  is  divided  into  Acts  and  Scenes,  has  a  prologue  and  a 
plaudite;  but  the  subject  is  not  taken  from  Latin  comedy.  It  is 
probably  identical  with  the  Dyccon  of  Bedlam  entered  by  Colwell 
on  the  Stationers'  Register  in  1562-3,  since  'Diccon,  the  bedlem' 
is  a  character.  The  1575  edition  may,  therefore,  not  have  been 
the  first.  Jusserand,  Thtdtre^  181,  thinks  that  the  satire  is  even 
pre-Reformation  in  tone.  The  authorship  is  much  in  dispute. 
I.  Reed,  Biographia  Dramatica  (1782),  suggested  John  Still,  after- 
wards bishop  of  Bath  and  Wells,  who  was  a  M.A.  of  Christ's  in  1565. 
C.  H.  Ross,  in  Modern  Language  Notes,  vii  (189  2),  no.  6,  and  Anglia, 
xix.  297,  accepts  John  Bridges,  afterwards  bishop  of  Oxford,  who  is 
spoken  of,  but  with  doubtful  seriousness,  as  the  author,  in  Martin 
Marprelates  Epistle  (1588).  But  Bridges'  initial  is  not  S,  nor  was  he 
a  Christ's  man.  H.  Bradley,  in  Athenaum  for  August  6,  1898,  and 
J.  Peile,  Christ's  College  (1900),  54,  73,  point  out  that  one  William 
Stevenson,  a  Bachelor  Fellow  of  Christ's,  is  shown  by  college 
accounts  to  have  been  in  charge  of  plays  there  between  1550  and 
1553.  His  seems  to  me  by  far  the  strongest  claim  yet  made. 

20.  1  1  55  3-4.  Nicholas  UdalL    Roister  Doister. 
See  s.  v.  Udall. 


21  •  1  1  553-8-  Jack 

[1562-9.]  W.  Copland,  A  new  Enterlude  for  Chyldren  to  playe, 
named  Jacke  Jugeler,  both  wytte,  and  very  playsent  Newly  Imprentid. 

According  to  Grosart,  two  leaves  of  another  edition  are  bound  with 
the  Duke  of  Devonshire's  copy. 

The  play  was  entered  by  Copland  on  the  Stationers'  Register  in 
1502-3.  There  are  modern  reprints  in  J.  Haslewood,  Two  Interludes 
(Roxburghe  Club,  1820)  ;  F.  J.  Child,  Four  Old  Plays  (1848);  A.  B. 
Grosart,  Fuller  Worthies  Library  Miscellanies  (1873),  vol.  iv;  Hazlitt- 


458  APPENDIX  X 

Dodsley,  vol.  ii,  and  a  facsimile  by  E.  W.  Ashbee  (1876).  The  piece 
is  an  imitation  of  the  Amphitruo  of  Plautus.  Brandl,  Ixxi,  assigns  it 
to  the  reign  of  Mary  on  the  strength  of  a  Catholic  sentiment. 

Tragedy  on  Classical  Model  (P). 

22.  1 1 51 6-33.  Lucrece. 

A  fragment  of  a  '  Play  concerning  Lucretia '  is  attributed  by  R.  G.  C. 
Proctor,  in  Hand  Lists  of  English  Printers  (1896),  Part  ii,  to  the  press 
of  John  Rastell  (1516-33).  It  is  in  the  Bagford  collection  of  frag- 
ments, Harl  MS.  5919,  f.  20  (no.  98),  and  consists  of  two  pages, 
containing  a  scene  in  which  Publius  Cornelius  instructs  a  confidential 
friend  with  the  initial  B  to  sound  the  feeling  of  'Lucres'  towards  him, 
and  the  beginning  of  a  scene  between  B.  and  '  Lucres/  Halliwell- 
Phillipps,  ii.  340,  says  that  the  play  was  written  by  Medwall,  ti49Q, 
and  gives  the  title  as  '  A  godely  interlude  of  Fulgeus,  Cenatoure  of 
Rome,  Lucres  his  daughter,  Gayus  Flaminius  and  Publius  Cornelius, 
of  the  Disputacyon  of  Noblenes.'  The  '  Fulgius  and  Lucrelle '  of 
seventeenth-century  play -lists  (Hazlitt,  Manual,  s.v. ;  Greg,  Masques,  Ixx, 
may  be  related  to  this.  The  heroine  is  not  Shakespeare's  Lucrece. 

Latin  Neo-Mysteries. 

23.  1 1535-45.  Thomas  Watson  (?).     Absolon. 

Ascham,  Scholemaster  (ed.  Mayor,  1869),  highly  praises,  together 
with  Buchanan's  Jephthes,  the  Absolon  of  Thomas  Watson  'in  S*  John's 
College  Cambridge '  which  he  never  would  publish  because  an  anapaest 
sometimes  stood  where  he  thought,  incorrectly,  that  there  should  have 
been  an  iambus.  Watson  became  bishop  of  Lincoln.  Fleay,  Biog. 
Chron.  ii.  2  6 7,  and  others  ascribe  the  play  in  error  to  John  Watson,  bishop 
of  Winchester,  and  speak  of  a  manuscript  at  Penshurst,  which,  however, 
is  not  mentioned  in  the  account  of  the  Penshurst  MSS.  in  Hist.  MSS. 
iii.  app.  227.  Probably  the  play  is  identical  with  the  Absolon  preserved 
in  Brit.  Mus.  Stowe  MS.  957,  described  by  G.  B.  Churchill  and 
W.  Keller,  Dit  lat.  Universitdts-Dramen  England's  in  der  Zeit  der 
Konigin  Elisabeth  (Shakespeare-Jahrbuch,  xxxiv  (1898),  229),  An 
eighteenth-century  ascription  on  the  first  leaf  to  John  Bale  is  of  no 
authority.  The  play  is  of  a  Senecan  type,  with  acts  and  scenes  and 
a  chorus.  The  first  line  was  originally '  Adhuc  animus  vexatur  excusso 
metu/  but  in  the  MS.,  which  has  many  corrections, '  Animus  adhuc ' 
has  been  substituted. 

24.  ti540.  Nicholas  Grimald.     Christus  Redivivus. 
35*  ti547-  Nicholas  Grimald.    ArcJKpropheta. 

See  s.  v.  Grimald. 


TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  459 

26.  ti55o.  John  Foxe.     Christus  Triumphant. 

1551.  Christus  triumphans,  Comoedia  apocalyptica.  Autore  loanne 
Foxo  Anglo.  London  1551.  8°. 

1556.  Oporinus,  Basle. 

1590.  Nuremberg,  Gerlach. 

In  1672  and  1677  the  Latin  text  was  edited  by  Thomas  Comber 
for  school  use.  A  French  translation  by  Jacques  Bienvenu  appeared 
in  1562.  There  is  also 

1579.  John  and  Richard  Day.  Christ  Jesus  Triumphant,  A  fruite- 
full  Treatise,  wherein  is  described  the  most  glorious  Triumph,  and 
Conquest  of  Christ  lesus  our  Saviour  . . .  Made  to  be  read  for  spiritual 
comfort  by  lohn  Foxe,  and  from  Latin  translated  intoo  English  by  the 
Printer.  .  .  . 

There  are  later  editions  of  1581  and  1607.  This  is  generally 
regarded  as  a  translation  of  the  Christus  Tr  tump Aans,  but  Greg,  Masques, 
cxxiii,  doubts  this,  and  notes  that  'a  modern  reprint  [1828]  in  the 
B.  M.  is  not  dramatic/  The  reprint  is  in  fact  a  translation  of  the 
De  Chris  to  Triumphante,  Eiusdem  Autoris  Panegyricon  appended  to 
the  Basle  edition  of  the  play.  But  possibly  it  does  not  represent  the 
whole  of  Day's  work.  The  1551  edition  is  given  by  Bahlmann,  Lat. 
Dr.  107.  According  to  S.  L.  Lee,  in  D.  N.  J3.,  it  only  rests  on  the 
authority  of  Tanner.  In  1551  Foxe  was  tutor  to  the  children  of  Lord 
Surrey,  who  had  been  executed  some  years  before.  In  1 555  he  entered 
the  printing  office  of  Oporinus  at  Basle,  and  in  1564  that  of  John  Day 
in  London.  The  MS.  of  the  play  is  Lansd.  MS.  1073.  It  is  an 
1  Antichrist'  play,  written  under  the  influence  of  the  Pammachius 
(1538)  of  Thomas  Kirchmaier  or  Naogeorgus  (Bahlmann,  op.  tit. 
71).  A  full  .analysis  is  given  by  Herford,  138. 

Translation  from  Latin  Neo-Moral. 

2  7'  1 1530-40.  J.  Palsgrave.    Acolastus. 

1540.  Thomas  Berthelet.  loannis  Palsgravi  Londoniensis,  ecphrasis 
Anglica  in  comoediam  Acolasti.  If  The  Comedye  of  Acolastus 
translated  into  oure  englysshe  tongue,  .  .  .  Interpreted  by  John 
Palsgraue. 

This  is  a  translation  of  the  Acolastus  (1530)  of  Wilhelm  de  Voider, 
known  in  learning  as  Gnaphaeus  or  Fullonius,  of  the  Hague  (Bahlmann, 
Lat.  Dr.  39).  It  is  arranged  for  school  use,  with  marginal  notes  on 
grammar,  &c.  The  original  play  is  the  most  important  of  the  group 
iealing  with  the  Prodigal  Son  motive :  cf.  Herford,  152. 


460  APPENDIX  X 

Drama  of  Catholic  Controversy. 

28.  1553.  Respublica. 

Printed  by  Collier,  Illustrations  of  Old  English  Literature  (1866), 
vol.  i,  and  Brandl,  281,  from  sixteenth-century  MS.  of  Mr.  Hudson 
Gurney  of  Keswick  Hall,  Norfolk,  with  the  heading  '  A  merye  enter- 
lude  entitled  Respublica,  made  in  the  yeare  of  our  Lorde,  1553.' 

The  play  is  divided  into  Acts  and  Scenes,  and  is  a  'Christmas 
devise'  (prol.  6)  by  'boyes'  (prol.  39).  The  place-names  are  of 
London.  The  controversial  tone  is  Catholic,  and  political,  rather  than 
theological.  Brandl,  Iviii,  finds  the  model  in  Lyndsay's  Satyre.  Except 
for  the  Prologue  (the  Poet)  all  the  characters  are  abstractions.  Avarice, 
alias  Policy,  is  '  the  vice  of  the  plaie/ 

Dramas  of  Protestant  Controversy. 

29.  1538.  John  Sale.     God's  Promises. 

30.  1538.  John  Sale.    John  Baptist. 
31-  1538.  John  Sale.     The  Temptation. 
32.  1538.  John  Sale.     The  Three  Laws. 
33-  ?i539»  *56*-    John  Bale.     King  John. 
See  s.  v.  Bale. 

34.  1 1 547-53.  R.  Wever.     Lusty  Juventus. 

[1549-69.]  W.  Copland.  An  Enterlude  called  lusty  luuentus. 
Lyuely  describing  the  frailtie  of  youth :  of  natur  prone  to  vyce :  by 
grace  and  good  counsayll,  traynable  to  vertue. — At  end  of  play,  'Finis, 
quod  R.  Wever.' 

[1548-86.]  A.  Vele. 

Copyright  was  entered  on  the  Stationers'  Register  by  John  King  in 
1560-1.  There  are  modern  reprints  in  Hawkins,  vol.  i,  and  Hazlitt- 
Dodsley,  vol.  ii.  The  characters  ar£  abstractions  with  the  Devil, 
a  Messenger,  and  Little  Bess  a  '  Curtisane.1  The  prayer  is  for  a  king 
and  his  council  who  rule,  which  points  to  the  reign  of  Edward  VI. 

35-  1 1 547-53-  T.  R.    Nice  Wanton, 

1560.  John  King.  A  Preaty  Interlude  called,  Nice  wanton. — At 
end  of  play,  'Finis  T.  R/ 

There  are  reprints  in  Hazlitt-Dodsley,  vol.  i,  and  Manly,  vol.  i. 
The  characters  are  curiously  heterogeneous:  Messenger,  Barnabas, 
Ismael,  Dalila,  Eulalia,  Iniquitie,  Baily  Errand,  Xantippe,  Worldly 
Shame,  Daniel.  Brandl,  Ixxii,  considers  the  play  an  adaptation  of  the 
Rebelles  (1535)  of  George  Van  Langeveldt  or  Macropedius,  of  Utrecht 
(Bahlmann,  Lat.  Dr.  55).  The  rhyme  * queenes ' — 'things'  in  the 
final  prayer  shows  an  original  date  of  composition  under  Edward  VI. 


TEXTS  OF  MEDIAEVAL  PLAYS  461 

36.  f  1 547-53.  Somebody,  Avarice  and  Minister. 

Fragment  of  unidentified  edition  amongst  papers  of  the  reign  of 
Edward  VI  in  Lambeth  Library,  reprinted  by  S.  R.  Maitland,  List  of 
Early  Printed  Books  at  Lambeth  (1843),  280.  Brand!,  lix,  considers 
this  a  politico-religious  interlude  of  the  school  of  Lyndsay. 

Protestant  Controversy:  Translation. 

37.  ti56i.  Henry  Cheke.    Freewill. 

[1558-63.]  John  Tisdale.  A  certayne  Tragedie  wrytten  fyrst  in 
Italian,  by  F.  N.  B.  entituled,  Freewyl,  and  translated  into  Englishe,  by 
Henry  Cheeke. 

The  copyright  of  a  book  *  of  frewil '  was  entered  on  the  Stationers' 
Register  on  May  n,  1561  (Arber,  i.  156).  The  original  is  the 
Tragedia  del  Liber o  Arbitrio  (1546)  of  Francesco  Nigri  de  Bassano. 
The  translator  cannot  be,  as  stated  in  the  D.  N.  B.,  Henry,  the  son 
of  Sir  John  Cheke,  if  the  date  of  his  birth  is  as  there  given  (t  1548). 

Protestant  Controversy:  Pseudo-Interludes. 

38.  1 1 547-53.  Robin  Conscience. 

