Cardell Goodman (also Cardonell) (1649?–1699) was an English actor and adventurer, now known as a Jacobite conspirator.

Early life

He was son of a clergyman of the same name at one time in

Shaftesbury Shaftesbury () is a town and civil parish in Dorset, England. It is situated on the A30 road, west of Salisbury, near the border with Wiltshire. It is the only significant hilltop settlement in Dorset, being built about above sea level on a ...

Dorset Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset (unitary authority), Dors ...

, and on 18 March 1651 removed from the benefice of

Freshwater Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. Although the term specifically excludes seawater and brackish water, it does include ...

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the largest and second-most populous island of England. Referred to as 'The Island' by residents, the Isle of ...

, by order of the council of state. The son went to

St. John's College, Cambridge St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge founded by the Tudor matriarch Lady Margaret Beaufort. In constitutional terms, the college is a charitable corporation established by a charter dated 9 April 1511. The ...

, and proceeded B.A. in 1670. According to his own account, as related by Colley Cibber, he was expelled from the university as one of the hot-heads who cut and defaced a picture of the Duke of Monmouth, then chancellor of the university. Goodman was then in London, and became one of the pages of the back-staircase to Charles II, but after five years' service he was dismissed for negligence. He inherited £2,000 on his father's death, but squandered it.

Actor

Goodman then attached himself to the king's company at

Drury Lane Theatre 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 Drur ...

, and made a stage appearance as Polysperchon in the ''Rival Queens, or Alexander the Great'', 1677. Here, according to Cibber, he made his reputation, and he is mentioned by John Downes as taking the parts of Alexas in

John Dryden '' John Dryden (; – ) was an English poet, literary critic, translator, and playwright who in 1668 was appointed England's first Poet Laureate. He is seen as dominating the literary life of Restoration England to such a point that the per ...

's ''All for Love'', Pharnaces in ''Mithridates, king of Pontus'', by

Nathaniel Lee Nathaniel Lee (c. 1653 – 6 May 1692) was an England, English dramatist. He was the son of Dr Richard Lee, a Presbyterian clergyman who was rector of Hatfield and held many preferments under the Commonwealth of England, Commonwealth; Dr Lee was ...

, acted in 1678, and Valentinian in the tragedy of ''Valentinian'', adapted by the

Earl of Rochester Earl of Rochester is a title that was created twice in the Peerage of England. The first creation came in 1652 in favour of the Royalist soldier Henry Wilmot, 2nd Viscount Wilmot. He had already been created Baron Wilmot, of Adderbury in the Cou ...

from

Beaumont and Fletcher Beaumont and Fletcher were the English dramatists Francis Beaumont and John Fletcher, who collaborated in their writing during the reign of James I (1603–25). They became known as a team early in their association, so much so that their jo ...

's play, and performed at Drury Lane in 1685. The characters in which he won major success were Julius Cæsar and Alexander the Great. Cibber mentions praise he gave Goodman when he was playing the part of the chaplain in Thomas Otway's ''Orphan''. In 1682, when a fusion took place between the duke's and the king's company, he supported Michael Mohun in opposing the united actors, although he joined them about three years later.

Later life

As a proof of his poverty Cibber relates that Philip Griffin and "Scum" Goodman—"as he was styled by his enemies"—were driven to share a bed and shirt, and that a duel was fought on Goodman's appropriating the common clothing out of his turn. He also committed a highway robbery. He was condemned, but speedily pardoned by James II, and returned to the stage a hero. His latter years were rendered more affluent by his becoming the lover of the Duchess of Cleveland, but he was detected in an attempt to poison two of her children, brought to trial for a

misdemeanour A misdemeanor (American English, spelled misdemeanour elsewhere) is any "lesser" criminal act in some common law legal systems. Misdemeanors are generally punished less severely than more serious felonies, but theoretically more so than adm ...

, and fined heavily. In 1688 he withdrew from the stage, and became a gamester, an expert at ombre. Out of gratitude to King James for sparing his life, Goodman became a Jacobite, and on the death of Queen Mary was connected with the

Fenwick–Charnock plot The 1696 Jacobite assassination plot was an unsuccessful attempt led by George Barclay to ambush and kill William III and II of England, Scotland and Ireland in early 1696. Background One of a series of plots by Jacobites to reverse the Glor ...

to kill William III (1695–96). When the scheme was discovered, Goodman, who was committed to the

Gatehouse Prison Gatehouse Prison was a prison in Westminster, built in 1370 as the gatehouse of Westminster Abbey. It was first used as a prison by the Abbot, a powerful churchman who held considerable power over the precincts and sanctuary. It was one of the pri ...

, was offered a free pardon if he would inform against Sir John Fenwick. Fenwick's friends sought him out at the "Fleece" in

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 ...

, and at the "Dog" in Drury Lane. Goodman eventually agreed to accept £500 a year with a residence abroad. He escaped to France, and died there of a fever in 1699, aged about 50.

Nickname

The opprobrious nickname "Scum" was popularised by

Thomas Babington Macaulay Thomas Babington Macaulay, 1st Baron Macaulay, (; 25 October 1800 – 28 December 1859) was a British historian and Whig politician, who served as the Secretary at War between 1839 and 1841, and as the Paymaster-General between 1846 and 184 ...

References

Notes

;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Goodman, Cardell 1640s births 1699 deaths English male stage actors English Jacobites 17th-century English male actors