Philip Henslowe (c. 1550 - January 6, 1616) was an Elizabethan theatrical entrepreneur and impresario. Events 1066 - Harold Godwinson is crowned King of England. 1205 - Philip of Swabia becomes King Romance and reality The Victorian era and the early twentieth century idealised the Elizabethan era Impresario, from the Italian impresa an enterprise or undertaking is a traditional term still very much in use in the Entertainment industry for Henslowe's modern reputation rests on the survival of his "Diary", a primary source for information about the theatrical world of Renaissance London.
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Life
Henslowe was born in Lindfield, Sussex, England. Lindfield is a village and Civil parish in the Mid Sussex District of West Sussex, England. Sussex is a historic county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland His father Edmund Henslowe was appointed Master of the Game for Ashdown Forest, Sussex, from 1539 until his death in 1562. Master of the Game is a novel by Sidney Sheldon. It was first published in Hardback format in 1982 Ashdown Forest is in the county of East Sussex, in South East England is an open area of of heathland together with pine birch and oak woodland in the High Before Edmund Henslowe’s death his daughter Margaret had married Ralf Hogge, an iron founder. Ralf Hogge (his name has also been rendered "Ralph" and "Huggett" was an English iron-master and gun founder to the king Henslowe maintained links with Sussex throughout his life, through his business interests and his family, most of whom lived there. Sussex is a historic county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex.
By the 1570s, Henslowe had moved to London, becoming a member of the Dyers' Company. The Worshipful Company of Dyers is one of the Livery Companies of the City of London. Henslowe is recorded working as assistant to Henry Woodward, reputed to be the bailiff of Viscount Montague, owner of Cowdray Park and Battle Abbey in Sussex. Bailiff (from Late Latin baiulivus, Adjectival form of baiulus) is a Governor or Custodian (cf The title of Viscount Montagu was created for Anthony Browne in the Peerage of England on September 2, 1554. Battle Abbey (actually named St Martin's Abbey is a partially ruined Abbey complex in the small town of Battle in East Sussex, England. Henslowe married Woodward’s widow, Agnes, and from 1577 lived in Southwark, opposite the Clink prison. Southwark or The Borough is an area of south-east London in the London Borough of Southwark, situated 1 A prison, penitentiary, or correctional facility is a place in which individuals are physically confined or interned and usually deprived of a range of His elder brother Edmund, a merchant, also owned property in Southwark. It was at one time assumed that his wife's inheritance gave Henslowe his start in business, but there is no evidence for this assumption.
His success at business appears to have brought him some social prominence; by the early 1600s he was a vestryman, churchwarden and overseer of the poor in St Saviour’s ward in Southwark; under James I he served as a Gentleman Sewer of the Chamber (under Elizabeth I he had been a Groom of the Chamber). A vestryman is a member of his local church's Vestry, or leading body A churchwarden is a lay official in a Parish church of the Anglican Communion, usually working as a part-time volunteer Rob Overseer (who publishes his music under just his last name is an English DJ / producer, born in Leeds whose works have been included in soundtracks Southwark or The Borough is an area of south-east London in the London Borough of Southwark, situated 1 James VI and I (19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625 was King of Scotland as James VI, and King of England and King of Ireland as James Groom of the Chamber and Groom of the Privy Chamber were positions in the Royal Household of the British monarchy, the latter considerably more elevated Henslowe also served as a collector of the Lay Subsidy.
Henslowe died in 1616, still actively involved in the theatre.
He was played by Geoffrey Rush in the film Shakespeare in Love. Geoffrey Roy Rush (born 6 July 1951 is a Golden Globe - BAFTA - Emmy - AFI - and Academy Award -winning Australian actor Shakespeare in Love is a 1998 Romantic comedy / Drama Film. The film was directed by John Madden and co-written by playwright
Business Interests
Henslowe developed extensive business interests, including dying, starch-making, pawn-broking, money lending and trading in goat-skins. A pawnbroker is an individual or business entity that offers monetary loans in exchange for an item of value to the given pawn broker He owned property in East Grinstead and Buxted, Sussex, where his brother in law Ralph Hogge lived. East Grinstead (archaically spelt Grimstead) is a town and Civil parish in the northeastern corner of Mid Sussex, West Sussex in England Buxted is a village and Civil parish in the Wealden District of East Sussex in England. Between 1576 and 1586 Henslowe was involved in the trade in timber from Ashdown Forest. However, his main activity was as a landlord in Southwark. Landlord is the owner of a House, Apartment, Condominium, or Real estate which is rented or Leased to an individual or business One of his authors, Henry Chettle, described him as being unscrupulously harsh with his poor tenants, even though Henslowe made many loans to Chettle and they seem to have been on friendly terms. Henry Chettle (c 1564 &ndash c 1607 was an English Dramatist and miscellaneous writer of the Elizabethan era.
