NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Henry Wriothesley, 3rd Earl of Southampton

Henry Wriothesley, 3rd Earl of Southampton (October 6, 1573 – November 10, 1624), one of William Shakespeare's patrons, was the second son of Henry Wriothesley, 2nd Earl of Southampton, and his wife Mary Browne, daughter of the 1st Viscount Montague. Image File history File links Wriothesley_southampton. ... Image File history File links Wriothesley_southampton. ... Her Majestys Royal Palace and Fortress The Tower of London, more commonly known as the Tower of London (and historically simply as The Tower), is a historic monument in central London, England on the north bank of the River Thames. ... October 6 is the 279th day of the year (280th in leap years). ... Year 1573 was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. ... November 10 is the 314th day of the year (315th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 51 days remaining. ... Events January 24 - Alfonso Mendez, appointed by Pope Gregory XV as Prelate of Ethiopia, arrives at Massawa from Goa. ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... Generally, patronage is the act of supporting or favoring some person, group, or institution. ... Henry Wriothesley, 2nd Earl of Southampton (24 April 1545 â€“ 4 October 1581) was a British noble. ...

Early life

When his father died, he moved to Midhurst, England,and succeeded to the title in 1581, when he became a royal ward, under the immediate care of Lord Burghley. He entered St John's College, Cambridge, in 1585, graduating M.A. in 1589: and his name was entered at Gray's Inn before he left the university. At the age of seventeen he was presented at court, where he was soon counted among the friends of the earl of Essex, and was distinguished by extraordinary marks of the queen's favor. He became a munificent patron of poets: Nashe dedicated his romance of Jack Willon to him, and Gervase Markham his poem on Sir Richard Grenville's last fight. His name is also associated with Barnabe Barnes's Parthenophil and Parthenope, and with the Worlde of Wordes of John Florio, who was for some years in his personal service as teacher of Italian. William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley (13 September 1520 â€“ 4 August 1598), was an English politician, the chief advisor of Queen Elizabeth I for most of her reign (17 November 1558â€“24 March 1603), and Lord High Treasurer from 1572. ... Full name The College of Saint John the Evangelist of the University of Cambridge Motto Souvent me Souvient I Often Remember Named after The Hospital of Saint John the Evangelist, Cambridge, named after John the Evangelist Previous names Incorporates part of what was Merton Hall which no longer exists Established... Entrance to Grays Inn Grays Inn is one of the four Inns of Court in around the Royal Courts of Justice in London, England to which barristers belong and where they are called to the bar. ... Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex (10 November 1566 â€“ 25 February 1601), favourite of Queen Elizabeth I of England, is the best-known of the many holders of the title Earl of Essex. ... Thomas Nashe (November 1567â€“1600?) was an English Elizabethan pamphleteer, poet and satirist. ... Gervase (or Jervis) Markham (1568? - February 1637) was an English poet and writer, best known for his work The English Hus-wife, Containing the Inward and Outward Virtues Which Ought to Be in a Complete Woman first published in London in 1615. ... Sir Richard Grenville (June 6, 1542 â€“ September 10, 1591) (sp. ... Barnabe Barnes (c. ... Giovanni Florio (1553 – ?1625), English writer, was born in London about 1553. ...

Drama and association with Shakespeare

It is as a patron of the drama and especially of Shakespeare that he is best known. "My Lord Southampton and Lord Rutland," writes Rowland White to Sir Robert Sydney in 1599, "come not to the court ... They pass away the time in London merely in going to plays every day" (Sydney Papers, ed. Collins, ii. 132). Venus and Adonis (1593) was dedicated to Southampton in terms expressing respect, but no special intimacy; but in the dedication of Lucrece (1594) the tone is very different. "The love I dedicate to your lordship is without end ... What I have done is yours; what I have to do is yours; being part in all I have, devoted yours." Nicholas Rowe, on the authority of Sir William Davenant, stated in his Life of Shakespeare that Southampton on one occasion gave Shakespeare a present of £1000 to complete a purchase. Robert Sidney, 1st Earl of Leicester (November 19, 1563 - July 13, 1626), second son of Sir Henry Sidney, was a statesman of Elizabethan and Jacobean England. ... Year 1599 was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Monday of the 10-day slower Julian calendar). ... Please wikify (format) this article as suggested in the Guide to layout and the Manual of Style. ... Nicholas Rowe Guilt is the source of sorrow, tis the fiend, Th avenging fiend, that follows us behind, With whips and stings Nicholas Rowe (1674 â€“ 1718), English dramatist, poet and miscellaneous writer, was selected Poet Laureate in 1715. ... William Davenant Sir William Davenant (February 28, 1606 - April 7, 1668), also spelled DAvenant, was an English poet and playwright. ...

