John Tatham ( fl. 1632–1664) was an English

dramatist A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays. Etymology The word "play" is from Middle English pleye, from Old English plæġ, pleġa, plæġa ("play, exercise; sport, game; drama, applause"). The word "wright" is an archaic English ...

of the mid-17th century. He was a strong

Cavalier The term Cavalier () was first used by Roundheads as a term of abuse for the wealthier royalist supporters of King Charles I and his son Charles II of England during the English Civil War, the Interregnum, and the Restoration (1642 – ). It ...

Hatreds

Little is known of Tatham personally. He was a Cavalier, with a hatred of the

Puritans 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. P ...

and of the Scots – he went so far as to invent a dialect that he claimed was the Scots vernacular.

Poems and stage works

''Fancy's Theatre'', a collection of his poems, was published in 1640. It included an elegy on the dramatist John Day. In the years 1657–64, Tatham produced eight pageants for the annual London

Lord Mayor's Show The Lord Mayor's Show is one of the best-known annual events in London as well as one of the longest-established, dating back to the 13th century. A new lord mayor is appointed every year, and the public parade that takes place as his or her in ...

, seven of which were entitled ''London's Triumph''). He also wrote ''London's Glory'', an entertainment to celebrate the return of King Charles II to London at 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 ...

. This was performed on 5 July 1660. Among the known plays by John Tatham are: *''Love Crowns the End'' (1632; printed 1646) *''The Distracted State'' (1641; printed 1651) *''The Scots Figgaries, or a Knot of Knaves'' (printed 1652) *''The Rump'' (printed 1660).

Legacy

In 1682,

Aphra Behn Aphra Behn (; bapt. 14 December 1640 – 16 April 1689) was an English playwright, poet, prose writer and translator from the Restoration era. As one of the first English women to earn her living by her writing, she broke cultural barrie ...

adapted ''The Rump'' as a play of her own, ''The Roundheads''.

Sources

*John Tatham, ''The Dramatic Works of John Tatham''. James Maidment and W. H. Logan, eds. London, H. Southeran, 1879 *

External links

Tatham, in ''The Cambridge History of English and American Literature''.
English dramatists and playwrights Writers from London English male dramatists and playwrights Year of birth missing Year of death missing {{England-writer-stub