John Manningham (1570s – 1622) was an English lawyer and diarist, a contemporary source for

Elizabethan era The Elizabethan era is the epoch in the Tudor period of the history of England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558–1603). Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history. The symbol of Britannia (a female personific ...

and

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 ...

life and the London dramatic world, including

William Shakespeare 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 ...

Life

He was son of Robert Manningham of

Fen Drayton Fen Drayton is a small village between Cambridge and St. Ives in Cambridgeshire, England, and between the villages of Fenstanton and Swavesey. The village has a primary school, village hall, tennis courts and football fields, where Drayton Li ...

Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a county in the East of England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the ...

, by his wife Joan, daughter of John Fisher of

Bledlow Bledlow is a village in the civil parish of Bledlow-cum-Saunderton in Buckinghamshire, England. It is about WSW of Princes Risborough, and is on the county boundary with Oxfordshire. The toponym "Bledlow" is derived from Old English and m ...

, Buckinghamshire. He matriculated at Magdalene College, Cambridge around 1592, and graduated B.A. in 1596. On 16 March 1598 he entered as a student in the

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn ...

, and on 7 June 1605 he was called to the degree of an utter barrister. A fellow-student, Edward, son of William Curll and brother of Walter Curll, obtained for him the post of auditor of the court of wards. He was also befriended by a distant relative, Richard Manningham, who, born at St Albans in 1539, made a fortune in London as a mercer, and in his old age retired to

Bradbourne Bradbourne is a village and civil parish in the Derbyshire Dales district of Derbyshire, England. The village is just outside the Peak District National Park, and is 5 miles north of Ashbourne. Bradbourne is also one of the 51 Thankful Villag ...

, near

Maidstone Maidstone is the largest town in Kent, England, of which it is the county town. Maidstone is historically important and lies 32 miles (51 km) east-south-east of London. The River Medway runs through the centre of the town, linking it wi ...

. Richard Manningham died on 25 April 1611, and was buried in

East Malling East Malling is a village in the borough of Tonbridge and Malling, Kent, in the part of the civil parish of East Malling and Larkfield lying south of the A20 road. In 2019 the ward had an estimated population of 5478. History The earliest rec ...

Church, where John Manningham erected a monument to his memory. To John, his sole executor, Richard left his house and lands in

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

Diary

Manningham wrote a diary, preserved among the Harleian Manuscripts in 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 ...

, and first printed by the

Camden Society The Camden Society was a text publication society founded in London in 1838 to publish early historical and literary materials, both unpublished manuscripts and new editions of rare printed books. It was named after the 16th-century antiquary a ...

in 1868, under the editorship of

John Bruce John Bruce may refer to: * Sir John Bruce, 2nd Baronet (before 1671–1711), Commissioner to the Parliament of Scotland; MP * John Bruce (historiographer) (1745–1826), Scottish politician, East India Company historiographer and Secretary to the ...

. It covers the period from January 1602 to April 1603; at the time the writer was a student in the Middle Temple. The work is a medley of anecdotes of London life, political rumours, accounts of sermons, and memoranda of journeys. The gossip respecting Queen Elizabeth's illness and death and the accession of James I is set down in detail, and Manningham often supplies comments on the character of the chief lawyers and preachers of the day. He also gives an account of the performance of Shakespeare's ''

Twelfth Night ''Twelfth Night'', or ''What You Will'' is a romantic comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written around 1601–1602 as a Twelfth Night's entertainment for the close of the Christmas season. The play centres on the twins Vi ...

'' on 2 February 1602 in the Middle Temple Hall, and the Harefield Entertainment of August of that year.

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 ...

first called attention to Manningham's work.J. Payne Collier, ''Annals of the Stage'' (1831), i. 320. The anecdote of Shakespeare's triumph over

Richard Burbage Richard Burbage (c. 1567 – 13 March 1619) was an English stage actor, widely considered to have been one of the most famous actors of the Globe Theatre and of his time. In addition to being a stage actor, he was also a theatre owner, entr ...

in the pursuit of the favors of a lady of doubtful virtue ("William the Conqueror was before Richard III") comes from his entry for 13 March 1602. Sir Thomas Bodley, John Stow,

Sir Thomas Overbury Sir Thomas Overbury (baptized 1581 – 14 September 1613) was an English poet and essayist, also known for being the victim of a murder which led to a scandalous trial. His poem ''A Wife'' (also referred to as ''The Wife''), which depicted the ...

and

Barbara Ruthven Barbara Ruthven (died 1625) was a Scottish courtier and favourite of Anne of Denmark, expelled from court after the death of her brother. Barbara Ruthven was a daughter of William Ruthven, 1st Earl of Gowrie and Dorothea Stewart, the oldest daug ...

are also occasionally mentioned.

Family

Manningham married, about 1607, Ann, sister of his friend Curll. They had three sons and three daughters. Walter Curll, by his will of 15 March 1646–7, left legacies to his sister Ann Manningham and her son and his godson Walter.

Notes

;Attribution *

External links

* *
The festival of Twelfth Night in John Manningham's diary
British Library website {{DEFAULTSORT:Manningham, John English diarists English lawyers Year of birth missing 1622 deaths People of the Elizabethan era Alumni of Magdalene College, Cambridge People associated with Shakespeare 16th-century English writers 16th-century male writers 17th-century English writers 17th-century English male writers Harleian Collection 17th-century English lawyers 16th-century English lawyers People from South Cambridgeshire District