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''The History of Sir Francis Drake'' was a hybrid theatrical entertainment, a
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 ...
or "operatic tableau" with an English
libretto A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major li ...
written by Sir
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 ...
and music by
Matthew Locke Matthew Locke may refer to: * Matthew Locke (administrator) (fl. 1660–1683), English Secretary at War from 1666 to 1683 * Matthew Locke (composer) (c. 1621–1677), English Baroque composer and music theorist * Matthew Locke (soldier) (1974–2 ...
. The masque was most likely first performed in 1659 and produced by Davenant. As with his earlier ''
The Siege of Rhodes ''The Siege of Rhodes'' is an opera written to a text by the impresario William Davenant. The score is by five composers, the vocal music by Henry Lawes, Matthew Locke, and Captain Henry Cooke, and the instrumental music by Charles Coleman and G ...
'' (
1656 Events January–March * January 5 – The First War of Villmergen, a civil war in the Confederation of Switzerland pitting its Protestant and Roman Catholic cantons against each other, breaks out but is resolved by March 7. The ...
) and ''
The Cruelty of the Spaniards in Peru ''The Cruelty of the Spaniards in Peru'' was an innovative 1658 theatrical presentation, a hybrid entertainment or masque or "operatic show", written and produced by Sir William Davenant. The music was composed by Matthew Locke. The work was sig ...
'' (
1658 Events January–March * January 13 – Edward Sexby, who had plotted against Oliver Cromwell, dies in the Tower of London. * January 30 – The " March Across the Belts" (''Tåget över Bält''), Sweden's use of winte ...
), Davenant cast ''The History of Sir Francis Drake'' as a musical drama to avoid the
Puritan The Puritans were English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to purify the Church of England of Roman Catholic practices, maintaining that the Church of England had not been fully reformed and should become more Protestant. ...
prohibition of stage plays during the
English Commonwealth The Commonwealth was the political structure during the period from 1649 to 1660 when England and Wales, later along with Ireland and Scotland, were governed as a republic after the end of the Second English Civil War and the trial and execu ...
era. The three Davenant works were important in the evolution of English opera and musical theatre, and heralded the coming revival of drama with the Restoration of 1660.


History and propaganda

Like ''The Cruelty'', Davenant's ''Drake'' was not only tolerated but even encouraged by Lord Protector
Oliver Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three ...
, for its value as anti-Spanish propaganda. (The English had been at war with Spain since 1655.) Davenant exploited Drake as an English national hero and a symbol of an expansionist foreign policy. He drew his narrative materials from Philip Nichols's ''Sir Francis Drake Revived'' (1626; reprinted 1652). Davenant's text deals with Drake's adventures on the northeastern coast of South America during his expedition of 1572. At one point, Davenant shows Drake allying himself with the "Symerons" or Cimaroons, escaped slaves of Surinam who had formed their own independent society. (Though Davenant's ''Drake'' has been classified as "pseudo-history," this part of the story is based on fact — though Davenant displaces the Cimaroons to Peru.) As in ''The Cruelty'', the English in ''Drake'' are presented as a humane alternative to the brutal and rapacious Spanish.


Music

Only one piece of music from the score of ''Drake'' has survived — a "Symeron" dance composed by
Matthew Locke Matthew Locke may refer to: * Matthew Locke (administrator) (fl. 1660–1683), English Secretary at War from 1666 to 1683 * Matthew Locke (composer) (c. 1621–1677), English Baroque composer and music theorist * Matthew Locke (soldier) (1974–2 ...
. Locke was one of the composers who worked on ''The Siege of Rhodes'', and perhaps on ''The Cruelty'' too.Ian Spink, ''Henry Lawes: Cavalier Songwriter'', Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2000; p. 111.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:History of Sir Francis Drake, The English-language operas 1659 operas 1659 plays Masques by William Davenant Operas Operas by Matthew Locke Cultural depictions of Francis Drake Anti-Spanish sentiment