First, and the two succeeding kings, that very soon after our poet's death, in the year 1622, there were

vember, 1610, and held it till the end of the year 1621, when, in consequence of ill health, he resigned it to King James, and Sir John Astley succeeded him. How Sir Henry Herbert got possession of this office originally, I am unable to ascertain; but I imagine Sir John Astley for a valuable consideration appointed him his deputy, in August, 1623; at which time, to use Sir Henry's own words, he "was received as Master of the Revels by his Majesty at Wilton:" and in the warrant-books of Philip Earl of Pembroke, now in the Lord Chamberlain's office, containing warrants, orders, &c. between the years 1625 and 1642, he is constantly styled Master of the Revels. If Sir John Astley had formally resigned or surrendered his office, Ben Jonson, in consequence of the grant obtained in the year 1621, must have succeeded to it; but he never derived any emolument from that grant, for Sir John Astley, as I find from the probate of his will, in the prerogative office, (in which it is observable that he calls himself Master of the Revels, though both the duties and emluments of the office were then exercised and enjoyed by another,) did not die till January 1639-40, above two years after the poet's death. To make his title still more secure, Sir Henry Herbert, in conjunction with Simon Thelwall, Esq. August 22, 1629, obtained a reversionary grant of this much sought-for office, to take place on the death, surrender, &c. of Sir John Astley and Benjamin Jonson. Sir Henry held the office for fifty years, though during the usurpation he could not exercise the functions nor enjoy the emoluments of it..

Sir George Buc wrote an express treatise as he has himself told us, on the stage and on revels, which is unfortunately lost. Previous to the exhibition of every play, it was licensed by the Master of the Revels, who had an established fee on the occasion. If ever, therefore, the office-books of Mr. Tilney and Sir George Buc shall be found, they will ascertain precisely the chronological order of all the plays written by Shakspeare; and either confirm or overturn a system in forming which I have taken some pains. Having, however, found many of my conjectures confirmed by Sir Henry Herbert's manuscript, I have no reason to augur ill concerning the event, should the registers of his predecessors ever be discovered.

The regular salary of this office was but ten pounds a year; but, by fees and other perquisites, the emoluments of Sir George Buc in the first year he came into possession of it, amounted to near 1001. The office afterwards became much more valuable.

9

but five principal companies of comedians in London; the King's Servants, who performed at the Globe and in Blackfriars; the Prince's Servants, who performed then at the Curtain; the Palsgrave's Servants, who had possession of the Fortune; the players of the Revels, who acted at the Red Bull;' and the Lady Elizabeth's Servants, or, as they are sometimes denominated, the Queen of Bohemia's players, who performed at the Cockpit in Drury Lane.2

Having mentioned this gentleman, I take this opportunity of correcting an error into which Anthony Wood has fallen, and which has been implicitly adopted in the new edition of Biographia Britannica, and many other books. The error I allude to, is, that this Sir George Buc, who was knighted at Whitehall by King James the day before his coronation, July 23, 1003, was the author of the celebrated History of King Richard the Third; which was written above twenty years after his death, by George Buck, Esq. who was, I suppose, his son. The precise time of the father's death, I have not been able to ascertain, there being no will of his in the prerogative office; but I have reason to believe that it happened soon after the year 1622. He certainly died before August 1629.

The office-book of Sir Henry Herbert contains an account of almost every piece exhibited at any of the theatres from August, 1623, to the commencement of the rebellion in 1641, and many curious anecdotes relative to them, some of which I shall presently have occasion to quote. This valuable manuscript having lain for a considerable time in a damp place, is unfortunately damaged, and in a very mouldering condition: however, no material part of it appears to have perished.

I cannot conclude this long note without acknowledging the obliging attention of W. E. Roberts, Esq. Deputy Clerk of the Pells, which facilitated every search I wished to make in his office, and enabled me to ascertain some of the facts above stated. 91622. The Palsgrave's servants. Frank Grace, Charles Massy, Richard Price, Richard Fowler, Kane, Curtys Grevill." MS. Herbert. Three other names have perished. Of these one must have been that of Richard Gunnel, who was then the manager of the Fortune theatre; and another, that of William Cartwright, who was of the same company.

When Prynne published his Histriomastix,(1633,) there were six playhouses open; the theatre in Blackfriars; the Globe; the Fortune; the Red Bull; the Cockpit or Phoenix, and a theatre in Salisbury Court, Whitefriars.3

All the plays of Shakspeare appear to have been performed either at The Globe, or the theatre in Blackfriars. I shall therefore confine my inquiries principally to those two. They belonged, as I have already observed, to the same company of comedians, namely, his majesty's servants, which title they obtained after a licence had been granted to them by King James in 1603; having before that time, I apprehend, been called the servants of the

"The names of the chiefe players at the Red Bull, called the players of the Revells. Robert Lee, Richard Perkings, Ellis Woorth, Thomas Basse, John Blany, John Cumber, William Robbins." Ibidem.