Often  described  as  an  '  interlude/  but  really  a  series  of  dialogues 
between  Robin  Conscience,  his  father  Covetousness,  his  mother  New- 
guise,  and  his  sister  Proud-beauty.  Collier,  ii.  315,  describes  it  from 
a  printed  fragment  in  the  Devonshire  library,  and  inclines  to  ascribe  it 
to  the  reign  of  Edward  VI;  cf.  Herford,  55.  Hazlitt,  iii.  225,  prints 
the  full  text  from  a  later  edition. 

39.  1549.  Ponet.    Bishop  of  Rome. 

A  tragoedie  or  Dialoge  of  the  uniuste  usurped  primacie  of  the 
Bishop  of  Rome.  A  translation  by  John  Ponet,  Bishop  of  Winchester, 
from  the  Italian  of  Bernardino  Ochino  (1549);  cf.  Bale,  i.  694; 
Herford,  33.  Among  the  speakers  are  Edward  VI  and  Somerset 

Lost  Interludes. 

See  s.v.  Skelton  for  the  alleged  Nigramansir  (1504). 

S.  Jones,  Biographia  Dramatica  (1812),  ii.  328,  describes  f  A  newe 
Interlude  of  Impacyente  Poverte,  newlye  Imprinted.  M.  V.  L.  X.' 
The  copyright  of  this  play,  which  is  in  the  Sir  Thomas  More  list 
(cf.  p.  200)  and  that  in  Captain  Cox,  cxviii,  was  transferred  on 
the  Stationers'  Register  from  the  late  Sampson  Awdeley  to  John 
Charlwood  on  Jan.  15,  1582, 

Halliwell-Phillipps,  Dictionary  of  Old  English  Plays  (1860),  quoting 
'Coxeter's  Notes/  is  the  authority  for  'An  Interlude  of  Welth  and 
Helth,  full  of  Sport  and  mery  Pastyrae,'  n.  d. 


SUBJECT   INDEX 


[THIS  index  is  almost  wholly  confined  to  the  text,  and  only  includes  the 
principal  passages  dealing  with  each  subject.  I  am  sorry  not  to  have  been 
able  to  prepare  a  local  or  a  nominal  index.  The  want  of  the  former  may 
be  in  part  met,  so  far  as  the  ;  iracle-plays  are  concerned,  by  the  topo- 
graphical list  of  representations  in  Appendix  W.] 


A  Pentrada  dal  tens  clar>  i.  170. 

Abbayes  joyeuses,  i.  375,  383. 

Abbesses,  mock,  i.  361, 

Abbot,  of  Bon- Accord,  i.  173,  ii.  333 ; 
of  Marham,  i.  173,  ii.  250;  of 
Misrule,  i.  403  ;  of  Unreason, 
i.  181  ;  ii.  335- 

Abraham  andlsaac^  plays  of,  n.  130, 
426. 

Abrenuntiatio,  i.  19,  97. 

Absalon  of  Thomas  Watson,  ii.  195, 
458. 

Account-books,  extracts  from,  on 
minstrelsy  and  plays,  ii.  234,  240. 

Acolastus,  of  Gnaphaeus,  ii.  217  ; 
of  John  Palsgrave,  459. 

Actto,  term  for  miracle-play,  ii.  105. 

Actors,  a  perplexity  to  Roman 
government,  i.  3,  7  ;  punished  for 
satire,  5 ;  private  performances 
of,  7  ;  infamia  of,  8,  12,  14,  16 ; 
hostility  of,  to  Christianity,  10; 
become  minstrels,  24 ;  in  miracle- 
plays,  regulations  for,ii.  114;  pay- 
ment of,  139  ;  professional,  under 
Tudors,  186,225 ;  the  King's,  187, 
201 ;  economic  status  of,  under 
Elizabeth,  225. 

Actus,  term  for  miracle-play,  ii. 
105. 

Adam,  ii.  70 ;  analysis  of,  80 ;  ver- 
nacular mingled  with  Latin  in,  89. 

Adam  le  Boscu,  minstrel  in  1306, 
1.47. 

Adan  de  la  Hale,  plays  of,j.  171, 381. 

Adoptionist  controversies,  and 
Christmas,  i.  240. 

Adoratio  Cruets,  ii.  16. 


Advent,  i.  247  ;  liturgical  drama  in, 

ii.  62,  67. 
Agricultural  festivals.    See  Feasts, 

Village  festivals. 
Agriculture,  begun  by  women,  i.  106 ; 

religion  of,  106,  109. 
Aguilqneufy  i.  254. 
Alcuin,  his  dislike  of  minstrelsy, 

i-  325<35- 

Ales,  i.  179. 

Allegory  in  mediaeval  drama,  ii.  151. 

Alleluia,  funeral  of,  i.  1 86. 

All  Saints'  day,  i.  247,  265. 

All  Souls'  day,  i.  247,  265. 

Altercatio  Ecclesiae  et  Synagogae, 
ii.  64,  152. 

Amour,  Prince  d>,  at  Middle  Tem- 
ple, i.  416. 

Ancestors,  cult  of,  at  New  Year, 
i.  264. 

Andrew,  St.,  his  day,  i.  232. 

Andria  of  Terence,  ii.  215,  456. 

Anglo-Saxon  Chronicle ',  songs  in, 

i.  31- 
Anglo-  Saxons,      non  -  professional 

singers  of,  i.  64. 
Animals,  cult  of,  i.  131. 
Animism,  i.  103. 
Anne,  St.,  miracle-plays  on  her  day, 

ii.  118,  127,  130. 
Annunciation,  dramatic  ceremonies 

at,  ii.  66. 

Annunciation  style,  i.  246. 
AntichristuS)    liturgical    play    of, 

ii.  62,  151. 
Antiphonarium    of   Gregory   the 

Greaf,  ii.  7. 
Antiphons,  nature  of,  ii.  6. 


INDEX 


463 


Apfeln-Bischof,  i.  369. 

Apostles,    feast    of,   at    Beauvais, 

i.  287  ;  at  Sens,  288. 
Aquinas,  on  minstrels,  i.  58. 
Archipropheta  of  Grimald,  ii.  451, 
Armenians,  on  birthday  of  Christ, 

i.  239. 
Armiger,  title  of  minstrel,  i.  50, 

ii.  139. 
Aryan  and  pre-Aryan  in  folk-lore, 

i.  101. 
Ascension,  feast  of,  i.  1 1 4 ;  dialogued 

trope  for,  ii.  II  ;   dramatic  cere- 
mony at,  65;  miracle-play  at,  129. 
Asotus  of  Macropedius,  ii.  217. 
Ass,  ears  of,  worn  by  '  fools,'  i.  385  ; 

in   liturgical  drama,  ii.   57.    See 

PalmeseL 
Asses,  feast  of,  i.  275,  282, 304, 305, 

320,  33°,  374,  377-    See  Prose  of 

Ass. 

Atellanes,  i.  2,  4. 
Aubes,  i.  78,  171. 
Aucassin  et  Nicolete,  i.  42,  45,  74. 
Auctor  of  plays,  i.  83. 
Augustine,  St.,  and  theatre,  i.  12, 17 ; 

a  character  in  miracle-plays,  ii.  72, 

77- 
Ausonius,  his  Ludus  Septem  Sapi- 

entum,  ii.  212. 

Authorship  of  miracle -plays,  ii.  144. 
Autos  SacramentaleS)  ii.  95,  105. 

Baculus,  feast  of,  i.  276,  279,  283, 

289,  309,  319,  325,  345- 
Balaam,  episode  of,  in  Prophetae, 

ii.  55,  72- 
Baldwin,  William,  his  plays,  ii.  194, 

200. 
Bale,  John,  ii.  131,  144,  220,  222, 

224,  446. 
Ball,  tossed  at  festivals,  i.  128  ;    at 

Feast  of  Fools,  327  ;  struggle  for, 

in  games,  meaning  of,  149. 
Ballad,  in  Elizabethan  age,  i.  69. 
Ballationes,  i.  161. 
'Banns'  of  miracle-plays,  ii.  114, 

122,  140,  144. 
Barbarian  indifference  to  theatre, 

i.  19,  21. 

Bards,  classes  of,  i.  76. 
*  Barring-out/  i.  263. 
Barritus  of  Germans,  i.  26. 
Bartholomew   Fair,  puppet-shows 

at,  ii.  158. 
Basoches,  i.  375. 
Bastaxi,  i.  71. 


Baston,    Robert,    his    tragoediae, 

ii.  2ii. 

Bathing  at  folk-festivals,  i.  122. 
Battle,  mock,  in  folk-drama,  i.  187, 

2 1  o.    See  also  Dtbats. 
Bauble  of  fool,  i.  385. 
Bean,  king  of,  t.  260,  408. 

Bearing  the  book,'  ii.  140. 
Bearwards,  i.  68,  72. 
Beast -dances,  i.  166. 
Beast-mimicry,  by  minstrels,  i.  71. 
1  Beating  the  bounds,'  i.  120,  143. 
Beauty    and   Good  Properties  of 

Women,  ii.  455. 
Beelzebub,  in  Plough  Monday  play, 

i.  209;  in  St.  George  play,  214. 
Befana,  i.  268. 

Bel,  cult  of,  in  Bohemia,  i.  253. 
Bells,  in  morris-dance,  i.  200;   in 

sword-dance,  201. 
Beltane,  i.  in,  133,  138,  143. 
Belus,  cult  of,  in  Europe,  i.  112, 

234.  . 

Benedictbeuern  manuscript,  litur- 
gical plays  in,  ii.  37,  39,  40,  72,  76. 

Benedictio  fontium,  i.  124. 

Beowulf,  i.  29 ;  sword-dance  in, 
191. 

*  Bessy '  in  sword-dance,  i.  192, 194, 
198,  206,  210. 

4  Bezant1  procession,  5.  119. 

Bilingual  religious  plays,  ii.  89, 108. 

'  Bishops '  of  Fools,  i.  295,  326,  368. 
See  Feast  of  Fools,  passim. 

Black  faces  at  folk-festivals,  i.  125, 

IS4,  199,  214- 
Blood,  importance  of,  in  sacrifice, 

i.  132,  138. 
Blfit-monath,  i.  256. 
Boar,   sacrificial    animal  at   New 

Year,  i.  257. 

Bon  Accord,  abbot  of,  i.  173,  ii.  333. 
Bordeors  Ribauz,  Des  Deus,  i.  67, 

79,  35. 

Bouffbns,  danse  des,  i.  191. 

'Box-holder'  in  St.  George  play, 
i.  217. 

Boy  Bishop,  sermons  of,  i.  356 ;  in 
schools  and  universities,  362  ;  dis- 
liked by  Reformation,  366;  cus- 
toms of,  resemble  Feast  of  Fools, 
368 ;  in  religious  drama,  ii.  72. 

Boy  Bishop,  at  Sens,  i.  344;  at 
Rouen,  345  ;  at  Bayeux,  345  ;  at 
C9utances,  346 ;  at  Tours,  347  ; 
at'Toul,  347 ;  in  France  generally, 
349;  at  Noyon,  350;  in  Spain, 


464 


INDEX 


350  ;  in  Germany,  350;  at  Salis- 
bury, 352,  ii.  282 ;  at  Exeter,  i.  354 ; 
at  St.  Paul's,  354 ;  at  York,  356, 
ii.  287 ;  at  Beverley,  i.  357  ;  at 
Lincoln,  358;  vogue  of,  in  England, 
358;  at  Westminster,  360;  at 
Durham,  360;  at  Winchester,  361. 

Boys,  feast  of.    See  Boy  Bishop. 

Braies,fite  de,  at  Laon,  i.  302  ;  roi 

de,  373- 

Breri,  ^fabulator,  i.  77. 
Broom,  in  St.  George  play,  i.  215. 
Brothelyngham,  order  of,  at  Exeter, 

i.  383. 

Brumalia,  i.  234. 
Buffons,  les,  name  for  morris-dance, 

i.  200. 

Buffoons.    See  Fools,  Minstrels. 
Bufos,  i.  63. 

Bull-baiting,  origin  of,  5.  141,  257. 
Burial  and  Resurrection,  ii.   129, 

431- 
'  Burial  of  Carnival,'  i.  186. 

Burlesque  of  worship  at  Feast  of 
Fools,  i.  280,  286,  294,  296,  325, 
381. 

Cabham,  Thomas  de,  his  classifica- 
tion of  minstrels,  i.  59,  ii.  262. 

Cakes  at  festivals,  i.  133,  142,  260. 

Calendar,  origins  of,  i.  1 10, 229, 232. 

Calisto  andMeliboea,  ii.  455. 

Candlemas,  i.  114,  126,  163,  251. 

Cantica,  i.  161,  169. 

Canticum  triumphale,  ii.  74. 

Cantilenae,  of  folk  and  scdp,  i.  26 ; 
on  heroes,  163,  167  ;  of  sword- 
dance,  192. 

Carnival,  i.  114,121;  cburiaTof,  186. 

Caroles,  i.  164,  272. 

'  Carping,'  of  minstrels,  i.  72. 

Cartuaitheail,  i.  129. 

Castle  of  Perseverance,  ii.  155,  437. 

Catherine,  St.,  her  day,  1.247  J  P^ys 
on  legend  of,  ii.  64,  107,  133. 

'  Catherning,'  i.  253. 

Cawarden,  Sir  Thomas,  i.  405. 

Censorship  of  stage,  5i.  225. 

Cereal  sacrifices,  i.  133  ;  survival  of 
in  folk-festivals,  142,  260. 

Ceri,  procession  of,  atGubbio,  i.  119. 

Cernunnosl  i.  259, 

Cervulus,  i.  258,  330. 

Chansons,  of  minstrels,  i.  73 ;  de 
gestes,  74;  dramatic  elements  in, 
77  ;  de  carole,  164  ;  a  danser^  171 ; 
de  mal-moriies,  171. 


Chanteloup,  Walter  de,  attacks  folk- 

ludi,  i.  91. 

Chapel  Royal,  plays  by,  ii.  193,  202. 
Charivari,  i.  153,  379. 
Charlemagne,  and  heroic  song,  i. 

