Fulke Greville, 1st Baron Brooke (; 3 October 1554 – 30 September 1628) was an

Elizabethan 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 Roman symbol of Britannia (a female per ...

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator (thought, thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral t ...

dramatist A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays, which are a form of drama that primarily consists of dialogue between characters and is intended for theatrical performance rather than just reading. Ben Jonson coined the term "playwri ...

, and

statesman A statesman or stateswoman is a politician or a leader in an organization who has had a long and respected career at the national or international level, or in a given field. Statesman or statesmen may also refer to: Newspapers United States ...

who served in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...

at various times between 1581 and 1621, when he was raised to the

peerage A peerage is a legal system historically comprising various hereditary titles (and sometimes Life peer, non-hereditary titles) in a number of countries, and composed of assorted Imperial, royal and noble ranks, noble ranks. Peerages include: A ...

. Greville was a capable administrator who served the English Crown under

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England and List of Irish monarchs, Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudo ...

and

James I James I may refer to: People *James I of Aragon (1208–1276) * James I of Sicily or James II of Aragon (1267–1327) * James I, Count of La Marche (1319–1362), Count of Ponthieu * James I, Count of Urgell (1321–1347) *James I of Cyprus (1334� ...

as, successively, treasurer of the navy, chancellor of the exchequer, and commissioner of the Treasury, and who for his services was in 1621 made Baron Brooke, peer of the realm. Greville was granted

Warwick Castle Warwick Castle is a medieval castle developed from a wooden fort, originally built by William I of England, William the Conqueror during 1068. Warwick is the county town of Warwickshire, England, situated on a meander of the River Avon, Warwic ...

in 1604, making numerous improvements. Greville is best known today as the biographer of

Sir Philip Sidney Sir Philip Sidney (30 November 1554 – 17 October 1586) was an English poet, courtier, scholar and soldier who is remembered as one of the most prominent figures of the Elizabethan age. His works include a sonnet sequence, '' Astrophil and ...

, and for his sober poetry, which presents dark and thoughtful views on art, literature, beauty and other philosophical matters.

Life

Fulke Greville, born 3 October 1554, at Beauchamp Court, near

Alcester Alcester ( ) is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon District in Warwickshire, England. It is west of Stratford-upon-Avon, and 7 miles south of Redditch. The town dates back to the times of Roman ...

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Staffordshire and Leicestershire to the north, Northamptonshire to the east, Ox ...

, was the only son of Sir Fulke Greville (1536–1606) and Anne Neville (d. 1583), the daughter of

Ralph Neville, 4th Earl of Westmorland Ralph Neville, 4th Earl of Westmorland KG (21 February 1498 – 24 April 1549), was an English peer and soldier. He was the grandson of Ralph Neville, 3rd Earl of Westmorland, and the father of Henry Neville, 5th Earl of Westmorland. Family ...

. He was the grandson of Sir Fulke Greville (d. 10 November 1559) and Elizabeth Willoughby (buried 15 November 1562), eldest daughter of

Robert Willoughby, 2nd Baron Willoughby de Broke Robert Willoughby, 2nd Baron Willoughby de Broke and ''de jure'' 10th Baron Latimer, (1472 – 10 November 1521) was an English nobleman and soldier. Robert Willoughby was born about 1470–1472 (aged 30 in 1502, 36 in 1506), the son of S ...

, the only other child of the marriage was a daughter, Margaret Greville (1561–1631/2), who married Sir Richard Verney. He was sent in 1564, on the same day as his lifelong friend,

Philip Sidney Sir Philip Sidney (30 November 1554 – 17 October 1586) was an English poet, courtier, scholar and soldier who is remembered as one of the most prominent figures of the Elizabethan era, Elizabethan age. His works include a sonnet sequence, ' ...

, to

Shrewsbury School Shrewsbury School is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in Shrewsbury. Founded in 1552 by Edward VI by royal charter, to replace the town's Saxon collegiate foundations which were disestablished in the sixteenth century, Shrewsb ...