Nathan Drake in his Shakespeare and his Times (1819; vol. ii. pp. 62 seq.) first suggested that Lord Southampton was the person to whom the sonnets of Shakespeare were addressed. He set aside Thomas Thorpe's dedication to the "onlie begetter of these ensuing sonnets, Mr W.H.," by adopting the very unusual significance given by George Chalmers to the word begetter, which he takes as equivalent to procurer. Mr W. H. was thus to be considered only as the bookseller who obtained the manuscript. Other adherents of the Southampton theory suggest that the initials H. W. (Henry Wriothesley) were simply reversed for the sake of concealment by the publisher. It is possible in any case that too much stress has been laid on Thomas Thorpe's mystification. Nathan Drake (1766 - 1836), English essayist and physician, son of Nathan Drake, an artist, was born at York. ... Thomas Thorpe (c. ... Title page from 1609 edition of Shake-Speares Sonnets Dedication page from The Sonnets SHAKE-SPEARES SONNETS, or simply The Sonnets comprise a collection of 154 poems in sonnet form written by William Shakespeare that deal with such themes as love, beauty, politics, and mortality. ... George Chalmers (1742 - May 31, 1825), was a Scottish antiquarian and political writer. ...

The chief arguments in favor of the Southampton theory are the agreement of the sonnets with the tone of the dedication of Lucrece, the friendly relations known to have existed between Southampton and the poet, and the correspondence, at best slight, between the energetic character of the earl and that of the young man of the sonnets. Mr Arthur Acheson (Shakespeare and the Rival Poet, 1903) brings much evidence in favor of the theory, first propounded by William Minto, that George Chapman, whose style is parodied by Shakespeare in the 21st sonnet and in Love's Labour's Lost, was the rival poet of the 78th and following sonnets. Mr Acheson goes on to suppose that Chapman's erotic poems were written with a view to gaining Southampton's patronage, and that that nobleman had refused the dedication as the result of Shakespeare's expostulations. The obscurity surrounding the subject is hardly lightened by the dialogue between H. W. and W. S. in Willobie his Avisa, a poem printed in 1594 as the work of Henry Willobie. If the sonnets were indeed addressed to Southampton, the earlier ones urging marriage upon him must have been written before the beginning (1595) of his intrigue with Elizabeth Vernon, cousin of the Earl of Essex, which ended in 1598 with a hasty marriage that brought down Queen Elizabeth's anger on both the contracting parties, who spent some time in the Fleet prison in consequence. The Southampton theory of the sonnets cannot be regarded as proved, and must in any case be considered in relation to other interpretations. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (415x700, 45 KB)Henry Wriothesley, 3rd Earl of Southampton, 1594. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (415x700, 45 KB)Henry Wriothesley, 3rd Earl of Southampton, 1594. ... William Minto (October 10, 1845 - March 1, 1893), Scottish man of letters, was born at Auchintoul, Aberdeenshire. ... This article is about George Chapman the English literary figure; see George Chapman (murderer) for the Victorian poisoner of the same name. ... Title page of the first quarto (1598) Loves Labours Lost is one of William Shakespeares early comedies; it is believed to have been written around 1595-1596 and is probably contemporaneous with Romeo and Juliet and A Midsummer Nights Dream. ... Henry Willobie (or Willoughby) (1575? - 1596?) is the supposed author of a poem called Willobie his Avisa, which derives interest from its possible connection with Shakespeares personal history. ... Elizabeth I redirects here. ... Pray remember ye poor debtors: inmates of the Fleet Prison beg passers by for alms. ...