26  ;  a  patron  of  minstrels,  36. 
Chariot  et  le  Barbier,  of  Rutebeuf, 

1.79- 

Charms,  i.  121. 
Chaucer,  a  typical  trouvlre,  i.  64 ; 

interludes  based  on,  ii.  205. 
Cheke,  Henry,  his  Freewill,  ii.  461. 
'  Chekkar,'  minstrels  of,  at  Scottish 

court,  i.  50. 
Chester  Plays,  ii.  407. 
Cheyauchtes,  i.  153,  379. 
Children,  inheritors  of  folk-customs, 

i.  152  ;  place  of,  in  winter  feasts, 

263. 
Chimney-sweeps,  their  connexion 

with  May-day,  i.  125. 
Choir-boys,  miracle-plays  acted  by, 

ii.  121. 
Chori,  in  folk-dance  and  song,  i.  27, 

I63-  . 

Christianity,  elements  of,  in  folk- 
custom,  i.  249. 

Christmas,  St.  George  play  at,  i. 
226 ;  origin  of,  238 ;  in  Saxon 
England,  244  ;  New  Year  customs 
at,  246 ;  in  mediaeval  England, 
390 ;  masques  at,  391 ;  at  uni- 
versities, 407  ;  at  inns  of  court, 
413  ;  dialogued  tropes  for,  ii.  8,  n, 
41  ;  praesepe  at,  42  ;  liturgical 
plays  at,  41 ;  miracle-plays  at,  70, 
129. 

Christmas-boxes,  i.  271. 

Christmas-flowering  trees,  i.  252. 

Christmas  lord.  See  Misrule, 
lord  of. 

'Christmas,'  Old  Father,  in  St. 
George  play,  i.  216. 

Christmas  Prince,  at  St.  John's 
College,  Oxford,  i.  408. 

Christmas  trees,  i.  251. 

Christopherson,  John,  \asjephthesi 
ii.  218. 

Xptorb?  Ha<T\a>v,  ii.  206. 

Chris tus  Redivivus  of  Grimald,  ii. 
450. 

Christus  Triumphans  of  John  Foxe, 
ii.  458. 

Chrysostom,  St.,  and  theatre,  i.  15; 
and  pantomimi  at  banquets,  24 ; 
and  Kalends,  244. 

Churches,  dances  in,  i.  165;  '  clip- 


INDEX 


465 


ping*  of,  1 66;   miracle-plays  in, 
ii.  79,  134 ;  interludes  in,  191. 
Churchyards,  miracle-plays  in,  ii. 

134. 
Circular  movement  as  sun-charm, 

i.  129. 
Circumcision,  feast  of,  i.  245,  330. 

See  New  Year,  Kalends,  Feast  of 

Fools. 

Cithara,  i.  73. 

Classical    plays,  Renascence  per- 
formances of,  ii.  214. 
'  Clemencing,'  i.  253. 
Clement,  St.,  his  day,  i.  247. 
Clergy,  their  share  in  miracle-plays, 

ii.  117,  120. 
Clerico  et  Puella,  Interludium  de, 

i.,86,  ii.  181 ;  text  of,  ii.  324. 
Clerks'  plays,  ii.  104,  140,  202. 
f  Clipping  the  church,'  i.  166. 
Cockneys,  king  of,  at  Lincoln's  Inn, 

i.  414. 

Cocks-comb,  worn  by  fools,  i.  385. 
Columpnarium,  ii.  213. 
Comedy,   on    Roman    stage,  i.  2 ; 

extinction    of   classical,    ii.   207; 

mediaeval    sense   of   term,   209 ; 

humanist  revival  of,  212 ;  in  Tudor 

interlude,  215. 
Compagnies  des  fous,  i.  373.    See 

Socitte's  joyeuses* 
Complaint  of  Deor,  i.  29. 
Computiy   extracts  from,  on  min- 
strelsy and  plays,  ii.  234,  240. 
Concordia  Regiilaris,  ii.  14,  306. 
Conductus,  i.  282. 
Conduits,  filled  with  wine,  ii.  166; 

pageants  on,  173. 

Conflict  of  Vice  and  Virtue,  ii.  153. 
ConfrJrte  de  la  Passion,  ii.  88. 
Confrtries,  for  Feast    of  Fools,  i. 

373.  .      f      ^ 

Constance,  council  of,  performance 
of  Stella  at,  ii.  101. 

Contes,  i.  74. 

Contrafazedor,  i.  82. 

Controversy,  religious,  in  drama,  ii. 
217. 

Conversion  of  England,  i.  95. 

Coquille,  seigneur  de  la,  i.  374. 

Corbeil,  Pierre  de,  and  the  Feast  of 
Fools,  i.  281,  287. 

Cornards,  i.  374,  384. 

Coronations.    See  Entries. 

Cornish  plays,  ii.  127,  433. 

Corporations, theircontrol  of  miracle- 
plays,  ii.  1 14 ;  their  expenses,  115; 

H 


plays  sometimes  produced  by 
them,  1 1 8. 

Corpus  Christi,  miracle-plays  at,  ii. 
77,  94,  108, 112,  138,  160;  proces- 
sion at,  138,  160,  329 ;  guilds  of, 
118. 

Corrarp,  his  Progne,  ii.  212. 

*  Cosmic '  dramas.    See  Cycles. 

Costume,  of  minstrels,  i.  44 ;  at  folk- 
festivals,  185  ;  in  St.  George  play, 
219;  of  fools,  384;  in  miracle- 
plays,  ii.  122,  141. 

Court,  the  English,  minstrels  at, 
i.  47,  ii.  234 ;  fools  at,  i.  386 ; 
Christmas  at,  390 ;  revels  and 
disguisings  at,  391  ;  lord  of  mis- 
rule at,  403  ;  master  of  revels  at, 
404;  miracle-plays  at,  397,  ii.  130, 
184  ;  interludes  at,  186,  192. 

C our  tots  d*  Arras  i  i.  79. 

Courts  of  minstrelsy,  i.  54. 

Coventry,  playsat,ii.  422.  SeeLudus 
Coventriae. 

Cradle  of  Security,  ii.  189,  200. 

Craft-guilds,  miracle-plays  main- 
tained by,  ii.  in,  113,  115  ;  levies 
on  members  of,  116  ;  appropriate- 
ness of  plays  to  occupations  of, 
118, 131  ;  and  Corpus  Chnsti  pro- 
cession, 162. 

Creation  of  the  World  tf.  W.  Jordan, 

"•  435- 

Creed  Play,  ii.  120,  130. 

c  Creeping  to  the  cross/  ii.  17. 

'  Crib '  at  Christmas,  i.  272,  333, 
ii.  42,  157. 

Cromwell,  and  Protestant  inter- 
ludes, ii.  220. 

Croxton  Sacrament  play,  ii.  427. 

Cucking-stool,  i.  122. 

Cuckoo,  the  herald  of  summer, 
i.  188. 

Cues,  ii.  144. 

Cult,  its  permanence,  i.  99. 

Cycles  of  miracle-plays,  formed  by 
expansion  and  merging,  ii.  72  ; 
become  *  cosmic '  drama,  77  ; 
spread  over  successive  days  or 
years,  86,  130;  popularity  of  in 
England,  113;  their  subject-matter, 
125,  321. 

Cynewulf,  a  scdp,  i.  31. 

Dance,  a  form  of  play,  i.  160 ; 
attacked  by  Church,  161 ;  in 
churches,  162 ;  at  folk- festivals, 
163,  272;  in  Middle  Ages,  164; 


CHAMBERS.     II 


466 


INDEX 


processional  and  circular,  164 ; 
dramatic  tendency  of,  188 ;  at 
Feast  of  Fools,  326 ;  in  miracle- 
plays,  ii.  141.  See  Morris-dance, 
Sword-dance. 

Dance  of  Death,  ii.  153. 

Dancers,  in  Rome,  i.  6,  9 ;  as  min- 
strels, 71. 

Dancing  sun,  at  Easter,  i.  129. 

Daniel,  liturgical  plays  on,  ii.  58, 
60. 

Danse  des  bouffbns,  i.  191. 

Dati,  his  Hiempsal,  ii.  212. 

Daurel  et  Beton,  i.  67. 

Deacons,  feast  of,  on  St.  Stephen's 
day,  i.  336. 

Dead,  feast  of,  i.  228,  247,  264. 

Deasil,  i.  123,  129,  165. 

Death)  Dance  of,  ii.  153. 

Death,  expulsion  of,  i.  183. 

Death,  mock,  in  sword-dance,  i. 
206  ;  in  folk-plays,  210,  213,  219. 

Dtbats,  i.  79,  187  ;  and  moralities, 
ii.  153 ;  acted  as  interludes,  201. 

*  Decoration  '  at  New  Year,  i,  251. 

Dedication  of  churches,  wake  on 
day  of,  i.  96,  114;  dramatic  cere- 
mony of,  ii.  4. 

Dee,  John,  play  translated  by,  ii. 
195. 

Degollada,  la,  figure  in  sword-dance, 
i.  204. 

Deposit  Jo  Cruets,  ii.  17. 

Deposuit,  feast  of,  i.  277,  306,  309, 
325.339,345,376. 

Descensus  Christi  ad  inferos,  dra- 
matic treatment  of,  ii.  73. 

Destruction  of Jerusalem ,  play  on, 
ii.  132. 

De  Symbplo,  pseudo-Augustinian 
sermon,  ii.  52. 

Devils,  in  miracle-plays,  ii.  91,  148. 

Devozioni,  ii.  92. 

Dialogues,  in  Anglo-Saxon  litera- 
ture, i.  80  ;  in  minstrelsy,  77  ;  in 
liturgical  tropes,  ii.  8 ;  recited  in 
schools,  2 1 2. 

Dice,  a  temptation  to  minstrels, 
i.  48,  60;  played  at  mummings, 

394- 

Digby  Plays,  ii.  428. 
Disguisings,     i.    393,    400.      See 

Mummings,     Masques,     Drama, 

Interludes. 
Disobedient  Child,  The,  of  Ingelend, 

ii.  214,  223,  456. 
Disours>  i.  75,  387. 


Dit  des  Taboureurs,  5.  63. 

Dits,  i.  74. 

Doctor,  in  folk-drama,  i.  185 ;  in 
sword-dances,  207 ;  in  Plough 
Monday  play,  210  ;•  in  St.  George 
play,  213,  218,  226. 

Doctors  de  trobar,  5.  63. 

Domestic  feast  at  New  Year,  i.  262. 

Domus  of  religious  plays,  ii.  79,  83, 
136. 

Donaueschingen,  stage  of  Passion- 
play  at,  ii.  84. 

Dout,  i.  217. 

•Ducking*  at  folk-festivals,  i.  122; 
at  Feast  of  Fools,  298,  307,  313, 

327- 

Dumb-show,  in  folk-drama,  i.  21 1. 

Dracontius,  his  Orestes,  ii.  209. 

Dragon,  in  morris-dance,  i.  196; 
in  St.  George  play,  212,  217,  226. 

Drama,  decay  of,  at  Rome,  i.  3 ; 
elements  of,  in  minstrelsy,  77  ;  de- 
veloped from  pastourelles,  171;  at 
English  May-games,  177 ;  folk- 
element  in,  182;  relation  of,  to 
dance,  1 88 ;  magical  efficacy  of, 
1 92  ;  influence  of  schoolmaster  on, 
202  ;  at  Feasts  of  Fools  and  Boy 
Bishop,  380;  element  of,  in  liturgy, 
ii.  3 ;  process  of  secularization  in, 
from  thirteenth  century,  69 ;  ex- 
pansion of,  69;  brought  outside 
the  church,  79 ;  acted  by  lay  guilds, 
87 ;  vernacular  introduced  into, 
88;  vogue  of  devils  in,  91  ;  at  feast 
of  Corpus  Christi,  95  ;  processional 
type  of,  95 ;  liturgical  survivals 
in,  96  ;  passes  into  interlude,  180; 
mediaeval  confusion  as  to  nature 
of,  208 ;  controversial  use  of,  at 
Reformation,  216.  See  Actors, 
Comedy,  Folk-drama,  Interludes, 
Liturgical  plays,  Miracle-plays, 
Moralities,  Tragedy,  &c.  &c. 

Draw  a  Pail  of  Water,  i.  124. 

Droichis  Part  of  the  Play,  as- 
signed to  Dunbar,  ii.  454. 

Druids,  i.  251. 

Dunbar,  his  banns  for  a  May- 
game,  ii.  454. 

Durham  Priory,  extracts  from  ac- 
counts of,  ii.  240. 

Dwarf  effigies,  i.  353. 

Earth-goddess,  i.  105  ;  cult  of,  in 
India,  149,  ii.  266;  swine  sacrificed 
to,  i.  257 ;  as  ruler  of  dead,  264. 


INDEX 


467 


Easter,  i.  114 ;  folk-customs  at,  124, 
1 26, 1 28, 1 50, 1 56, 1 57, 163, 165,  &c.; 
St.  George  play  at,  226 ;  dialogued 
tropes  for,  ii.  9 ;  religious  drama 
at,  15,  27,  73,  129.  See  Quern 
quaeritiS)  Peregrini. 

Easter  sepulchre.    See  Sepulchre. 

Ecerinis  of  Mussato,  ii.  211. 

Edward  I,  his  Pentecost  feast, 
minstrels  at,  i.  47,  ii.  234. 

Edward  VI,  his  De  Meretrice 
Babylonica,  ii.  218,  222. 

Eggs,  at  Easter,  i.  128;  in  Quern 
quaeritis,  ii.  36. 

*  Elegiac  '  comedies  and  tragedies, 
ii.  212. 

Elevatio  Cruets,  at  Easter,  ii.  17, 
20. 

Elisaeus,  liturgical  play  of,  ii.  60. 

Eltham,  mummings  at,  i.  395,  397. 

Enfants-sans-Souci,  i.  374,  382. 

English,  John,  a  player,  ii.  187. 

Enseignamens  por  JoglarS)  i.  67. 

Entries,  royal,  pageants  at,  ii.  166, 
*74,  336 ;  elements  from  miracle- 
plays  and  moralities  in,  172. 

Eostre,  i.  108. 

'  Epic '  comedies  and  tragedies, 
ii.  212. 

Epicharmus,  his  mimes,  i.  2. 

Epinette%  roi  de  /',  i.  373. 

