Scadbury Occasion of O" Writinge in One Chamber Twoe Years Synce', As He Claimed to Sir John Puckering Later in a Letter
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SEADBURY copied it out himselt he claimed that it belonged to Marlowe. It had been 'shufled with sorne of myne (unknown to me) by some L6. Scadbury occasion of o" writinge in one chamber twoe years synce', as he claimed to Sir john Puckering later in a letter. Kyd was arrested, sent to Bridewell prison under the authority of the Star Chamber and probably tortured; heresy and atheism were serious charges. The papers found in Kyd's room were labelled: 'vile hereticall Conceipts Denyinge the Deity of Christ our Saviour On 5 May 1593, between rr pm and rz midnight, rude verses Jhesus fownd emongst the papers were pinned on the wall of the Dutch churchyard in London. of Thos kydd prisoner'. In difierent writing was added: During the plague, when hardship was almost impossible to 'which he affirmeth that he had firom Marlowe'. bear, discontent flared against foreign merchants like the Dutch, To do Kyd justice, he may who were earning English 'money. The authorities, anxious to have copied out the treatise for Marlowe; though had been unnoticed keep the peace, visited people who might be responsible for the if it in Kyd's papers for two years then Marlowe could not have valued verses. One of these was Thomas Kyd the playwright, who once it enough to try to find it, or Kyd had hidden shared a room with Kit Marlowe; Kyd had recendy been involved it for some reason. Kyd blamed Marlowe when with writers who were working on a play (about Thomas More) the document was found, but had not previously highlighting Londoners' discontent against foreigners. One verse taken steps to return it to Marlowe. Either Kyd was purposely from it read: keeping sorne of Marlowe's material, or Marlowe had no further use for the document, or both. You strangers that inhabit in this 1an4 The last part of Kit Marlowe's life musr nor be approached understand; Note this same writing, do it with preconceived ideas. Because Greene had earlier accused safeguard of your lives, Conceive it well for Marlowe of atheism and a detractor accused him of it in 1593, it your children and your dearest wives. Your goods, is sometimes assumed that atheism zpas Marlowe's view in 1593, though Kyd specifically said'two years since', laying himself Though the theatres were closed because of the plague, they open to criticism that he had had two years to ger rid of the had briefly opened the previous December, and would be able document. Kyd is usually found to tell some, if not all, of the truth, and no to stage a new play reflecting the public's mood immediately the doubt it was two years since Marlowe had been concerned with disease subsided. the heretical tract. The writing of. Hero and Leander and The authorities dealing with the Dutch churchyard affairs Doctor Faustus, and the deaths of Greene and Watson had happened were instructed to search'chambers, studies, chestes' or other like since then to modify his views. places for al manner of writings or papers that may geve you Because Marlowe's life ended when he was young is easy light for the discoverie of the libellers'. Among Kyd's effects it to forget that death does not mean a person has completed his they discovered a manuscript copy of a ffeatise on the beliefs of development. Though it would be pure speculation to imagine Arius - which they confiscated on grounds of heresy and atheism' what Kit Marlowe might have been ar fifty) the way he was Though this was in a 'noverint's hand', meaning that Kyd had r36 r37 WHO WAS KITMARLOWE? SCADBURY developing at twenty-nine is clear from a comparison of the Walsingham was dead the family was srill highly respected and Damnable Life of Doctor lohn Faustus with Marlowe's Faustus, Frances, Thomas's cousin, was the wife of the popular Earl of showing him softening, not stirring, and of his Hero and Leander Essex. with Shakespeare's Venus and Adonis, showing him as botl more Marlowe must have satisfied the authorities that he was not a polished and more diffident than country-bred Shakespeare. To dangerous heretic as he was allowed to return to Scadbury as pigeon-hole Marlowe as outspoken and 'atheist' does not give long as he reported to their lordships daily. The Privy Council a true picture of the man in 1593, while it could have been true entry for zo May read: of him eighteen months before. John Donne, for example, is This day Christofer Marley of London, gent, being sent for by known as much for his later 'No Man is an Island' serrnon as warrant from their L(ordshi)ps, hath entered his apparance accord- for his love poetry