'' Brutus '' is a tragedy in five acts by

Voltaire François-Marie Arouet (; 21 November 169430 May 1778) was a French Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment writer, historian, and philosopher. Known by his ''Pen name, nom de plume'' M. de Voltaire (; also ; ), he was famous for his wit, and his ...

. He began work on the play in 1727 in England and completed it in 1729. It premiered on 11 December 1730 in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

Composition

The first part of the work was written in English at

Wandsworth Wandsworth Town () is a district of south London, within the London Borough of Wandsworth southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan The London Plan is the statutory spatial development strategy for the Gre ...

while Voltaire was in England, and it was completed on his return to France. Two and a half years passed before he considered it ready for the stage. Voltaire's lover

Adrienne Lecouvreur Adrienne Lecouvreur (5 April 1692 – 20 March 1730), born Adrienne Couvreur, was a French actress, considered by many as the greatest of her time. Born in Damery, she first appeared professionally on the stage in Lille. After her Paris debut ...

was meant to play the role of Tullie, but she fell ill and died during rehearsals and had to be replaced by Mlle Dangeville. She was only sixteen years old, and her nervousness did not help the reception of the play.

Action

Voltaire drew his material from the legendary story of the first Roman Consul

Lucius Junius Brutus Lucius Junius Brutus ( 6th century BC) was the semi-legendary founder of the Roman Republic, and traditionally one of its first consuls in 509 BC. He was reputedly responsible for the expulsion of his uncle the Roman king Tarquinius Superbus after ...

(509 BC). His son, Titus, falls in love with Tullie, daughter of the last

Etruscan __NOTOC__ Etruscan may refer to: Ancient civilization *The Etruscan language, an extinct language in ancient Italy *Something derived from or related to the Etruscan civilization **Etruscan architecture **Etruscan art **Etruscan cities ** Etrusca ...

king of Rome,

Lucius Tarquinius Superbus Lucius Tarquinius Superbus (died 495 BC) was the legendary seventh and final king of Rome, reigning 25 years until the popular uprising that led to the establishment of the Roman Republic.Livy, ''ab urbe condita libri'', I He is commonly known ...

, and through this relationship is led into betraying Rome. The

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

hands Titus over to his father, who forgives him but insists on his execution to ensure the safety of the

Republic A republic () is a "state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th c ...

.John Paul Renwick: Brutus, in: Dictionnaire Voltaire, Hachette Livre, 1994, p.25

Critical reception

When the play premiered at the

Comédie-Française The Comédie-Française () or Théâtre-Français () is one of the few state theatres in France. Founded in 1680, it is the oldest active theatre company in the world. Established as a French state-controlled entity in 1995, it is the only state ...

on December 11, 1730, audience reaction was mixed. It was criticised for not adhering to the

three unities The classical unities, Aristotelian unities, or three unities represent a prescriptive theory of dramatic tragedy that was introduced in Italy in the 16th century and was influential for three centuries. The three unities are: #''unity of action' ...

and for the harsh attitude of the character of Brutus. Although the play was well-attended, it was taken off the stage after only fifteen performances. The openly republican theme of the play displeased the authorities, and Voltaire's enemies

Prosper Jolyot de Crébillon Prosper Jolyot de Crébillon (13 January 1674 – 17 June 1762) was a French poet and tragedy, tragedian. Biography Crébillon was born in Dijon, where his father, Melchior Jolyot, was Civil law notary, notary-royal. Having been educated at the ...

and the Chevalier de Rohan were actively trying to turn the public against it. Voltaire left Paris to spend some time privately in

Rouen Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine in northern France. It is the prefecture of the Regions of France, region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy and the Departments of France, department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one of ...

. The play enjoyed a revival during the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...

, and the

National Convention The National Convention (french: link=no, Convention nationale) was the parliament of the Kingdom of France for one day and the French First Republic for the rest of its existence during the French Revolution, following the two-year National ...

ordered a performance of Brutus on 2 August 1793 with free admission. in all there were 110 performances at the Comédie-Française between 1730 and 1799.

Printed editions

The first edition was printed in 1731 with Jean-François Josse in Paris, together with a ''Discours sur la Tragédie'' by Voltaire, dedicated to

Lord Bolingbroke Henry St John, 1st Viscount Bolingbroke (; 16 September 1678 – 12 December 1751) was an English politician, government official and political philosopher. He was a leader of the Tories, and supported the Church of England politically des ...

. Thirteen individual editions followed during Voltaire's life, and between 1790 and 1794 twelve further editions were added.

References

External links

''Brutus'', Jean-François Josse, Paris, 1731

complete text of ''Brutus'' on Wikisource

Literature on ''Brutus'', Société des Etudes Voltairiennes

performances of ''Brutus'' on CESAR
{{Voltaire, state=expanded Plays by Voltaire Tragedy plays 1730 in France 1730 plays Cultural depictions of Lucius Junius Brutus Plays set in the 6th century BC