Edward Filmer
Encyclopedia
Edward Filmer was an English dramatist.
Filmer was born in or about 1657, was the second son of Sir Robert Filmer, 1st Baronet, of East Sutton
, Kent, who died 22 March 1676, by his wife, Dorothy, daughter of Maurice Tuke of Layer Marney
, Essex. Hasted wrongly describes him as the ‘second son of Sir Edward Filmer, who died in 1629.’ He was himself seated at East Sutton. In 1672 he was admitted as founder's kin fellow of All Souls' College, Oxford, and took the degree of B.A. on 17 December of that year, proceeding B.C.L. 21 February 1675, D.C.L. 27 Oct. 1681 (Cat. of Oxford Graduates, 1851, p. 229). He wrote a lugubrious blank verse tragedy of extreme length, called ‘The Unnatural Brother,’ 4to, London, 1697, which appears to have been acted three times at the theatre in Little Lincoln's Inn Fields (Genest, Hist. of the Stage, ii. 114). It met with a ‘very cold reception,’ which the author ascribes principally to his having ‘made choice of too few persons in the drama, and that the stage was never filled; there seldom appearing above two at a time, and never above three, till the end and winding up of the whole. … If these must be thought faults now in our nicer age, I am sure they were not thought such heretofore by the Antients’ (Preface). Part of this drama was reproduced by Pierre Antoine Motteux as ‘The Unfortunate Couple; a short Tragedy,’ in ‘The Novelty,’ &c., 4to, 1697. Filmer defended the stage against the attacks of Jeremy Collier in a sensible, well-written treatise entitled ‘A Defence of Plays, or the Stage Vindicated, from several Passages in Mr. Collier's Short View, &c. Wherein is offer'd the most probable method of Reforming our Plays. With a Consideration how far Vicious Characters may be allow'd on the Stage,’ 8vo, London, 1707. Collier replied in ‘A Farther Vindication of the Short View,’ &c., 8vo, London, 1708. Hasted (loc. cit.) is again wrong when he states that Filmer ‘died in 1703.’ By license, dated 29 Jan. 1686–7, he married Archiballa, only daughter and heiress of Archibald Clinkard or Clenkard of Sutton Valence, Kent (Chester, London Marriage Licences, ed. Foster, col. 484), and was buried at East Sutton.
Filmer was born in or about 1657, was the second son of Sir Robert Filmer, 1st Baronet, of East Sutton
East Sutton
East Sutton is a parish approximately 6 miles south-east of Maidstone in Kent, England. East Sutton is small in number of dwellings but relatively large in area: the parish has a women's prison, a council estate of 16 houses and the church of St Peter and Saint Paul.HMP East Sutton Park is a prison...
, Kent, who died 22 March 1676, by his wife, Dorothy, daughter of Maurice Tuke of Layer Marney
Layer Marney
Layer Marney is a village and civil parish near to Tiptree, in the Colchester borough, in the county of Essex, England. Layer Marney has a Tudor palace called Layer Marney Tower and a church called Church of St Mary the Virgin. In 2001 the population of the civil parish of Layer Marney was 206.-...
, Essex. Hasted wrongly describes him as the ‘second son of Sir Edward Filmer, who died in 1629.’ He was himself seated at East Sutton. In 1672 he was admitted as founder's kin fellow of All Souls' College, Oxford, and took the degree of B.A. on 17 December of that year, proceeding B.C.L. 21 February 1675, D.C.L. 27 Oct. 1681 (Cat. of Oxford Graduates, 1851, p. 229). He wrote a lugubrious blank verse tragedy of extreme length, called ‘The Unnatural Brother,’ 4to, London, 1697, which appears to have been acted three times at the theatre in Little Lincoln's Inn Fields (Genest, Hist. of the Stage, ii. 114). It met with a ‘very cold reception,’ which the author ascribes principally to his having ‘made choice of too few persons in the drama, and that the stage was never filled; there seldom appearing above two at a time, and never above three, till the end and winding up of the whole. … If these must be thought faults now in our nicer age, I am sure they were not thought such heretofore by the Antients’ (Preface). Part of this drama was reproduced by Pierre Antoine Motteux as ‘The Unfortunate Couple; a short Tragedy,’ in ‘The Novelty,’ &c., 4to, 1697. Filmer defended the stage against the attacks of Jeremy Collier in a sensible, well-written treatise entitled ‘A Defence of Plays, or the Stage Vindicated, from several Passages in Mr. Collier's Short View, &c. Wherein is offer'd the most probable method of Reforming our Plays. With a Consideration how far Vicious Characters may be allow'd on the Stage,’ 8vo, London, 1707. Collier replied in ‘A Farther Vindication of the Short View,’ &c., 8vo, London, 1708. Hasted (loc. cit.) is again wrong when he states that Filmer ‘died in 1703.’ By license, dated 29 Jan. 1686–7, he married Archiballa, only daughter and heiress of Archibald Clinkard or Clenkard of Sutton Valence, Kent (Chester, London Marriage Licences, ed. Foster, col. 484), and was buried at East Sutton.