Valentinian (play)
Encyclopedia
Valentinian is a Jacobean era stage play, a revenge tragedy written by John Fletcher
was that originally published in the first Beaumont and Fletcher folio
of 1647
. The play dramatizes the story of Valentinian III
, one of the last of the Roman Emperors, as recorded by the classical historian Procopius
.
, another play of the same era, Fletcher used the second part of the novel Astrée, by Honoré D'Urfé
, as one of his sources; and Part 2 of Astrée was first published in 1610
. The play was performed by the King's Men
; the cast list added to the play in the second Beaumont and Fletcher folio of 1679
mentions Richard Burbage
, Henry Condell
, John Lowin
, William Ostler
, and John Underwood
. Since Ostler died in December 1614, Valentinian must have been written and staged between those two dates.
. His Empire is decadent and collapsing, his soldiers mutinous. Valentinian rapes the virtuous Lucina; she then commits suicide. Lucina's husband, the upright soldier Maximus, devotes himself to obtaining revenge against the Emperor, though his friend Aecius tries to dissuade him. Maximus finally succeeds as Valentinian dies a painful and drawn-out death by poison. Maximus is crowned by the Senate for overthrowing the tyrant, only to die himself soon after.
(Curiously, the play was published with an Epilogue suited to a comedy — an apparent print-shop blunder.)
period. An adaptation under the same title by the poet and playwright John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester
was staged in 1684
at Drury Lane
and published in 1685
. Rochester changed the play's order of scenes and eliminated the final act entirely, making Fletcher's heroine Lucina the central focus of the drama.
A setting by Robert Johnson of the song "Care charming sleep," the text of which is adapted from a sonnet by John Daniel, dates from about the time of the original production. The 1684
adaptation featured music composed by Louis Grabu
.
Modern critics have discussed the play's politics and sexual violence.
John Fletcher (playwright)
John Fletcher was a Jacobean playwright. Following William Shakespeare as house playwright for the King's Men, he was among the most prolific and influential dramatists of his day; both during his lifetime and in the early Restoration, his fame rivalled Shakespeare's...
was that originally published in the first Beaumont and Fletcher folio
Beaumont and Fletcher folios
The Beaumont and Fletcher folios were two large folio collections of the stage plays of John Fletcher and his collaborators. The first was issued in 1647, and the second in 1679. The two collections were important in preserving many works of English Renaissance drama.-The first folio, 1647:The 1647...
of 1647
1647 in literature
The year 1647 in literature involved some significant events.-Events:* Thomas Hobbes becomes tutor to the future Charles II of England.* Plagiarist Robert Baron publishes his Deorum Dona, a masque, and Gripus and Hegio, a pastoral, which draw heavily on the poems of Edmund Waller and John Webster's...
. The play dramatizes the story of Valentinian III
Valentinian III
-Family:Valentinian was born in the western capital of Ravenna, the only son of Galla Placidia and Flavius Constantius. The former was the younger half-sister of the western emperor Honorius, and the latter was at the time Patrician and the power behind the throne....
, one of the last of the Roman Emperors, as recorded by the classical historian Procopius
Procopius
Procopius of Caesarea was a prominent Byzantine scholar from Palestine. Accompanying the general Belisarius in the wars of the Emperor Justinian I, he became the principal historian of the 6th century, writing the Wars of Justinian, the Buildings of Justinian and the celebrated Secret History...
.
Date, source, performance
Scholars date the play to the 1610–14 period. As he did with Monsieur ThomasMonsieur Thomas
Monsieur Thomas is a Jacobean era stage play, a comedy written by John Fletcher that was first published in 1639.-Date and Source:Scholars date the play to the 1610–16 period. Fletcher's source for the play's plot was the second part of the novel Astrée by Honoré d'Urfé, which was first...
, another play of the same era, Fletcher used the second part of the novel Astrée, by Honoré D'Urfé
Honoré d'Urfé
Honoré d'Urfé, marquis de Valromey, comte de Châteauneuf was a French novelist and miscellaneous writer.- Life :...
, as one of his sources; and Part 2 of Astrée was first published in 1610
1610 in literature
The year 1610 in literature involved some significant events.-Events:*Thomas Bodley makes an agreement with the Stationers' Company of London to put a copy of every book registered with them into his new Bodleian.-New books:...
. The play was performed by 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...
