Christopher Marlowe taught Arabella Stuart,
a prospective queen. The parliament adopted
a decision the throne should be succeeded by
Queen Elizabeth's 'natural' rather than
'legitimate' issue.

HAMLET: A TRAGEDY OF ERRORS OR THE TRAGICAL FATE OF SHAKESPEARE?

by
Alfred Barkov

Chapter VIII: The second Virgin in the history of human civilization?

a summary of the original text in Russian

I would not assert that everything included in the Shakespeare canon was written solely by Christopher Marlowe. The materials collected by the Baconians are very impressive, and they should not be neglected. A thorough evaluation of the materials suggests there exist no serious controversy between the Marlovian and Baconian versions. The History of Literature possesses with some facts confirming that somebody prepared drafts for Shakespeare's works. It is possible that Bacon could construct the plots while Marlowe could fill them with the poetic content. Anyway, Francis Bacon lived a long life after 1612 when the creation of Shakespeare's canon ceased. Besides, it is Christopher Marlowe who is suggested not to have been lying in his grave. Queen Elizabeth. Is that Marlowe depicted as the Queen's Stag?

As a proof of their version of the Shakespeare authorship, the Baconians display on the WEB a portrait featuring Queen Elizabeth along with a Stag against the background of a fruit tree. They assert that the Stag features the figure of Sir Bacon. I am agree the materials they have collected in favor of the hypothesis of the royal origin of Sir Bacon are very impressive. Nevertheless, the portrait cannot be considered as a proof that it is Francis Bacon who is featured as the Stag, or that he was the author of the Shakespeare canon.

Moreover, the vignette in the bottom right of the picture contains the text of a sonnet. According to the data offered by the Baconians, it is believed its author was Queen Elizabeth herself, or at least Edmund Spencer (which makes no difference whatsoever). Below is the text copied from the site of the Baconians:

The restles swallow fits my restles minde,
In still revivinge still renewinge wronges;
her Just complaintes of cruelly unkinde,
are all the Musique, that my life prolonges.

With pensive thoughtes my weeping Stagg I crown
whose Melancholy teares my cares Expresse
hes Teares in sylence, and my sighes unknowne
are all the physicke that my harmes redresse.

My onely hope was in this goodly tree,
which I did plant in love bringe up in care:
but all in vaine [sic], for now to late I see
the shales be mine, the kernels others are.

My Musique may be plaintes, my physique teares
If this be all the fruite my love tree beares.

It is obvious the sonnet features the mother plainting over the fate of her son depicted as the Stag. Whoever was the author of the sonnet, it is clear it is Queen Elizabeth's lamentation over the fate of her Stag. The plots of both the picture and the correlating sonnet fit better the surmised biography of Christopher Marlowe rather than that of Francis Bacon.

The materials collected by the Baconians as well as their intuitive discoveries are astonishing. Basing solely on the documents, they have formulated a hypothesis of the royal origin of the person who was 'Shakespeare'. The inner structure of Hamlet suggests the same.

A comparison of the data collected by the Baconians with the true plot of Hamlet reveals some striking facts of concurrence. For example, the Baconians assert that Bacon is featured as Hamlet while his half brother Essex as Horatio. They made that conclusion without being aware that according to the true content of Hamlet, Hamlet and Horatio are half brothers as well.

There is another point fitting in the hypothesis of the Baconians, and of which they are still unaware. They mention a letter in which Essex wrote to Bacon he did not possess with Bacon's poetic skills. In the real plot of Hamlet, similar confession was made by Horatio in his letter to Ophelia.

Unlike the Baconians who believe that Bacon and Essex were depicted as Hamlet and Horatio, I would formulate a bit different model based on the inner structure of Hamlet. Three brothers rather than two are depicted in Hamlet: Marlowe as Hamlet, Bacon as Fortinbras, and Essex as their half brother Horatio. The Baconians assert that Robert Devereux the second Earl of Essex was actually a son to the Queen Elizabeth and Dudley. In their opinion, by marrying his 'official' mother Lady Lettice Knolys-Devereux, Dudley just legalized the status of Robert Devereux as his son.

