This article contains information about the literary events and publications of 1634.
Events
*
January 1
January 1 or 1 January is the first day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. There are 364 days remaining until the end of the year (365 in leap years). This day is also known as New Year's Day since the day marks the beginning of the yea ...
– The
King's Men perform ''
Cymbeline
''Cymbeline'' , also known as ''The Tragedie of Cymbeline'' or ''Cymbeline, King of Britain'', is a play by William Shakespeare set in Ancient Britain () and based on legends that formed part of the Matter of Britain concerning the early Celti ...
'' at the court of King
Charles I of England
Charles I (19 November 1600 – 30 January 1649) was King of England, Scotland, and Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. He was born into the House of Stuart as the second son of King James VI of Scotland, but after hi ...
.
*
January 22 – The King's Men perform
Davenant's ''
The Wits
''The Wits'' is a Caroline era stage play, a comedy by Sir William Davenant. It was licensed for performance by Sir Henry Herbert, the Master of the Revels, on 19 January 1634; it was staged by the King's Men at the Blackfriars Theatre. It wa ...
'' at the
Blackfriars Theatre
Blackfriars Theatre was the name given to two separate theatres located in the former Blackfriars Dominican priory in the City of London during the Renaissance. The first theatre began as a venue for the Children of the Chapel Royal, child ac ...
in the
City of London
The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London f ...
.
*
February 3 –
James Shirley
James Shirley (or Sherley) (September 1596 – October 1666) was an English dramatist.
He belonged to the great period of English dramatic literature, but, in Charles Lamb's words, he "claims a place among the worthies of this period, not so m ...
's spectacular
masque
The masque was a form of festive courtly entertainment that flourished in 16th- and early 17th-century Europe, though it was developed earlier in Italy, in forms including the intermedio (a public version of the masque was the pageant). A masq ...
''
The Triumph of Peace
''The Triumph of Peace'' was a Caroline era masque, "invented and written" by James Shirley, performed on 3 February 1634 and published the same year. The production was designed by Inigo Jones.
Inspiration
The masque was lavishly sponsored b ...
'' is staged in London. A second performance takes place on February 13.
*
February 6 – Shirley's play ''
The Gamester'' is performed at court.
*
February 18
Events Pre-1600
* 1229 – The Sixth Crusade: Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, signs a ten-year truce with al-Kamil, regaining Jerusalem, Nazareth, and Bethlehem with neither military engagements nor support from the papacy.
*1268 & ...
–
Thomas Carew
Thomas Carew (pronounced as "Carey") (1595 – 22 March 1640) was an English poet, among the 'Cavalier' group of Caroline poets.
Biography
He was the son of Sir Matthew Carew, master in chancery, and his wife Alice, daughter of Sir John Rive ...
's masque ''Coelum Britannicum'' is staged at
Whitehall Palace
The Palace of Whitehall (also spelt White Hall) at Westminster was the main residence of the English monarchs from 1530 until 1698, when most of its structures, except notably Inigo Jones's Banqueting House of 1622, were destroyed by fire. H ...
.
*March – The
Académie française begins life as a project sponsored by
Cardinal Richelieu.
*
February 29
February 29, also known as leap day or leap year day, is a date added to leap years. A leap day is added in various solar calendars (calendars based on the Earth's revolution around the Sun), including the Gregorian calendar standard in mos ...
– Under pressure from the
Duke de Medinaceli,
Francisco de Quevedo
Francisco Gómez de Quevedo y Santibáñez Villegas, Knight of the Order of Santiago (; 14 September 1580 – 8 September 1645) was a Spanish nobleman, politician and writer of the Baroque era. Along with his lifelong rival, Luis de Góngora ...
marries Doña Esperanza de Aragón.
*April
**The first
Théâtre du Marais
The Théâtre du Marais has been the name of several theatres and theatrical troupes in Paris, France. The original and most famous theatre of the name operated in the 17th century. The name was briefly revived for a revolutionary theatre in 1791 ...
is founded at a tennis court in Paris.
