Rising of Cardinal Wolsey, The
Chettle, Henry, Drayton, Michael, Munday, Anthony, Smith, Wentworth (1601)
Historical Records
Payments
To playwrights in Philip Henslowe's diary
For a summary table of the payments to playwrights regarding both "Wolsey" plays, see "The Life of Cardinal Wolsey".
Fol. 93 (Greg, I.147)
- Lent vnto Robart shaw the 24 of aguste
- 1601 to lend vnto harey chettell in earnest
- of a play called the j part of carnall wollsey the some of . . . . . . . xxs
Fol. 94 (Greg, I.149))
- Lent vnto Robarte shawe to lend vnto hary chettell
- & antony mondaye & mihell drayton in earneste of a
- Boocke called the Rissenge of carnowlle wolsey the 10
- of octobʒ 1601 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xxxxs
Fol. 94v (Greg, I.150)
- Lent vnto hary chettell by the company at
- the eagell & the chillde in parte of payment of a
- Boocke called the Rissynge of carnoll wollsey
- the some of ye 6 of novembʒ 1601 . . . . . . . . . . xs
- Lent vnto the companye the 9 of novmbʒ 1601
- to paye vnto mr monday & hary chettell in
- part of payment of a Boocke called the
- Rissynge of carnowlle wollsey the some of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xs
- Lent vnto the companye the 12 of novmbʒ
- 1601 to pay vnto antony monday & harye
- chettell mihell drayton & smythe in fulle
- paymente of the first part of carnowll wollsey
- the some of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iijll
Fol. 105v (Greg, I.166)
- Lent vnto thomas downton the 15 of maye
- 1602 to paye harey chettell for the
- mendynge of the fyrste þte of carnowlle
- wollsey the some of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xxs
Payments, Miscellaneous (Henslowe Papers)
MSS I, Article 37 (Greg, Papers 58-59)
A play identified as "the Cardinall" is listed on an acquittance from William Playstowe among a list of five plays for which the licensing fee had not yet been paid.
- Recevd of mr Henslowe the iiijth of Agust 1602
- for one monthes pay due vnto my mr mr Edmund
- Tylney vppon the xxxjth day of July last past
- the som of iijll J say R[eceived] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iijll
- per mei Will Playstowe
- bookes owinge for /5/
- baxsters tragedy
- Tobias Comedy
- Jepha Judg of Jsrael & the Cardinall
- loue parts frendshipp
The paper is annotated in a modern hand, "apparently Malone's" (Greg), suggesting an identification: "[Probably Cardinal Wolsey]." Since Chettle's earlier Wolsey play ("The Life of Cardinal Wolsey") had been licensed on 3 September 1601, the title here must refer to the "Rising."
Theatrical Provenance
Admiral's Men at the Fortune.
Probable Genre(s)
History
Possible Narrative and Dramatic Sources or Analogues
Under construction.
References to the Play
Information welcome.
Critical Commentary
For critical commentary pertinent to both "Wolsey" plays, see "The Life of Cardinal Wolsey".
Wiley notes that Speed twice refers to Wolsey's ascent as his "rising," the word used in the title of the present play: "it seems not unreasonable to suppose that its action embraced the events covered by Speed's sketch. Possibly the dramatists found their subject in the 'characters' of Wolsey in Stow or Holinshed, and Speed associated 'rising' with the same material when he adopted it" (133n).
Knutson ("Commercial") adduces the "mendynge" payment to Chettle as evidence that "the Admiral's men seem to have relied on him for revisions that they needed in a hurry" (130).
Knutson (Playing) argues that the addition of co-authors to the composition of the prequel was not prescribed to Chettle by the company: "Since he worked both solo and in syndicates, there is no reason to guess that the company directed him to acquire partners this time" (51).
Wiggins, Catalogue (#1309) assumes that an Elizabethan play about the Henrican court would not have represented Henry VIII, but may have represented Henry VII when depicting the earlier stage of Wolsey's life.
For What It's Worth
Works Cited
Site created and maintained by Misha Teramura, University of Toronto; updated 9 June 2019.