; the cast list added to the play in the second Beaumont and Fletcher folio of 1679
1679 in literature
This article lists some of the most significant events of the year 1679 in literature.-Events:*John Locke returns to England from France.*Étienne Baluze becomes almoner to King Louis XIV of France....
mentions Richard Burbage
Richard Burbage
Richard Burbage was an English actor and theatre owner. He was the younger brother of Cuthbert Burbage. They were both actors in drama....
, Henry Condell
Henry Condell
Henry 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....
, John Lowin
John Lowin
John Lowin was an English actor born in the St Giles-without-Cripplegate, London, the son of a tanner. Like Robert Armin, he was apprenticed to a goldsmith. While he is not recorded as a free citizen of this company, he did perform as a goldsmith, Leofstane, in a 1611 city pageant written by...
, William Ostler
William Ostler
William Ostler was an actor in English Renaissance theatre, a member of the King's Men, the company of William Shakespeare....
, and John Underwood
John Underwood (actor)
John Underwood was an early 17th century actor, a member of the King's Men, the company of William Shakespeare.-Career:Underwood began as a boy player with the Children of the Chapel, and was cast in that company's productions of Ben Jonson's Cynthia's Revels and The Poetaster...
. Since Ostler died in December 1614, Valentinian must have been written and staged between those two dates.
The plot
Fletcher portrays Valentinian as a lustful and rapacious tyrant, comparable to the King in The Maid's TragedyThe Maid's Tragedy
The Maid's Tragedy is a play by Francis Beaumont and John Fletcher. It was first published in 1619.The play was one of the earliest works in the canon of Fletcher and his collaborators that was acted by the King's Men; Fletcher would spend most of his career as that company's regular playwright...
. His Empire is decadent and collapsing, his soldiers mutinous. Valentinian rapes the virtuous Lucina; she then commits suicide. Lucina's husband, the upright soldier Maximus, devotes himself to obtaining revenge against the Emperor, though his friend Aecius tries to dissuade him. Maximus finally succeeds as Valentinian dies a painful and drawn-out death by poison. Maximus is crowned by the Senate for overthrowing the tyrant, only to die himself soon after.
(Curiously, the play was published with an Epilogue suited to a comedy — an apparent print-shop blunder.)
After 1660
Like many plays in Fletcher's canon, Valentinian was both revived and adapted during the RestorationEnglish Restoration
The Restoration of the English monarchy began in 1660 when the English, Scottish and Irish monarchies were all restored under Charles II after the Interregnum that followed the Wars of the Three Kingdoms...
period. An adaptation under the same title by the poet and playwright John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester
John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester
John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester , styled Viscount Wilmot between 1652 and 1658, was an English Libertine poet, a friend of King Charles II, and the writer of much satirical and bawdy poetry. He was the toast of the Restoration court and a patron of the arts...
was staged in 1684
1684 in literature
The year 1684 in literature involved some significant events.-Events:* John Banks' historical play The Island Queens, or the Death of Mary Queen of Scotland is banned from the stage; it is produced as The Albion Queens twenty years later ....
at Drury Lane
Theatre Royal, Drury Lane
The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane is a West End theatre in Covent Garden, in the City of Westminster, a borough of London. The building faces Catherine Street and backs onto Drury Lane. The building standing today is the most recent in a line of four theatres at the same location dating back to 1663,...
and published in 1685
1685 in literature
The year 1685 in literature involved some significant events.-Events:* Antoine Furetière is expelled from the French Academy.* in London, the year sees one of the major theatrical flops of the Restoration era: Albion and Albanius — an allegorical drama in praise of Charles II, with text by...
. Rochester changed the play's order of scenes and eliminated the final act entirely, making Fletcher's heroine Lucina the central focus of the drama.
A setting by Robert Johnson of the song "Care charming sleep," the text of which is adapted from a sonnet by John Daniel, dates from about the time of the original production. The 1684
1684 in music
The year 1684 in music involved some significant events.-Events:*Antonio Stradivari makes the Bucher, Cipriani Potter and Cobbett ex Holloway violins.* An adaptation of Fletcher's Valentinian features music composed by Louis Grabu....
adaptation featured music composed by Louis Grabu
Louis Grabu
Louis Grabu, Grabut, Grabue, or Grebus was a Catalan-born, French-trained composer and violinist who was mainly active in England....
.
Critical responses
Critics generally do not place Fletcher's play in the first rank of English Renaissance tragedies; the play has been criticized for "its disunity of plot, structural faults, and support of tyranny...." But the play has been considered influential on the Restoration tragedy that followed.Modern critics have discussed the play's politics and sexual violence.