AEMELIA LANYER

    (1569-1645)

    Aemelia Lanyer was the daughter Baptist Bassano, a court musician who was a native of Venice, and Margaret Johnson.  Her father died when she was just seven years old.  She was left with a small inheritance, which she was to divided with a sister, Angela, upon their mother's death.  A dowry was also put aside for her use upon reaching the age of 21.  Her mother died in 1587.

    Her father's career as a court musician allowed Lanyer access to the court, which in all likelihood was the source of her education.  Unfortunately, her court connections also got her into trouble insofar as she found herself pregnant by Henry Cary, Lord Hudson, who was  the queen's lord chamberlain.  As a result, Aemelia Bassano quickly and quietly married Alfonso Lanyer, one of the queen's musicians, on October 18, 1592.  Her son was born in 1593 and was christened Henry.

    Lanyer had an ongoing relationship with astrologer Simon Forman, whose records indicate that he was interested in her sexually.  A portrait of Lanyer can be constructed from his record books.  He portrays her as a strong-minded and attractive young woman with a wart or mole on her neck, who was prone to miscarriage, and who worried about her husband's success. Alfonso died in 1613, leaving Aemelia to fend for herself.

    After her husband's death, Lanyer founded a school, which lasted from 1617-1619.  Those years are recorded for posterity in a series of litigation between Lanyer and her landlord involving a dispute over rents.

    Lanyer's later years were spent in the household of her son, who had followed in his grandfather's steps to  become a court musician. He married Joyce Mansfield, and they gave Lanyer two grandchildren, May and Henry born in 1627 and 1630, respectively.  Lanyer was involved in the care of her grandchildren even after the death of her son in 1633.

    Lanyer's, Salve Deus Rex Judæorum,  provides strong evidence that a community of educated women existed by 1611, its date of publication. Salve Deus Judæorum is a collection of poems dedicated to "All vertuous Ladies in generall." There are nine other dedications to specific ladies, emphasizing their virtues.  Lanyer, like Spenser, suggests that the women will see themselves mirrored in the work that is to follow, which is centered around religious themes. The queen, in this case Anne of Denmark, is suggested to be the most perfect example of virtue.

       
    Religion and female virtue were two of the few topics that were considered appropriate for women to write about in the early seventeenth century. Thus Lanyer adheres to society's expectations when she focuses on virtue in her dedication and religion in her poetry.
       

    BIBLIOGRAPHY

    Details about Lanyer's childhood can be found in Lanyer, Aemilia: Salve Deus Rex Judæorum. Edited by Susan Woods. New York: Oxford University Press, 1993, pages xv to xvii.

    Aemelia Lanyer web site