Indeed, some facts suggest that Dudley could have been Essex'es natural father rather than merely a stepfather. Nevertheless, basing on the materials the Baconians provide, it is more likely Essex could have been born by his 'official' mother Lady Lettice rather than by Queen Elizabeth. Dudley had been courting her when her husband Walter Devereux the Earl of Essex was still alive. Moreover, the latter was aware of the affair between Dudley and Lady Lettice, for Dudley has sent him away on a long mission. Therefore, Dudley's marriage to his widow was just a logical act at least partially legalizing Robert Devereux as his son. Anyway, be Robert Devereux Earl of Essex a natural son or merely a stepson to Dudley, he was a half-brother to Marlowe and Bacon (within the corresponding hypothesizes).

On their Shakespeare authorship site, Queen Elizabeth with her children, from the Baconians' site the Baconians display another portrait of Queen Elizabeth featuring her with two boys. It is supplemented with a short text:

Queen Elizabeth and Sons?

A portrait by the Dutch painter De Larray of Queen Elizabeth with two children. One child holds a helm, symbol of Orpheus and of Athena. The other child holds a feather, indicating martyrdom; Bacon's brother, Robert Devereux, the Earl of Essex, was executed in the Tower of London for treason.

In some other materials on the same Baconian site the number of Queen's children on the picture is mentioned as three. Indeed, that third sable figure in the dark background — does not it symbolize the Tanner not lying in his grave?.. (click to enlarge). 1

I believe the true content of the Shakespeare canon would reveal more interesting biographical references. We are still at the very beginning of realizing what the real content of Shakespeare's works is. From this point of view, King Lear and Romeo and Juliet seem to be among the most promising ones. Anyway, one point is certain now: the 'Shakespeare' mystery will never be disclosed unless the biography of the Virgin Queen is considered.

There follow some examples, I will mention just a couple of them.

The Marlovians possess with material suggesting that Marlowe was a tutor to Arabella Stuart (granddaughter of Mary Stuart, the Queen of Scots), whose genealogy made her the most prospective claimant to the throne. It seems that the Marlovians are quite skeptical themselves towards this information. On the other hand, it should be taken into consideration that Elizabeth had secured the decision of the Parliament that the throne should be succeeded by her natural issue (rather than by a legitimate one as it was worded in the first version of the parliamentary decision). In that case, the marriage of such a natural issue with a prospective queen of England would have greatly improved his chances.

It might be expedient to reconsider the content of the letter to the university in which the most prominent state figures of England explained Marlowe's absences from the university with his service to the Queen. The Marlovians consider that the 'service' means Marlowe's connection with the intelligence. On the other hand, that was the very period when he is supposed to have been teaching Arabella Stuart. From the point of view of the natural issue's mother, there would hardly be a more important state service for that illegitimate issue than to mix with the most legitimate female claimant to the throne.

When Christopher Marlowe was born, his father, a cobbler's apprentice, was highly promoted. Marlowe was patronized by Lord Manwood, a judge while his education was sponsored by Matthew Parker, Archbishop of Canterbury who was very close to Queen Elizabeth. Parker has collected a unique library including ancient manuscripts, and was one of the most educated people of England. In 1563, before Marlowe was born, Queen Elizabeth granted Manwood with a big manor St. Stephen's place in Hackington, Kent (now within the city of Canterbury). That might be the place Marlowe got education necessary to be admitted to the university. According to his biography, he studied in the privileged King's school in Canterbury, but that was only for a year before he entered the Corpus Christi college.

1. The Baconians cite a testimony that by 1585, Queen Elizabeth had as many as five natural issues. I suspect that one of them must have been a female. If my guess is true, the biography of that person would explain many questions concerning Shakespeare. (Back)

 

Chapter IX: Is Christopher Marlowe The Swan of Avon?
To the Contents
Home page: William Shakespeare Authorship. Hamlet: a summary of the true content

 

Alfred Barkov ut5ab
alfred@barkov.kiev.ua
P.O. Box 36 Kiev 01103 Ukraine

 

Copyright © Alfred Barkov 2000, 2003
Last updated: Nov. 18, 2003