Epiphany,  early  significance  of, 
i.  239  ;  subordinated  to  Christmas, 
244 ;  New  Year  customs  at,  247, 
260 ;  Feast  of  Fools  at,  323  ;  re- 
ligious drama  at,  ii.  44,  129.  See 
Stella. 

Episcopus  puerorum,  or  Nickola- 
tensisy  i.  369.  See  Boy  Bishop. 

Erasmus,  his  sermon  for  Boy 
Bishop,  i.  356. 

Erberie,  Dit  de  ?,  of  Rutebeuf, 
i.33,8S. 

Erce,  i.  108. 

Ermulus,  i.  258. 

Esclaffardi,  i.  290,  315,  323. 

Esem  Esquesem,  in  Plough  Mon- 
day play,  i.  210. 

Estrifs,  i.  81.     See  Dtbats. 

Ethelwold,  St.,  author  of  Concordia 
Regularis^  ii.  14,  307. 

Ethnology,  of  Europe,  i.  101  ;  in 
folk-custom,  270. 

£tourdis>pr£vot  des,  i.  373. 

&trennes.    See  Strenae. 

Evergreens,  as  representing  fertiliza- 
tion spirit,  1.251. 

H 


Everyman^  Summoning  o/>  ii.  155, 

217,  439- 
Exemplum,  term  for  religious  play, 

ii.  104. 
Exeter,  order  of  Brothelyngham  at, 

i.  383  ;  fourteenth-century  theatre 

at,  383,  ii.  190. 
Expulsion  of  Death,  i.  183. 

Fabliaux^  i.  43,  74. 

'Faddy*  dance  at  Helston,  i.  119, 
165. 

Fall,  the,  introduced  into  religious 
drama,  ii.  71,  77. 

Family,  feast  of,  at  New  Year, 
i.  262. 

Farce,  vogue  of,  at  Rome,  i.  2,  4  ; 
played  by  minstrels,  83;  in  fifteenth- 
century  France,  ii.  197 ;  in  inter- 
ludes, 202. 

Farsura.)  L  277. 

Fasching  in  sword-dance,  i.  192. 

Fastnachtspiele,  5.  382. 

Fatui.    See  Fools. 

'Feasten'  cakes,  i.  133,  142,  236, 
260. 

Feasts,  of  primitive  Europe,  i.  HO; 
village,  customs  of,  116;  play  at, 
146  ;  at  beginning  of  winter,  228  ; 
in  mid-winter,  234  ;  between  har- 
vest and  New  Year,  247.  See 
Asses,  Feast  of;  Fools,  Feast  of. 

Ferrers,  George,  i.  405. 

Fertilization  spirit,  in  winter  cus- 
toms, i.  250. 

FeuilUe^  Jeu  de  la}  of  Adan  de  la 
Hale,  i.  381. 

Fire,  not  taken  from  house  at  New 
Year,  i.  217,  238,  269. 

Fires  at  folk-festivals,  i.  125,  255  ; 
in  pestilence,  127  ;  at  Feast  of 
Fools,  327. 

*  First  foot,1  i.  270. 

Flagellants,  and  mediaeval  drama 
in  Italy,  ii.  92. 

Fleury,  liturgical  plays  at,  ii.  32, 
37,  So,  59,  60,  61. 

Flight  into  Egypt,  representations 

of,  1.287,  333-. 

Floralia>  a  festival  at  Rome,  i.  5. 
Flower-dances,  i.  166. 
Flytings,  i.  80. 
Folk-drama,   i.   182 ;    relation   of, 

to  sword-dance,  207,  218. 
Folk-elements,  in  Feast  of  Fools, 

i.  298, 326  ;  in  miracle-plays,  ii.  91, 

120,  147  ;  in  royal  entries,  172. 


468 


INDEX 


Folk-medicine,  i.  117,  123. 
Folk-song,    of    Teutons,    i.    25 ; 
adapted    by    minstrels,    78 ;    as 
source  of  dtbats,  80.    See  Chan- 
sons, Song. 

Food,  an  object  of  cult,  i.  104 ;  left 
on  table  at  New  Year,  266. 
Pool,'  meaning  of  term,  i.  334 ;  in 
oik-custom,  142,  150,  192,  196, 
208,  214 ;  costume  of,  384,  387 ; 
in  household,  386;  at  miracle- 
plays,  ii.  141 ;  in  interludes,  141. 
See  Buffoon,  *  Vice/ 
Fool-literature,  5.  382. 
Fools,  Feast  of,  i.  275  ;  condemned 
by  Innocent  III  (1207),  279;  by 
council  of  Paris  (1212),  279;  by 
Odo  of  Tusculum  (1245);  de- 
scribed in  thirteenth  century,  290; 
condemned  by  Gerson,  292 ;  by 
council  of  Basle  (1435),  293 ;  by 
Pragmatic  Sanction  (1438),  293  ; 
by  Paris  theologians  (1445),  293  ; 
later  attacks  on,  300  ;  customs  of, 
323  ;  possible  eastern  origin  of, 
327 ;  loose  use  of  term,  337 ; 
inherited  by  societh  joyeuses,  373; 
relation  of,  to  liturgical  drama, 
ii.  56 ;  at  Paris,  i.  276,  300 ;  at 
Sens,  279,  291,  297;  at  Beauvais, 
284,  300;  at  St.  Omer,  289,  305 ;  at 
Bayeux,  289  ;  at  Autun,  289,  312  ; 
at  Nevers,  290  ;  at  Romans,  290 ; 
at  Laon,  290,  303 ;  at  Amiens,  290, 
300 ;  at  Troyes,  295  ;  at  Noyon, 

302  ;  at  Soissons,  302  ;   at  Senlis, 

303  ;  at  Rheims,  304  ;  at  Chdlons- 
sur-Marne,  305  ;  at  B^thune,  305  ; 
at  Lille,  306  ;    at  Tournai,  307  ; 
at  Chartres,  308  ;  at  Tours,  309 ; 
at  Bourges,  309 ;  at  Avallon,  309  ; 
at   Auxerre,   309;   at    Besan^on, 
311;    at    Dijon,    313;    at   Cha- 
16ns-sur-Sa6ne,  314  ;  at  Valence, 
314;  at  Vienne,  314;  at  Viviers, 
315;    at  Aries,   317;   at   Frdjus, 
317;  atAIx,  317;  at  Antibes,  317; 
in  Spain,  318;    at  Mosburg,  319  ; 
at  Cologne,  320;  in  Bohemia,  320 ; 
at  Lincoln,  321 ;  at  Beveiiey,  322; 
at  St.  Paul's,323 ;  at  Salisbury,  323. 

Fools,  order  of,  i.  375,  382. 
Football,  at  folk-festivals,  i.  149. 
Footing,  payment  of,  i.  157. 
*  Forced  fire,'  i.  127. 
Four*  Elements,    Nature    of,    of 
John  Rastell,  ii.  200,  453. 


Four  Ps  of  Heywpod,  ii.  445. 

Fous,  prince  des,  i.  373. 

Foxe,  John,,  his  Christus  Trium- 
phant, ii.  458. 

Francis,  St.,  his  divine  minstrelsy, 
i.  46 ;  and  the  praesepe,  ii.  42. 

Frazer,  J.  G.,  his  theory  of  human 
sacrifice,  i.  134. 

Freewill  of  Henry  Cheke,  ii.  461. 

French  influence  on  English  mira- 
cle-plays, ii.  108,  146. 

Freyja,  i.  96,  108. 

Freyr,  i.  98,  108,  118,  257. 

Frija,  i.  108. 

Funambuli,  i.  70. 

Functions  of  heathen  gods  trans- 
ferred to  saints,  i.  98,  109. 

*  Funeral  of  Alleluia/  i.  186. 
Future,  curiosity  of  peasant  as  to, 

i.  271. 

'  Gaderyng.'     See  Qu&te. 
Gaigizons,  folk-custom  of,  at  Autun, 

i-  313- 

Galgacus,  hero  of  folk-play,  i.  211. 
Games,  festival  origin  of,  i.  148. 
Gammer  Gurtoris  Needle,  ii.  195, 

216,  457. 

'  Gang- week,'  i.  120. 
G  argon  et  FAveugle,  Le,  i.  86. 
'  Geese-dancers/  or  disguisers,  i. 

402. 

Gemeinwoche,  i.  247. 
Genesius,  St.,  a  converted  mime, 

i.  10 ;  the  patron  of  minstrels,  42. 
Gentleness  and  Nobility,  assigned 

to  Heywood,  ii.  446. 
Geoffrey  of  St.  Albans,  his  play  on 

St.  Catherine,  ii.  64,  107. 
Geola,  i.  230. 

*  George '  in  churches,  i.  224. 
George,  St.,  his  day,   i.   114;    in 

morris-dance,  197  ;  legend  of,  138, 
225 ;  ridings  of,  118,  221 ;  miracle- 
plays  on,  224,  ii.  132. 

George,  St.,  or  Mummers'  play, 
range  of,  i.  211,  220;  analysis  of, 
21 1 ;  characters  of,  212 ;  relation  to 
sword-dance,  207, 218;  symbolism 
of  spring  in,  218;  relation  to 
Seven  Champions,  220 ;  to  St. 
George  ridings,  221  ;  transferred 
from  spring  to  mid-winter,  226; 
text  of,  ii.  276. 

Gerhoh  *von  Reichersberg,  ii.  64, 
86,  98. 

Germano-Kelts,  their  feasts,  i.  228  ; 


INDEX 


469 


ignorance  of  solstices,  228  ;  in- 
fluence of  Rome  upon,  232. 

Gesta  Grayorum,  i.  417. 

Gestator  regis,  i.  68. 

Geta,  ii.  207. 

'Giants'  in  folk-festivals,  L  120, 
139;  at  royal  entries,  ii.  173. 

Gladiators,  suppressed,  i.  20 ;  sur- 
vival of,  in  minstrelsy,  72. 

Glastonbury  thorn,  i.  252. 

Gleeman  (gledmon),  name  for  scdp, 
i.  28,  30,  34 ;  survival  of,  after 
Conquest,  43,  75. 

Gleewood,  or  harp,  i.  29. 

Gloriosi  et  famosi,  ii.  54. 

God,  the  concept  of,  i.  104. 

Godiva  procession  at  Coventry, 
i.  119,  ii.  163. 

Goc?s  Promises  of  Bale,  ii.  448. 

4  Golden  Mass/  at  Tournai,  ii.  67, 
318. 

Goliardi,  i.  60,  280,  327,  ii.  8,  27, 

37,  57,  72. 

'  Gooding,'  i.  253. 

rortfucoi/,  ro,  at  Byzantium,  i.  273. 

Grange,  Prince  de  la,  at  Lincoln's 
Inn,  i.  415. 

Green  Knight,of  Arthurian  romance, 
i.  1 86. 

Gregory  the  Great,  his  missionary 
policy,  i.  95. 

Grimald,  Nicholas,  his  plays,  ii. 
194,  218,  450. 

Grosseteste,  Robert,  his  harper,  i. 
56;  against  minstrels,  39 ;  against 
folk-ludi,  91 ;  against  Feast  of 
Fools,  321 ;  his  name  given  to 
Christmas  king,  411  ;  against 
miracle-plays,  ii.  100. 

Grotesques,  as  survivals  of  sacrifice, 
i.  142 ;  in  sword-dance,  192 ;  in 
morris-dance,  196 ;  in  St.  George 
play,  214. 

Gubbio,  Ceri  procession  at,  i.  119. 

Guenever,  her  Maying,  i.  179. 

Guilds,  of  minstrels,  i.  55,  ii.  258  ; 
for  Feast  of  Fools,  i.  373 ;  religious 
and  miracle-plays,  ii.  87, 1 18  ;  and 
secular  plays,  198.  See  Corpus 
Christi  Guilds,  Craft-guilds,  Puys, 
Socie'te's  joy  eases. 

Guiraut  de  Riquier,  his  Supplicatio, 
i.  63. 

Guisers,  i.  227,  402. 

Gunpowder  day,  i.  115. 

Guy  Fawkes,  his  day,  i.  248,  253, 


Givyl,  i.  231. 
Gyst-ale,  i.  179. 


Hale,  Adan  de  la,  his  jeux,  i.  171, 
381. 

Halls,  interludes  in,  ii.  188. 

Hare,  a  divine  animal,  i.  131. 

Harlots,  the,  a  theatre  at  Constan- 
tinople, i.  1 6. 

Harp,  used  by  minstrels,  i.  73. 

Harrowing  of  Hell,  an  estrif,  i.  80, 
83,  ii.  74. 

Harrowing  of  Hell,  in  Easter  drama, 

ii-  73- 

Harvest  festival,  L  lilr  114. 

Harvest  field,  sacrificial  customs  of, 
i.  158. 

Harvest-lords,  i.  143. 

Harvest-May,  i.  117,  250. 

Hastiludia,  i.  392. 

*  Haxey  hood,'  on  Epiphany,  i.  150. 

Heads  of  sacrificed  animals  worn 
by  worshippers,  i.  132 ;  in  folk- 
custom,  141,  258,  268,  327,  385, 
391)  &c. 

Hearse,  i.  277. 

Heat-charms.    See  Sun-charms. 

Heathenism,  its  survival  in  folk- 
custom,  i.  94,  ii.  290,  &c. 

Heaven-god,  i.  105. 

'  Heaving/  at  Easter,  L  157. 

Hell,  Harrowing  of,  in  Easter 
drama,  ii.  73. 

Hell,  representation  of,  in  miracle- 
plays,  ii.  86,  137,  142. 

Heralds  of  summer,  i.  no. 

Hereward,  Saxon  lays  of,  i.  43,  76. 

Herman,  Guillaume,  unedited  play 
by,  ii.  152. 

Herod,  drama  of.    See  Stella. 

Herod,  how  acted  in  miracle-plays, 
ii.  48,  57,  90,  139. 

Herodas,  his  mimes,  L  a. 

Herodias,  i.  109. 

Herodis  Convwium,  liturgical  play 
of,  ii.  61. 

Heroic  lays  sung  by  minstrels,  L  62. 

Herrad  von  Landsberg,  on  Feast 
of  Fools,  i.  318;  on  miracle-plays, 
ii.  98. 

