The Songs of Mourning, the Caversham Entertainment for Queen Anne Progressing Bath, First Booke of Ayres, and Second Booke Of
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“Think’st thou to seduce me then?” Katarina A. Karlsson “Think’st thou to seduce me then?” Impersonating female personas in songs by Thomas Campion (1567–1620) Thesis for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Musical Performance and Interpretation (Musikalisk gestaltning) at the Academy of Music and Drama (HSM), Faculty of Fine, Applied and Performing Arts, University of Gothenburg ArtMonitor Doctoral Dissertations and Licentiate Theses No 31 ArtMonitor is a publication series from the Board for Artistic Research (NKU), Faculty of Fine, Applied and Performing Arts, University of Gothenburg Address: ArtMonitor University of Gothenburg Konstnärliga fakultetskansliet Box 141 SE-405 30 Göteborg www.konst.gu.se Proof reading: Robin Blanton Layout: Daniel Flodin Printed by: Ineko AB, Kållered 2011 © Katarina A Karlsson 2011 ISBN: 978-91-978477-9-7 Time line 1564 Shakespeare born 1565 Sir Thomas Mounson born 1566 James I born 1567 Thomas Campion born, Philip Rosseter born (or the year after) 1576 Thomas’s father John Campion dies 1579 Thomas’s mother Lucy Campion dies 1580 Thomas Campion enters Peterhouse, Cambridge as gentleman pensioner 1588 Defeat of the Spanish Armada 1591 Frances Howard born 1592 Shakespeare’s Henry VI, Part 3, performed in Southwark 1592–1602 Twenty-four of Shakespeare’s plays performed in Southwark 1595 Campion’s Poemata published, a book of epigrams in Latin 1601 A Booke of Ayres published by Philip Rosseter including twenty-one songs by Thomas Campion 1602 Campion’s Observations in the Art of English Poesy published, a book against rhyme 1603 Death of Elizabeth I; accession of James VI of Scotland as James I of England, who increases the performances per year for The King’s Men (Shakespeare’s company of actors) from eight to twenty; Shakespeare’s Hamlet printed; the plague strikes London and 30 000 Londoners die; Lord Howard starts building Audley End 1606 Frances Howard marries Lord Essex on January 5 1607 The Lord Hay’s Masque for the Marriage of James Hay and Honora Danny on Twelfth Night printed, Robert Carr knighted and created Gentleman of the King’s Bedchamber 1608 Thomas Overbury knighted; Shakespeare’sKing Lear printed 1611 Shakespeare’s The Tempest; Robert Carr created Viscount of Rochester; the magician and astrologer Simon Forman records seeing Macbeth and A Winter’s Tale at the Globe Theatre 1612 Prince Henry dies; the Globe destroyed by fire 1613 The Lord’s Masque, The Songs of Mourning, The Caversham Entertainment for Queen Anne progressing Bath, First Booke of Ayres, and Second Booke of 5 Ayres; Campion adopted by the Howard family; Thomas Overbury dies; Frances Howard marries Robert Carr 1614 The Description of a Maske 1614 At the Mariage of the Right Honourable the Earle of Somerset: And the right noble the Lady Frances Howard; Lord Suffolk, father of Frances Howard, created Lord Treasurer; A New Way of Making Fowre parts in Counter-point published 1615 Frances Howard and Robert Carr arrested 1616 Frances Howard tried in Westminster Hall on May 24, Shakespeare dies 1617 Third and fourth Booke of Ayres 1618 Lord Suffolk accused of bribery and fraud; Venetian ambassador writes about James I’s love for Lord Villiers 1619 Latin Epigrams published, containing most of the contents of the 1595 edition and adding many more; Lady and Lord Suffolk tried and declared guilty despite their denial 1620 Thomas Campion dies 1623 Philip Rosseter dies 1632 Frances Howard dies 1641 Sir Thomas Mounson dies 1645 Robert Carr dies 6 Exordium I, Philip Rosseter, the King’s musician, have had the best friend a man could ever wish for: Thomas Campion. Yesterday, on the first of March 1620, I buried him at St. Dunstan’s-in-the-West. I wish I had the skill to describe a man like that, which I don’t. But even if the outcome will be inferior to anything he ever wrote, I fear if I do not write about him, no one else will. There is something utterly stupid about a man’s obsession with girls, let alone very young girls. Somehow I sensed already in 1607 that Thomas’s fascination with Frances Howard would be fatal. He was forty and she thirteen. She was a beautiful, wealthy girl, from one of the most influential English families. But still. She was just a girl. She was married to young Lord Essex, and her marriage was one of those occasions that Thomas loved to attend. It was accompanied by a masque at the Royal Palace, and all of the