**The first
Oberammergau Passion Play
The Oberammergau Passion Play (german: Oberammergauer Passionsspiele) is a passion play that has been performed every 10 years from 1634 to 1674 and each decadal year since 1680 (with a few exceptions) by the inhabitants of the village of Obera ...
is performed in
Bavaria
Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...
.
*
April 7
Events Pre-1600
* 451 – Attila the Hun captures Metz in France, killing most of its inhabitants and burning the town.
* 529 – First ''Corpus Juris Civilis'', a fundamental work in jurisprudence, is issued by Eastern Roman Empe ...
– The King's Men perform
Chapman's ''
Bussy D'Ambois'' at court.
*
April 8 – The tragicomedy ''
The Two Noble Kinsmen
''The Two Noble Kinsmen'' is a Jacobean tragicomedy, first published in 1634 and attributed jointly to John Fletcher and William Shakespeare. Its plot derives from " The Knight's Tale" in Geoffrey Chaucer's '' The Canterbury Tales'', which h ...
'' (first performed about
1614
Events
January–June
* February – King James I of England condemns duels, in his proclamation ''Against Private Challenges and Combats''.
* April 5 – Pocahontas is forced into child marriage with English colonist John Rolfe in Ja ...
) is attributed in the
Stationers' Register in London to the late
John Fletcher and
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
; it is published for the first time later in the year.
*
May 1
Events Pre-1600
* 305 – Diocletian and Maximian retire from the office of Roman emperor.
* 880 – The Nea Ekklesia is inaugurated in Constantinople, setting the model for all later cross-in-square Orthodox churches.
*1169 – N ...
–
Lodowick Carlell
Lodowick Carlell (1602–1675), also Carliell or Carlile, was a seventeenth-century English playwright, was active mainly during the Caroline era and the Commonwealth period.
Courtier
Carlell's ancestry was Scottish. He was the son of Herbe ...
's play ''The Spartan Lady'' is performed, but has since been lost.
*
May 7
Events Pre-1600
* 351 – The Jewish revolt against Constantius Gallus breaks out after his arrival at Antioch.
* 558 – In Constantinople, the dome of the Hagia Sophia collapses, twenty years after its construction. Justinian I imm ...
–
William Prynne
William Prynne (1600 – 24 October 1669), an English lawyer, voluble author, polemicist and political figure, was a prominent Puritan opponent of church policy under William Laud, Archbishop of Canterbury (1633–1645). His views were presbyte ...
is sentenced by the
Star Chamber in England to a £5,000 fine, life imprisonment,
pillorying and clipping of his ears when his ''
Histriomastix
''Histriomastix: The Player's Scourge, or Actor's Tragedy'' is a critique of professional theatre and actors, written by the Puritan author and controversialist William Prynne.
Publication
While the publishing history of the work is not absolutel ...
'' (published
1632
Events
January–March
* January – The Holland's Leaguer (brothel), Holland's Leguer, a brothel in London, is closed after having been besieged for a month.
* February 22 – Galileo Galilei, Galileo's ''Dialogue Conce ...
) is viewed as an attack on King
Charles I of England
Charles I (19 November 1600 – 30 January 1649) was King of England, Scotland, and Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. He was born into the House of Stuart as the second son of King James VI of Scotland, but after hi ...
and Queen
Henrietta Maria
Henrietta Maria (french: link=no, Henriette Marie; 25 November 1609 – 10 September 1669) was Queen of England, Scotland, and Ireland from her marriage to King Charles I on 13 June 1625 until Charles was executed on 30 January 1649. She was ...
.
*
May 21
Events Pre-1600
* 293 – Roman Emperors Diocletian and Maximian appoint Galerius as ''Caesar'' to Diocletian, beginning the period of four rulers known as the Tetrarchy.
* 878 – Syracuse, Sicily, is captured by the Muslim Aghlabi ...