Heywood,  John,  his  interludes,  Ji. 
196,  203,  443. 

Hickscorner^  ii.  200,  453. 

Higden,  Randulph,  probable  author 
of  Chester  Plays,  ii.  145,  352. 

Higgs,  Gr\ffm,iusCkristmas  Prince, 
i.  408. 


470 


INDEX 


Hilarius,  his  liturgical  plays,  ii.  57, 

107. 

Hills,  cults  on,  i.  107,  129. 
HistriOy  classical  sense  of,  i.  6.   See 

Minstrels. 
Htoer  et  de  ?£tt,  Dtbat  de  ?,  \.  80, 

187. 

Hobby-horse,  i.  142,  196,  214,  258. 
Hockey,    at    folk-festivals,  i.   149, 

157- 

Hocking,  i.  155. 
'Hockney  day*  at   Hungerford,  i. 

156. 

Hock-tide,  i.  154,  187,  ii.  264. 
Hod&  cantandus,  a  Christmas  trope, 

iL8. 

Hogmanay,  i.  254. 
Holly,  as  fertilization  spirit,  i.  251. 
Holophernesy  alleged   play  of,    ii. 

196. 
Holophernes,  his  part  in  folk-drama, 

i.  202,  219,  221. 
Holy  Rood  legend  in  miracle-plays, 

ii.  127. 

Holy  water,  i.  124. 
Holy  wells,  i.  122. 
*  Honour/  minstrels  of,  i.  54. 
Hood  of  fools,  i.  308,  384. 
Hood,  Robin,  in  May-game,  i.  174  ; 

origin  of,  175  ;  plays  on,  177  ;  in 

morris-dance,  195  ;  in  St.  George 

play,  216;  as  lord  of  misrule,  ii. 

334- 

<  Hooding,'  i.  253. 
'  Horn-dance '  at  Abbot's  Bromley, 

t.  166. 
Horses,sacrificed  by  Teutons,  i.  131 ; 

let  blood  on  St.  Stephen's  day, 

257. 
Hertutanusscenem  Quemquaeritis, 

ii.  31- 

Household,  minstrels  in,  i.  48 ;  fool 
in,  386;  players  in,  ii.  186. 

House-spirits  fed  at  New  Year,  i. 
266. 

How  many  Miles  to  Babylon,  i. 
152. 

Howards,  extracts  from  accounts  of, 
ii.  255. 

Hrotsvitha,  plays  of,  ii.  207. 

Humanist  influence  on  drama,  ii. 
181,  206,  214. 

Humanity,  represented  in  morali- 
ties, ii.  155. 

Human  sacrifice,  its  meaning,  i. 
133;  abolition  of,  136;  traces  of,  in 
folk-festivals,  143,  260,  &c. 


Hunt,  Christmas,  at  Inner  Temple, 

i.  4i5- 

Hunters,  religion  of,  i.  106. 
*  Husbands'  of  miracle-play,  ii.  119. 

liuleis,  i.  230. 
Images,  origin  of,  i.  259. 
Impatient  Poverty ',  ii.  461. 
Imperator,  lord  of  misrule,  i.  413. 
Indian  earth-goddess,  her  festival, 

i.  149,  ii.  266. 
Inductio  Autumni,  i.  91. 
Jnductio  Mail,  i.  91,  172. 
Jnfanterie  Dijonnaise^  i.  373,  384. 
Ingelend,  Thomas,  his  Disobedient 

Child,  ii.  214,  223,  457. 
Innocent  1 1 1,  against  Feast  of  Fools, 

i-  279,  337,  ii-  99- 

Innocents  day,  i.  247,  260,  344. 
See  Boy  Bishop. 

Inns,  interludes  in,  ii.  189. 

Inns  of  Court,  revels  at,  i.  413 ; 
interludes  at,  ii.  194. 

Interlude,  a  form  of  disguising,  i. 
400 ;  origin  and  meaning  of  name, 
ii.  181 ;  chiefly  applied  to  domestic 
plays,  183;  characteristics  of,  188; 
public  performances  of,  189:  by 
villagers,  192 ;  by  inns  of  court, 
194;  in  universities,  194;  in 
schools,  195 ;  subject-matter  of, 
199;  controversial  use  of,  216; 
state  regulation  of,  220,  225  ;  in- 
heritance of  Elizabethan  stage 
from,  224. 

Inter  Indent es,  ii.  186,  233. 

Interludes,  players  of,  ii.  179.  See 
Actors. 

fnterludium  de  Clerico  et  Puella, 
i.  86,  ii.  181,  202  ;  text  of,  324. 

Interltisores,  ii.  186,  233. 

Introit,  tropes  to,  ii.  8. 

loculator  Regis,  i.  68. 

loculatores,  ii.  230.    See  Minstrels. 

Iron,  not  taken  from  house  at  New 
Year,  i.  238,  269. 

Isaac  and  Rebecca,  liturgical  play 
on,  ii.  60. 

Italy,  special  developments  of  me- 
diaeval drama  in,  ii.  91. 

lubilus,  ii.  7. 

Ivy,  as  fertilization  spirit,  i.  251. 

'  Jack  tf  the  green,'  i.  117. 
Jack  Juggler,  ii.  457. 
'  Jack  or  Lent/  i.  186. 


INDEX 


471 


'Jack   Straw,'   at    Lincoln's    Inn 

Christmas,  i.  414. 
Jape,  1.84. 

Jerome,  St.,  and  theatre,  i.  17,  25. 
Jesters,  i.  68,  386. 
Jeu  de  la  FeuilUe,  i.  381. 
feu  de  Robin  et  Marion,  i.  171. 
Jeu  du  PUerin,  i.  171. 
Jeunesse,  prince  de  la,  i.  373. 
Jevons,  F.  B.,  on  human  sacrifice, 

i-  135- 

Jocs-partitz  (jeux-partis),  i.  78. 
Joglars,  i.  63. 

John  Baptist  of  Bale,  ii.  448. 
John  Baptist,  St.,  his  day,  i.   126, 

241 ;     sacre  rappresentazioni  on, 

at  Florence,  ii.  94. 
John  Evangelist,  St.,  his  day,  i.  247 ; 

feast  of  priests  on,  336. 
'John  Jack,'  in  St.  George  play,  i. 

215. 
John,  Tib,  and  Sir  John  of  Hey- 

wood,  ii.  445. 
Jordan,    W.,  his   Creation  of  the 

World,  ii.  435. 
Jougleurs*    See  Minstrels. 
Jugglers,  i.  68,  71,  ii.  231. 
Julian    Hospitator,   St.,  patron  of 

minstrels,  i.  42. 

Julian  the  Apostate,  play  of,  ii.  132. 
Julian,  the  Emperor,  his  dislike  of 

the  theatre,  i.  10 ;  his  cult  of  the 

Sun,  235. 

Justinian,  code  of,  theatrical  legisla- 
tion in,  I  14,  16. 

Kalends,  of  January,  the  New  Year 

feast  of  the  Roman  Empire,  i.  237 ; 

hostility  of  Church  to,  244,  ii.  290 ; 

relation  of,  to  Christmas,  i.  246 ; 

customs  of,  250,  262,  266 ;  cervu- 

lus  at,  258 ;  survival  of,  in  Feast 

of  Fools,  329. 
Keltic  minstrels,  i.  76. 
Kelts  and  Teutons,  their  common 

civilization,  i.  100. 
'  Kern-baby,'  i.  117. 
King,  why  slain  at  festivals,  i.  134. 
'  King-ale,'  i.  179. 
'King-game,'  varying  sense  of,   i. 

173- 

Kingjohn^  of  Bale,  ii.  221,  449. 
King  of  Egypt,  in  St.  George  play, 

i.  217. 
Kings,  mock,  in  folk-custom,  i.  143, 

260  ;  in  singing  games,  152,  165 ; 

at  May-games,  173;  at  Saturnalia^ 


236 ;  at  Feast  of  Fools,  326 ;  as 
Boy  Bishops,  368;  of  SociMs 
joyeuses,  373 ;  as  lords  of  misrule, 
4.03.  See  Rex. 

Kirch mayer,  his  plays,  ii.  217. 

Kite,  Bishop,  as  actor,  ii.  193. 

Kolbigk,  dancers  of,  i.  162,  272. 

Laberius,  a  mimograph,  i.  4,  9. 

Ldc,  i.  160. 

'  Lady f  at  folk-festivals,  i.  173. 

Lais,  i.  74. 

'Lamb-ale,'  i.  179. 

Lammastide,  i.  1 14. 

Laneham,  Robert,  his  account  of 
Hock  Tuesday,  i.  154,  ii.  264. 

Langland,  William,  against  min- 
strels, i.  41. 

Langton,  Stephen,  unedited  play  by, 
ii.  152. 

'Largess,'  i.  158. 

Larvae.    See  Masks. 

Lath,  sword  of,  worn  by  fool,  i.  387. 

Latin,  known  to  minstrels,  i.  60. 

Laudesi,  ii.  92. 

Lazarus,  liturgical  plays  on,  ii.  58, 
60. 

Legends  in  miracle-plays,  ii.  126. 

Liberius,  not  founder  of  Christmas, 

i-  239- 

Libert  as  Decembrica,  i.  236. 

Limoges,  liturgical  dramas  at,  ii.  44, 
45»  53,  61. 

'  Little  Devil  Dout,'  in  St.  George 
play,  i.  215. 

Liturgical  drama,  origin  of,  in  tropes, 
ii.  7  ;  at  Easter,  27  ;  at  Christmas, 
41  ;  later  developments  of,  57  ; 
passes  into  miracle-play,  69  ;  in 
England,  107.  See  Peregrini, 
Prophetae,  Quern  quaeritis,  Stella. 

Liturgy,  dramatic  element'  in,  ii.  3. 

Loca  of  religious  plays,  ii.  79,  83, 

136. 

Lord  mayor's  show,  ii.  165. 

Lord  of  misrule.  See  Misrule,  lord 
of. 

Lord's  Prayer,  plays  of.  See  Pater- 
noster plays. 

Loschi,  his  Achilleis,  ii.  212. 

Love,  as  motij 'of  folk-song,  i.  169. 

Love,  of  Heywood,  ii.  444. 

Lucas  de  Barre,  blinded  for  min- 
strelsy, i.  46  ;  a  trouvire,  64. 

Lucrece,  an  interlude,  ii.  458. 

LuditA  folk,  attacked  by  thirteenth - 
century  bishops,  i.  90 ;  their  loose 


472 


INDEX 


morals,  93 ;  their  heathen  origin, 

94- 

Ludi  regis,  i.  393. 

Ludi  theatraleS)  in  churches,  con- 
demned, i.  342,  ii.  loo. 

Ludus,  meaning  of  term,  i.  393,  ii. 
104. 

Ludus  CoventriaC)  ii.  124,  126,  145, 
146,  152,  416. 

Ludus  de  Rege  et  Regtna,  i.  91, 172. 

Ludus  Septem  Sapientum  of  Auso- 
nius,  ii.  212. 

Lugnassad)  i.  in,  231. 

Luke,  St.,  his  day,  i.  247. 

Lusor^  meaning  of   term,  ii.   185, 

233- 

Lusty  Juventus  of  R.  Wever,  ii. 
223,  460. 

Lusus  Troiae,  i.  203. 

Luther  in  interludes,  ii.  219. 

Lutheran  drama,  ii.  216. 

Lydgate,  his  devices  for  mummings, 
i.  396  ;  claimed  as  author  of  mir- 
acle-plays, ii.  145  ;  his  verses  for 
Corpus  Christi,  161. 

Lyndsay,  Sir  David,  his  play,  ii. 
157,  441. 

Macro  manuscript  of  plays,  ii.  155, 

436. 

Magdalen,  St.  Mary,  in  religious 
drama,  ii.  32,  60,  75,  90,  131,  155. 

Magdalen  College,  Oxford,  extracts 
from  accounts  of,  ii.  248. 

Magi^  drama  of.     See  Stella. 

Magic  and  religion,  i.  102 ;  '  sym- 
pathetic '  and  *  mimetic/  121. 

Magnificence  of  John  Skelton,  ii. 

157,  441. 

Magnus,  plays  of,  ii.  207. 

Maid  Marian,  relation  of,  to  Robin 
Hood  legend,  i.  175  ;  in  morris- 
dance,  195. 

Maierolles,  i.  168. 

Maistre,  title  for  minstrels,  i.  47. 

4  Making  Christ's  bed ,' i.  187. 

Mankind,  ii.  155,  438. 

Mannyng,  Robert,  of  Brunne, 
agaist  minstrels,  i.  40 ;  against 
folk-/*;*/*,  93 ;  against  interludes, 
ii.  182. 

MarescalluS)  title  for  minstrels,  i. 
50,  ii.  239. 

Margaret,  St.,  in  St.  George  ridings, 
i.  223. 

Marham,  '  abbot '  of,  at  Shrews- 
bury, i,  173,  3*3,  »•  2S2. 


Marienklagen,  ii.  40. 

Marion,  and  Robin,  in  pastourelles, 

i.  171- 

MarionnetteS)  i.  71,  ii.  158. 
Mark,  St.,  his  day,  i.  114. 
Market  place,  miracle-plays  in,  ii. 

Marotte  of  fool,  i.  385. 

'  Marriage*  of  fruit-trees,  i.  250. 

Marriage  of  heaven  and  earth,  i. 
105,  144,  187. 

Marseilles,  forbids  mimes,  i.  7. 

Martin,  St.,  his  day,  i.  230,  247, 
256  ;  as  gift-giver,  268. 

Masks,  in  folk-processions,  i.  258; 
in  Feast  of  Fools,  327  ;  sacrificial 
origin  of,  391 ;  sale  of,  forbidden, 
396. 

Masques,  at  Christmas,  i.  391 ;  de- 
velopment of  mummings,  401 ; 
origin  of  name,  402. 

Mass,  dramatic  character  of,  ii.  3. 

MatreS)  i.  231,  264. 

Mattacino,  i.  191. 

Maundy  Thursday,  dramatic  cere- 
mony on,  ii.  6. 

Maxstoke  Priory,  extracts  from 
accounts  of,  ii.  244. 

May-brides,  i.  144. 

