In this weekly series, the stories, memories, poems and writing from people who lived, worked or wrote about the area of Lewisham are shared.
Chris Moore, Operations Manager of Lewisham Library talks about Christopher Marlowe, dramatist and poet who lived and died violently in Deptford in May 1593 (see Facebook video - link below).
Enjoy Lewisham Voices.
Watch video here
There is much that is known about Christopher Marlowe, (or Kit Marlowe) 26/02/1564 – 30/05/1593, but a lot of conjecture as well. He was an English playwright, poet and translator, he was a contemporary of William Shakespeare, he was born in Canterbury and went to Cambridge University and he died in a bar in Deptford.
It is believed that he was recruited as a spy for the government while at Cambridge (he wouldn't be the first), it is thought he worked for Privy Council member Sir Francis Walsingham as a government secret agent. He wrote and translated poetry, and six dramas have been attributed to him. But did he also collaborate with William Shakespeare as co-author of the three Henry VI plays?
 |
| Novel by Park Honan |
There is much speculation about Marlowe and non-fiction and fiction written about him.
He has been described as a spy, a brawler, a heretic, a homosexual, a magician, duellist, and counterfeiter, and surely some of it must be true? There is some official documentation to confirm what we know about him, but then there is also doubt that the coroners report on his death is accurate.
 |
| Actor Edward Alleyn |
Marlowe's plays are the first to use blank verse and they were very popular during his lifetime, perhaps because they included violence, cruelty, and bloodshed beloved of the Elizabethan audience and perhaps also because his lead actor, was Edward Alleyn, a tall and imposing presence on stage and for whom the roles of Tamburlaine, Faustus and Barabas were probably written.
“Hell
is just a frame of mind.”
Doctor Faustus
“Come live with me, and be my
love;
And we will all the pleasures prove
That hills and valleys, dales and fields,
Woods, or steepy mountain yields.”
The Passionate Shepherd to His LoveAnd we will all the pleasures prove
That hills and valleys, dales and fields,
Woods, or steepy mountain yields.”
Marlowe's plays
Dido, Queen of Carthage 1585-1587
Tamburlaine Part I, Part II 1587–1588
The Jew of Malta 1589-1590
Doctor Faustus 1588-1592
Edward II 1592
The Massacre at Paris 1593
Dido, Queen of Carthage 1585-1587
Tamburlaine Part I, Part II 1587–1588
The Jew of Malta 1589-1590
Doctor Faustus 1588-1592
Edward II 1592
The Massacre at Paris 1593
Marlowe's poetry
Amores, his first translated book containing couplets by Ovid was publicly burned as offensive in 1599
The Passionate Shepherd to His Love,
Hero and Leander 1593, unfinished and was completed by George Chapman, 1598
Pharsalia, Book One, by Lucan with translation by Marlowe. 1593
His death in Deptford at the age of 29 was recorded in the Coroners report found in 1925 as death from a stab wound after a fight with Ingram Frizer over the bill or 'reckoning' of a days worth of drinking. But rumours have been festering for hundreds of years and his death has been blamed on many different reasons including a drunken fight, disloyalty to the church, homosexual intrigue, professional jealousy, and because he was a spy.
Watch the video for details of Christopher Marlowe's life and death, and look out for the interview with Anna Sayburn Lane next week who has written a thriller featuring Marlowe.
 |
| Plaque in St Nicholas's Church Deptford |
Christopher Marlowe is buried in an unmarked grave in St. Nicholas's Church, Deptford, London, England. There is a memorial plaque to him on the wall of the churchyard.
Comments