The Duke Of Milan
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''The Duke of Milan'' is a
Jacobean era The Jacobean era was the period in English and Scottish history that coincides with the reign of James VI of Scotland who also inherited the crown of England in 1603 as James I. The Jacobean era succeeds the Elizabethan era and precedes the Ca ...
stage play, a
tragedy Tragedy (from the grc-gre, τραγῳδία, ''tragōidia'', ''tragōidia'') is a genre of drama based on human suffering and, mainly, the terrible or sorrowful events that befall a main character. Traditionally, the intention of tragedy ...
written by
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 Madam'', and '' The Roman Actor'', are noted for their satire and realism, and their politi ...
. First published in 1623, the play is generally considered among the author's finest achievements in drama.


Performance

Massinger's play was first performed in 1621 (performed from 1621–1623); an apparent allusion to the imprisonment of the poet
George Wither George Wither (11 June 1588 O.S. (21 June 1588 NS) – 2 May 1667 O.S. (12 May 1667 NS)) was a prolific English poet, pamphleteer, satirist and writer of hymns. Wither's long life spanned one of the most tumultuous periods in the history of En ...
in Act III, scene 2 makes sense at that point in time. There is no record of a revival of ''The Duke of Milan'' during the
Restoration Restoration is the act of restoring something to its original state and may refer to: * Conservation and restoration of cultural heritage ** Audio restoration ** Film restoration ** Image restoration ** Textile restoration * Restoration ecology ...
era. A heavily adapted version by
Richard Cumberland Richard Cumberland may refer to: * Richard Cumberland (philosopher) (1631–1718), bishop, philosopher * Richard Cumberland (dramatist) (1732–1811), civil servant, dramatist * Richard Cumberland (priest) (1710–1737), Archdeacon of Northa ...
was staged at
Covent Garden Covent Garden is a district in London, on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit-and-vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist si ...
in 1779, but lasted only three performances. Massinger's original was revived by
Edmund Kean Edmund Kean (4 November 178715 May 1833) was a celebrated British Shakespearean stage actor born in England, who performed, among other places, in London, Belfast, New York, Quebec, and Paris.  He was known for his short stature, tumultuo ...
at
Theatre Royal, Drury Lane The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, commonly known as Drury Lane, is a West End theatre and Grade I listed building in Covent Garden, London, England. The building faces Catherine Street (earlier named Bridges or Brydges Street) and backs onto Dr ...
in 1816; Kean hoped to repeat his sensational success as Sir Giles Over-reach in ''
A New Way to Pay Old Debts ''A New Way to Pay Old Debts'' (c. 1625, printed 1633) is an English Renaissance theatre, English Renaissance drama, the most popular play by Philip Massinger. Its central character, Sir Giles Over-reach, became one of the more popular villains ...
'', another Massinger play. Kean, however, was not able to achieve the same result with ''The Duke of Milan''.


Publication

The play was first published in
quarto Quarto (abbreviated Qto, 4to or 4º) is the format of a book or pamphlet produced from full sheets printed with eight pages of text, four to a side, then folded twice to produce four leaves. The leaves are then trimmed along the folds to produc ...
by the stationer Edward Blackmore in 1623. Blackmore had entered the play in the
Stationers' Register The Stationers' Register was a record book maintained by the Stationers' Company of London. The company is a trade guild given a royal charter in 1557 to regulate the various professions associated with the publishing industry, including print ...
with George Norton on 20 January that year as "A play called Sforza, Duke of Millaine, made by Mr. Messenger." Massinger furnished the first edition with a dedication to Katherine Stanhope (c. 1595–1636), the wife of Philip, Lord Stanhope (then Baron of Shelford and future Earl of Chester), a cousin of
Mary Sidney Mary Herbert, Countess of Pembroke (born Sidney, 27 October 1561 – 25 September 1621) was among the first Englishwomen to gain notice for her poetry and her literary patronage. By the age of 39, she was listed with her brother Philip Sidney ...
, Countess of Pembroke, and a sister of
Henry Hastings, 5th Earl of Huntingdon Henry Hastings, 5th Earl of Huntingdon (24 April 1586 – 14 November 1643), was a prominent English nobleman and literary patron in England during the first half of the seventeenth century. Life He was born at Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Leicesters ...
, who was the primary patron of Massinger's longtime collaborator John Fletcher. (Massinger also dedicated his poem ''A New Year's Gift'' to her.) The 1623 quarto also included a commendatory poem signed by "W. B." A second quarto of the play appeared in 1638.


