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The Massacre at Paris is an Elizabethan play by the English dramatist Christopher Marlowe (1593) and a Restoration drama by Nathaniel Lee (1689), the latter chiefly remembered for a song by Henry Purcell. Both concern the Saint Bartholomew's Day Massacre, which took place in Paris in 1572, and the part played by the Duc de Guise in those events.

Marlowe's play

A foul sheet from Marlowe's writing of *The Massacre at Paris* (1593). Reproduced from Folger Shakespeare Library Ms.J.b.8

The Lord Strange's Men acted a play titled The Tragedy of the Guise, thought to be Marlowe's play, on 26 January 1593. The Diary of Philip Henslowe marks the play as "ne," though scholars disagree as to whether this indicates a "new" play or a performance at the Newington Butts theatre. The Admiral's Men performed The Guise or The Massacre ten times between 19 June and 25 September 1594. The Diary also indicates that Henslowe planned a revival of the play in 1602, possibly in a revised version.^[1] A possible revision may have something to do with the surprising number of Shakespearean borrowings and paraphrases in the text.^[2]

The only surviving text is an undated octavo edition, that at 1,250 or so lines seems too short to represent the complete original play and which has been conjectured to be a memorial reconstruction by the actors who performed the work.^[3]

One page perhaps survives in manuscript. It is known as the "Collier leaf," after the Shakespearean scholar John Payne Collier, who is known to have been a notorious forger, although modern scholars think that this particular leaf is probably authentic. It supplies a longer version of a speech of the Guise's than appears in the printed text, adding twelve lines of blank verse.

Synopsis of Marlowe's play

The play begins in Paris, at the wedding of Henry of Navarre (a Huguenot noble) to Margaret of Valois (sister to the Catholic king). It is immediately clear that the Queen Mother, Catherine de Medici, has violent intentions towards Navarre, and the Huguenots have a deep distrust of the Catholics, who are under the leadership of the Duke of Guise (who quickly makes it clear he intends to murder the Queen of Navarre and one of her admirals).

Guise's plot is executed quickly, with the Queen of Navarre receiving poisoned gloves and her admiral being shot by a sniper as he helps carry the Queen of Navarre's body. The admiral does not die but is instead gravely injured. The royal family and the Guise faction leaders begin to plot a massacre while Charles, the King of France, visits the wounded admiral.

The admiral is soon murdered in his bed by Guise nobles, and the massacre spreads throughout Paris. Henry of Navarre is held inside the palace, the marriage between himself and the Catholic princess proving to have been useless in stemming an uprising.

The massacre, led by Guise and his close compatriots, calls for the blood of Huguenots, especially any Huguenots who have close ties to the Navarre line (including tutors and pastors). The massacre is considered successful, and the Queen Mother calls her son back from abroad to be crowned Henry III of France. He is welcomed and feted by his mother, who makes it clear to those in court that she is still the real power behind the throne and that she makes all the decisions.

Navarre is able to escape during this time and return to his home territory. He discovers Guise is raising an army to come after him, led by a general named Joyeux. Navarre immediately raises his own army and sends them to meet the French army before they reach his homeland. Navarre soon receives word that Joyeux has been killed and they have achieved a decisive victory against the French.

Guise is angered by his defeat, and Henry III is ready to be done with Guise entirely. Word of this plan reaches not only Guise, who begins to plan a counterattack, but also Navarre, who sends word to Henry III that he would like to join forces against the Guise. But before the two can combine their forces, Henry III convinces Guise to attend the royal court at Blois. There he has Guise murdered by three assassins and shows the body to Guise's son so that word of what has been done will get out to the people. He also orders the Duke's brothers Dumaine and the Cardinal of Lorraine murdered to reduce the risk of revenge. Henry informs his mother of what he has done, and she is saddened and angry that he has acted on his own without her. Dumaine learns of his brothers murders, and a Jacobin friar offers to assassinate Henry III.

The two Kings of France and Navarre join forces against the Catholic League in Paris. Pretending to deliver a letter, the friar stabs Henry III, who kills the friar in the struggle. When it becomes clear that the King will not survive, he names Navarre as heir to the French throne. The play ends with Navarre, now Henry IV, vowing yet more revenge on the Catholic League.

Adaptations of Marlowe's play

An adaptation of the play was broadcast on BBC Radio 3 on 30 May 1993, the 400th anniversary of Marlowe's death, along with Dido, Queen of Carthage, directed by Allen Drury and Michael Earley and featuring Timothy Walker as Anjou, Jeremy Blake as the Duke of Guise, Sally Dexter as Queen Catherine, Ben Thomas as Navarre, Teresa Gallagher as Margaret/Duchess of Guise and Andrew Wincott as Conde/Mugeroun/Son of Guise.^[4]

Lee's play

Nathaniel Lee's play The Massacre of Paris was written during the 1680s when the author was in and out of Bedlam. The premiere took place in 1689.^[5]

Henry Purcell set the prophecy addressed to Charles IX from act V, "Thy genius, lo", in two versions, the one for baritone (Z 604a) appearing in Orpheus Britannicus.^[6] For a revival in 1695 he recast the speech as a recitative for treble.^[7]

References

^ Chambers, Vol. 1, p. 323; Vol. 3, pp. 425-6.
^ Halliday, p. 307.
^ Probes, Christine McCall (2008). "Senses, signs, symbols and theological allusion in Marlowe's The Massacre at Paris". In Deats, Sara Munson; Logan, Robert A. (eds.). Placing the plays of Christopher Marlowe: Fresh Cultural Contexts. Aldershot, England: Ashgate. p. 149. ISBN 978-0-7546-6204-4.
^ "Sunday Play - BBC Radio 3 - 30 May 1993 - BBC Genome". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 30 May 1993.
^ Curtis Price, Henry Purcell and the London stage (Cambridge University Press 1984)
^ "Orpheus Britannicus (Purcell, Henry) - IMSLP/Petrucci Music Library: Free Public Domain Sheet Music". imslp.org.
^ Price, p. 21

External links

The full text of The Massacre at Paris at Wikisource
Media related to The Massacre at Paris at Wikimedia Commons
Marlowe Society overview of The Massacre at Paris
The Massacre at Paris eText at Project Gutenberg

[1] Chambers, Vol. 1, p. 323; Vol. 3, pp. 425-6.