. He then went up to

Jesus College, Cambridge Jesus College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Jesus College was established in 1496 on the site of the twelfth-century Benedictine nunnery of St Radegund's Priory, Cambridge, St ...

in 1568. Sir

Henry Sidney Sir Henry Sidney (20 July 1529 – 5 May 1586) was an English soldier, politician and Lord Deputy of Ireland. Background He was the eldest son of Sir William Sidney of Penshurst (1482 – 11 February 1553) and Anne Pakenham (1511 – 22 Oc ...

, Philip's father, and president of the

Council of Wales and the Marches The Council of Wales and the Marches () or the Council of the Marches, officially the Court of the Council in the Dominion and Principality of Wales, and the Marches of the same was a regional administrative body founded in Shrewsbury. ...

, gave Greville in 1576 a post connected with the court of the

Welsh Marches The Welsh Marches () is an imprecisely defined area along the border between England and Wales in the United Kingdom. The precise meaning of the term has varied at different periods. The English term Welsh March (in Medieval Latin ''Marchia W ...

, but Greville resigned it in 1577 to go to attend the court of

Queen Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudor. Her eventful reign, and its effect on history ...

along with Philip Sidney. There, Greville became a great favourite with the Queen, who valued his sober character and administrative skills. In 1581, he was elected in a by-election as Member of Parliament for

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

. Queen Elizabeth made him secretary to the principality of Wales in 1583. However, he was put out of favour more than once for leaving the country against her wishes. In 1581 at a Whitehall tournament in honour of French ambassadors Greville, Philip Sidney, Philip Howard Earl of Arundel and Frederick Lord Windsor staged an entertainment as the "Four Foster Children of Desire". The ambassadors were working on plans for Elizabeth's marriage to

Francis, Duke of Anjou ''Monsieur'' François, Duke of Anjou and Alençon (; 18 March 1555 – 10 June 1584) was the youngest son of King Henry II of France and Catherine de' Medici. Early years He was scarred by smallpox at age eight, and his pitted face and s ...

. The "Foster Children" laid siege to the "Fortress of Perfect Beautie". After two days of challenges the Children admitted defeat. The entertainment was understood to convey the idea that Elizabeth was unattainable, devised by the opposition to the French marriage. Greville, Philip Sidney and Sir Edward Dyer were members of the "

Areopagus The Areopagus () is a prominent rock outcropping located northwest of the Acropolis in Athens, Greece. Its English name is the Late Latin composite form of the Greek name Areios Pagos, translated "Hill of Ares" (). The name ''Areopagus'' also r ...

", the literary clique which, under the leadership of

Gabriel Harvey Gabriel Harvey (1545 – 11 February 1631) was an English writer. Harvey was a notable scholar, whose reputation suffered from his quarrel with Thomas Nashe. Henry Morley, writing in the ''Fortnightly Review'' (March 1869), has argued that Harve ...

, supported the introduction of classical metres into English verse. Sidney and Greville arranged to sail with

Sir Francis Drake Sir Francis Drake ( 1540 – 28 January 1596) was an English Exploration, explorer and privateer best known for making the Francis Drake's circumnavigation, second circumnavigation of the world in a single expedition between 1577 and 1580 (bein ...

in 1585 in his expedition against the Spanish West Indies, but Elizabeth forbade Drake to take them with him, and also refused Greville's request to be allowed to join Robert Dudley's army in the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

. Philip Sidney, who took part in the campaign, was killed on 17 October 1586. Greville memorialized his beloved friend in ''A Dedication to Sir Philip Sidney''. Greville participated in the

Battle of Coutras The Battle of Coutras, fought on 20 October 1587, was a major engagement in the French Religious Wars between a Huguenot (Protestant) army under Henry of Navarre (the future Henry IV) and a royalist army led by Anne, Duke of Joyeuse. Henry of N ...

in 1587. About 1591 Greville served further for a short time in

Normandy Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...

under King Henry III of Navarre in the

French Wars of Religion The French Wars of Religion were a series of civil wars between French Catholic Church, Catholics and Protestantism, Protestants (called Huguenots) from 1562 to 1598. Between two and four million people died from violence, famine or disease di ...

. This was his last experience of war. Greville represented

in parliament in 1592–1593, 1597, 1601 and 1621. In 1598 he was made

Treasurer of the Navy The Treasurer of the Navy, originally called Treasurer of Marine Causes or Paymaster of the Navy, was a civilian officer of the Royal Navy, one of the principal commissioners of the Navy Board responsible for naval finance from 1524 to 1832. T ...

