French Doctor

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Historical Records

Performance Records (Henslowe's Diary)



F. 10 (Greg, I.19)
ye 18 of octobʒ 1594 Res at the frenshe docter xxijs
F. 10v (Greg, I.20)
ye 28 of octobʒ 1594 Res at the frenshe docter xvs
ye 18 of novmbʒ 1594 Res at the frenshe docter xxvijs
F. 11 (Greg, I.21)
ye 3 of Jenewary 1594 Res at the frenshe docter xxjs
ye 30 of Jenewary 1594 Res at the frenshe docter xviijs
ye 7 of febreary 1594 Res at the frenshe docter xxjs
F. 11 v (Greg, I.22)
ye 24 of febreary 1594 Res at the frensh doctor xxxxxiiijs
ye easter mondaye 1595 Res at the ffrenshe doctor liijs
ye 3 of may 1595 Res at the frenshe docter xjs
F. 12 v (Greg, I.24)
ye 2[3]4 of maye 1595 Res at the frenshe docter xxijs
F. 13 (Greg, I.24)
ye 19 of septmbʒ 1595 Res at the frenshe doctor xvjs
F. 21v (Greg, I.42)
ye 4 of July 1596 Res at frenshe dacter xiiijs
F. 25 (Greg, I.49)
ye 29 of octobʒ 1596 Res at the frenshe docter xvs
ye 9 of novmbʒ 1596 Res at the frenshe docter xiiijs

Payments to Edward Alleyn for Playbooks


F. 96 (Greg. I.153)

pd at the apoyntment of the companye the }
18 of Janewary 1601 vnto E Alleyn for iij boockes }
wch were played called the french docter the } vjli
massaker of france & the nvtte the some of }


Theatrical Provenance

The Admiral's men brought "The French Doctor" to the stage of the Rose in October 1594 and continued it into the autumn season of 1596-7. However, any clarity about its pre-October provenance is complicated by the fact that Henslowe did not mark the play "ne" at its debut in his records (autumn, 1594). Theater historians consequently assume that the play was in revival. See


But where had it been when new, and with which company?

Harbage, under the heading "1590, Addenda," lists "The French Doctor" with more than several dozen plays that appear in Henslowe's diary in playlists for Strange's men (1592-3) and the Admiral's men (1594-5) without his distinguishing "ne" (he includes also "Hester and Ahasuerus"). He thus implies a pre-1590 debut for each item, though he assigns each to the company that performed it when Henslowe was entering performances and payments in his diary (in the case of the Admiral's men, a pre-1590s version of the company is not considered identical to the 1594 version).


Wiggins, Catalogue focuses on Edward Alleyn as the key to the pre-1594 provenance of "The French Doctor" (#833; see also #785 for a broader treatment of the Admiral's non-"ne" plays in 1594-5). Offering several scenarios for the stage life and company/player ownership of "The French Doctor" before October 1594, he is comfortable only with the conclusion that the play had been in Alleyn's hands for some time before its sale to the Admiral's men in 1602.

Probable Genre(s)

Possible Narrative and Dramatic Sources or Analogues

References to the Play

Critical Commentary

For What It's Worth

Works Cited