Augustine Phillips
Encyclopedia
Augustine Phillips was an Elizabethan
actor
who performed in troupes with Edward Alleyn
and William Shakespeare
. He was one of the first generation of English actors to achieve wealth and a degree of social status by means of his trade.
Phillips first enters the historical record as a member of the amalgamation of Lord Strange's Men
and the Admiral's Men
that performed The Seven Deadly Sins
(perhaps by Richard Tarlton
) between 1590 and 1592. In the surviving "plot" of this performance, Phillips is assigned the role of Sardanapalus
; he is one of the few actors not required to play a double role. He is named in the touring warrant issued to Strange's Men in 1592; after the death of their patron Ferdinando Stanley
he joined the new Lord Chamberlain's Men
, presumably as a sharer.
Phillips remained with the company through its change to the King's Men
and to his death in 1605. Little is known with certainty of his roles with the company, except that he was probably already mature when the company assembled. He appears in the cast lists for Ben Jonson
's Every Man in His Humour
(1598), Every Man Out of His Humour
(1599), and Sejanus
(1603). He may be the author of a jig, Phillips His Slipper, entered for publishing in the Stationers' Register
in 1595.
He was one of the six sharers in the Globe Theatre
when it was built in 1598–9, with a one-eighth share. Over time this made him a comparatively wealthy man, at least as far as Elizabethan actors were concerned. Like Shakespeare, Phillips lived for many years near his occupation in Southwark
, in Paris Garden near the Swan Theatre
, and in Aldgate
; but by the time of his death he owned a house in Mortlake
, in Surrey
.
In 1601, he was the representative of the company called to testify before the Privy Council
about their involvement with the rebellion of the Earl of Essex
; the Chamberlain's Men had been paid by supporters of the Earl to perform Shakespeare's Richard II
before the abortive coup. Phillips' testimony seems to have assuaged whatever anger the court may have felt towards the players; they were not punished, and indeed played for Elizabeth
at Whitehall on 24 February 1601, the night before Essex was executed. (The choice of Phillips as representative is interesting; why him, and not Shakespeare or Burbage? He testified that the Lord Chamberlain's Men had played at the request of Essex's supporters, specifically because they were offered 40 shillings more than their normal fee. This might indicate that Phillips had a role in keeping the financial accounts of the company.)
The evidence suggests a life deeply intertwined with the theater. He was a stepbrother of his fellow King's Man Thomas Pope
, and his sister married another actor, Robert Gough.
Phillips's daughters Magdalen and Rebecca were baptized in the parish of St. Saviour's in Southwark
in 1594 and 1596 respectively. A son, Augustine or Austen, was baptized there in 1601 but buried three years later. Phillips's will, which was signed on 4 May 1605 and probated on 13 May 1605, mentions two other daughters, Anne and Elizabeth, and his wife Anne, plus brothers, sisters, and other relations of a large family. The will includes a number of interesting and revealing bequests:
The musical instruments obviously imply that Phillips was a musician, and as such he was probably involved in the dramatic music used in productions throughout his career.
English Renaissance theatre
English Renaissance theatre, also known as early modern English theatre, refers to the theatre of England, largely based in London, which occurred between the Reformation and the closure of the theatres in 1642...
actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
who performed in troupes with Edward Alleyn
Edward Alleyn
Edward Alleyn was an English actor who was a major figure of the Elizabethan theatre and founder of Dulwich College and Alleyn's School.-Early life:...
and William Shakespeare
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"...
. He was one of the first generation of English actors to achieve wealth and a degree of social status by means of his trade.
Phillips first enters the historical record as a member of the amalgamation of Lord Strange's Men
Lord Strange's Men
Lord Strange's Men was an Elizabethan playing company, comprising retainers of the household of Ferdinando Stanley, Lord Strange . They are best known in their final phase of activity in the late 1580s and early 1590s...
and the Admiral's Men
Admiral's Men
The Admiral's Men was a playing company or troupe of actors in the Elizabethan and Stuart eras...
that performed The Seven Deadly Sins
The Seven Deadly Sins (play)
The Seven Deadly Sins was a two-part play written c. 1585, attributed to Richard Tarlton, and most likely premiered by his company, Queen Elizabeth's Men...
(perhaps by Richard Tarlton
Richard Tarlton
Richard Tarlton , an English actor, was the most famous clown of his era.His birthplace is unknown, but reports of over a century later give it as Condover in Shropshire, with a later move to Ilford in Essex...
) between 1590 and 1592. In the surviving "plot" of this performance, Phillips is assigned the role of Sardanapalus
Sardanapalus
Sardanapalus was, according to the Greek writer Ctesias of Cnidus, the last king of Assyria. Ctesias' Persica is lost, but we know of its contents by later compilations and from the work of Diodorus...