Earl of Oxford Paternity Theory (Unproven)

Although the 154 numbered verses of Shakespeare’s Sonnets, printed in 1609, have presented "the greatest puzzle of English literature," additional weight is given to the idea that Wriothesley is the dedicatee of the sonnets by author Hank Whittemore in his book The Monument: "Shake-Speares Sonnets" by Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford (Meadow Geese Press, February 2005). Whittemore sets forth a consistent and coherent explanation of the sequence of the sonnets as they follow events from Henry Wriothesley’s life. This interpretation argues that the Sonnets comprise an artistic masterwork that is also nonfiction dressed as fiction -- a dangerous political document from a poet (Edward de Vere under the nom de plume William Shakespeare) who was "tongue-tied by authority". Image File history File links Circle-question-red. ... Image File history File links Unbalanced_scales. ...

According to Whittemore, the Sonnets comprise a "dynastic diary" for posterity by Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford, who created a "living record" (the Sonnets) of his unacknowledged royal son, (whose mother is believed to be Queen Elizabeth I, the “Dark Lady” of the sonnets) Henry Wriothesley, 3rd Earl of Southampton. Oxford records his efforts first to save his son Southampton from being executed for Wriothesley’s part in the Essex Rebellion of 1601 (an effort to displace the queen’s powerful advisor Robert Cecil), and then to free him from his subsequent sentence to life imprisonment.

A crucial aspect of the story is that Secretary of State Robert Cecil held Southampton hostage until the Queen died in 1603 and King James succeeded her. While Cecil retained his power, the new monarch released Henry Wriothesley from his being "supposed as forfeit to a confined doom" in the Tower of London. In exchange, Southampton had to relinquish any claim to the throne, while his father Edward de Vere disappeared behind "William Shakespeare," the pen name he had adopted in 1593 in order to publicly support his son.

The Tudor dynasty was over and the truth would stay buried -- except for "the living record" of Southampton preserved for posterity in the "monument" of Shakespeare’s sonnets. Shortly before the revolt erupted on February 8, 1601 (and collapsed by nightfall), Southampton had arranged for Richard II by "Shakespeare" (and its scene of the deposing of the King) to be staged at the Globe, to rouse support for removing Cecil from his control over the aging Elizabeth. Southampton and Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex were charged with high treason, with Edward de Vere sharing the disgrace and blame.

In the traditional view, the Sonnets appear to record a "love triangle" involving the poet known as "Shakespeare" with his young friend ("the Fair Youth") and his treacherous mistress ("the Dark Lady"), who steals the younger man away. Instead Hank whittemore posits that the sonnets can be read as fact disguised as fiction. The verses can be interpreted to have been arranged to preserve a record of the truth about the political struggle during the final years of Elizabeth I -- when Secretary Robert Cecil held Southampton hostage in the Tower until after the Queen's death and the succession of King James.

Edward de Vere, Earl of Oxford, was the Hamlet-like nobleman who had used "Shakespeare" to support the political goals of Henry Wriothesley, 3rd Earl of Southampton, his unacknowledged son by the Queen. Edward de Vere introduced "Shakespeare" by dedicating "Venus and Adonis" and "The Rape of Lucrece" to Southampton, uniquely linking him to the warrior-like name.

When the Rebellion failed, Oxford was forced to sit in judgment of his son at the trial and vote to condemn him to death for treason. Behind the scenes, however, he labored mightily to save him from execution and gain his freedom:

Oxford and Southampton paid "ransom" by agreeing to remain silent about Southampton's claim to the throne. Cecil held Southampton hostage in the Tower for two years, until the Queen died and James was proclaimed King.

The winners of this struggle got to write the "official" history, but Oxford defiantly built a "monument" of verse to preserve "the living record" of Henry Wriothesley for posterity.