– A play called ''Lisander and Callista'' that is performed is probably a version of the
Fletcher
Fletcher may refer to:
People
* Fletcher (occupation), a person who fletches arrows, the origin of the surname
* Fletcher (singer) (born 1994), American actress and singer-songwriter
* Fletcher (surname)
* Fletcher (given name)
Places
United ...
/
Massinger Massinger is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Philip Massinger
Philip Massinger (1583 – 17 March 1640) was an English dramatist. His finely plotted plays, including '' A New Way to Pay Old Debts'', ''The City Mada ...
collaboration ''
The Lovers' Progress''.
*
July 30
Events Pre-1600
* 762 – Baghdad is founded.
*1419 – First Defenestration of Prague: A crowd of radical Hussites kill seven members of the Prague city council.
* 1502 – Christopher Columbus lands at Guanaja in the Bay Islan ...
– Ben Jonson's final
masque
The masque was a form of festive courtly entertainment that flourished in 16th- and early 17th-century Europe, though it was developed earlier in Italy, in forms including the intermedio (a public version of the masque was the pageant). A masq ...
, ''
Love's Welcome at Bolsover'', is performed at
Bolsover Castle
Bolsover Castle is in the town of Bolsover (), in the north-east of the English county of Derbyshire. Built in the early 17th century, the present castle lies on the earthworks and ruins of the 12th-century medieval castle; the first structure of ...
in the
East Midlands of England.
*''unknown date'' – The first part of
Giambattista Basile
Giambattista Basile (February 1566 – February 1632) was an Italian poet, courtier, and fairy tale collector. His collections include the oldest recorded forms of many well-known (and more obscure) European fairy tales. He is chiefly remembere ...
's
fairy tale collection ''The
Pentamerone
The ''Pentamerone'', subtitled ''Lo cunto de li cunti'' ("The Tale of Tales"), is a seventeenth-century Neapolitan fairy tale collection by Italian poet and courtier Giambattista Basile.
Background
The stories in the ''Pentamerone'' were collec ...
'' (
Neapolitan: ''Lo cunto de li cunti overo lo trattenemiento de peccerille'', "The Tale of Tales, or Entertainment for Little Ones") is published posthumously by his sister Adriana in
Naples
Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...
under the
pseudonym
A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...
Gian Alesio Abbatutis, including ''Cenerentola'', an early version of ''
Cinderella
"Cinderella",; french: link=no, Cendrillon; german: link=no, Aschenputtel) or "The Little Glass Slipper", is a folk tale with thousands of variants throughout the world.Dundes, Alan. Cinderella, a Casebook. Madison, Wis: University of Wisconsi ...
''.
New books
Prose
*
Moses Amyraut
Moïse Amyraut, Latin Moyses Amyraldus (September 1596 – 8 January 1664), in English texts often Moses Amyraut, was a French Huguenot, Reformed theologian and metaphysician. He was the architect of Amyraldism, a Calvinist doctrine that made ...
– ''Traité de la predestination'' (Treatise on predestination)
*
Alonso de Castillo Solórzano – ''La Niña de los embustes, Teresa de Manzanares''
*
Alonso Jerónimo de Salas Barbadillo – ''El Curioso y fabio Alexandro''
*
Francisco de Quevedo
Francisco Gómez de Quevedo y Santibáñez Villegas, Knight of the Order of Santiago (; 14 September 1580 – 8 September 1645) was a Spanish nobleman, politician and writer of the Baroque era. Along with his lifelong rival, Luis de Góngora ...
**''La cuna y la sepultura (The cradle and the sepulchre)'' (22 February)
**Translation of ''La introducción a la vida devota'' (The introduction to a life of devotion) of
Francis of Sales
*
Thomas Herbert – ''Some Yeares Travels into Divers Parts of Asia and Afrique''
*
Johannes Kepler (died 1630) – ''
Somnium'' (written
1608
Events
January–June
*January – In the Colony of Virginia, Powhatan releases Captain John Smith.