, and he retained the office through the early years of the reign of James I. Greville was granted

—situated on a bend of the River Avon in

—by King James I in 1604. The castle was in a dilapidated condition when he took possession of it, and he spent £20,000 to restore it. In 1614 he became chancellor and under-treasurer of the exchequer, and throughout the reign, he was a valued supporter of James I, although in 1615 he advocated the summoning of Parliament. In 1618 he became commissioner of the treasury, and in 1621 he was raised to the peerage with the title of

Baron Brooke Baron Brooke is a title in the Peerage of England. It was created in 1621 and was absorbed into the Earldom of Warwick in 1759. History The title was created in 1621 for Fulke Greville, who was already 5th Baron Willoughby de Broke. Greville was ...

, a title which had belonged to the family of his paternal grandmother.

Death and legacy

On 1 September 1628 Greville was stabbed at his house in

Holborn Holborn ( or ), an area in central London, covers the south-eastern part of the London Borough of Camden and a part (St Andrew Holborn (parish), St Andrew Holborn Below the Bars) of the Wards of the City of London, Ward of Farringdon Without i ...

, London, by Ralph Haywood, a servant who believed that he had been cheated by being left out of his master's will. Haywood then turned the knife on himself. Greville's physicians treated his wounds by filling them with pig fat. Rather than disinfecting them, the pig fat turned rancid and infected the wounds, and he died in agony four weeks after the attack. His body was brought back to Warwick, and he was buried in the

Collegiate Church of St Mary, Warwick The Collegiate Church of St Mary is a Church of England parish church in Warwick, Warwickshire, England. It is in the centre of the town just east of the market place. It is Grade I listed, and a member of the Major Churches Network. The churc ...

, and on his tomb was inscribed the epitaph he had composed: Greville has numerous streets named after him in the

Hatton Garden Hatton Garden is a street and commercial zone in the Holborn district of the London Borough of Camden, abutting the narrow precinct of Saffron Hill which then abuts the City of London. It takes its name from Sir Christopher Hatton, a favourit ...

area of Holborn, London (see Hatton Garden#Street names etymologies). A line from ''Chorus Sacerdotum'' from ''Mustapha'' is quoted by

Christopher Hitchens Christopher Eric Hitchens (13 April 1949 – 15 December 2011) was a British and American author and journalist. He was the author of Christopher Hitchens bibliography, 18 books on faith, religion, culture, politics, and literature. He was born ...

in his book

Letters to a Young Contrarian ''Letters to a Young Contrarian'' is Christopher Hitchens' contribution, released in November2001, to the '' Art of Mentoring'' series published by Basic Books. Inspired by his students at The New School in New York City and "a challenge that wa ...

. In 2018 the first-ever festival dedicated to Greville was launched in his home town, Alcester, Warwickshire.

Works

Greville is best known for his biography of Sidney (composed c. 1610–12), which circulated in manuscript with the title ''A Dedication to Sir Philip Sidney''. It was published in 1652 as ''The Life of the Renowned Sir Philip Sidney''. He includes some autobiographical matter in what amounts to a treatise on government. Greville's poetry consists of

closet A closet (especially in North American English usage) is an enclosed space, with a door, used for storage, particularly that of clothes. ''Fitted closets'' are built into the walls of the house so that they take up no apparent space in the roo ...

tragedies A tragedy is a genre of drama based on human suffering and, mainly, the terrible or sorrowful events that befall a main character or cast of characters. Traditionally, the intention of tragedy is to invoke an accompanying catharsis, or a "pain ...

sonnet A sonnet is a fixed poetic form with a structure traditionally consisting of fourteen lines adhering to a set Rhyme scheme, rhyming scheme. The term derives from the Italian word ''sonetto'' (, from the Latin word ''sonus'', ). Originating in ...

s, and poems on political and moral subjects. His style is grave and sententious. Greville's works include: ;Biography *''A Dedication to Sir Philip Sidney'' ;Closet drama *''Alaham'' *''Mustapha'' ;Verse poems *''

Caelica ''Caelica'' or ''Cælica'' is a sequence of 110 sonnets and poems by Fulke Greville, Lord Brooke. Martha F. Crow thinks the large part of the poems youthful work composed before 1586, while the last poems in the series (more serious in tone) were ...

