Admiral’s Men

Originally, the acting company was known as the Lord Howard’s Men, named after their patron, Charles Howard, Earl of Nottingham, and Baron Howard of Effingham (1536-1624), a cousin of Anne Boleyn. His grandfather was the great-grandfather of Elizabeth I. Howard was one of her most influential advisors and became Lord…

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Arbella Stuart

Arbella Stuart (* 1575; † 27 September 1615) was the daughter of Elizabeth Cavendish and Charles Stuart Darnley, making her a direct cousin of James VI of Scotland. Her parents' clandestine marriage defied Elizabeth I’s consent, thrusting Arbella into contention for the English throne. Orphaned early, she was raised by…

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Arianism

In the aftermath of the Dutch Church libel, Thomas Kyd faced arrest. Among his papers, a three-page manuscript1 with purportedly atheistic content was found. Kyd disowned it, attributing it to Marlowe, mistakenly mingled among his own papers during their shared workspace two years prior.2 According to William Dinsmore Briggs, the…

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Baines Note

The most enigmatic and controversial record of Christopher Marlowe is the so-called Baines note. Whether written himself or merely dictated, Richard Baines, the unsuccessful spy from the English College and Flushing, put down on paper A note containing the opinion of on Christopher Marly concerning his damnable Judgment of Religion,…

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Biography

Introduction Christopher Marlowe’s life is largely a negation of everything we think we know about him. Yet a lot of documents exist that shed light on Marlowe’s life. The difficulty, then, is not the lack of materials, but the nature of the information they contain and how it has been…

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Cambridge

Cambridge had about 5,000 inhabitants at the time Marlowe arrived there, of whom over 1,800 were teachers or students at the university.1 Corpus Christi College was the first medieval college in England to be founded not by a ruler or important personage, but by the Guild of St Mary, which…

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Canterbury

Canterbury is on the road from the coast to London. So whoever or whatever wanted to get to the capital stopped there. Since Christianisation, it has also been the seat of the archbishop. In addition, Canterbury became an important place of pilgrimage as the final resting place of Thomas Becket…

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Chamberlain’s Men

Christopher Marlowe was obviously quicker and harderworking than I am. Unfortunately, this post is still a work in progress.

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Deptford

Today Deptford is part of the London borough of Lewisham. In the 16th century, the best way to reach the city was by boat. But you could also take the overland route. Butt Lane (now Deptford High Street) was the main link road to London. West of Deptford the land…

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Dutch Church Libel

At the beginning of 1593, London was hit by a plague epidemic. All those who had the opportunity retreated onto countryside. So did Marlowe, who went to Scadbury to Thomas Walsingham. The outbreak of the plague always meant massive economic changes as well. The affluent customers had left the city,…

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