*January 2 – The first of the Jamestown supply missions returns to the Colony of Virginia with Christopher Newport commanding ...
)
*
Thomas Muffet (died 1604; comp.) – ''Insectorum sive Minimorum Animalium Theatrum''
*
John Pell – ''Astronomical History of Observations of Heavenly Motions and Appearances''
Children
*Anonymous – ''
Pentamerone
The ''Pentamerone'', subtitled ''Lo cunto de li cunti'' ("The Tale of Tales"), is a seventeenth-century Neapolitan fairy tale collection by Italian poet and courtier Giambattista Basile.
Background
The stories in the ''Pentamerone'' were collec ...
'' (Neapolitan folk tales for young children)
Drama
*
Juan Ruiz de Alarcón
Juan Ruiz de Alarcón (c. 1581 - 4 August 1639) was a New Spain-born Spanish writer of the Golden Age who cultivated different variants of dramaturgy. His works include the comedy '' La verdad sospechosa'' ( es), which is considered a masterpiec ...
– ''La verdad sospechosa'' (published)
*
Richard Brome
Richard Brome ; (c. 1590? – 24 September 1652) was an English dramatist of the Caroline era.
Life
Virtually nothing is known about Brome's private life. Repeated allusions in contemporary works, like Ben Jonson's '' Bartholomew Fair'', in ...
and
Thomas Heywood
Thomas Heywood (early 1570s – 16 August 1641) was an English playwright, actor, and author. His main contributions were to late Elizabethan and early Jacobean theatre. He is best known for his masterpiece '' A Woman Killed with Kindness'', ...
– ''
The Late Lancashire Witches
''The Late Lancashire Witches'' is a Caroline-era stage play and written by Thomas Heywood and Richard Brome, published in 1634. The play is a topical melodrama on the subject of the witchcraft controversy that arose in Lancashire in 1633.
Perfo ...
''
*
William Davenant
Sir William Davenant (baptised 3 March 1606 – 7 April 1668), also spelled D'Avenant, was an English poet and playwright. Along with Thomas Killigrew, Davenant was one of the rare figures in English Renaissance theatre whose career spanned b ...
**''
The Wits
''The Wits'' is a Caroline era stage play, a comedy by Sir William Davenant. It was licensed for performance by Sir Henry Herbert, the Master of the Revels, on 19 January 1634; it was staged by the King's Men at the Blackfriars Theatre. It wa ...
''
**''Love and Honour,'' also known as ''The Courage of Love''
**''The Temple of Love'' (
masque
The masque was a form of festive courtly entertainment that flourished in 16th- and early 17th-century Europe, though it was developed earlier in Italy, in forms including the intermedio (a public version of the masque was the pageant). A masq ...
)
*
Lope de Vega – '
*
John Ford
John Martin Feeney (February 1, 1894 – August 31, 1973), known professionally as John Ford, was an American film director and naval officer. He is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers of his generation. He ...
(and
Thomas Dekker?) – ''
Perkin Warbeck'' published
*Thomas Heywood – ''A Maidenhead Well Lost'' published
*
Ben Jonson
Benjamin "Ben" Jonson (c. 11 June 1572 – c. 16 August 1637) was an English playwright and poet. Jonson's artistry exerted a lasting influence upon English poetry and stage comedy. He popularised the comedy of humours; he is best known for t ...
– ''
Love's Welcome at Bolsover''
*
John Milton – ''
Comus
In Greek mythology, Comus (; grc, Κῶμος, ''Kōmos'') is the god of festivity, revels and nocturnal dalliances. He is a son and a cup-bearer of the god Dionysus. He was represented as a winged youth or a child-like satyr and represents ana ...
'' (
masque
The masque was a form of festive courtly entertainment that flourished in 16th- and early 17th-century Europe, though it was developed earlier in Italy, in forms including the intermedio (a public version of the masque was the pageant). A masq ...
)
*
Thomas Nabbes – ''Tottenham Court''
*
James Shirley
James Shirley (or Sherley) (September 1596 – October 1666) was an English dramatist.
