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"faint Catharine", faint Clement', the holie Innocents, and "and fuch like ', Children [boys] be strangelie decked and ap

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parayled, to counterfeit Prieftes, Bisfhopes, and Women, and "fo be ledde with Songes and Dances from house to house, bleffing the people, and gathering of money; and Boyes do finge maffe, and preache in the pulpitt, with fuch other vnfittinge and inconuenient vfages, rather to the deryfyon than "anie true glorie of God, or honor of his fayntes: The Kynges "maieftie therefore, myndinge nothinge fo moche as to aduance "the true glory of God without vain fuperftition, wylleth and "commandeth, that from henceforth all fvch svperftitious ob"feruations be left and clerely extinguished throwout all this "his realme and dominions, for-as moche as the fame doth re"femble rather the vnlawfull fuperftition of gentilitie, than the 66 pvre and fincere religion of Chrifte." With respect to the difguifings of these young fraternities, and their proceffions from house to house with finging and dancing, specified in this edict,

The reader will recollect the old play of Saint Catharine, LUDUS CATHARINE, exhibited at faint Albans abbey in 1160. Strype fays, in 1556, "On Saint Katha"rines day, at fix of the clock at night, "S. Katharine went about the battlements "of S. Paul's church accompanied with "fine finging and great lights. This was "faint Katharine's Proceflion." ECCL. MEM. iii. 309. ch. xxxix. Again, her proceffion, in 1553, is celebrated with five hundred great lights, round faint Paul's fteeple, &c. lbid. p. 51. ch. v. And P. 57. ch. v.

• Among the church-proceffions revived by Queen Mary, that of S. Clement's church, in honour of this faint, was by far the moft fplendid of any in London. Their proceffion to S. Pauls in 1557, "was made very pompous with fourfcore "banners and treamers, and the waits of "the city playing, and threefcore priests "and clarkes in copes. And divers of "the Inns of Court were there, who went

"next the priests, &c." Strype, ubi fupr. iii. 377. ch. xlix.

P In the SYNODUS CARNOTENSIS, under the year 1526, It is ordered, “In "fefto fancti Nicholai, Catharinæ, Inno"centium, aut alio quovis die, prætextu "recreationis, ne Scholaftici, Clerici, Sa"cerdotefve, ftultum aliquod aut ridicu"lum faciant in ecclefia. Denique ab ec"clefia ejiciantur VESTES FATUORUM per"fonas SCENICAS agentium." See Bochellus, Decret. ECCLES. GALL. lib. iv. TIT. vii. C. 43. 44. 46. p. 586. Yet thefe fports feem to nave remained in France fo late as 1585. For in the Synod of Aix, 1585, it is enjoined, "Ceffent in die Sanc"torum Innocentium ludibria omnia et pueriles ac theatrales lufus." Bochell. ibid. C. 45. P. 586. A Synod of Tho. loufe, an. 1590, removes plays, fpectacles, and hiftrionum circulationes, from churches and their cemeteries. Bochell. ibid. lib. iv. TIT. 1. C. 98. p. 560.

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in a very mutilated fragment of a COMPUTUS, or annual Accompt-roll, of faint Swithin's cathedral Priory at Winchester, under the year 1441, a disbursement is made to the finging-boys of the monaftery, who, together with the chorifters of faint Elifabeth's collegiate chapel near that city, were dreffed up like girls, and exhibited their sports before the abbefs and nuns of faint Mary's abbey at Winchester, in the public refectory of that convent, on Innocent's day. "Pro Pueris Eleemofynariæ una "cum Pueris Capellæ fanctæ Elizabethæ, ornatis more puellarum, et faltantibus, cantantibus, et ludentibus, coram domina "Abbatiffa et monialibus Abbathiæ beatæ Mariæ virginis, in “aula ibidem in die fanctorum Innocentium"." And again, in a fragment of an Accompt of the Celerar of Hyde Abbey at Winchester, under the year 1490. "In larvis et aliis indu"mentis Puerorum vifentium Dominum apud Wulfey, et Con"ftabularium Caftri Winton, in apparatu fuo, necnon fubin"trantium omnia monafteria civitatis Winton, in ffefto fancti "Nicholai "." That is, "In furnishing mafks and dreffes for "the boys of the convent, when they vifited the bishop at

In the Register of Wodeloke bishop of Winchefter, the following is an article. among the INJUNCTIONS given to the nuns of the convent of Rumfey in Hampfhire, in confequence of an epifcopal vifitation, under the year 1310." Item pro"hibemus, ne cubent in dormitorio pueri "mafculi cum monialibus, vel foemellæ, "nec per moniales ducantur in Chorum, "dum ibidem divinum officium celebra"tur." fol. 134. In the fame Register thefe Injunctions follow in a literal French translation, made for the convenience of the nuns.

MS. in Archiv. Wulvef. apud Winton. It appears to have been a practice for itinerant players to gain admittance iD to the nunneries, and to play Latin MYSTERIES before the nuns. There is a curious Canon of the COUNCIL of CoLOGNE, in 1549, which is to this effect.

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"Wulvefey-palace, the conftable of Winchefter-caftle, and all "the monasteries of the city of Winchester, on the festival of "faint Nicholas." As to the divine fervice being performed by children on these feafts, it was not only celebrated by boys, but there is an injunction given to the Benedictine nunnery of Godstowe in Oxfordshire, by archbishop Peckham, in the year 1278, that on Innocent's day, the public prayers fhould not any more be faid in the church of that monaftery PER PARVULAS, that is, by little girls'.

