under whose sway the Empire acquired the most brilliant glory in war, and experienced perfect tranquillity and happiness in peace. But in common with the rest of their countrymen they are cheered in their affliction by the accession of a Sovereign who possesses to the fullest extent English feelings, English taste, and English habits, qualities dear to every English heart. Throwing aside the pomp, and dismissing the guards, with which custom has long surrounded the royal person, WILLIAM THE FOURTH trusts himself among his people; and sensible that Englishmen love their Monarch, not as a secluded deity, but as a man to whom they can personally offer the homage of their loyalty and attachment, His Majesty gratifies their feelings and his own by frequently offering himself to their gaze, appearing by this conduct, as well as by every other act since the Crown devolved upon him, to place his happiness in the applause of his subjects. Reposing the greatest confidence in his Ministers, and treading in the footsteps of his Predecessor, his Majesty justifies our reliance upon his wisdom, firmness, and, above all, upon his desire to do every thing to merit the love of his people. The political atmosphere is consequently free from clouds to excite alarm; and the reign of William the Fourth is likely to rival his revered Father's in popularity, and to be no less distinguished than that of his illustrious Brother. The Editors flatter themselves that the venerable age which the GENTLEMAN'S MAGAZINE has attained will be considered evidence of its worth, and secure the respect which it has hitherto enjoyed; that, added to the wisdom and prudence which are ascribed to an honourable senility, the subsequent volumes will exhibit all the vigour of an intellect unimpaired by time, and fully capable of directing the resources at its disposal; and they close this Preface, by pledging themselves that no labour shall be considered too great to deserve, and that no reward will be deemed so gratifying as to retain, the approbation and support of their numerous Subscribers and Contributors. THE On the Removal of Burial Grounds. Wardmotes in Churches condemned Roman Villa at Pitney, co. Somerset Rise and Progress of Stage Coach Travelling 18 Cemetery of British Officers near Bayonne..22 Rev. D. Wilson's Reply to Rev. Mr. Bowles 23 Errors in Sir W. Scott's "Provincial Antiq." 24 Progress and Decline of Witchcraft, No. IV. ib. Etymology of Midwife, Man Midwife, &c...29 Anecdotes of the Rev. Thos. Hatch.......30 Founder of the Priory at Sandwich? Inscription in Beaumaris Church.. Portbury,Tickenham, and Portishead Churches ib. Foreign News, 70.-Domestic Occurrences..72 Promotions, &c. 75.-Marriages. OBITUARY; with Memoirs of the Earl of Kellie; Visc. Harberton; Gen. Lord Chas. Fitzroy; Hon. John Coventry; Rev. Sir P. G. Egerton, Bart.; Sir Rich. Beding- feld, Bart.; Sir J. H. Williams, Bart. Sir R. B. de Capell Brooke, Bart.; Sir Wm. Fowle Middleton, Bart. &c. &c.....77 MINOR CORRESPONDENCE. VIATOR observes, "In a manuscript at Oxford, written by an acquaintance of Mr. Hampden, Treasurer of the Navy, (grandson of the patriot, and who was living within forty years of his ancestor,) it is stated, that John Hampden died of a mortification from the wound received at Chalgrave Field. Comparing this with a statement in your Magazine, and with a report that a principal person present at the examination does not believe the body dug up at Hampden to have been that of the patriot, I cannot but entertain a wish that one or other of the parties present on the occasion alluded to would candidly acknowledge the error into which the narrative so widely circulated has a tendency to lead the public and posterity. The body found, so remarkably perfect as is described, could not have been that of a person dying as has been related." AN OLD SUBSCRIBER says, "In the new edition of the very neat Annual Peerage,' the Bishop of Sodor and Mann is stated to be not a Peer of Parliament,' seeming to imply that he, like the Scotch and Irish Peers, though not holding a seat in Parliament, is yet a Peer. This, however, is not the case. The Scotch and Irish Peers may, at any moment, be called by election to a seat in the House of Lords; but the Bishop of Sodor and Mann could, in no casualty, be so called. In fact, our Bishops sit in Parliament not as Bishops merely, but as Barons by tenure of their lands. The colonial Bishops are, very properly, not styled Lord Bishops by the editor." J. S. B. remarks, It is well known that, previously to the Marriage Act in 1754, marriages were solemnized at private Chapels and elsewhere; that there was a Chapel in Well-walk, another at Knightsbridge, a third in Duke-street, Westminster, &c. &c. where marriages were performed; and he is desirous of learning where the Registers of these Marriages are now to be found. That of Duke-street is known to be in private hands, and so perhaps are many others; but as they no doubt contain entries of Marriages and Baptisms, the proof of which may be frequently required, it is requested that those of your readers, who can give intelligence of any of them, will have the goodness to do so." Mr. T. J. Brockett writes, "I am perfectly satisfied with Mr. Broughton's explanation (p. 488). I unfortunately still retain my