May-day,  origin  of,  i.  114 ;  its  cus- 
toms, 116,  126,  140,  173,  &c. ; 
songs  of,  168. 

May-game,  early  notices  of,  i.  173 ; 
nature  of,  176 ;  plays  in,  177 ; 
dances  at,  178 ;  decay  of,  179  ; 
morris-dance  in,  196. 

May-garland,  i.  117. 

May-kings,  i.  143. 

May-poles,  i.  117;  destroyed  at 
Reformation,  180. 

May-queens,  i.  144. 

Mayors,  mock,  i.  261. 

Mead,  i.  133. 

Medwall,  Henry,  his  plays,  ii.  200, 

443- 

Mehlweib,  in  sword-dance,  i.  192. 
Mercator  in  Quern  quaeritis,  ii.  33, 

75,  91- 

Meriasek)  S/.,  play  of,  ii.  132,  435. 

Messe  a  liesse^  i.  304. 

Methodius,  dialogues  of,  ii.  206. 

Michael  III,  his  riots  at  Constanti- 
nople, i.  327. 

Michaelmas,  i.  114,  247. 

Midsummer  day,  L  114,  126; 
'  watches'  on,  118,  ii.  165. 

Mimae  play  naked  at  Floratia,  i.  5. 


INDEX 


473 


Mime,  a  type  of  farce,  in  Magna 
Graecia,  i.  2 ;  in  Roman  world,  4. 

Mimi,  players  in  mimes,  5.  6 ;  type 
of,  preserved  in  minstrelsy,  24, 
65,  ii.  232 ;  their  modes  of  enter- 
tainment, i.  70 ;  farces  possibly 
played  by,  in  Middle  Ages,  83. 

Mind,   Will,  and  Understanding, 

»•  155,  438. 

Minni,  i.  98,  133,  229,  267. 
Minorites,  taken  for    minstrels,  i. 

57- 

Minot,  Laurence,  i.  76. 

Minstrels,  origin  in  Latin  mimus 
and  Teutonic  5^,1.25, 33,  58;  dis- 
repute with  Saxon  churchmen,  31 ; 
with  Frankish  churchmen,  35 ; 
with  mediaeval  church,  38 ;  their 
sense  of  their  own  infamia,  42 ; 
their  life  in  mediaeval  England, 
44  ;  its  seamy  side,  48  ;  in  house- 
holds, 48 ;  origin  of  name,  48  ; 
their  testimonials,  53;  legal  re- 
strictions on  their  movements, 
54;  partial  toleration  of  them  by 
the  church,  55 ;  classification 
of,  by  Thomas  de  Cabham,  59 ; 
professional  distinctions  amongst, 
02  ;  distinction  between  composer 
and  executant  appears  amongst, 
63 ;  many-sidedness  of,  66  ;  decay 
of,  at  invention  of  printing,  68  ; 
various  modes  of  entertainment 
by,  70;  dramatic  tendencies 
amongst,  77  ;  at  miracle-plays,  ii. 
140 ;  become  interlude-players, 
1 86 ;  various  names  for,  230 ; 
hierarchy  of,  238  ;  guilds  of,  258  ; 
courts  of,  259. 

Miracle-plays,  development  of,  from 
liturgical  plays,  ii.  79  ;  attitude  of 
Church  to,  97;  names  for,  103; 
early  notices  of,  in  England, 
108;  wide  range  of,  109,  121; 
disliked  by  Lollards  and  Reform- 
ers, in;  revived  under  Mary, 
112;  extinction  of,  112;  organiza- 
tion of,  113 ;  processional  type  of, 
133;  where  played,  134;  pageants 
of,  136;  time  of  playing,  138; 
dates  for,  138  ;  style  of  acting  in, 
139;  properties  of,  141  ;  books  of, 
143;  authorship  of,  144;  interre- 
lations of,  146 ;  folk-elements  in, 
147  ;  liturgical  survivals  in,  148; 
later  developments  from,  149 ; 
allegory  in,  151 ;  given  in  halls, 


184 ;  by  travelling  companies, 
184  ;  relation  of  interludes  to,  191, 
205.  See  Corpus  Christi,  Craft- 
guilds,  Cycles,  Guilds,  Municipali- 
ties, Parish  plays,  &c. 

Miracula.    See  Miracle-plays. 

Misrule,  lord  of,  at  fqlk-festivals,  i. 
173,  260  ;  at  English  and  Scottish 
courts,  403;  George  Ferrers,  as. 
405  ;  at  universities,  407 ;  at  inns 
of  court,  413 ;  in  private  house- 
holds, 418.  See  also  Abbot,  Christ- 
mas Prince,  Kings. 

Miss  a  Praesancttficatorum)  ii.  17. 

Missel  des  Fous  at  Sens,  i.  279. 

Mistletoe,  as  fertilization  spirit,  i. 
251. 

Mithraism,  i.  235,  242. 

Mock  bishops.  See  Bishops  of 
Fools,  Boy  Bishops. 

Mock  fights  in  folk-custom,  i.  187. 

Mock  kings,  mayors.  See  Kings, 
Mayors. 

Modranicht,  i.  231,  265. 

Moors,  in  morris-dance,  i.  199. 

Moral  licence  of  folk-festivals,  i. 

145- 

Moralities,  origins  of,  ii.  151 ; 
themes  of,  153;  mode  of  repre- 
senting, 156;  in  interlude  form, 
199  ;  list  of  extant,  436. 

More,  Sir  Thomas,  his  love  of  plays, 
ii.  193. 

Morris-dance,  in  England,  i.  195  ; 
relation  to  May-game,  179,  196; 
in  Europe,  198 ;  origin  of  name, 
199 ;  identity  of,  with  sword-dance, 
200 ;  in  St.  George  play,  219. 

Mother-goddess,  i.  105. 

'  Motions/  ii.  158. 

Mummers,  at  modern  Christmas,  i. 
227,  402. 

Mummers'  play.    See  St.  George 

Mummings,  nature  and  origin  of,  i. 
393 ;  devices  for,  by  Lydgate,  396 ; 
pageants  in,  397,  399;  develop- 
ment into  masques,  401. 

Mundus  et  Infans,  ii.  155,  439. 

Municipal  minstrels,  or  waits,  i.  51. 

Municipal  plays,  origin  of,  in  four- 
teenth century,  ii.  109 ;  under  con- 
trol of  corporation,  114  ;  mainten- 
ance of,  115.  See  Craft-guilds. 

Music  in  minstrelsy,  i.  73. 

Mussato,  his  Ecennis,  ii.  211. 

My  stores  mimJs,  ii.  173. 


474 


INDEX 


Mystery-play,  meaning  of  term,  ii. 

105, 
Myth  in  folk-songs,  i.  169. 

Nakedness,  of  mimae  at  Floralia, 
i.  5  ;  at  Feast  of  Fools,  327  ;  how 
represented  in  miracle-plays,  ii. 
142. 

Narr,  in  sword-dance,  i.  192. 

Narrative  literature  of  minstrels,  i. 

74- 

Nativity.    See  Christmas. 

Nature  of  Medwall,  ii.  200,  443. 

Nebuchadnezzar,  episode  of,  in 
Prophetae,  ii,  55. 

'  Neck/  at  harvest,  i.  117. 

Necromantia,  ii.  455. 

'  Need-fire/  i.  127. 

Nehellenia,  i.  109. 

Neo- Latin  drama,  ii.  216. 

Nero  appears  in  theatre,  i.  9. 

Nerthus,  i.  108,  118,  122. 

Neumae,  ii.  7. 

'  New '  fire,  i.  229. 

'  New '  water,  at  New  Year,  i.  255. 

New  Year,  at  beginning  of  winter, 
i.  228  ;  on  January  Kalends,  237  ; 
at  Christmas,  Annunciation,  Eas- 
ter, 246 ;  customs  of,  at  Christmas, 
246 ;  at  other  winter  feasts,  247  ; 
festival  customs  of,  249  ;  fertili- 
zation spirit  at,  250  ;  water  and 
fire  rites  at,  255  ;  sacrifice  at,  256 ; 
mock  kings  at,  260;  domestic 
feast  at,  262 ;  dead  commemorated 
at,  263 ;  omens  at,  269 ;  play  at, 
272  ;  ecclesiastical  revels  at,  275. 
See  Kalends. 

Newcastle,  plays  at,  ii.  424. 

Nice  Wanton,  ii.  223,  460. 

Nicholas,  St.,  in  sword-dance,  i. 
195  ;  his  day,  232,  247  ;  patron  of 
children  and  schools,  263,  369 ;  as 
gift-giver,  268  ;  relation  of  Boy 
Bishop  to,  363,  369 ;  religious 
plays  on,  ii.  59,  132. 

Nigramansir,  alleged  play  of,  by 
Skelton,  ii.  440. 

Nigremance^  i.  71. 

Njordr,  i.  108. 

Noels,  i.  272. 

'  Noise,'  Sneak's,  in  Eastcheap,  i. 
69. 

Norwich,  plays  at,  ii.  425. 

Nptker  Labeo  translates  Terence, 
Si.  207. 

Nuts  in  May,  i.  189. 


Oats  and  Beans  and  Barley,  i.  189. 
Obstetrices  in  liturgical  drama,  ii. 

41,  46,  126. 
Odin,  i.  1 08,  264. 
4  Oes}  i.  344. 
Offidum,  term  for  religious  play,  ii. 

103. 
Officium  Circumcisionis,  i.  280,  289, 

297,  ii.  279. 
'Old    Father    Christmas/    in    St. 

George  play,  i.  216. 
Omens  for  New  Year,  i.  238,  250, 

266,  269. 
'Open  the  Door,1  in  St.   George 

play,  i.  216. 

Oranges  and  Lemons,  i.  151. 
Ordinale,  book  of  miracle-play,  ii. 

143- 
'  Ordinary/  prompter,  ii.  140. 

Ordo,  term  for  religious  play,   ii. 

103. 
'  Originals,'  books  of  miracle-plays, 

ii.  114,  143. 
Orosius,  his  attack  on  the  theatre, 

i.  1 8. 
Owls,  sacrifice  of,  i.  257. 

1  Pace-eggers,'  and  St.  George  play, 

i.  226. 
Paedonomus,   lord    of   misrule,   i. 

413- 

'  Pageant-masters,'  ii.  116. 

Pageants,  for  miracle-plays,  ii.  95, 
115,  133;  structure  of,  136;  in 
processions,  161  ;  in  royal  entries, 
166;  in  masques,  i.  398,  ii.  176. 

'  Pagent  pencys/  ii.  1 16. 

'  Pajaunt  silver,'  ii.  116. 

Palm  Sunday,  i.  114;  dramatic 
ceremonies  on,  ii.  4. 

Palmesel,  i.  333,  ii.  5. 

Palsgrave,  John,  his  Acolastus,  ii. 

459- 
Pammachius   of    Kirchmayer,    ii. 

195,  217,  220,  224. 
Pantomimi,  i.  6,  23. 
Parade  of  minstrels,  i.  72,  85. 
Parcae,  table  laid  for,  at  New  Year, 

i.  266.  } 

Pardoner  and  the  Friar >  The%  of 

Heywood,  ii.  444. 

Parish  clerks,  their  plays  in  Lon- 
don, ii.  1 19. 
Parish  plays,  frequency  of,  ii.  109, 

121 ;  organization  of,  121 ;  decay 

of,  191. 
Passion,  dramatic  recitation  of,  ii.  5. 


INDEX 


475 


Passion  play,  begins  in  Good  Friday 

planctus,  ii.  40;  development  of, 

75  ;  in  England,  129. 
Pastores,    a    Christmas    liturgical 

play,   abuses    of,  i.  343;   origin 

and  absorption  of,  ii.  41. 
Pastourelles,  i.  78,  171. 
Paternoster  plays,  ii.  120,  154. 
Patriarch  of  Fools,  i.  303,  326,  329. 

See  Feast  of  Fools* 
Pauli  Conversio^  liturgical  play  of, 

ii.  6l. 


Perchta,  i.  109,  264,  266. 

Percy,  bishop,  his  view  of  min- 

strelsy, i.  66. 
Peregrini,    an    Easter    liturgical 

drama,  ii.  36,  107. 
Personnages,  joueurs  de>  ii.  198. 
Pestilence,  charms  for,  i.  127,  140. 
Petrarch,  his  Philologia,  ii.  212. 
Pfinpstl,  in  folk-drama,  i,  185. 
Phihstion,  his  mimes,  i.  4. 
Pickle  Herring,  i.  208. 
Pilate,  in  religious  drama,  ii.  38, 

139- 
PlanctuS)  in  religious  drama,  ii.  33, 

40,  44,  75,  129. 
Platea,  in  religious  plays,  11.  80, 

135- 

*  Play/  in  sense  of  'jest,'  i.  84. 
Play,  instinct  of,  i.  147  ;  at  village 

festivals,  147  ;  at  Newt  Year,  272. 
Play-  books,  ii.  143. 
4  Player/  meaning  of  term,  ii.  185, 

233- 

Player-chambers,  ii.  1  8  8. 
Players.    See  Actors. 
Plays.  See  Comedy,  Drama,  Inter- 

ludes, Liturgical  Drama,  Miracle- 

plays,  Moralities,  Passion  plays, 

St.  George*  play,  Tragedy,  &c. 
Plough  Monday,  L  114,  121,  150, 

209  ;  folk-plays  on,  207.  See  Ship 

processions. 
Ploughing  charm  of  Anglo-Saxons, 

i.  108,  167. 

Ploughing  festival,  i.  in,  114. 
Politics,  in  minstrelsy,  i.  45,  76  ;  in 

interludes,  ii.  219. 
Polytheism,  origin  of,  i.  107. 
Pope  of  Fools,  i.  302,  326.    See 

Feast  of  Fools. 
Praesepe.    See  Crib, 
PraestijriatoreS)  i.  7,  71. 
Prayer  in  folk-song,  i.  167  ;  at  end 

of  interludesf  it  189. 


Pre-Aryan  elements  in  folk-lore,  i. 

101. 

Pride  of  Life,  ii.  155,  436. 
Priests,  feast  of,  on  St.  John's  day, 

i.,33.6. 
Printing,  the  ruin  of  minstrelsy,  i. 