Theatrical Interests
In 1584 Henslowe purchased a property known as The Little Rose, in Southwark, which contained rose gardens and, almost certainly, a brothel. For the 2008 film of this name see The Brothel. For the television series of this name see Cathouse The Series. In 1587, Henslowe and John Cholmley built The Rose, the third of the large, permanent playhouses in London, and the first in Bankside. The Rose was an Elizabethan theatre. It was the fourth of the public theatres to be built after The Theatre ( 1576) the Curtain Bankside is an area in Southwark, London, on the southern bank of the River Thames, situated between Blackfriars Bridge to the west and From 1591, Henslowe partnered with the Admiral's Men after that company split with The Theatre's James Burbage over the division of receipts. The Admiral's Men (also called the Admiral's company, more strictly the Earl of Nottingham's Men; after 1603, Prince Henry's Men; after The Theatre was an Elizabethan playhouse located in Shoreditch (in Curtain Road part of the modern London Borough of Hackney) just outside the James Burbage or Burbadge (1531 &ndash 1597 was an English actor theatre Impresario, and theatre builder in the English Renaissance theatre Edward Alleyn, the Admiral's' lead actor, married Henslowe's stepdaughter Joan in 1592, and they worked in partnership. Edward Alleyn (ˈælɪn ( 1 September 1566 &ndash 25 November 1626) was an English Actor who was a major figure of the An actor, actress, player or thespian (see terminology) is a person who Acts in a Dramatic production and who works
In 1598, Burbage's company (by then, the Lord Chamberlain's Men) erected the new Globe Theatre in Bankside; Henslowe moved the Admiral's Men to the north-western corner of the city, into a venue he had financed, the Fortune Theatre. The Lord Chamberlain's Men was the Playing company that William Shakespeare worked for as Actor and Playwright for most of his career The Globe Theatre was a Theatre in London associated with William Shakespeare. The Fortune Playhouse is the name of an historic Theatre in London. John Taylor, the "Water Poet", petitioned the King on behalf of the Watermen’s Company, because of the expected loss of business transporting theatre patrons across the Thames. John Taylor ( 24 August, 1578 - 1653 was an English Poet who dubbed himself "The Water Poet"
He also had interests in the Newington Butts Theatre and The Swan. Newington Butts is a short road in Southwark, London, England, leading south-west from the Elephant and Castle. The Swan was a Theatre in Southwark, London, England built between 1594 and 1596, during the first half of William Shakespeare
Animal Shows
Henslowe and Alleyn also operated the Paris Garden, a venue for baitings; early in James's reign, they purchased the office of Keeper of the Royal Game, namely bulls, bears and mastiffs. The Beargarden was the facility for Bear-baiting, Bull-baiting, and other " animal sports " in the London area during the 16th and 17th centuries In 1614, he and Jacob Meade built the Hope Theatre in Bankside; designed with a moveable stage for both plays and animal baiting, it was the last of the large open-roof theatres built before 1642. The Hope Theatre was one of the theatres built in and around London for the presentation of plays in English Renaissance theatre, comparable to the Globe The animal-shows ended up ascendant at this venue. The induction to Ben Jonson's Bartholomew Fair, performed at the Hope in 1614, complains that the theatre is "as dirty as Smithfield, and as stinking every whit. Benjamin Jonson ( c 11 June 1572 &ndash 6 August 1637) was an English Renaissance Dramatist Bartholomew Fair is a Comedy in five acts by Ben Jonson, the last written of his four great comedies Smithfield (also known as West Smithfield) is an area in the north-west part of the City of London, mostly known for its centuries-old meat market and its bloody history " The theatre did not have a regular theatrical tenant after 1617; Henslowe's share in it was willed to Alleyn.
Henslowe's Diary
Henslowe's "diary" is a valuable source of information on the theatrical history of the period. English Renaissance theatre is English drama written between the Reformation and the closure of the theatres in 1642. It is a collection of memoranda and notes that record payments to writers, box office takings, and lists of money lent. A box office is a place where tickets are sold to the public for Admission to a venue Also of interest are records of the purchase of expensive costumes and of stage properties, like the dragon in Christopher Marlowe's Doctor Faustus, which provide insight into the staging of plays in the Elizabethan theatre. The term costume can refer to Wardrobe and dress in general or to the distinctive style of dress of a particular people class or period A theatrical property, commonly referred to as a prop, is any object held or used on stage by an Actor for use in furthering the plot or story line of a Theatrical English Renaissance theatre is English drama written between the Reformation and the closure of the theatres in 1642.