original opinion as to the use of the word foot; but whether I am correct or not must be left to the determination of others. In compiling a Local Glossary, it is very difficult to decide on the insertion or omission of the different provincial words that present themselves. The plan suggested by Mr. Broughton, even if practicable, would not, I fear, remove the perplexity. I hail with pleasure the prospect which is held out to us of a Staffordshire Glossary." Mr. CARPENTER, in reference to our review of his "Scripture Difficulties," (December, p. 522,) replies, "I should have thought it impossible for any person to fail in attributing the remarks on 1 Cor. vi. to their real author, considering the mode in which I have introduced them: The obscurity of this passage has given birth to numerous conjectures as to the meaning of the apostle, which are thus ably summed up by Mr. Bloomfield.' Then follows Mr. Bloomfield's note, at the close of which is a direct reference to Bloomfield in loco." A CORRESPONDENT inquires for “ particulars relative to Captain Pretty, who is thus mentioned in Clarendon's Memoirs, vol. II. pt. 1, p. 6, viz. 'eight full troops of horse under the command of Captain Pretty.' He is probably the same person who is mentioned in the critical review of the State Trials as Colonel Pretty at the Castle of Dublin in 1649. See Trial of the Regicides. There is a pedigree in the Heralds'-office of a family of the name, seated for many generations at Medborne (query in what county?) the chief branch of which terminates in an heiress, who married into the family of Porter." C. S. B. says, "About the period of the expulsion of the Jesuits from France (1764), there were books publicly burnt at Paris, the productions of Bassambaum, Saurez, and Molina. The object of this inquiry is to ascertain the exact date of this transaction, as it would probably throw light on the much debated question of who was the author of Junius? Our Correspondent in Dec. p. 499, who is anxious for some information respecting the square piece worn on the chest by the warriors in the Bayeux Tapestry, is referred to vol. I. of Dr. Meyrick's Critical Inquiry, where he will find what he seeks. If our Correspondent the Tourist, who writes from Bath, has more in reserve for us, we shall be glad to receive it, in order to give a longer portion at a time. We beg to acknowledge the receipt of a communication from CANDIDUs, for which we are obliged. We think, however, that we may not have the opportunity afforded us, of adopting his suggestions. H. R. D. is informed, that the MS. from which he has found the quotation is the same as was printed in the 20th volume of Archæologia, and is now well known to antiquaries. THE GENTLEMAN'S MAGAZINE. JANUARY, 1830. ORIGINAL COMMUNICATIONS. OF THE DRAMATIC WRITERS WHO PRECEDED SHAKSPEARE, AND Mr. URBAN, Staffordshire Moorlands, Jan. 9. of theatric history are tend more strikingly to enhance it than the circumstance that by the magic of his unaided talents he outdid FEW periods of sting, few present the achievements of this formidable more copious materials for ainusing narrative, yet none have been less carefully enquired into, than that comprised between the commencement of Elizabeth's reign and the appearance of Shakspeare on the scene-the interval between the first faint dawning of our dramatic day and its arrival at meridian splendour. Incidental allusions to the principal individuals who then wrote for the theatre are scattered through various works; but a collection of those notices, with a dissertation upon the character of their writings, continues to be a desideratum. It has indeed been idly enough asserted by many authors, and implicitly believed by their readers, that till Shakspeare shed the lustre of his genius upon the stage, it was in a state of utter barbarism; that it possessed no compositions worthy a moment's attention; and that he not only elevated our drama to an unequalled pitch of excellence, but was actually its founder, its inventor, or, to use their favourite expression, "its creator." Nothing, however, can be further from the truth. When Shakspeare first arrived in London, a friendless unknown lad, the occupation of writing for the stage was engrossed, not by tasteless, obscure scribblers, but by men of wit and fancy, most of whom had received the advantage of a college education, and who, by the composition of plays adapted to the popular taste, had made the amusement of the theatre so attractive as to render their craft a most lucrative employment. Instead of derogating from Shakspeare's due celebrity, it appears to me that few things phalanx, mastered them at their own weapons, and tore from their brows the wreath of popularity which they wore so proudly. "Alone he did it!" and in the course of this article will be shewn with what bitterness of feeling they regarded his triumph. a The year 1580 may pretty safely be fixed upon as the period when English dramatic poetry began to assume settled form, and to be composed in some degree according to definite rules; for previous to this time little had appeared upon the stage but tedious puerilities or low buffooneries, put together in a style of congenial rudeness," wild without rule or art." In the interval, however, which elapsed before Shakspeare