68. 
PrisiO)  a  sacrificial  forfeit,  i.  156, 

298. 
Privy  council,  plays  regulated  by, 

ii.  223,  225. 

Procession  noire,  at  Evreux,  i.  378. 
Processional  dances,  i.  164. 
Processional  miracle-plays,  ii.  95, 

I33>  160- 

Processions,  at  folk-festivals,  i.  118, 
ii.  165  ;  at  Kalends,  237  ;  at  Feast 
of  Fools,  327  ;  at  religious  feasts, 
i.  222,  ii.  160 ;  in  cities,  165  ; 
called  *  pageants/  176.  See  Cor- 
pus Christi  procession,  Ridings. 

'Prodigal  Son*  motive  in  drama, 
ii.  217. 

Prompters,  ii.  140,  144. 

'Properties'  of  miracle-plays,  ii. 
141. 

Prophet,  on  Palm  Sunday,  ii.  5. 

Prophetae,  liturgical  drama  of,  and 
Feast  of  Fools,  i.  109,  ii.  56; 
origin  and  development  of,  ii.  52, 
70 ;  in  England,  67,  107. 

Prosae,  i.  277,  ii.  8. 

'  Prose  of  the  Ass/  i.  282,  284,  287, 
309,  312,  329,  331 J  text  of,  ii. 
279. 

Publilius  Syrus,  a  mimograph,  i.  4. 

Pulcinella,  ii.  159. 

Pulpita,  ii.  135. 

Punch  and  Judy,  ii.  159. 

Punishments,  survivals  of  folk- 
custom  in,  i.  152. 

Puppet-shows,  i.  71,  ii.  157. 

Puritans,  dislike  minstrelsy,  i.  41 ; 
dislike  May-day,  168, 180 ;  dislike 
sepulchrum,  ii.  24 ;  dislike  miracle- 
plays,  103,  in  ;  dislike  interludes, 
99,  111,216. 

Purpoole,  Prince  of,  at  Gray's  Inn, 
i.  416. 

Puy,  a  bourgeois  institution,  i.  65 ; 
minstrels  in,  i.  376,  ii.  258 ;  re- 
lation of,  to  Feast  of  Fools,  i.  376 ; 
in  London,  t.  376,  ii.  198  ;  secular 
plays  acted  by,  i.  172,  376,  ii.  197; 
miracle-plays  acted  by,  ii.  87. 

Pyrrhicha,  i.  7,  203. 


476 


INDEX 


Quack.    See  Doctor. 

'Queen'  at  folk-festivals,  i.  170, 
173,  261. 

Quern  quaeritis,  an  Easter  trope, 
ii.  9;  at  Winchester,  12;  becomes 
a  drama,  15,  306;  relation  of,  to 
Easter  sepulchre,  16,25 ;  a  Visitatio 
sepulchri)  25  ;  precedes  Te  Deum 
at  Matins,  26;  varieties  of  custom, 
26 ;  texts  of,  26 ;  doubtful  origin 
of,  27  ;  diffusion  of,  27  ;  develop- 
ment of,  28 ;  Victimae  paschali  in, 
29 ;  the  Maries  scenes,  30 ;  the 
Apostles  scene,  30;  the  risen 
Christ  or  Hortulanus  scene,  31  ; 
flanctus  in,  32;  unguentarius 
in,  33;  staging  of,  34;  remains 
part  of  liturgy,  35  ;  folk  and  re- 
ligious Easter  motives  in,  36  ;  in 
England,  107  ;  text  of  Dublin  ver- 
sion, 315. 

Querolus,  ii.  207. 

Quotes,  at  folk-festivals,  i.  119,  156, 
176,  209,  217,  253,  257,  263,  &c. ; 
songs  for,  168;  by  Boy  Bishop,  356, 
ii.  287  ;  for  miracle-plays,  ii.  117. 

Rabardiaux,  procession  of,  at  Laon, 

i-  3°3- 

Races,  at  folk-festivals,  i.  148. 
Rachel,  liturgical  drama  of,  ii.  44. 
Radclif,  Ralph,  plays  by,  ii.  196, 

205,  218. 

Raherus,  a  minstrel,  founds  St.  Bar- 
tholomew's, i.  48. 

Rain-charms,  i.  103,  121,  255,  327. 
*  Ram-raisings,'    at    folk-festivals, 

i.  91,  148. 
Rastell,  John,  his  stage  at  Finsbury, 

ii.  183;   his  Nature  of  the  Four 

Elements^  200,  453. 
Ravisius  Textor,  his  dialogues,  ii. 

214. 
Reading,  the  habit  of,  a  rival  to 

minstrelsy,  i.  65,  68 ;    plays  used 

for,  ii.  1 86. 
Reconciliation    of    the    Heavenly 

Virtues^  a  theme  of  moralities,  ii. 

152. 
Redford,  John,  his  Wit  and  Science, 

ii.  200,  454. 

Refectory,  religious  plays  in,  ii.  86. 
Reformation,  controversial  use  of 

drama  at,  ii.  216.    See  Puritans. 
Refrain  in  folk-songs,  i.  171. 
Registrum,  ii.  143. 
Religion,    of    Kelto  -  Teutons,    its 


origin,  i.  99 ;    and  magic,   102 ; 

higher  elements  of,  146. 
Religious  controversy  in  interludes, 

ii.  216. 
Remember   us  poor   Mayers    all, 

i.  169. 
Repraesentatio,  term  for  religious 

play,  ii.  104,  210. 
Representations    of  miracle-plays, 

list  of,  ii.  329. 

Responsorium,  nature  of,  ii.  6. 
Respublica,  ii.  460. 
Resurrection,  treatment  of,  in  Easter 

drama,  ii.  38,   73;    plays   on,   in 

England,  1 29.  See  Quern  quaeritis, 

Peregrmi. 
Resurrection  motive,  in  folk-drama, 

i.  185  ;   in  sword-dance,  207;    in 

St.  George  play,  213,  218. 
Revels,  at  court,  i.  393  ;   master  of, 

399,  404- 

Revesby,  Plow  Boys'  play  at,  i.  207. 
ReXy  of  minstrels,  i.  50,  ii.  232,  238, 

259;      aestivaltS)     173;      Satur- 

nalitius,  236.    See  Kings. 
'  Riding  the  stang,*  i.  152. 
'Ridings/  on  festivals,  i.  221,  ii. 

160. 

'  Risin'  and  bury  in*  Peter,'  i.  187. 
Ritson,  Joseph,  his  view  of  min- 
strelsy, i.  66. 

Ritwise,  John,  ii.  196,  215,  219. 
4  R&bene  hude}  a  dance,  i.  178. 
Robert  of  Sicily,  plays  on,  ii.  151, 

205. 
Robin  and  Marion,  in  pastourelles, 

i.  171,  175. 

Robin  Conscience,  ii.  461. 
Robin  Hood,  in  May-game,  i.  174  ; 

legend   of,   175 ;    plays  on,   177, 

ii.  205. 

Robin  Hood's  ale,  i.  179. 
Rogations,  i.  114,  119. 
Roi.    See  Rex. 
Rot   d*Angleterre,  et  le  Jougleur 

<PEly,  Le,  i.  85. 
Roister  Doister  of  Udall,  ii.  215, 

452. 

Romance,  in  interludes,  ii.  205. 
Romans  &  adventure,  i.  74. 
Rondes,  i.  165. 

Roo,  Thomas,  play  by,  ii.  194,  219. 
'  Room,'  in  St.  George  play,  L  216. 
Round  the  Mulberry  Bush,  i.  189. 
Rounds,  4  for  miracle-plays,  ii.  85, 

123,  135- 
Royal  household.    See  Household. 


INDEX 


477 


Royal  Oak  da^i.  115. 
Rushbearing,  i.  114,  168. 
Rutebeuf,  a  typical  minstrel,  i.  48, 

65  ;  his  Chariot  et  le  Barbier,  79 ; 

his  Dit  de  ?Erberie>  83,  85. 

Sabra,  in  St  George  play,  i.  217. 

Sacci,  in  Twelve  nights,  i.  215,  268. 

Sacrament,  Croxton  play  of,  ii.  133, 
427. 

Sacre  rappresentazioni,  ii.  92. 

Sacrifice,  attitude  of  Christianity 
to,  i.  98 ;  types  of,  130;  ceremonies 
at,  1 32,  ii.  266 ;  survivals  of,  in 
folk-custom,  i.  139,  256 ;  at  be- 
ginning of  winter,  229 ;  in  athletics, 
148;  in  singing  games,  151  ;  in 
forfeits,  157;  in  sword-dance,  203 ; 
in  St.  George  play,  218  ;  heads 
and  skins  of  victims,  worn  by 
worshippers  at,  166,  258,  385,  391. 
See  Masks. 

Saint  Gall,  song-school  of,  i.  338. 

Saint  Magnus1  church,  Kolbigk, 
legend  of  dancers  at,  i.  162. 

Saint  Paul's,  two  schools  at,  and 
their  plays,  ii.  196,  203,  219. 

Saints,  legends  of,  sung  by  minstrels, 
i.  62  ;  religious  plays  on,  ii.  97, 
123,  132. 

Salii,  dance  of,  i.  203. 

Salt  at  ores,  i.  71. 

Samhain,  i.  in,  230,  234, 

Satura,  early  type  of  Italian  farce, 
i.  2. 

Saturnalia,  i.  235,  330. 

Satyre  of  the  Thrie  Estaitis  of  Sir 
David  Lyndsay,  ii.  157,  441. 

'  Sawing  the  Old  Woman,'  i.  183. 

Scaffolds  for  miracle-plays,  ii.  136. 

Scapegoat,  i.  184. 

Scenic  arrangements  of  religious 
plays,  ii,  79,  83. 

School-drama  of  humanists,  ii.  214. 

Schoolmaster,  his  influence  on  folk- 
drama.  See  Holophernes. 

Schools,  Boy  Bishop  in,  i.  362,  413; 
interludes  in,  ii.  195  ;  recitations 
in,  during  Middle  Ages,  212. 

Schul-Bischof)  i.  369. 

Scilling,  a  scop,  i.  29. 

Scogan,  John,  his  comoediae,  ii.  211. 

Scolae  ministrallorum,  i.  53. 

Scolares  vagantes.    See  Goliardi. 

Sc6p,  of  Teutons,  i.  25,  34  ;  relation 
of,  to  comitatuSy  27  ;  in  England, 
28. 


Scotales,  i.  91. 

Scurra,  ii.  233. 

Secular  plays,  on  lines  of  miracle- 
plays,  ii.  150. 

Secularization  of  religious  drama, 
ii.  69. 

Sedes  of  religious  plays,  ii.  79, 83, 136. 

Seneca,  his  tragedies,  i.  3;  at 
Renascence,  ii.  211,  216. 

Sepulchre  at  Easter,  in  Concordia 
Regularis,  ii.  16  ;  doubtful  origin 
of,  1 8 ;  vogue  of,  in  England,  19  ; 
varying  ceremonies  of,  19;  host 
laid  in,  21 ;  structure  of,  21  ;  light 
and  watch  before,  23 ;  at  Reforma- 
tion, 24;  at  Durham,  310;  at 
Salisbury,  312. 

Sequentiae,  ii.  8. 

Sermons  joy  euses,  i.  381,  ii.  157,  203. 

Seven  Champions  of  Christendom, 
in  sword-dance,  i.  194 ;  in  St. 
George  play,  220. 

Sex-costume,  change  of,  at  festivals, 
i.  144,  214,  216,  218,  238,  262, 
327,  &c. 

Sexagesimal  calendar.  See  Three- 
score-day-tide  calendar. 

Sex-cults,  i.  105,  144,  159. 

Shakespeare,  folk-lore  of,  in  Ham* 
let)  i.  267  ;  his  fools,  388. 

Shaven  heads  of  minstrels,  i.  45. 

'  Ship,'  for  play  of  Noah,  ii.  136. 

Ship  processions,  i.  121  ;  play  on 
Noah  attached  to,  ii.  119,  131. 

Shoes,  capture  of,  i.  157. 

*  Shows '  of  craft-guilds,  ii.  162. 

Shrewsbury,  fragments  of  religious 
plays  found  at,  ii.  90 ;  extracts 
from  corporation  accounts  of,  250. 

Shrovetide,  i.  114,  150,  157,  163, 
382,  &c.  See  Carnival. 

Sibyl,  in  Prophetae,  ii.  53. 

Sidney,  Philip,  moved  by  minstrelsy, 
i.  69. 

Sigillaria,  i.  236. 

Signs  of  Judgement,  ii.  53. 

Singing  games,  survival  of  sacrifice 
in,  i.  151 ;  dance  in,  165  ;  drama 
in,  189. 

Sir  Roger  de  Coverley,  a  dance, 
i.  165. 

Skalds,  of  Scandinavia,  i.  43. 

Skelton,  John,  his  plays,  ii.  157, 
440. 

'  Skimmington  riding,'  i.  153. 

Skins,  ceremonial  wearing  of.  See 
Sacrifice. 


478 


INDEX 


'  Slasher,'  in  St.  George  play,  i.  212. 

Sleeping  Beauty,  i.  187. 

Smith,   John,  his  Destruction  of 

Jerusalem,  ii.  132,  145. 

Smith,  W.  Robertson,  on  sacrifice, 

i-  13°,  135- 
SodMs  joyeuses,  i.  373 ;  at  summer 

feasts,  377 ;   and  charivari,  153, 

3/9  ;   play  farces,  sotties,  sermons 
joyeuses,  379 ;  traces  of,  in  Eng- 

lapd,  383. 
Sol  Invictus,  i.  234 ;  feast  of,  chosen 

for  Christmas,  238,  241. 
Solstices,   unknown   to  Germano- 

Kelts,  i.  113,  228;   feast  on,  at 

Rome,  234 ;   relation  to  Christian 

feasts,  241. 
Somebody,  Avarice,  and  Minister, 

ii.  223,  461. 
Song,  relation  of,  to  dance,  i.  161 ; 

at  folk-festivals,  163  ;   motifs  of, 

166 ;    at    Christmas,    273.      See 

Caroles,  Chansons. 
Songs  in  miracle-plays,  ii.  140, 144. 
Sophron,  his  mimes,  i  2. 
Sotelties,  i.  224,  ii.  397. 
Sots.    See  Fools. 
Sotties,  i.  381,  ii.  203. 
'  Souling,'  i.  253. 
Sources  of  miracle-plays,  ii.  126. 
Spectdcula,  a  preoccupation  of  Ro- 
man Empire,  i.  3,  13,  16,  19,  21. 

