Orphans Tragedy, The

Henry Chettle (1599, 1601?)

Historical Records

Henslowe's Diary

F. 29 (Greg I.57)

[1599]

Receiued of M^r Henslow in earnest of the orphanes

[Tragedy the] somme of x^s. the 27^th of nouember./

lent vnto harey chettell the 27 of novmb[er]

1599 in earneste of a Boocke called the

orphenes tragedie the some of x^s as maye

a peare a bowe by his hand crossed some of ... x^s

F. 65^v (Greg I.114)

Lent vnto harey chettell the 27 of novmb[er]

1599 in earnest of a Boocke called the

tragedie of orphenes the some of ... x^s

as may a pere

F. 93^v (Greg I.148)

Lent vnto Samwell Rowley the 24 of septmb[er] 1601

to paye vnto harey chettell in pt of payment

for a Boocke called the orfenes tragedy some of ... x^s

Stationers' Register

Arber 3.3b/50

xv^to die Octobris./. Thomas Millington./.

Entred for his Copie vnder th[e h]andes of bothe the wardens

ballad intituled The Norfolk gent his will and Testament and howe he

Commytted the keepinge of his Children to his owne brother whoe delte

moste wickedly with them and howe GOD plagued him for it ... vj^d

[Arber's note: This story is now known as The Babes in the Wood.]

Theatrical Provenance

The Admiral's Men paid Henry Chettle 20s in the fall of 1599 toward a play called The Orphans Tragedy. Unless Chettle received moneys not tabulated by Henslowe, such as perhaps relief on some loan, this play appears to have been unfinished at this time. In 1601 Chettle received 10s. more for the play. The language of the entry ("in p[ar]t of payment") suggests that the play was still not completed. In 1599 the company was preparing for its last year at the Rose; by 1601, it had moved to the Fortune.

Probable Genre(s)

Tragedy (Harbage)

Possible Narrative and Dramatic Sources or Analogues

The Ballad familiarly known as "The Babes in the Wood" is cited by scholars as a narrative analogue of Chettle's play. [1]

If the play was indeed completed but is now lost, its story might be reflected in the 1601 publication, Two Lamentable Tragedies, [2], the second story of which is described on the title page as one of "a young childe murthered in a Wood by two Ruffins, with the consent of his Vncle." The publication carries the name of Robert Yarington on the title page.

References to the Play

None known.

Critical Commentary

F. G. Fleay claims that the play in the Yarington publication is the same story as in the ballad, "The Babes in the Wood."[3] He believed that "Yarington" was a fictional name, and that Chettle in 1601 was being paid to combine his still-rough tragedy based on the ballad with Haughton and Day's Tragedy of Thomas Merry

Works Cited

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Site created and maintained by Roslyn L. Knutson, Professor Emerita, University of Arkansas at Little Rock; updated 31 October 2009.