Association with the 2nd Earl of Essex

In 1596 and 1597 Southampton was employed in Essex's expeditions to Cádiz and to the Azores, in the latter of which he distinguished himself by his daring tactics. In 1598 he bad a brawl at court with Ambrose Willoughby, and later in the same year he attended the queen's principal secretary, Sir Robert Cecil, on an embassy to Paris. Events February 5 - 26 catholics crucified in Nagasaki, Japan. ... For other uses, see: 1597 (number). ... Nickname: Tacita de plata (little silver cup) Location within Spain Province CÃ¡diz - Mayor TeÃ³fila MartÃnez (PP) Area - City 12. ... Motto (Portuguese for Rather die free than in peace subjugated) Anthem (national) (local) Capital Ponta Delgada1 Angra do HeroÃsmo2 Horta3 Largest city Ponta Delgada Official languages Portuguese Government Autonomous region - President Carlos CÃ©sar Establishment - Settled 1439 - Autonomy 1976 Area - Total 2,333 kmÂ² (n/a) 911 sq mi... ] The Right Honourable Robert Cecil, 1st Earl of Salisbury, KG, PC (1 June 1563â€“24 May 1612), son of William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley and half-brother of Thomas Cecil, 1st Earl of Exeter, statesman, spymaster and minister to Queen Elizabeth I and King James I. Lord Salisbury is the... City flag City coat of arms Motto: Fluctuat nec mergitur (Latin: Tossed by the waves, she does not sink) Paris Eiffel tower as seen from the esplanade du TrocadÃ©ro. ...

In 1599, during the Nine Years War (1595-1603), he went to Ireland with Essex, who made him general of his horse, but the queen insisted that the appointment be cancelled. Southampton remained on in personal attendance upon the earl, rather than as an officer. During his time in the Irish wars, it was reported to Cecil that he saw most of his active service in bed with a captain Piers Edmunds - he would "cole and hug" his captain in his arms, and "play wantonly" with him. However, Southampton was active during the campaign, and prevented a defeat at the hands of the Irish rebels, when his cavalry drove off an attack at Arklow in County Wicklow. He was deeply involved in Essex's conspiracy against the queen, and in February 1601 was sentenced to death. Cecil obtained the commutation of the penalty to imprisonment for life. Year 1599 was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Monday of the 10-day slower Julian calendar). ... The Nine Years War (Irish: Cogadh na Naoi mBliana) in Ireland took place from 1594 to 1603 and is also known as Tyrones Rebellion. ... During the Nine Years War, Queen Elizabeth I of England was troubled by the need to appoint a new commander for a military campaign in Ireland. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 52. ... Statistics Province: Leinster County Town: Wicklow Code: WW Area: 2,024 kmÂ² Population (2007) 114,676 Website: www. ...

Life under King James I (and VI)

On the accession of James I Southampton resumed his place at court and received numerous honors from the new king. On the eve of the abortive rebellion of Essex he had induced the players at the Globe Theatre to revive Richard II, and on his release from prison in 1603 he resumed his connection with the stage. In 1603 he entertained Queen Anne with a performance of Love's Labour's Lost by Burbage and his company, to which Shakespeare belonged, at Southampton House. James Stuart (19 June 1566 â€“ 27 March 1625) was King of Scots as James VI, and King of England and King of Ireland as James I. He ruled in Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567, when he was only one year old. ... This article is about the Globe Theatre of Shakespeare (commonly known as Shakespeares Globe Theatre) and includes information about both the original and its modern reconstruction. ... Title page of Richard II, from the fifth quarto, published in 1615. ... Anna of Denmark (October 14, 1574 â€“ March 4, 1619) was queen consort of King James I of England and VI of Scotland. ... Unknown artist: Portrait of Richard Burbage, Dulwich Picture Gallery, London Richard Burbage (July 7, 1568 â€“ March 13, 1619) was an actor and theatre owner. ...