The ground-work of this religious mockery of the boy-bishop, which is evidently founded on modes of barbarous life, may perhaps be traced backward at leaft as far as the year 867". At the Conftantinopolitan fynod under that year, at which were present three hundred and feventy-three bishops, it was found to be a folemn cuftom in the courts of princes, on certain stated days, to drefs fome layman in the epifcopal apparel, who should exactly perfonate a bishop both in his tonfure and ornaments: as also to create a burlesque patriarch, who might make sport for the company ". This fcandal to the clergy was anathematised. But ecclefiaftical fynods and cenfures have often proved too weak to fupprefs popular spectacles, which take deep root in the public manners, and are only concealed for a while, to fpring up afresh with new vigour.

After the form of a legitimate stage had appeared in England, MYSTERIES and MIRACLES where alfo revived by queen Mary, as an appendage of the papiftic worship.

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In the year 1556, a goodly ftage-play of the PASSION OF CHRIST was presented at the Grey friers in London, on CorpusChristi day, before the lord mayor, the privy-council, and many great eftates of the realm'. Strype alfo mentions, under the year 1557, a stage-play at the Grey-friers, of the Paffion of Christ, on the day that war was proclaimed in London against France, and in honour of that occafion. On faint Olave's day in the fame year, the holiday of the church in Silver-street which is dedicated to that faint, was kept with much folemnity. At eight of the clock at night, began a ftage-play of goodly matter, being the miraculous hiftory of the life of that faint, which continued four hours, and was concluded with many religious fongs".

Many curious circumstances of the nature of these miracleplays, appear in a roll of the church- wardens of Baffingborne in Cambridgeshire, which is an accompt of the expences and receptions for acting the play of SAINT GEORGE at Baffingborne, on the feast of faint Margaret in the year 1511. They collected upwards of four pounds in twenty-feven neighbouring parishes for furnishing the play. They difburfed about two pounds in the representation. These disbursements are to four minstrels, or waits, of Cambridge for three days, v, s. vj, d. To the players, in bread and ale, iij, s. ij, d. To the garnementman for garnements, and propyrts, that is, for dreffes, decora

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"dance, and an elephant and caftle, and "the Lord and Lady of the May appear. "ed to make up this fhow." Strype, ibid. 376. ch. xlix.

Ludovicus Vives relates, that it was cuftomary in Brabant to prefent annual plays in honour of the refpective faints to which the churches were dedicated and he betrays his great credulity in adding a wonderful ftory in confequence of this cuftom. Nor. in Auguftin. De CIVIT. DEI. lib. xii. cap. 25. C.

The property-room is yet known at our theatres.

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To John

tions, and implements, and for play-books, xx, S. Hobard brotherhoode preefte, that is, a priest of the guild in the church, for the play-book, ij, s. viij d. For the crofte, or field in which the play was exhibited, j, s. For propyrte-making, or furniture, j, s. iv, d. "For fish and bread, and to fetting up the ftages, iv, d." For painting three fanchoms and four tormentors, words which I do not understand, but perhaps phantoms and devils... The reft was expended for a feast on the occafion, in which are recited, "Four chicken for the gentilmen, iv, d." It appears from the manufcript of the Coventry plays, that a temporary fcaffold only, was erected for thefe performances. And Chaucer fays, of Abfolon a parish clerk, and an actor of king Herod's character in these dramas, in the MILLER'S TALE,

And for to fhew his lightneffe and maistry

He playith Herawdes on a SCAFFALD HIE.

Scenical decorations and machinery which employed the genius and invention of Inigo Jones, in the reigns of the first James and Charles, seem to have migrated from the mafques at court to the public theatre. In the inftrument here cited, the priest who wrote the play, and received only two fhillings and eight pence for his labour, feems to have been worse paid in proportion than any of the other perfons concerned. The learned Oporinus,

Mill. T. v. 275. Urr. Mr. Steevens and Mr. Malone have fhewn, that the accommodations in our early regular theatres were but little better. That the old fcenery was very fimple, may partly be collected from an entry in a Computus of Winchefter-college, under the year 1579. viz. COMP. BURS. Coll. Winton. A. D. 1573. Eliz. xv." CUSTUS AULA. Item, pro "diverfis expenfis circa Scaffoldam erigen"dam et deponendam, et pro Domunculis "de novo compofitis cum carriagio et re"carriagio ly joyftes, et aliorum mutuato"rum ad eandem Scaffoldam, cum vj linckes "et jo [uno] duodeno candelarum, pro lu"mine expenfis, tribus noctibus in Ludis

VOL. III.

comediarum et tragediarum, xxv, s. viij, "d." Again in the next quarter, " Pro

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vij ly linckes deliberatis pue is per M. "Informatorem [the fchool-mafter] pro "Ludis, iij, s." Again, in the last quarter, "Pro removendis Organis e templo in "Aulam et præparandis eifdem erga Lu "dos, v, s." By DOMUNCULIS I underftand little cells of board, raised on each fide of the stage, for dreffing rooms, or retiring places. Strype, under the year 1559, fays, that after a grand feaft at Guildhall, "the fame day was a Scaffold "fet up in the hall for a play." ANN. REF. i. 197. edit. 1725.

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