He belonged to the great period of English dramatic literature, but, in Charles Lamb's words, he "claims a place among the worthies of this period, not so m ...
**''
The Example
''The Example'' is a Caroline era stage play, a comedy written by James Shirley, first published in 1637. The play has repeatedly been acclaimed both as one of Shirley's best comedies and one of the best works of its generation. And it provides ...
''
**''
The Opportunity
''The Opportunity'' is a Caroline era stage play, a comedy written by James Shirley, published in 1640. The play has been called "a capital little comedy, fairly bubbling over with clever situations, and charming character."
''The Opportunity' ...
''
**''
The Triumph of Peace
''The Triumph of Peace'' was a Caroline era masque, "invented and written" by James Shirley, performed on 3 February 1634 and published the same year. The production was designed by Inigo Jones.
Inspiration
The masque was lavishly sponsored b ...
'' (masque)
Poetry
*
Richard Crashaw
Richard Crashaw (c. 1613 – 21 August 1649) was an English poet, teacher, High Church Anglican cleric and Roman Catholic convert, who was one of the major metaphysical poets in 17th-century English literature.
Crashaw was the son of a famous ...
– ''Epigrammatum sacrorum liber'' ("A Book of Sacred Epigrams", in
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
)
*
Lope de Vega
**''La Gatomaquia'' ("The catfight")
**'
*
William Habington
William Habington (4 November 1605 – 30 November 1654) was an English poet.
Life
Habington was born at Hindlip Hall, Worcestershire, and belonged to a well-known Catholic family. His father, Sir Thomas Habington, an antiquary and historical sc ...
– ''Castara'' (published anonymously)
*
Johann von Rist – ''Musa Teutonica''
Births
*
January 16 –
Dorothe Engelbretsdotter, Norwegian poet (died
1716
Events
January–March
* January 16 – The application of the Nueva Planta decrees to Catalonia make it subject to the laws of the Crown of Castile, and abolishes the Principality of Catalonia as a political entity, conclud ...
)
*
March 18
Events Pre-1600
* 37 – Roman Senate annuls Tiberius' will and proclaims Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ''(aka Caligula = Little Boots)'' emperor.Tacitus, ''Annals'' V.10.
* 1068 – An earthquake in the Levant and the Ara ...
–
Madame de la Fayette
Marie-Madeleine Pioche de La Vergne, Comtesse de La Fayette (baptized 18 March 1634 – 25 May 1693), better known as Madame de La Fayette, was a French writer; she authored ''La Princesse de Clèves'', France's first historical novel and one ...
, French novelist (died
1693
Events
January–March
* January 11 – 1693 Sicily earthquake: Mount Etna erupts, causing a devastating earthquake that affects parts of Sicily and Malta.
* January 22 – A total lunar eclipse is visible across North and South Ame ...
)
*
April 6
Events Pre–1600
*46 BC – Julius Caesar defeats Caecilius Metellus Scipio and Marcus Porcius Cato (Cato the Younger) at the Battle of Thapsus.
* 402 – Stilicho defeats the Visigoths under Alaric in the Battle of Pollentia.
*13 ...
–
Pierre Thomas, French scholar and memoirist (died
1698
Events
January–March
* January 1 – The Abenaki tribe and Massachusetts colonists sign a treaty, ending the conflict in New England.
* January 4 – The Palace of Whitehall in London, England is destroyed by fire.
* January 23 ...
)
*
July 14
Events Pre-1600
* 982 – King Otto II and his Frankish army are defeated by the Muslim army of al-Qasim at Cape Colonna, Southern Italy.
* 1223 – Louis VIII becomes King of France upon the death of his father, Philip II.
* 142 ...
–
Pasquier Quesnel
Pasquier Quesnel, CO (14 July 1634 – 2 December 1719) was a French Jansenist theologian.
Life
Quesnel was born in Paris, and, after graduating from the Sorbonne with distinction in 1653, he joined the French Oratory in 1657. There he soon ...