He seems to have been a born fighter, and engaged in more than one serious quarrel at court, being imprisoned for a short time in 1603 following a heated argument with Lord Grey of Wilton in front of Queen Anne. Grey, an implacable opponent of the Essex faction was later implicated in the Main and Bye Plots. He was in more serious disgrace in 1621 for his determined opposition to Buckingham. He was a volunteer on the Protestant side in Germany in 1614, and in 1617 he proposed to fit out an expedition against the Barbary pirates. Year 1603 (MDCIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Saturday of the 10-day slower Julian calendar). ... Map showing the position of the Main in Germany The Main (pronounced in German like the English word mine) is a river in Germany, 524 km long (including White Main 574 km), and one of the more significant tributaries of the Rhine river. ... 1621 was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Monday of the 10-day slower Julian calendar). ... The Duke of Buckingham by Rubens George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham (28 August 1592 â€“ 23 August 1628) was a favorite of King James I and VI of England and Scotland, and one of the most rewarded royal courtiers in all history. ... Protestantism is a general grouping of denominations within Christianity. ...

Virginia Company, colonization

Southampton took a considerable share in promoting the colonial enterprises of the time, and was an active member of the Virginia Company's governing council. Although profits proved elusive, his other visions for the Colony based at Jamestown were eventually were accomplished. He was part of a faction within the company with Sir Edwin Sandys, who eventually became the Treasurer, and worked tirelessly to support the struggling venture. In addition to profits, Southampton's faction sought a permanent colony which would enlarge British territory, relieve the nation's overpopulation, and expand the market for English goods. Although profits largely eluded the Virginia Company, and it was dissolved in 1624, the other goals were accomplished. Virginia Company of London Seal The London Company (also called the Virginia Company of London) was an English joint stock company established by royal charter by James I on April 10, 1606 with the purpose of establishing colonial settlements in North America. ... These notable persons have been named Edwin Sandys: Archbishop Edwin Sandys (1516-1588) - Bishop of London, Worcester, Archbishop of York Sir Edwin Sandys (1561-1629) - A founder of the colony of Virginia, son of the above. ...

Henry Wriothesley's name is thought by many to be the origin of the naming of the harbor of Hampton Roads, and the Hampton River. Although named at later dates, similar attribution may involve the town (and later city) of Hampton, Virginia, as well as Southampton County, Virginia and Northampton County. However, the name Southampton was not uncommon in England, including an important port city and an entire region along the southern coast, which was originally part of Hampshire. There are also variations applied in other areas of the English colonies which were not part of the Virginia Company of London's efforts, making the origin of the word and derivations of it as applied in Virginia even more debatable. This view from space in July 1996 shows portions of each of the Seven Cities of Hampton Roads which generally surround the harbor area of Hampton Roads, which framed by the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel visible to the east (right), the Virginia Peninsula subregion to the north (top), and the... The Hampton River is a short tidal estuary which empties into Hampton Roads near its mouth. ... Motto: Americas First Location in the State of Virginia Coordinates: County Independent City Mayor Ross Kearney II Area - City 352. ... Southampton County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia, a state of the United States. ... Northampton County is a county located in the state of Virginia. ... Southampton is a city, unitary authority and major port situated on the south coast of England. ... Hampshire, sometimes historically Southamptonshire or Hamptonshire, (abbr. ...

Later life

In 1624 he and his elder son enrolled themselves as volunteers for the United Provinces of the Netherlands against Spain. Immediately on landing they were attacked with fever, to which both succumbed, the father surviving until the 10th of November 1624.

Images

There exist numerous portraits of Southampton, in which he is depicted with dark auburn hair and blue eyes, compatible with Shakespeare's description of "a man right fair." Sir John Beaumont wrote a well-known elegy in his praise, and Gervase Markham wrote of him in a tract entitled Honor in his Perfection, or a Treatise in Commendation of ... Henry, Earl of Oxenford, Henry, Earle of Southampton, Robert, Earl of Essex (1624). Sir John Beaumont (1583 â€“ April 19, 1627), was an English poet. ...

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