The Troublesome Reign of King John
Encyclopedia
The Troublesome Reign of King John (c. 1589) is an Elizabethan history play, generally accepted by scholars as the source and model that William Shakespeare
employed for his own King John (c. 1596).
The play was printed three times in quarto
in Shakespeare's era:
Q1, 1591
, was published by the stationer Sampson Clarke, with no attribution of authorship. The title page of Q1 states that the play was performed by Queen Elizabeth's Men
. Although The Troublesome Reign is not an exceptionally long play, about 300 lines longer than Shakespeare's, the initial publication split the play into two parts. (The scholarly literature often refers to Parts 1 and 2 of the play as a result.)
Q2, 1611
, was published by John Helme (printed by Valentine Simmes
); the authorship was assigned to "W. Sh." In this edition the first quarto's artificial division into two parts was removed.
Q3, 1622
, was published by Thomas Dewes (printed by Augustine Matthews
), as the work of "W. Shakespeare."
Some 19th-century critics accepted the 1622 attribution to Shakespeare; among 20th-century commentators E. B. Everitt and Peter Ackroyd
have defended the Shakespearean attribution. Candidates put forward for the author of The Troublesome Reign include Christopher Marlowe
, Robert Greene
, Thomas Lodge
, and George Peele
, among others, alone or in various collaborative combinations; no scholarly consensus has been achieved.
The main historical sources for The Troublesome Reign are thought to be the Chronicles of Raphael Holinshed
and Foxe's Book of Martyrs
, and perhaps Richard Grafton's Chronicle at Large, which recapitulates much of the material in John Foxe
's book.
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
employed for his own King John (c. 1596).
The play was printed three times in quarto
Book size
The size of a book is generally measured by the height against the width of a leaf, or sometimes the height and width of its cover. A series of terms is commonly used by libraries and publishers for the general sizes of modern books, ranging from "folio" , to "quarto" and "octavo"...
in Shakespeare's era:
Q1, 1591
1591 in literature
-Events:*In the spring of the year, a dispute with James Burbage impels the Admiral's Men to leave The Theatre and move to Philip Henslowe's Rose Theatre.*Summer - Sir Walter Raleigh secretly marries Elizabeth Throckmorton....
, was published by the stationer Sampson Clarke, with no attribution of authorship. The title page of Q1 states that the play was performed by Queen Elizabeth's Men
Queen Elizabeth's Men
Queen Elizabeth's Men was a playing company or troupe of actors in English Renaissance theatre. Formed in 1583 at the express command of Queen Elizabeth, it was the dominant acting company for the rest of the 1580s, as the Admiral's Men and the Lord Chamberlain's Men would be in the decade that...
. Although The Troublesome Reign is not an exceptionally long play, about 300 lines longer than Shakespeare's, the initial publication split the play into two parts. (The scholarly literature often refers to Parts 1 and 2 of the play as a result.)
Q2, 1611
1611 in literature
The year 1611 in literature involved some significant events.-Events:*January 1 - Oberon, the Faery Prince, a masque written by Ben Jonson and designed by Inigo Jones, is performed at Whitehall Palace....
, was published by John Helme (printed by Valentine Simmes
Valentine Simmes
Valentine Simmes was an Elizabethan era and Jacobean era printer; he did business in London, "on Adling Hill near Bainard's Castle at the sign of the White Swan." Simmes has a reputation as one of the better printers of his generation, and was responsible for several quartos of Shakespeare's plays...
); the authorship was assigned to "W. Sh." In this edition the first quarto's artificial division into two parts was removed.
Q3, 1622
1622 in literature
The year 1622 in literature involved some significant events.-Events:*February 28 - Loiola, a Latin comedy mocking the Jesuits, is acted at Cambridge; the performance is repeated before King James I on March 12.*March 12 - Teresa of Ávila The year 1622 in literature involved some significant...
, was published by Thomas Dewes (printed by Augustine Matthews
Augustine Matthews
Augustine Matthews was a printer in London in the Jacobean and Caroline eras. Among a wide variety of other work, Matthews printed notable texts in English Renaissance drama....
), as the work of "W. Shakespeare."
Some 19th-century critics accepted the 1622 attribution to Shakespeare; among 20th-century commentators E. B. Everitt and Peter Ackroyd
Peter Ackroyd
Peter Ackroyd CBE is an English biographer, novelist and critic with a particular interest in the history and culture of London. For his novels about English history and culture and his biographies of, among others, Charles Dickens, T. S. Eliot and Sir Thomas More he won the Somerset Maugham Award...
have defended the Shakespearean attribution. Candidates put forward for the author of The Troublesome Reign include Christopher Marlowe
Christopher Marlowe
Christopher Marlowe was an English dramatist, poet and translator of the Elizabethan era. As the foremost Elizabethan tragedian, next to William Shakespeare, he is known for his blank verse, his overreaching protagonists, and his mysterious death.A warrant was issued for Marlowe's arrest on 18 May...
, Robert Greene
Robert Greene (16th century)
Robert Greene was an English author best known for a posthumous pamphlet attributed to him, Greene's Groats-Worth of Wit, widely believed to contain a polemic attack on William Shakespeare. He was born in Norwich and attended Cambridge University, receiving a B.A. in 1580, and an M.A...
, Thomas Lodge
Thomas Lodge
Thomas Lodge was an English dramatist and writer of the Elizabethan and Jacobean periods.-Early life and education:...
, and George Peele
George Peele
George Peele , was an English dramatist.-Life:Peele was christened on 25 July 1556. His father, who appears to have belonged to a Devonshire family, was clerk of Christ's Hospital, and wrote two treatises on bookkeeping...
, among others, alone or in various collaborative combinations; no scholarly consensus has been achieved.
The main historical sources for The Troublesome Reign are thought to be the Chronicles of Raphael Holinshed
Raphael Holinshed
Raphael Holinshed was an English chronicler, whose work, commonly known as Holinshed's Chronicles, was one of the major sources used by William Shakespeare for a number of his plays....
and Foxe's Book of Martyrs
Foxe's Book of Martyrs
The Book of Martyrs, by John Foxe, more accurately Acts and Monuments, is an account from a Protestant point of view of Christian church history and martyrology...
, and perhaps Richard Grafton's Chronicle at Large, which recapitulates much of the material in John Foxe
John Foxe
John Foxe was an English historian and martyrologist, the author of what is popularly known as Foxe's Book of Martyrs, , an account of Christian martyrs throughout Western history but emphasizing the sufferings of English Protestants and proto-Protestants from the fourteenth century through the...
's book.