and no one accepts a static picture of Donne inglie for his Indemnity herein; and is commanded to give his daily at twenty-eight as the man who was preaching. Marlowe was attendance on their L(ordships), untill he shalbe lycensed to the changing at twenty-nine, even if he was only eighteen months Contrary. away from his earlier excesses. It is Kit Marlowe's tragedy that when the Arian tract was found in Kyd's papers he was close He had to attend daily until he was licensed to the contrary; enough to his outspoken period for this still to be in people's that is, he was not in danger of imminent imprisonment. There minds. was no danger of his revealing secrets of Essex's espionage service !7hile Kyd was in Bridewell prison, Kit Marlowe was at Scad- under torture, and the Cecils could anyway have found this out bury Thomas Walsingham's home outside London, where they by applying pressure on Anthony Bacon who was Lord Burleigh,s missed the mainstream of the plague. Not all playwrights and nephew. poets had such a helpful accommodating patron, and Kyd envied The fact that Kit Marlowe had done some secret-agent work Marlowe his well-connected friend. The authorities knew where in r587-the year before the Armada attacked England-does to find Marlowe when they went to apprehend him. $ilho told not mean that he was still seriously involved with this kind of them? Kyd? government service in 1593. The main reason for the intense On 18 May a Henry Maunder received a warrant for the ap- espionage network of Sir Francis Walsingham had disappeared prehension of Christopher Marlowe, according to a Privy Council with the defeat of the Armada, though there were scares of entry. It read: further Spanish attacks. Essex was building up his network, but this was aimed at making himself superior to the Cecils in eueen Warrant to Henry Maunder one of the Messengers of her Ma"" Elizabeth's eyes - which he demonstrated by the Lopez afiair the Chamber to repaire to the house of Mr Tho: Walsingham in Kent, next year, making use of Kit Marlowe's play The leza of Malta or to anie other place where he shall understand Christofer Marlow in stirring up support for his accusations against this Portuguese to be remayning, and by vertue hereof to apprehend and bring him Jew. to the Court in his Companie. And in case of need to require ayd. So there was litde reason for the Walsingham household to be Apparendy it had been decided to confront Marlowe with being seriously worried about Marlowe's daily trips to the Privy the owner of tfrre tract. The fact that Marlowe was residing with Council; the heresy charge had not yet been proved nor could Thomas S(zalsingham was in his favour as, though Sir Francis be proved, as the tract was in a'noverint's hand' and the accusa- r38 r39 WHO WAS KIT MARLOWE? SCADBURY tion depended on Kyd's word that the document was Marlowe's Bull, widow; & there passed the time together & dined & after dinner together there walked in the garden belonging - Ky4 who zlcs a noverint, and was imprisoned while Marlowe were in quiet sort & after noon of the same day & merely made daily reports to the Privy Council. to the said house until the sixth hour then returned from the said garden to the room aforesaid & there However, the visits to the Privy Council would be time-con- together and in company supped; & after supper the said Ingram & suming for Marlowe, and made him more vulnerable to an attack Christopher Morley were in,speech & uttered one to the other divers of the plague which he had left London to avoid. This was the malicious words for the reason that they could not be at one nor agree greatest hazard Kyd's accusation: was forced to leave in Marlowe about the payment of the sum of pence, that is, Ie rechnynge, therel the clean air of Scadbury. & the said Christopher Morley then lying upon a bed in the room Originally it was known that Kit Marlowe had died in 1593, where they supped, & moved with anger against the said Ingram ffrysar and that Gabriel Harvey, whose brother was the rector at upon the words aforesaid spoken between them, and the said Ingram Chislehurst, had said that he died of the 'grand disease'. Later then & there sitting in the room aforesaid with his back towards the his detractors - Richard Baines (from a serninary background bed where the said Christopher Morley was then lying, sitting near and though a government informer seemingly with Catholic the bed, that is, nere the bed, & with the front part of his body sympathies) and other assorted Puritans and Catholics over the towards the table & the aforesaid Nicholas Skeres & Robert Poley side the said Ingram in such a nlanner that the next fifteen years - wrote of a shocking death.