'' in CX Sonnets *''Of Monarchy'' *''A Treatise of Religion'' *''A Treatie of Humane Learning'' *''An Inquisition upon Fame and Honour'' *''A Treatie of Warres'' ;Miscellaneous prose *a letter to an "Honourable Lady", *a letter to Grevill Varney in France, *a short speech delivered on behalf of

Francis Bacon Francis Bacon, 1st Viscount St Alban (; 22 January 1561 – 9 April 1626) was an English philosopher and statesman who served as Attorney General and Lord Chancellor of England under King James I. Bacon argued for the importance of nat ...

Editions

Greville's works were collected and reprinted by

Alexander Balloch Grosart Alexander Balloch Grosart (18 June 182716 March 1899) was a Scottish clergyman and literary editor. He is chiefly remembered for reprinting much rare Elizabethan literature, a work which he undertook because of his interest in Puritan theology. ...

, in 1870, in four volumes. ''Poetry and Drama of Fulke Greville,'' edited by Geoffrey Bullough, was published in 1938. ''The Prose Works of Fulke Greville'', edited by John Gouws, were published in 1986. ''The Selected Poems of Fulke Greville'' edited by

Thom Gunn Thomson William "Thom" Gunn (29 August 1929 – 25 April 2004) was an English poet who was praised for his early verses in England, where he was associated with Movement (literature), The Movement, and his later poetry in America, where he adop ...

, with an afterword by Bradin Cormack, was published in 2009 (University of Chicago Press, .) *''The Tragedy of Mustapha'' (London: Printed by J. Windet for N. Butter, 1609). *''Certaine Learned and Elegant Workes'' (London: Printed by E. Purslowe for H. Seyle, 1633) comprises ''A Treatise of Humane Learning'', ''An Inquisition upon Fame and Honour'', ''A Treatise of Wars'', ''Alaham'', ''Mustapha'', ''Caelica'', ''A Letter to an Honorable Lady'', and ''A Letter of Travel''. *''The Remains of Sir Fvlk Grevill Lord Brooke: Being Poems of Monarchy and Religion: Never Before Printed'' (London: Printed by T. N. for H. Herringman, 1670) comprises ''A Treatise of Monarchy'' and ''A Treatise of Religion''. *''Poems and Dramas of Fulke Greville, First Lord Brooke, 2 volumes'', edited by Geoffrey Bullough (Edinburgh: Oliver & Boyd, 1939; New York: Oxford University Press, 1945) comprises ''Caelica'', ''A Treatise of Humane Learning'', ''An Inquisition upon Fame and Honor'', ''A Treatise of Wars'', ''Mustapha'', and ''Alaham''. *''The Remains: Being Poems of Monarchy and Religion'', edited by G. A. Wilkes (London: Oxford University Press, 1965) comprises ''A Treatise of Monarchy'' and ''A Treatise of Religion''. *''The Prose Works Fulke Greville, Lord Brooke'', edited by John Guows (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1997), published as part of the Oxford English Texts series. A scholarly edition of his prose works, with an authoritative text, together with an introduction, commentary notes, and scholarly apparatus. The principal repository for Fulke Greville's papers is the

British Library The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom. Based in London, it is one of the largest libraries in the world, with an estimated collection of between 170 and 200 million items from multiple countries. As a legal deposit li ...

(Add MSS 54566-54571, the Warwick Manuscripts; letters in the as-yet uncatalogued Earl Cowper mss.). Individual manuscripts of the ''Dedication to Sir Philip Sidney'' are to be found at the Bodleian Library, Oxford (a manuscript formerly owned by Dr. B. E. Juel-Jensen); Trinity College, Cambridge (MSS R.7.32 and 33); and the Shrewsbury Library (MS 295).