"The chiefe of them at the Phoenix. Christopher Beeston,. Joseph More, Eliard Swanson, Andrew Cane, Curtis Grevill, William Shurlock, Anthony Turner." Ibidem. Eliard Swanston in 1624 joined the company at Blackfriars.

That part of the leaf which contained the list of the king's. servants, and the performers at the Curtain, is mouldered away.

'It has been repeated again and again that Prynne enumerates seventeen playhouses in London in his time; but this is a mistake; he expressly says that there were only six, (see his Epistle Dedicatory) and the office-book of Sir Henry Herbert confirms his

assertion.

Mr. Dodsley and others have fallen into this mistake of supposing there were seventeen play-houses open at one time in London; into which they were led by the continuator of Stowe, who mentions that between 1570 and 1630 seventeen playhouses were built, in which number, however, he includes, five inns turned into playhouses, and St. Paul's singing-school. He does not say that they were all open at the same time.-A late writer carries the matter still further, and asserts that it appears from Rymer's MSS. in the Museum that there were twenty-three playhouses open at one time in London!

Lord Chamberlain. Like the other servants of the household, the performers enrolled into this company were sworn into office, and each of them was allowed four yards of bastard scarlet for a cloak, and a quarter of a yard of velvet for the cape, every second year.

The theatre in Blackfriars was situated near the present Apothecaries' Hall, in the neighbourhood of which there is yet Playhouse Yard, not far from which the theatre probably stood. It was, as has been mentioned, a private house; but what were the distinguishing marks of a private playhouse, it is not easy to ascertain. We know only that it was smaller than those which were called publick theatres; and that in the private theatres plays were usually presented by candle-light."

"These are to signify unto your lordship his majesties pleasure, that you cause to be delivered unto his majesties players whose names follow, viz. John Hemmings, John Lowen, Joseph Taylor, Richard Robinson, John Shank, Robert Benfield, Richard Sharp, Eliard Swanson, Thomas Pollard, Anthony Smith, Thomas Hobbes, William Pen, George Vernon, and James Horne, to each of them the several allowance of foure yardes of bastard scarlet for a cloake, and a quarter of a yard of crimson velvet for the capes, it being the usual allowance graunted unto them by his majesty every second yeare, and due at Easter last past. For the doing whereof theis shall be your warrant. May 6th, 1629." MS. in the Lord Chamberlain's Office.

Wright, in his Hist. Histrion. informs us, that the theatre in Blackfriars, the Cockpit, and that in Salisbury Court, were exactly alike both in form and size. The smallness of the latter is ascertained by these lines in an epilogue to Tottenham Court, a comedy by Nabbes, which was acted there:

"When others' fill'd rooms with neglect disdain ye,

"My little house with thanks shall entertain ye.”

"All the city looked like a private play-house, when the windows are clapt downe, as if some nocturnal and dismal tragedy were presently to be acted." Decker's Seven Deadly Sinnes of London, 1606. See also Historia Histrionica.

In this theatre, which was a very ancient one, the children of the Revels occasionally performed."

It is said in Camden's Annals of the reign of King James the First, that the theatre in Blackfriars fell down in the year 1623, and that above eighty persons were killed by the accident; but he was

7 Many pieces were performed by them in this theatre before 1580. Sometimes they performed entire pieces; at others, they represented such young characters as are found in many of our poet's plays. Thus we find Nat. Field, John Underwood, and William Ostler, among the children of the Revels, who represented several of Ben Jonson's comedies at the Blackfriars in the earlier part of King James's reign, and also in the list of the actors of our author's plays prefixed to the first folio, published in 1623. They had then become men.

Lily's Campaspe was acted at the theatre in Blackfriars in 1584, and The Case is Altered, by Ben Jonson, was printed in 1609, as acted by the children of Black-friers. Some of the children of the Revels also acted occasionally at the theatre in Whitefriars; for we find A Woman's a Weathercock performed by them at that theatre in 1612. Probably a certain number of these children were appropriated to each of these theatres, and instructed by the elder performers in their art; by which means this young troop became a promptuary of actors. In a manuscript in the Inner Temple, No. 515, Vol. VII. entitled "A booke conteyning several particulars with relation to the king's servants, petitions, warrants, bills, &c. and supposed to be a copy of some part of the Lord Chamberlain of the Houshold's book in or about the year 1622," I find "A warrant to the signet-office (dated July 8th, 1622,) for a privie seale for his majesties licensing of Robert Lee, Richard Perkins, Ellis Woorth, Thomas Basse, John Blaney, John Cumber, and William Robbins, late comedians of Queen Anne deceased, to bring up children in the qualitie and exercise of playing comedies, histories, interludes, morals, pastorals, stage-plaies, and such like, as well for the sollace and pleasure of his majestie, as for the honest recreation of such as shall desire to see them; to be called by the name of The Children of the Revels;-and to be drawne in such a manner and forme as hath been used in other lycenses of that kinde." These very persons, we have seen, were the company of the Revels in 1622, and were then become men.