nobility were there. Once again: my friend Thomas Campion was the most intelligent man I have ever met. He had stud- ied law, he wrote poetry in Latin, he was a medical doctor and, like myself, he wrote music. To be honest, music was the only field where I could compete; there I was even better than him. In all other fields I do not have half the wit. But since time might be running out for me as well, I will try to do this while I am still strong enough. Who knows? I might be dead tomorrow. Forgive the stains here. I do not think I was ever enough for him. I see my petty words on this paper knowing he would have put them so much better. But let me just say this: I loved him. I loved him like men love each other, yes verily, like the Bible says about the love between David and Jonathan. Thomas’s love was more valuable to me than any other love, than the love of women. It is no shame, since even the King has his Lord Buckingham, who is as dear to him as Jo- hannes was to Jesus. And that is why it is so painful that a woman should be his ruin. But that is the way it is with women. The first time he saw her, she was only a child. It was in the Palace. She was sitting stiff like a doll at her husband, Lord Essex’s side. 7 “Think’st thou to seduce me then?” Frances Howard was good at sitting absolutely still, even when fast asleep, to sit without falling. It was probably thanks to one of those comfortable whalebone corsets. Four masques she was afforded, and this was the first. Naturally it was not only for her wedding, masques were also Queen Anne’s chief pleasure. Although she was disguised, one always recognized her when she participated in masques, and that was also the intention. Six large pillars miraculously slid in, without anyone dragging them. The pillars opened silently and men with blue veils solemnly entered. The man in the middle wore clothes made of green satin with little mirrors on, and portrayed honor. He read a poem much too intricate for Frances. Probably for me as well, had I been there to hear it. A poem Thomas could have written. When we used to work together, Thomas and I, he wrote the funniest songs I have ever heard, but when he wrote for the court, the words were often too haughty for me. The King, as usual, fingering his codpiece, had one arm around a young man from his escort: The King needed support for his weak legs, they said, but was apparently also needy when he sat (what about when he was lying down?). Frances’s parents were seated at the same table. At the other tables, the guests of lower ranks watched the masque, or talked. The ambassadors in their foreign clothes pranced like peacocks. The only quiet persons were the newly married Essex couple, thirteen and fourteen years old. Everywhere Frances saw exquisite fabrics, velvet, jewelry, sleeves embroi- dered with pearls, just like the ones she planned to order as soon as she had her own household. For after this day she would have her own servants and her own money. She would participate in everything at the court, just like a grown-up woman. That could be worth a dozen boring masques. Never again would she translate old, dusty, Latin verses, let alone having those long, bor- ing lessons at the lute or the virginal. She would gladly consent to dancing lessons and embroidery, but after that! All the fun she would have! No, maybe “pleasantries” was a better word? She was a duchess now and was obliged to show more dignity. — Saddle my horse, sing me some songs, I am bored, comb my hair, fetch the seamstress, I want more gems on my bodice… Frances looked around. There were so may beautiful, noble men. The one at the left table with the mouse-brown hair, who removed a quail bone from the corner of his mouth, for instance. Since he was at the far left of the table she 8 Exordium could see his left leg with the white silk stocking, which enhanced the noble shape of his calf, and the pointed, white satin shoe with its big bronze bow, below his puffy velvet trousers. She belonged to this world and everything in it now. Everything, maybe even everyone, could be hers. There was actually only one person who did not attract her attention and unfortunately it was her husband, Lord Essex, the boy beside her. But soon he would be no trouble at all. Tomorrow he would go abroad and be away for several years. She would not even have to share a bed with him tonight. From the corner of her eye she saw his heavy, indecisive, hanging lower lip, his thick eyelids and long eyelashes. His chubby cheeks looked weird in combination with his thin body rigged out in valuable clothes.