commenced writing, numerous plays were produced by Peele, Nash, Lodge, Greene, and Marlowe, which, inferior as they may be to Shakspeare's, (and what dramas are not so?) belong to precisely the same school, and completely nullify the assertion that he was the originator of what is styled our Romantic Drama. A, collection of these rare pieces would be an invaluable addition to our literature; while a narrative of what is known respecting their witty but profligate authors, their quarrels with their contemporaries, their shifts and expedients to maintain a precarious existence, their dissolute lives, and for the chief part miserable ends, would form a most amusing and instructive composition. The works of two of them, Peele and Marlowe, have recently been reprinted; the former I have not seen, and can therefore offer no opinion upon the manner in which the task has been executed; but of 4 Life and Writings of Christopher Marlowe. the works of Marlowe I must say that, though the editor is entitled to infinite praise for thus placing within the reach of every one what was previously accessible to but few, he has slurred over with a provoking degree of carelessness and brevity that part of his duty which required from him some account of his author, and the state of the theatre in his time. This omission it is the object of the present paper in some measure to supply. The facts it details were collected long before the appearance of the edition in question, with the view to a similar performance, and may perchance be found useful, should a reprint be called for, or such a collection as I have suggested above be ever undertaken. A mere outline of them was printed some eight or ten years since, in a work relating to the stage; but, as it was of very limited circulation, and has long been defunct, I look upon them, as Coleridge says, to be "as good as manuscript." The plays and poems of Marlowe cannot fail to excite, in the mind of every intelligent reader, a high opinion of his genius; but the curiosity which will naturally be felt regarding the events of his life must solace itself with very slender materials. Beyond the bare fact of his existence, little has descended to us, and even that little will scarcely abide the test of a close enquiry into its truth. Of him, as of the poet's ship, may almost be said "The sole memorial of his lot Is this he was, and he is not." The current tale respecting him, which the compiler of every biographical dictionary and cyclopedia has been content to copy from his immediate predecessor with confiding carelessness, is this:-that he was born about 1562; was entered of Bene't Coll. Cambridge, where he took the degrees of B.A. 1583, and M.A. 1587; that on quitting the University he repaired to London, became a celebrated actor and dramatist, ran a dissolute career, published some blasphemous works oppugning the doctrine of the Trinity, and lost his life at last "in a lewd quarrel," either with Ben Jonson or "a baudie servingman," about a harlot ; but the reader, who has doubtless often seen this libel confidently detailed in the "Biographia Dramatica," and books of that stamp, [Jan. will be surprised to learn that every circumstance here related of Marlowe, is, to say the least, uncertain, save that of his being a popular writer, and being slain in a broil, which, however, was neither with Ben Jonson, nor about a wench. In the first place, the date of his birth is entirely matter of conjecture. Malone hazarded an opinion that it was 1565; Ellis (“Specimens") taking for a guide the period at which he is thought to have entered the University, supposes that he must then have been about eighteen years of age, which may be probable enough, but still is merely surmise; while Oldys (MS. Notes on Langbaine) asserts that he was born in the early part of the reign of Edw. VI., a supposition neither plausible nor probable. In fact, of Marlowe's age and origin nothing can be told with certainty. Not even conjecture has busied itself with the latter, and I confess myself unable to throw any light upon the subject, unless indeed a passage in Wood's "Athena" may be considered as affording some clue towards a solution of the mystery. At p. 216, fol. 1721, I find mention made of one "John Marlowe, of Merton College, Oxford, afterwards Treasurer of the Cathedral Church of Wells, and Canon of the King's Chapel of St. Stephen's, within the Palace at Westminster, who died in the beginning of October, 1543." The name of Marlowe is but of rare occurrence, and it is therefore no very extravagant surmise that this might be the poet's grandfather. That Marlowe was ever a member of Bene't Coll., though it has been so positively asserted, is also very questionable. With whom the circumstantial detail of his progress at the University originated I have never been able precisely to trace, but I suspect there is no earlier authority for it than the MS. notes of Oldys. Baker, the original compiler of the "Biographia Dramatica," borrowing his account of Marlowe from Ant. Wood, merely says "it is well-known that he was entered as a student at the University.' In the next edition of the work, by Isaac Reed, the above dates are added, but without any hint of the source whence he derived the MS. note on Marlowe's Plays in the Bodleian. |