, French theologian (died
1719)
*
December 15
Events Pre-1600
* 533 – Vandalic War: Byzantine general Belisarius defeats the Vandals, commanded by King Gelimer, at the Battle of Tricamarum.
* 687 – Pope Sergius I is elected as a compromise between antipopes Paschal and Theodor ...
–
Thomas Hansen Kingo, Danish poet, hymnist and bishop (died
1703
In the Swedish calendar it was a common year starting on Thursday, one day ahead of the Julian and ten days behind the Gregorian calendar.
Events
January–March
* January 9 – The Jamaican town of Port Royal, a center of trade ...
)
Deaths
*
May 12
Events Pre-1600
* 254 – Pope Stephen I succeeds Pope Lucius I, becoming the 23rd pope of the Catholic Church, and immediately takes a stand against Novatianism.
* 907 – Zhu Wen forces Emperor Ai into abdicating, ending the Tang d ...
–
George Chapman
George Chapman (Hitchin, Hertfordshire, – London, 12 May 1634) was an English dramatist, translator and poet. He was a classical scholar whose work shows the influence of Stoicism. Chapman has been speculated to be the Rival Poet of Shakesp ...
, English dramatist, poet and translator (born c. 1559)
*
June 25
Events Pre-1600
* 524 – The Franks are defeated by the Burgundians in the Battle of Vézeronce.
* 841 – In the Battle of Fontenay-en-Puisaye, forces led by Charles the Bald and Louis the German defeat the armies of Lothair I of ...
–
John Marston, English dramatist (born
1576
Year 1576 ( MDLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
January–June
* January 20 – Viceroy Martín Enríquez de Almanza founds the settlement of León ...
)
*
August 9
Events Pre-1600
*48 BC – Caesar's Civil War: Battle of Pharsalus: Julius Caesar decisively defeats Pompey at Pharsalus and Pompey flees to Egypt.
* 378 – Gothic War: Battle of Adrianople: A large Roman army led by Emperor Valens ...
–
William Noy
William Noy (1577 – 9 August 1634) was an English jurist.
He was born on the family estate of Pendrea in St Buryan, Cornwall. He left Exeter College, Oxford, without taking a degree, and entered Lincoln's Inn in 1594. From 1603 until his d ...
, English jurist and legal writer (born
1577
__NOTOC__
Year 1577 ( MDLXXVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
January–June
* January 9 – The second Union of Brussels is formed, first without the ...
)
*
August 23
Events Pre-1600
*30 BC – After the successful invasion of Egypt, Octavian executes Marcus Antonius Antyllus, the eldest son of Mark Antony, and Caesarion, the last king of the Ptolemaic dynasty of Egypt and only child of Julius Cae ...
''(bur.)'' –
Tomos Prys
Tomos Prys (c.1564–1634) was a Welsh soldier, sailor and poet. He was the eldest son of Ellis Price MP, of Plas Iolyn, Pentrefoelas, Denbighshire.
Life
He followed a seafaring life for many years, joining expeditions under both Sir Walter Ral ...
, Welsh-language poet (born c. 1564)
*
December 22
Events Pre-1600
*AD 69 – Vespasian is proclaimed Emperor of Rome; his predecessor, Vitellius, attempts to abdicate but is captured and killed at the Gemonian stairs.
* 401 – Pope Innocent I is elected, the only pope to succeed h ...
–
Matthew Rader
Matthew Rader (also Matthäus, or Mathaeus) (1561 – 22 December 1634) was a Jesuit philologist and historian.
Life
Rader was born in Innichen in Tyrol
Tyrol (; historically the Tyrole; de-AT, Tirol ; it, Tirolo) is a historical re ...
,
Tyrolean philologist and historian (born
1561
Year 1561 ( MDLXI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
January–June
* January 31 – The Edict of Orleans suspends the persecution of the Huguenots in ...
)
References
{{Year in literature article categories
Years of the 17th century in literature