Sources

The play is loosely based on historical events in northern Italy c. 1525, during the Italian wars of
Francis I of France Francis I (french: François Ier; frm, Francoys; 12 September 1494 – 31 March 1547) was King of France from 1515 until his death in 1547. He was the son of Charles, Count of Angoulême, and Louise of Savoy. He succeeded his first cousin once ...
versus
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, french: Charles Quint, it, Carlo V, nl, Karel V, ca, Carles V, la, Carolus V (24 February 1500 – 21 September 1558) was Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria from 1519 to 1556, King of Spain (Crown of Castile, Castil ...
and King of Spain – though Massinger makes no attempt at, and maintains no pretense of, strict historical accuracy. His protagonist, the "supposed Duke of Milan," is called
Ludovico Sforza Ludovico Maria Sforza (; 27 July 1452 – 27 May 1508), also known as Ludovico il Moro (; "the Moor"). "Arbiter of Italy", according to the expression used by Guicciardini,
, though the historical figure of that name predeceased the events of the play by a generation; Massinger conflates him with his son and successor, Francesco Sforza. Massinger's sources for Italian history in the relevant era were William Thomas's ''The History of Italy'' (1561) and
Francesco Guicciardini Francesco Guicciardini (; 6 March 1483 – 22 May 1540) was an Italian historian and statesman. A friend and critic of Niccolò Machiavelli, he is considered one of the major political writers of the Italian Renaissance. In his masterpiece, ''The ...
's ''Historia d'Italia'', most probably in Geoffrey Fenton's translation (third edition, 1618). The plot of the play actually derives from ancient history, specifically the story of
Herod the Great Herod I (; ; grc-gre, ; c. 72 – 4 or 1 BCE), also known as Herod the Great, was a Roman Jewish client king of Judea, referred to as the Herodian kingdom. He is known for his colossal building projects throughout Judea, including his renov ...
as recorded in ''
The Jewish War ''The Jewish War'' or ''Judean War'' (in full ''Flavius Josephus' Books of the History of the Jewish War against the Romans'', el, Φλαυίου Ἰωσήπου ἱστορία Ἰουδαϊκοῦ πολέμου πρὸς Ῥωμαίους ...
'' and ''
Jewish Antiquities ''Antiquities of the Jews'' ( la, Antiquitates Iudaicae; el, Ἰουδαϊκὴ ἀρχαιολογία, ''Ioudaikē archaiologia'') is a 20-volume historiographical work, written in Greek, by historian Flavius Josephus in the 13th year of the re ...
'' by the historian
Josephus Flavius Josephus (; grc-gre, Ἰώσηπος, ; 37 – 100) was a first-century Romano-Jewish historian and military leader, best known for ''The Jewish War'', who was born in Jerusalem—then part of Roman Judea—to a father of priestly d ...
(which Massinger most likely knew in
Thomas Lodge Thomas Lodge (c. 1558September 1625) was an English writer and medical practitioner whose life spanned the Elizabethan and Jacobean periods. Biography Thomas Lodge was born about 1558 in West Ham, the second son of Sir Thomas Lodge, Lo ...
's 1602 translations). ''The Duke of Milan'' also shows a strong debt to
Shakespeare's 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 ...
''
Othello ''Othello'' (full title: ''The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice'') is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare, probably in 1603, set in the contemporary Ottoman–Venetian War (1570–1573) fought for the control of the Island of Cypru ...
,'' for its general plot of a man betrayed by unreasoning jealousy into suspecting his innocent wife and so destroying himself. (''Othello'' was first printed in 1622.) The concluding plot device of the corpse's poisoned kissTanya Pollard, ''Drugs and Theatre in Early Modern England,'' Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2005; pp. 21, 82, 101–2. derives from two earlier plays, ''
The Revenger's Tragedy ''The Revenger's Tragedy'' is an English-language Jacobean revenge tragedy which was performed in 1606, and published in 1607 by George Eld. It was long attributed to Cyril Tourneur, but "The consensus candidate for authorship of ''The Reven ...
'' (1606) and ''
The Second Maiden's Tragedy ''The Second Maiden's Tragedy'' is a Jacobean play that survives only in manuscript. It was written in 1611, and performed in the same year by the King's Men. The manuscript was acquired, but never printed, by the publisher Humphrey Moseley af ...
'' (1611), both probably the work of
Thomas Middleton Thomas Middleton (baptised 18 April 1580 – July 1627; also spelt ''Midleton'') was an English Jacobean playwright and poet. He, with John Fletcher and Ben Jonson, was among the most successful and prolific of playwrights at work in the Jac ...
.


