The ''Hermit's Welcome at Theobalds'' was an entertainment for

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England and List of Irish monarchs, Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is ...

performed in May 1591, based around a

Hermit A hermit, also known as an eremite (adjectival form: hermitic or eremitic) or solitary, is a person who lives in seclusion. Eremitism plays a role in a variety of religions. Description In Christianity, the term was originally applied to a Ch ...

. The verses of the ''Hermit's Welcome'' were recited at

Theobalds Theobalds House (also known as Theobalds Palace) in the parish of Cheshunt in the English county of Hertfordshire, was a significant stately home and (later) royal palace of the 16th and early 17th centuries. Set in extensive parkland, it was a r ...

, possibly by

Sir Robert Cecil Robert Cecil, 1st Earl of Salisbury, (1 June 156324 May 1612), was an English statesman noted for his direction of the government during the Union of the Crowns, as Tudor England gave way to Stuart rule (1603). Lord Salisbury served as the ...

, son of the owner of the house. The hermit welcomed the queen in front of the house with the words, "My sovereign lady and most gracious queen: Be not displeased that one so meanly clad: Presumes to stand thus boldly in the way: That leads into this house accounted yours". The speech discusses the possible retirement of

William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley (13 September 15204 August 1598) was an English statesman, the chief adviser of Queen Elizabeth I for most of her reign, twice Secretary of State (1550–1553 and 1558–1572) and Lord High Treasurer from 1 ...

from public life. A manuscript of the Hermit's verses, once in the possession of the theatre historian

John Payne Collier John Payne Collier (11 January 1789, London – 17 September 1883, Maidenhead) was an English Shakespearean critic and forger. Reporter and solicitor His father, John Dyer Collier (1762–1825), was a successful journalist, and his connection ...

, is held by the

British Library The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom and is one of the largest libraries in the world. It is estimated to contain between 170 and 200 million items from many countries. As a legal deposit library, the British ...

. Some revisions to the text may possibly be in Robert Cecil's hand. The entertainment involved a mock charter, dated 10 May 1591 and signed by

Christopher Hatton Sir Christopher Hatton KG (1540 – 20 November 1591) was an English politician, Lord Chancellor of England and a favourite of Elizabeth I of England. He was one of the judges who found Mary, Queen of Scots guilty of treason. Early years Sir ...

, from the "disconsolate and retired spirit, the Heremite of Tyboll", who was leaving after two years and two months at Theobalds to retire to his old cave. The elapse of time may refer to the death of Burghley's wife,

Mildred Cooke Mildred Cecil, Baroness Burghley (née Cooke; 1526 – 4 April 1589) was an English noblewoman and translator in the sixteenth century. She was the wife of William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley, the most trusted adviser of Elizabeth I, and the mother ...

in 1589. Other speeches were made by the gardener and molecatcher at Theobalds, possibly on a subsequent day. The gardener describes a plot divided into four quarters, including a maze of flowers representing the virtues. An arbour constructed of eglantine flowers at "my master's conceit" symbolised the queen's chastity or virgin state. The garden was laid out after the molecatcher had cleared the ground. During the work, a box containing a jewel was found, which was presented to the queen as

treasure trove A treasure trove is an amount of money or coin, gold, silver, plate, or bullion found hidden underground or in places such as cellars or attics, where the treasure seems old enough for it to be presumed that the true owner is dead and the hei ...

. The jewel had been buried in ancient times by the daughter of a giant who had been transformed into a mole. It would be found when England had been ruled by a Virgin Queen for 33 years. The prophecy was written on the box:

I was a giant's daughter of this isle,
Turned to a mole by the Queen of Corn:
My jewel I did bury by a wile,
Again never from the earth to be torn,
Till a virgin had reigned thirty-three years,
Which shall be but the fourth part of her years.

Records of the expenses of the royal visit survive in the Cecil papers and the National Archives. It used to be thought that George Peele was the author of the entertainment. The Hermit of Theobalds delivered another oration to Queen Elizabeth in 1594. The prose speech refers again to the great age of William Cecil (1520-1598) and his son Robert Cecil, author of the entertainment, "although his experience and judgement be no way comparable yet, he hath some things in him like the child of such a parent". The Hermit offered the Queen a gold bell, a prayer book garnished with gold, and a wax candle of new virgin wax "meet for a Virgin Queen". In July 1606

James VI and I James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until ...

and his brother-in-law

Christian IV of Denmark Christian IV (12 April 1577 – 28 February 1648) was King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Holstein and Schleswig from 1588 until his death in 1648. His reign of 59 years, 330 days is the longest of Danish monarchs and Scandinavian mon ...

came to Theobalds and were welcomed with

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 ...

's '' The Entertainment of the Kings of Great Britain and Denmark''.Martin Butler, ''The Stuart Court Masque and Political Culture'' (Cambridge, 2008), pp. 125-7: Clare McManus, 'When is woman not a woman?', ''Modern Philology'', 105 (2008), pp. 437-74.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hermit's Welcome at Theobalds Elizabeth I European court festivities Masques 1591 plays