Critical reception

Charles Lamb Charles Lamb (10 February 1775 – 27 December 1834) was an English essayist, poet, and antiquarian, best known for his '' Essays of Elia'' and for the children's book '' Tales from Shakespeare'', co-authored with his sister, Mary Lamb (1764� ...

commented on Greville: "He is nine parts Machiavel and Tacitus, for one of Sophocles and Seneca... Whether we look into his plays or his most passionate love-poems, we shall find all frozen and made rigid with intellect." He goes on to speak of the obscurity of expression that runs through all of Greville's poetry. Andrea McCrea sees the influence of

Justus Lipsius Justus Lipsius (Joest Lips or Joost Lips; October 18, 1547 – March 23, 1606) was a Flemish Catholic philologist, philosopher, and humanist. Lipsius wrote a series of works designed to revive ancient Stoicism in a form that would be compatibl ...

in the ''Letter to an Honourable Lady'', but elsewhere detects a scepticism more akin to

Michel de Montaigne Michel Eyquem, Seigneur de Montaigne ( ; ; ; 28 February 1533 – 13 September 1592), commonly known as Michel de Montaigne, was one of the most significant philosophers of the French Renaissance. He is known for popularising the the essay ...

. A rhyming elegy on Greville, published in Henry Huth's ''Inedited Poetical Miscellanies'', brings charges of miserliness against him.

Robert Pinsky Robert Pinsky (born October 20, 1940) is an American poet, essayist, literary critic, and translator. He was the first United States Poet Laureate to serve three terms. Recognized worldwide, Pinsky's work has earned numerous accolades. Pinsky ...

has asserted that this work is comparable in force of imagination to

John Donne John Donne ( ; 1571 or 1572 – 31 March 1631) was an English poet, scholar, soldier and secretary born into a recusant family, who later became a clergy, cleric in the Church of England. Under Royal Patronage, he was made Dean of St Paul's, D ...

Family

Lord Brooke, who never married, left no natural heirs, and his senior (Brooke) barony passed to his cousin and adopted son, Robert Greville (1608–1643), who took the side of

Parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

in the

English Civil War The English Civil War or Great Rebellion was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Cavaliers, Royalists and Roundhead, Parliamentarians in the Kingdom of England from 1642 to 1651. Part of the wider 1639 to 1653 Wars of th ...

, and defeated the

Royalists A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of gover ...

in a skirmish at

Kineton Kineton is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish on the River Dene in south-east Warwickshire, England. The village is part of Stratford-on-Avon (district), Stratford-on-Avon district, and in the United Kingdom Census 2001, 20 ...

in August 1642. Robert was killed during the siege of

Lichfield Lichfield () is a city status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in Staffordshire, England. Lichfield is situated south-east of the county town of Stafford, north-east of Walsall, north-west of ...

on 2 March 1643, having survived the elder Greville by only fifteen years. His other barony (Willoughby de Broke) was inherited by his sister

Margaret Margaret is a feminine given name, which means "pearl". It is of Latin origin, via Ancient Greek and ultimately from Iranian languages, Old Iranian. It has been an English language, English name since the 11th century, and remained popular thro ...

who married Sir Richard Verney. He is recently claimed to have been the lover of

, only on the evidence of a plan by Greville for a shared tomb with his lifelong friend.

Notes

References

Sources

* * * * * *

External links

* *
Fulke Greville, Lord Brooke at the "Luminarium"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brooke, Fulke Greville, 1st Baron 1554 births 1628 deaths Chancellors of the Exchequer of England 16th-century English poets 16th-century English male writers 16th-century Royal Navy personnel 17th-century English poets 17th-century English male writers 17th-century Royal Navy personnel Alumni of Jesus College, Cambridge People educated at Shrewsbury School Knights of the Bath Politicians from Warwickshire Writers from Warwickshire Members of the Parliament of England for Hedon English murder victims Assassinated English politicians Sonneteers Burials at the Collegiate Church of St Mary (Warwick)

Fulke Fulke may refer to: *Fulke Lovell (d. 1285), English bishop *Fulke Greville, 1st Baron Brooke (1554–1628), English poet, dramatist, and statesman * Fulke Greville (1717–1806), English landowner and diplomat *Fulke Greville-Nugent, 1st Baron Grev ...

English MPs 1572–1583 English MPs 1584–1585 English MPs 1586–1587 English MPs 1589 English MPs 1593 English MPs 1597–1598 English MPs 1601 English MPs 1621–1622 English male dramatists and playwrights English male poets Literary peers 5 1 Privy Councillor (Russian Empire) Politicians assassinated in the 17th century People murdered in 1628