The Diary is written on the reverse of pages of a book of accounts of his brother-in law Ralph Hogge’s ironworks, kept by his brother John Henslowe for the period 1576–1581. Hogge was the Queen’s Gunstonemaker, and produced both iron cannon and shot for the Royal Armouries at the Tower of London. | NOTE Throughout this article "cannon" is used as BOTH the || singular and plural The Royal Armouries houses the British national collection of arms and armour Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, more commonly known as the Tower of London (and historically as The Tower) is a historic monument in central London John Henslowe seems to have acted as his agent, and Philip to have prudently reused his old account-book. These entries are a valuable source for the early iron-making industry. Iron (ˈаɪɚn is a Chemical element with the symbol Fe (ferrum and Atomic number 26
The diary begins covering Henslowe's theatrical activities for 1592. Entries continue, with varying degrees of thoroughness, until 1609; in the years before his death, Henslowe appears to have run his theatrical interests from a greater distance. At some time after his death his papers, including the diary, were transferred to Dulwich College, which Alleyn had founded. Dulwich College is an independent selective fee-paying public school for boys in Dulwich, a suburb of south-east London United Kingdom
Henslowe recorded payments to twenty-seven Elizabethan playwrights. A playwright, also known as a dramatist, is a person who writes dramatic literature or Drama. He variously commissioned, bought and produced plays by, or made loans to Ben Jonson, Christopher Marlowe, Thomas Middleton, Robert Greene, Henry Chettle, George Chapman, Thomas Dekker, Anthony Munday, Henry Porter, John Day, John Marston and Michael Drayton. Benjamin Jonson ( c 11 June 1572 &ndash 6 August 1637) was an English Renaissance Dramatist Thomas Middleton (1580 &ndash 1627 was an English Jacobean playwright and Poet. Henry Chettle (c 1564 &ndash c 1607 was an English Dramatist and miscellaneous writer of the Elizabethan era. George Chapman (c 1559 &ndash May 12 1634) was an English Dramatist, Translator, and Poet. Thomas Dekker is the name of Thomas Dekker (writer (1572&ndash1632 Elizabethan poet and dramatist Thomas Dekker (actor (born 1987 Anthony Munday (or Monday) (1560? &ndash August 10, 1633) was an English Dramatist and miscellaneous writer Henry Porter (died 1599 was an English dramatist Very little is known about Henry Porter’s life beyond the entries in diary of Philip Henslowe the theatre manager John Day (1574 &ndash 1640? was an English Dramatist of the Elizabethan and Jacobean periods John Marston (baptised October 7, 1576 – June 25, 1634) was an English poet playwright and satirist during the late Elizabethan Michael Drayton (1563 &ndash December 23, 1631) was an English Poet who came to prominence in the Elizabethan era. The Diary shows the varying partnerships between writers, in an age when many plays were collaborations. It also shows Henslowe to have been a careful man of business, obtaining security in the form of rights to his author’s works, and holding their manuscripts, while tying them to him with loans and advances. If a play was successful Henslowe would commission a sequel.
Plays with Shakespearean titles like, Hamlet, Henry VI, Henry V, Taming of the Shrew and others, are found in the diary. Hamlet is a Tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601 Henry VI may refer to Henry VI Holy Roman Emperor (1165–1197 The Taming of the Shrew is an early comedy by William Shakespeare believed to have been written between 1590 and 1594 In 1599, Henslowe paid Dekker and Henry Chettle for a play called Troilus and Cressida. Henry Chettle (c 1564 &ndash c 1607 was an English Dramatist and miscellaneous writer of the Elizabethan era. Troilus and Cressida is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1602 However, there is no mention of William Shakespeare in Henslowe's diary (despite the forgeries of John Payne Collier). William Shakespeare ( baptised John Payne Collier ( January 11, 1789 – September 17, 1883) English Shakespearian Critic and Forger
The History of the Diary
The papers first came to critical attention in 1780, when Edmond Malone requested them from the Dulwich library; the papers had been misplaced and were not recovered until 1790. The year 1780 in literature involved some significant events and new books Edmond Malone ( October 4, 1741 - April 25, 1812) was an Irish Shakespearean scholar and editor of the works of The year 1790 in literature involved some significant events and new books Malone made a transcript of the parts he viewed as relevant to his variorum edition of Shakespeare; the original was returned to Dulwich after Malone's death. A Variorum is a work that collates all known variants of a text (Malone's transcript was returned to the library around 1900. ) The next scholar to examine the manuscripts was John Payne Collier who inserted forgeries which supported his own theories about Shakespeare. John Payne Collier ( January 11, 1789 – September 17, 1883) English Shakespearian Critic and Forger
References
- Bromberg, Murray. "Shylock and Philip Henslowe. " Notes and Queries 194 (1949), 422-3.
- Cesarano, S. P. "Philip Henslowe. " Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004.
- Cerasano, S. P. "Philip Henslowe, Simon Forman, and the Theatrical Community of the 1590s. " Shakespeare Quarterly 44 (1993), 145-58.
- Chambers, E. K. The Elizabethan Stage. Sir Edmund Kerchever Chambers (1866&ndash1954 was an English literary critic and Shakespearean scholar Four volumes. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1923.
- Foakes, R. A., editor. Henslowe's Diary. 2nd edition; Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002.
- Gurr, Andrew. The Shakespearean Stage. 1574-1642. 2nd edition; Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1992.
- Teesdale, Edmund, The Queen’s Gunstonemaker, being an account of Ralph Hogge, Elizabethan Ironmaster & Gunfounder, Lindel Publishing, Seaford, 1984.
External links
- http://www.rosetheatre.org.uk/ - Rose Theatre
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