19 July, 1594 - The Second Part of Godfrey of Bouillon

Here's what the Admiral's Men performed at the Rose playhouse on this day, 424 years ago...

Henslowe writes: y^e 19 of Julye 1594 ... ne ... R at 2 pte of godfrey of bullen ... iij^ll and xj^s

In modern English: 19^th July, 1594 ... New ... Received at The Second Part of Godfrey of Bouillon ... £3 and 11 shillings

Today, the Admiral's Men premiered a new play! The Second Part of Godfrey of Bouillon is sadly lost, but it must have dramatized episodes from the life of the eponymous Godfrey, a medieval warrior who expelled the Turks from the city of Jerusalem.

Those of you with long memories will recall that way back in March of 1592, Lord Strange's Men performed a lost play called Jerusalem at the Rose. One theory goes that Jerusalem was the original Godfrey of Bouillon play, to which this play was a sequel (you can read the evidence for this in the blog entry on Jerusalem).

If the first play did indeed tell the story of Godfrey's liberation of Jerusalem, The Second Part probably dramatized its aftermath. If so, the playwright's source could have been William of Tyre's narrative of Godfrey's life, available in a 1481 translation by William Caxton.

Godfrey being elected ruler of Jerusalem. From

a thirteenth century manuscript of

William of Tyre's Histoire d'Outremer

William of Tyre tells us how, after his expulsion of the Turks from Jerusalem,  Godfrey is elected ruler of the city. Problems arise when the victorious troops start to return home, leaving Godfrey with only a small army. Seeing a chance to retake Jerusalem, the Turks league with Egypt and march on the city. But Godfrey cunningly frightens them away by spreading out his troops to create the illusion that they are more numerous.

The death of Godfrey. From

a thirteenth century manuscript 

of William of Tyre's Histoire

d'Outremer

Godfrey then has to rescue Jerusalem from a famine. He does this by so impressing his Arab neighbours with his virtue that they are inspired to donate food. But he then dies of a sickness at the end of the book.

If you are interested, you can read William of Tyre's narrative here, in a rather handsome edition created by William Morris's Kelmscott Press.

Whatever the exact plot of The Second Part of Godfrey of Bouillon was, its premiere was a great success, with box office suggesting an almost full house.

FURTHER READING

Godfrey of Bouillon information

• Andrew Gurr, Shakespeare's Opposites: The Admiral's Company, 1594-1625 (Cambridge University Press, 2009), 205-6
• Martin Wiggins, British Drama, 1533-1642: A Catalogue, vol. 3 (Oxford University Press, 2013), entry 960.

Henslowe links

• Transcript of this page of the Diary (from W.W. Greg's 1904 edition)
• Facsimile of this page of the Diary (from the Henslowe-Alleyn Digitisation Project)

Comments?

Did I make a mistake? Do you have a question? Have you anything to add? Please post a comment below!