Life of Cardinal Wolsey, The

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Historical Records

Payments to Playwrights (Henslowe's Diary)

F. 87v (Greg, I.138)

Lent vnto Samwell Rowlye 1601 to paye

vnto harye [S] chettell for writtinge the Boocke

of carnalle wolseye ^lyfe the 5 of June some of . . . . xx^s

F. 91v (Greg, I.143)

Layd owt at the a poyntment of my sonne & the

company vnto harey cheattell for the altrynge of

the booke of carnowlle wolley the 28 of June 1601

the some of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xx^s

Lent vnto Robart shawe the <t> 4 of Julye

1601 to paye vnto harey cheattell for the

Boocke of carnowlle wollsey in fulle pay

ment the some of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xxxx^s

F. 91v (Greg, I.144)

Lent vnto the company the 17 of July

1601 to geue vnto hary chettell for the Boocke

of the carnawlle wollsey to paye vnto m^r

Bromffelld the some of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xx^s

F. 93 (Greg, I.147)

Lent vnto Robart shawe the 18 of aguste

1601 to paye vnto harey chettell for his

Boocke for carnowlle wollsey the some of . . . . . . . . xx^s

Payments for Apparel (Henslowe's Diary)

F. 92v (Greg, I.146)

Lent vnto Robart shawe the 7 of aguste 1601

to bye diuers thinges ^{tayne cottes} for the playe of

carnowle wollsey the some of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xxx^s

Lent the same tymes vnto the littell ^tayller for the

same playe of carnowlle wollsey some of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vij^s

Bowght of m^r stonne mercer the 10 of aguste

1601 ij pylle velluet of carnadyn at xx^s y^rd

& sattenes at xij^s & tafeties at wij^s & vj^d

w^ch J layd owt for the company some is

for the playe of carnawll wollsey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xxj^ll

Layd owt more for the playe of carnowlle

wollsey for tynsell & tyffeney & lynynge

& other thinges the same tyme dd vnto Jewby

the some of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iij^ll x^s

pd vnto the cope lace man for whit cope

sylluer lace the same tyme the some of . . . . . . . . v^s vj^d

Lent vnto Robart shawe the 11 aguste to

bye cottees for the play of carnowlle

wollsey the some of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xx^s

Layd owt at the apoyntment of the company

the 13 of agust 1601 for ij tayllers billes &

w^m whittes bill after the playe of

carnowells wollsey the some of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . viij^ll 4^s

pd vnto the tyer man the 14 of aguste 1601

for mony w^ch he layd owt to bye teffeny

for the playe of carnowlle wollsey some of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xiiij^d

F. 93 (Greg, I.147)

Lent vnto the company the 20 of agust

1601 to bye a docters gowne for the play

of carnowlle wollsey the some of . . . . . . . . x^s

dd to Radford

Lent vnto Robart shawe the 21 of aguste 1601

for velluet & mackynge of the docters

gowne in carnowlle wollsey the some of . . . . . . . . xx^s

F. 105v (Greg, I.166)

Lent vnto Thomas [ ] downton the 18 of

maij to bye maskyngsewtes ^antycke for the 2 parte

of carnowlle wollsey the some of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iij^ll v^s

F. 106 (Greg, I.167)

Lent vnto thomas downton the 27 of maij

1602 to by w^m someres cotte & other thinges

for the 2 part of wollsey the some of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iij^ll

Lent vnto Thomas downton the 27 of maye

1602 to bye Rebatous & other thinges for the

2 part of carnowlle wollsey the some of . . . . . . . . xxv^s

Lent vnto thomas downton the 2 of June 1602

to paye vnto the copere lace mane in fulle

payment for the lace for the 2 part of wollsey . . . . . . . . xxvj^s

Payments, Miscellaneous (Henslowe's Diary)

F. 92v (Greg, I.146)

Lent vnto Robart shawe the 12 of aguste 1601

to bye diuers thinges for the playe of carnowlle

wollsey the some of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xx^s

Lent vnto the littell tayller the 12 of agust

to bye diuers thinges for the playe of

carnowlle wollsey at the apoyntment

of my sonne the some of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . x^s

F. 93v (Greg, I.148)

Lent vnto the company the 3 of septmber 1601

to paye vnto the m^r of the Revelles for licensynge

of [a]the [Bo] 3 parte of thome strowde & the Remaynder

of carnowlle wollsey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . x^s

Correspondence of Richard Hadsor=

25 July 1602. To Sir Robert Cecil.

Chettle's play is referred to in a letter written by Richard Hadsor to Sir Robert Cecil on 25 July 1602, in which Hadsor relays the appeal made by the current Earl of Kildare that the Queen recognize his title:

if the title should be denied vnto him ther are other men of good qualitie of his famely that would pretent title not onely to the hono^r but also to landes of great value w^ch fell to the Crowne in England and Ireland vpon the attainder of his grantfather, by the pollicy of Cardinall Wolsy as it [is] set forth and played nowe vpo'n the stadge in London, alledging that they haue an auncient title to the hono^r and landes that hose befo^r.

(Cecil Papers 94/70; cf. HMC Salisbury 12.248)

Hadsor, in this letter and in his later Discourse, was operating as a "legal representative in England" for the house of Kildare and took the opportunity to advance its interests (Hodgers 98).

Richard Hadsor's Discourse (1604)=

Chettle's play is mentioned again by Hador in his Discourse concerning Ireland that he sent to King James (National Archives, SP 63/216, fols. 180r–181r). The Discourse was written in 1604 (McLaughlin 340). Again, the context is the Earl of Kildare's family history.

The Earle of Kildare (grandfather to the now Earle of Kildare) who married the marques Dorsett Gray his daughter being Lo: Deputie of that Realme in K. Henry the 8^th tyme, was called into England disgraced and attainted in Ireland after he dyed in prison in England, where he lyved a longe tyme, and his brothers and eldest sonne deprived of their lyves by the synister practizes of Cardynall Wolsey sett forth at lardge in the Irishe Chronicle, and of late acted publiquely vpon the Stage in London, in the Tragidie of the life & death of the said Wolsey to tedious to be reported to yo^r Ma:^tie. By wh^ch attainder the howse of Kildare loste landes of good value in England & Ireland.

(National Archives, SP 63/216, fol. 180v; based on McLaughlin 348, with emendations)

The editors of CSP Ireland proposed that this passage did not, in fact, refer to Chettle's play on the grounds that it "would hardly, at this date, be spoken of as 'of late acted publicly on the stage in London'" (Russell and Prendergast [cxi]). They preferred to believe it was evidence for an early composition date of Shakespeare and Fletcher's Henry VIII, a view repeated by McLaughlin (348).

Probable Genre(s)

History