Synopsis

Ludovico Sforza, Duke of Venice, is a forceful and formidable ruler, whose "whole life hath been / But one continu'd pilgrimage through dangers, / Affrights, and horrors...." He has one controlling passion – his overwhelming, uxorious obsession with his wife Marcelia. He treats her with little less than idolatry; and she is affected by his extravagant praises. As one Milanese courtier observes, :::::::...when beauty is ::Stamp'd on great women, great in birth, and fortune, ::And blown by flatterers greater than it is, ::'Tis seldom unaccompanied with pride; ::Nor is she that way free. The duke's mother Isabella and his sister Mariana are especially resentful of Marcelia's dominance at the court; but they have small recourse to remedy their unhappiness. Sforza receives unwelcome news: the French troops of Francis I have been defeated at the
Battle of Pavia The Battle of Pavia, fought on the morning of 24 February 1525, was the decisive engagement of the Italian War of 1521–1526 between the Kingdom of France and the Habsburg empire of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor as well as ruler of Spain, Au ...
by the Spanish armies of Charles V. Since Sforza is an ally of the French, his position is now critical. His friend the Marquis of Pescara comes to counsel him; Pescara recommends that Sforza go directly to the Emperor and make his submission, rather than wait for Spanish troops to show up on his border. Sforza takes his friend's advice. Just before he hurries away, however, he gives a special instruction to his favourite and brother-in-law Francisco; if he, Sforza, does not return alive from the Emperor's camp, Francisco must kill Marcelia. Sforza cannot stand the thought of her ever marrying another man. Sforza goes to confront the Emperor; he behaves with dignity and sincerity, explaining that he maintained his allegiance to the French king out of loyalty for Francis's past support. In honour, he could do nothing else. Charles admires Sforza's forthright manner, and confirms Sforza as Duke of Milan; even Charles's mercenaries are impressed with the Duke...and with the payment he makes to them. Sforza quickly returns to Milan and Marcelia. In his absence, however, Francisco has made sexual advances to Marcelia; when she rebuffs him, he shows her Sforza's written order for her death. Marcelia is deeply offended by this. Francisco palliates Marcelia with an abject apology; when Sforza returns, Marcelia does not inform on the favourite's conduct – but she is notably cool to Sforza, much to his shock and distress. The malicious Mariana and Isabella use this situation to cause dissension, spreading word that Marcelia is unfaithful with Francisco. Sforza rejects the idea; but Francisco, acting on his own motives for revenge, tells the Duke that Marcelia has propositioned him. Enraged, Sforza stabs Marcelia. With her dying breath, Marcelia tells her husband the truth. Francisco flees from the court, confirming his guilt. Sforza is in a "frenzy" of grief at what he has done. To keep the Duke from harming himself or others, the doctors of the court have to convince Sforza that his wife is not yet dead. Francisco is shown with his sister Eugenia; their conversation reveals that Sforza had seduced Eugenia three years earlier, but then abandoned her when he met Marcelia. Francisco has been planning revenge for this affront ever since. His final act in this plan is to disguise himself as a travelling medical man — "A Jew by birth, and a physician" — who can cure the Duke's mental distraction. In this disguise, Francisco agrees to maintain the fiction that Marcelia is still alive; he paints her corpse with cosmetics, so cunningly that she appears to live again. Seeing the made-up body, Sforza kisses his late wife – and is poisoned by the toxic cosmetics. Francisco scorns the tortures that await him, and exults as Sforza dies.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Duke of Milan, The English Renaissance plays 1620s plays Plays by Philip Massinger Milan in fiction