; he is one of the few actors not required to play a double role. He is named in the touring warrant issued to Strange's Men in 1592; after the death of their patron Ferdinando Stanley
Ferdinando Stanley, 5th Earl of Derby
Ferdinando Stanley, 5th Earl of Derby was the son of Henry Stanley, 4th Earl of Derby and Lady Margaret Clifford. According to the will of Henry VIII, his mother was heiress presumptive of Elizabeth I of England from 1578 to her own death in 1596...
he joined the new Lord Chamberlain's Men
Lord Chamberlain's Men
The Lord Chamberlain's Men was a playing company for whom Shakespeare worked for most of his career. Formed at the end of a period of flux in the theatrical world of London, it had become, by 1603, one of the two leading companies of the city and was subsequently patronised by James I.It was...
, presumably as a sharer.
Phillips remained with the company through its change to the King's Men
King's Men (playing company)
The King's Men was the company of actors to which William Shakespeare belonged through most of his career. Formerly known as The Lord Chamberlain's Men during the reign of Queen Elizabeth, it became The King's Men in 1603 when King James ascended the throne and became the company's patron.The...
and to his death in 1605. Little is known with certainty of his roles with the company, except that he was probably already mature when the company assembled. He appears in the cast lists for Ben Jonson
Ben Jonson
Benjamin Jonson was an English Renaissance dramatist, poet and actor. A contemporary of William Shakespeare, he is best known for his satirical plays, particularly Volpone, The Alchemist, and Bartholomew Fair, which are considered his best, and his lyric poems...
's Every Man in His Humour
Every Man in His Humour
Every Man in His Humour is a 1598 play by the English playwright Ben Jonson. The play belongs to the subgenre of the "humours comedy," in which each major character is dominated by an overriding humour or obsession.-Performance and Publication:...
(1598), Every Man Out of His Humour
Every Man Out of His Humour
Every Man out of His Humour is a satirical comedy written by English playwright Ben Jonson, acted in 1599 by the Lord Chamberlain's Men. It is a conceptual sequel to his 1598 comedy Every Man in His Humour...
(1599), and Sejanus
Sejanus
Lucius Aelius Seianus , commonly known as Sejanus, was an ambitious soldier, friend and confidant of the Roman Emperor Tiberius...
(1603). He may be the author of a jig, Phillips His Slipper, entered for publishing in the Stationers' Register
Stationers' Register
The Stationers' Register was a record book maintained by the Stationers' Company of London. The company is a trade guild given a royal charter in 1557 to regulate the various professions associated with the publishing industry, including printers, bookbinders, booksellers, and publishers in England...
in 1595.
He was one of the six sharers in the Globe Theatre
Globe Theatre
The Globe Theatre was a theatre in London associated with William Shakespeare. It was built in 1599 by Shakespeare's playing company, the Lord Chamberlain's Men, and was destroyed by fire on 29 June 1613...
when it was built in 1598–9, with a one-eighth share. Over time this made him a comparatively wealthy man, at least as far as Elizabethan actors were concerned. Like Shakespeare, Phillips lived for many years near his occupation in Southwark
Southwark
Southwark is a district of south London, England, and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Southwark. Situated east of Charing Cross, it forms one of the oldest parts of London and fronts the River Thames to the north...
, in Paris Garden near the Swan Theatre
Swan Theatre
Swan Theatre may refer to:* The Swan , an Elizabethan playhouse* Swan Theatre , a theatre belonging to the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford-upon-Avon, England...
, and in Aldgate
Aldgate
Aldgate was the eastern most gateway through London Wall leading from the City of London to Whitechapel and the east end of London. Aldgate gives its name to a ward of the City...
; but by the time of his death he owned a house in Mortlake
Mortlake
Mortlake is a district of London, England and part of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. It is on the south bank of the River Thames between Kew and Barnes with East Sheen inland to the south. Mortlake was part of Surrey until 1965.-History:...
, in Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
.
In 1601, he was the representative of the company called to testify before the Privy Council
Privy Council of the United Kingdom
Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, usually known simply as the Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the Sovereign in the United Kingdom...
about their involvement with the rebellion of the Earl of Essex
Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex
Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, KG was an English nobleman and a favourite of Elizabeth I. Politically ambitious, and a committed general, he was placed under house arrest following a poor campaign in Ireland during the Nine Years' War in 1599...
; the Chamberlain's Men had been paid by supporters of the Earl to perform Shakespeare's Richard II
Richard II (play)
King Richard the Second is a history play by William Shakespeare believed to be written in approximately 1595. It is based on the life of King Richard II of England and is the first part of a tetralogy, referred to by some scholars as the Henriad, followed by three plays concerning Richard's...
before the abortive coup. Phillips' testimony seems to have assuaged whatever anger the court may have felt towards the players; they were not punished, and indeed played for Elizabeth
Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...
at Whitehall on 24 February 1601, the night before Essex was executed. (The choice of Phillips as representative is interesting; why him, and not Shakespeare or Burbage? He testified that the Lord Chamberlain's Men had played at the request of Essex's supporters, specifically because they were offered 40 shillings more than their normal fee. This might indicate that Phillips had a role in keeping the financial accounts of the company.)