See  Actors,  Drama,  Theatre. 
Speculum  Stultorum  of  Wireker, 

1.382. 
Spirits,  cult  of,  in  primitive  religion, 

i.  103 :    evil,  expulsion  of,   184 ; 

wandeimgs  of,  in  Twelve  nights, 

267. 

Sponsus,  liturgical  play  of,  ii.  61. 
Spring,  distinguished  from  summer, 

i.  1 1 1 ;  savour  of,  in  folk-song,  167 ; 

symbolized  in  folk-drama,  183, 219. 
Sprinkling  at  folk-festivals,  i.  122. 
1  Squire,'  name  for  *  fool,'  i.  142, 198. 
Squire  minstrel,  ii.  239,  263. 
'Squire's  son,'  i.  194. 
Squirrels,  sacrifice  of,  i.  257. 

Stage  of  miracle-plays,  ii.  85,  136. 
'Standing*  play,  ii.  134. 
'Stang/  i.  152. 
*  Star/  at  Epiphany,  ii.  44. 

Stationary  miracle-plays,  ii.  122, 134. 

'  Stations  'for  miracle- plays,  ii.  115, 
138. 

Statutes  of  Labourers,  effect  of,  on 

minstrelsy,  i.  54. 


Stella,  liturgical  4irama  of,  at 
Epiphany,  ii.  44 ;  absorbs  Rachel 
and  Pastores,  48 ;  textual  develop- 
ment of,  51 ;  a  dramatized  offer- 
torium,  52 ;  later  forms  of,  69, 1 29 ; 
merged  with  Prophetae,  72. 

Stephen,  St.,  his  day,  i.  247  ;  feast 
of  deacons  on,  336. 

Stercatherus,    in    sword-dance,   i. 

195- 

Stevenson,  William,  probable  au- 
thor of  Gammer  Gurton's  Needle, 
ii.  195,  216,  457- 

Strenae,  i.  238,  250,  253,  263,  268, 
271. 

StuUi.    See  Fools, 

Stultorum  feriae,  i.  335. 

Sub-deacons,  feast  of,  i.  323,  335. 
See  Fools,  Feast  of. 

Sumer  is  icumen  in,  i.  168. 

Summer,  beginning  of,  i.  1 10 ;  fes- 
tivals of,  114,  126,  173;  in  folk- 
drama;  183  ;  soa'Ms  joyeuses  in, 

377- 

Summer-kings,  i,  143,  173.  See 
Kings. 

Summoning  of  Everyman.  See 
Everyman. 

Sun,  dance  of,  at  Easter,  i.  129; 
cults  of,  at  Rome,  234. 

Sun-charms,  i.  121,  124,  255. 

Suscitatio  Lazari,  liturgical  plays 
of,  ii.  58,  60. 

Sword-dance,  historic  notices  of,  i. 
190,  ii.  270;  range  of,  in  British 
isles,  i.  192 ;  rhymes  and  person- 
ages of,  192,  ii.  272 ;  identity  of, 
with  morris-dance,  i.  195  ;  sacri- 
ficial rather  than  military,  201  ; 
figures  of,  203 ;  mock  death  in, 
206 ;  continuity  of,  with  folk-dra- 
mas, 207 ;  relation  of,  to  Fast- 
nachtspiele,  382. 

Tabour,  i.  73. 

Taboureurs,  Dit  des,  i.  63. 

Tabula,  i.  282. 

Taillefer,  his  minstrelsy  at  Senlac, 

i-43- 

Tanfana,  i.  108. 
Tchamican,  i.  133. 
Temporary  kings,  i.  137,  143.    See 

Kings. 

Temptation  of  Bale,  ii.  448. 
Tenebtae,  a  dramatic  ceremony,  ii.6. 
Tensons  (tendons),  5.  78. 
Tenti  of  religious  plays,  ii.  135. 


INDEX 


479 


Terence,  vogue^i,  in  Middle  Ages, 
ii.  207. 

Terms  in  Englysk.    See  Andria. 

Terentius  et  Delusor,  i.  85,  ii.  208  ; 
text  of,  326. 

Tertullian,  against  stage,  i.  I,  ii ; 
against  Kalends,  238. 

Testimonials  to  travelling  minstrels, 
i-53- 

Teutons  and  Kelts,  their  common 
folk-lore,  i.  100. 

Texts  of  miracle-plays,  ii.  124; 
authorship  of,  144 ;  inter-relations 
of,  146. 

Thaleia  of  Arms,  i.  13. 

Theatrales  ludi,  condemned  by 
Innocent  III,  i.  279,  ii.  100;  by 
Paris  theologians,  i.  295. 

Theatre,  in  Greek  and  Roman 
world,  i.  i ;  censured  by  pagan 
moralists,  9 ;  and  by  Christian 
Fathers,  10 ;  sympathy  of  Arius 
for,  13 ;  at  Constantinople  (fourth 
to  seventh  centuries),  15 ;  fall  of, 
in  East,  17  ;  at  Troves,  Carthage, 
Ravenna,  Rome,  Narbonne  (fifth 
century),  18;  under  Theodoric  the 
Ostrogoth  at  Rome  (sixth  century), 
19;  fall  of,  in  West,  21;  literary 
mention  of,  in  twelfth  century, 
8 1  ;  mediaeval,  at  Paris  and 
Exeter,  383,  ii.  190. 

Theodora,  mime  and  Empress,  i.  16. 

Theodosius,  Code  of,  theatrical 
legislation  in,  i.  12. 

Thersites,  ii.  214,  456. 

Thetford  Priory,  extracts  from 
accounts  of,  ii.  245. 

TWvenin  de  St.  Leger,  his  tomb, 
i.  386. 

Thomas  the  Apostle,  St.,  his  day, 
i.  247. 

Thomas  the  Martyr,  St.,  pageant 
of,  ii.  164. 

'  Thomasing,'  i.  253. 

Thor,  i.  107. 

Thorns,  flowering  at  Christmas,  i. 
252. 

Thread  the  Needle,  i.  165. 

Three-score-day-tide  calendar,  i. 
1 52,  229. 

Threshing-floor,  sacrificial  customs 
of,  i.  158. 

Thrie  Estaitis.  See  Satyre  of  the 
Thrie  Estaitis. 

Three  Laws  of  Bale,  ii.  449. 

Through  the  Needle  Eye,  i.  152. 


Tillage,  effect  of,  on  calendar,  i.  232. 

Tiwaz,  i.  165. 

Tobit,  play  of,  ii.  131. 

Tollite  portas,  ii.  4,  5,  20,  36,  74. 

Tombeor  de  Notre  Dame,  i.  42. 

Tombeors,  i.  70. 

'Tommy1  in  sword-dance,  i.  192. 

Topographical  list  of  miracle-plays, 

ii  3*9- 

Tops,  whipped  on  festivals,  i.  128. 

Tower  of  London,  i.  152. 

Towneley  Plays,  ii.  124,  412. 

Tragedy,  extinction  of  classical,  i.  2, 
ii.  206;  mediaeval  conception  of, 
209  ;  humanist  revival  of,  211  ;  in 
Tudor  interlude,  216. 

Transformation  of  intention  in  folk- 
customs,  i.  122,  124,  130,  138, 147. 

Transformations,  i.  170. 

Travelling  of  miracle-plays,  ii.  122. 

Tregetours,  i.  71. 

Tres  Reges,  drama  of.    See  Stella. 

Trettse  of  miraclis  pleyinge,  i.  84, 
ii.  102. 

Triads  of  divinities,  i.  107,  231. 

Tribunusvoluptatum,  i.is,2i,ii.229. 

Triduum,  relation  of,  to  Feast  of 
Fools,  i.  323  ;  feasts  of,  336  ;  early 
notices  of,  338  ;  at  St.  Gall,  338  ; 
at  Winchester,  339 ;  duringMiddle 
Ages,  339;  abuses  of,  340;  at 
Wells,  342  ;  at  Exeter,  342. 

Trimalchio,  his  Atellane,  i.  5. 

Trimousette,  i.  170. 

Trinity  Sunday,  i.  114. 

Tripudia,  in  churches,  i.  275,  326, 
336. 

Triumphs,  i.  393,  ii.  176. 

Trobaires,  i.  63. 

Troparia,  ii.  8. 

Tropes,  origin  and  nature  of,  ii.  7  ; 
dialogue  in,  8. 

Trouveres,  their  relation  to  min- 
strels, i.  64. 

'  Tug-of-war,'  at   folk-festivals,    i. 

149- 

Tumblers,  i.  70. 
Turkish  Knight,  in  St.  George  play, 

i.  212. 

'Tutti  men,'  at  Hungerfprd,  i.  156. 
Twelfth  Night.    See  Epiphany. 
Twelve  nights,  origin  of,  i.  244  ; 

spirits  abroad  in,  267 ;   influence 

of,  on  months  of  year,  269. 

Udall,  Nicholas,  his  plays,  ii.  144, 
192,  196,  215,  218,  451- 


480 


INDEX 


Ululatus,  ii.  7. 

Unguentarius  in  Quern  quaeritis* 

ii.  33»  3.8. 

Unidentified  miracle-plays,  ii.  432. 
Universities,  lord  of  misrule  at,  i. 

407 ;  interludes  at,  ii.  194. 
Unreason,  'abbot'  of,  i.  403. 

Vagantes,  scolares.    See  Goliardi. 
Vernacular  in  religious  plays,  ii.  58, 

61,  89. 
Vestments  used  in  miracle-plays, 

ii.  117. 

Vexillatores,  ii.  141,  156. 
Vicars  choral,  and  Feast  of  Fools, 

i.  324- 

Vice/  name  for  'fool/  i.  387,  ii. 

203  ;    at  miracle-plays,   141,  205; 

in  interludes,  203  ;  costume  of,  205. 
Vice  and  Virtue ',  Conflict  of,  a  theme 

of  moralities,  ii.  153. 
Victimae  paschali)  ii.  29  ;  in  Quern 

quaeritis,  30. 
Vielle,  i.  73. 
Village  festivals,  presence  of  the 

fertilization  spirit  at,  i.  116,  250; 

processions  at,  118,  253;  images 

at,  120 ;  rain-charms  at,  121, 255  ; 

sun-charms  at,  124,255  ;  sacrifice 

at,  132,  276,  ii.  266  ;  play  at,  $.146  ; 

dance  at,  160,  272  ;  mock  king  at, 

172,  260  ;  folk-drama  at,  183. 
Virgil,  in  Prophetae,  ii.  53. 
Visitatio    sepulchri.      See    Quern 

quaeritis. 

Visors.    See  Masks. 
Vota,  i.  237. 

Waits,  i,  51. 

Wakes,  i.  114,  247. 

Wantonness  at  folk-festivals,  5.  93, 

145,  169- 

War,  in  early  cult,  i.  26. 
Wassail,  i.  254,  260. 
Watches  at  midsummer,  i.  1 1 8,  ii. 

165. 

Water-charms.   See  Rain-charms. 
Watson,  Edward,  comedy  by,  ii.  194. 
Watson,  Thomas,  his  Absalon,  ii. 

195,  458. 

Wealth  and  Health,  ii.  461. 
Weather  of  Heywood,  ii.  445. 
Well-dressing,  i.  120,  124. 
Wells,  cult  of  fertilization  spirit  at, 

i.  122. 
Werwolf,  i.  267. 

Wesley-bob/  i.  253. 

THE 


Wever,  R.,  his  Lu&fy  Juventus,  ii. 

223,  460. 

Wheel,  as  sun-charm,  i.  128. 
Whipping,  at   Easter,   i.   157;    at 

Christmas,  260 ;  at  Feast  of  Fools, 

327- 

*  Whipping  Toms,  at  Leicester,  1. 1 57. 
White  smocks  worn  in  folk-dances, 

i.  200. 

'  Whitepot '  queen,  i.  174. 
Whitsuntide,  i.  114,  141,  173,  179  J 

dramatic    ceremonies  at,  ii.  66 ; 

miracle-plays  at,  94,  138. 
Widsith,  i.  28. 
1  Wild  hunt/  i.  264,  267. 
1  Wild  man/  i.  185. 
Winchester  College,  extracts  from 

accounts  of,  ii.  246. 
Winileodi,  i.  170. 
Winter,   beginning  of,  i.  no,  228, 

249  ;  represented  in  folk-drama, 

183,  220;   Roman  feasts  during, 

234- 
Wit  and  Science  of  John  Redford, 

ii.  200,  454. 

Witch-trials,  heathenism  in,  i.  98. 
Withershins,  i.  129,  165. 
Witty  and  Witless  of  Heywood,  ii. 

446. 

Wodan,  i.  108. 
'Wod-woz/  i.  185,  392. 
Woman,  sawing  the  old,  i.  183. 
Women,  primitive  agricultural  cult 

by,  i.  106  ;  position  of,  in  village 

festivals,  144.    See  Sex-costume. 
Work,  begun  on  feast  day,  i.  269. 
World,  and  the  Child,  The.    See 

Mundus  et  Infans. 
Worship,  dramatic  element  in,  ii.  3. 
Worthies,  the  six,  in  sword-dance, 

i.  195. 

Would  you   know  how  doth  the 
farmer?,  i.  189. 
Wren,  sacrifice  of,  i.  132,  257. 
Wrestling  at  folk-festivals,  i.  148. 
Wyclifites,    against    minstrelsy,    i. 

40 ;  against  miracle-plays,  ii.  102. 
Wylley,  Thomas,  his  plays,  ii.  220. 

Year.     See  Calendar,  New  Year's 
day,  Spring,  Summer,  Winter. 
York  Plays,  ii.  409. 

*  Youling/  i.  120,  142,  260. 
Youfa  ii.  200,  453. 

Yule,  derivation  of  name,  i.  230. 
Yule-log,  i.  262,  267. 
Yule-straw,  i.  250. 

END