The evidence suggests a life deeply intertwined with the theater. He was a stepbrother of his fellow King's Man Thomas Pope
Thomas Pope (16th-century actor)
Thomas Pope was an Elizabethan actor, a member of the Lord Chamberlain's Men and a colleague of William Shakespeare. Pope was a "comedian and acrobat."-Beginnings:...
, and his sister married another actor, Robert Gough.
Phillips's daughters Magdalen and Rebecca were baptized in the parish of St. Saviour's in Southwark
Southwark
Southwark is a district of south London, England, and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Southwark. Situated east of Charing Cross, it forms one of the oldest parts of London and fronts the River Thames to the north...
in 1594 and 1596 respectively. A son, Augustine or Austen, was baptized there in 1601 but buried three years later. Phillips's will, which was signed on 4 May 1605 and probated on 13 May 1605, mentions two other daughters, Anne and Elizabeth, and his wife Anne, plus brothers, sisters, and other relations of a large family. The will includes a number of interesting and revealing bequests:
- a silver bowl worth £5 to each of the executors, John HemingesJohn HemingesJohn Heminges was an English Renaissance actor. Most noted now as one of the editors of William Shakespeare's 1623 First Folio, Heminges served in his time as an actor and financial manager for the King's Men.-Life:Heminges was born in Droitwich Spa, Worcestershire in 1556...
, Richard BurbageRichard BurbageRichard Burbage was an English actor and theatre owner. He was the younger brother of Cuthbert Burbage. They were both actors in drama....
, and William SlyWilliam SlyWilliam Sly was an actor in English Renaissance theatre, a colleague of William Shakespeare and Richard Burbage in the Lord Chamberlain's Men and the King's Men....
; - a 30-shilling gold piece each to Shakespeare, Henry CondellHenry CondellHenry Condell was an actor in the King's Men, the playing company for which William Shakespeare wrote. With John Heminges, he was instrumental in preparing the First Folio, the collected plays of Shakespeare, published in 1623....
, and Christopher BeestonChristopher BeestonChristopher Beeston was a successful actor and a powerful theatrical impresario in early 17th century London. He was associated with a number of playwrights, particularly Thomas Heywood.-Early life:...
(Beeston is described as Phillips's "servant;" he was almost certainly a former apprentice); - 20 shillings in gold each to Lawrence FletcherLawrence FletcherLawrence Fletcher was a Jacobean actor, and man of mystery. He is listed on the royal patent of 19 May 1603 that transformed the Lord Chamberlain's Men into the King's Men — and he is listed first, with William Shakespeare second and Richard Burbage third; significant, in the hierarchy-mad...
, Robert ArminRobert ArminRobert Armin was an English actor, a member of the Lord Chamberlain's Men. He became the leading comedy actor with the troupe associated with William Shakespeare following the departure of Will Kempe around 1600...
, Alexander CookeAlexander CookeAlexander Cooke was an actor in the King's Men, the acting company of William Shakespeare and Richard Burbage.Edmond Malone introduced the hypothesis, still current though far from certain, that Cooke originated Shakespeare's principal female roles...
, Richard CowleyRichard CowleyRichard Cowley was an actor in English Renaissance theatre, a colleague of William Shakespeare and Richard Burbage in the Lord Chamberlain's Men and the King's Men.Cowley was in the c...
, and Nicholas TooleyNicholas TooleyNicholas Tooley was a Renaissance actor in the King's Men, the acting company of William Shakespeare.Recent research has shown that Tooley was born in late 1582 or early 1583; his birth name was not Tooley but Wilkinson...
; - 40s. to his apprentice James Sands, along with a citternCitternThe cittern or cither is a stringed instrument dating from the Renaissance. Modern scholars debate its exact history, but it is generally accepted that it is descended from the Medieval Citole, or Cytole. It looks much like the modern-day flat-back mandolin and the modern Irish bouzouki and cittern...
, a bandoraBandoraThe Bandora or Bandore is a large long-necked plucked string-instrument that can be regarded as a bass cittern though it does not have the "re-entrant" tuning typical of the cittern. Probably first built by John Rose in England around 1560, it remained popular for over a century...
, and a luteLuteLute can refer generally to any plucked string instrument with a neck and a deep round back, or more specifically to an instrument from the family of European lutes....
, all pending the "expiration of his term of years in his indenture of apprenticehood;" - 40s. to his "late apprentice" Samuel Gilburne, plus Phillips's "mouse-colored" velvet hose, his black taffeta suit and white taffeta doublet, his purple cloak, his sword and dagger, and his bass violViolThe viol is any one of a family of bowed, fretted and stringed musical instruments developed in the mid-late 15th century and used primarily in the Renaissance and Baroque periods. The family is related to and descends primarily from the Renaissance vihuela, a plucked instrument that preceded the...
; - and £5 to be split among the hired men "of the company which I am of."
The musical instruments obviously imply that Phillips was a musician, and as such he was probably involved in the dramatic music used in productions throughout his career.