[2] Halliday, p. 307.

[3] Probes, Christine McCall (2008). "Senses, signs, symbols and theological allusion in Marlowe's The Massacre at Paris". In Deats, Sara Munson; Logan, Robert A. (eds.). Placing the plays of Christopher Marlowe: Fresh Cultural Contexts. Aldershot, England: Ashgate. p. 149. ISBN 978-0-7546-6204-4.

[4] "Sunday Play - BBC Radio 3 - 30 May 1993 - BBC Genome". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 30 May 1993.

[5] Curtis Price, Henry Purcell and the London stage (Cambridge University Press 1984)

[6] "Orpheus Britannicus (Purcell, Henry) - IMSLP/Petrucci Music Library: Free Public Domain Sheet Music". imslp.org.

[7] Price, p. 21

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@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
+{{Short description|Play by Christopher Marlowe}}
+{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
 {{Italic title}}
-'''''The Massacre at Paris''''' is the title of an [[English Renaissance theatre|Elizabethan play]] by the English dramatist [[Christopher Marlowe]] (1593) and a [[Restoration drama]] by [[Nathaniel Lee]] (1689), the later chiefly remembered for a song by [[Henry Purcell]]. Both concern the [[Saint Bartholomew's Day Massacre]], which took place in [[Paris]] in  1572, and the part played by the [[Henry I, Duke of Guise|Duc de Guise]] in those events.
+'''''The Massacre at Paris''''' is an [[English Renaissance theatre|Elizabethan play]] by the English dramatist [[Christopher Marlowe]] (1593) and a [[Restoration drama]] by [[Nathaniel Lee]] (1689), the latter chiefly remembered for a song by [[Henry Purcell]]. Both concern the [[Saint Bartholomew's Day Massacre]], which took place in [[Paris]] in  1572, and the part played by the [[Henry I, Duke of Guise|Duc de Guise]] in those events.
 ==Marlowe's play==
-[[File:Handwriting-Marlowe-Massacre-1.JPG|right|thumb| A [[Foul papers|foul sheet]] from Marlowe's writing of ''The Massacre at Paris'' (1593). Reproduced from Folger Shakespeare Library Ms.J.b.8]]
+[[File:Handwriting-Marlowe-Massacre-1.JPG|right|thumb| A [[Foul papers|foul sheet]] from Marlowe's writing of ''The Massacre at Paris'' (1593). Reproduced from [[Folger Shakespeare Library]] Ms.J.b.8]]
-The [[Lord Strange's Men]] acted a play titled ''The Tragedy of the Guise'', thought to be Marlowe's play, on 30 January 1593. The [[Admiral's Men]] performed ''The Guise'' or ''The Massacre'' ten times between 19 June and 25 September 1594. The Diary of [[Philip Henslowe]] marks the play as "ne," though scholars disagree as to whether this indicates a "new" play or a performance at the [[Newington Butts]] theatre. The Diary also indicates that Henslowe planned a revival of the play in 1602, possibly in a revised version.<ref>Chambers, Vol. 1, p. 323; Vol. 3, pp. 425-6.</ref> A possible revision may have something to do with the surprising number of Shakespearean borrowings and paraphrases in the text.<ref>Halliday, p. 307.</ref>
+The [[Lord Strange's Men]] acted a play titled ''The Tragedy of the Guise'', thought to be Marlowe's play, on 26 January 1593. The Diary of [[Philip Henslowe]] marks the play as "ne," though scholars disagree as to whether this indicates a "new" play or a performance at the [[Newington Butts]] theatre. The [[Admiral's Men]] performed ''The Guise'' or ''The Massacre'' ten times between 19 June and 25 September 1594. The Diary also indicates that Henslowe planned a revival of the play in 1602, possibly in a revised version.<ref>Chambers, Vol. 1, p. 323; Vol. 3, pp. 425-6.</ref> A possible revision may have something to do with the surprising number of Shakespearean borrowings and paraphrases in the text.<ref>Halliday, p. 307.</ref>
-The only surviving text is an undated octavo edition, that at 1,250 or so lines seems too short to represent the complete original play and which has been conjectured to be a [[memorial reconstruction]] by the actors who performed the work.<ref>{{cite book|last=Probes|first=Christine McCall|title=Placing the plays of Christopher Marlowe: Fresh Cultural Contexts|editor=Deats, Sara Munson; Logan, Robert A.|publisher=Ashgate|location=Aldershot, England|year=2008|pages=149|chapter=Senses, signs, symbols and theological allusion in Marlowe's ''The Massacre at Paris''|isbn=0-7546-6204-7}}</ref>
+The only surviving text is an undated octavo edition, that at 1,250 or so lines seems too short to represent the complete original play and which has been conjectured to be a [[memorial reconstruction]] by the actors who performed the work.<ref>{{cite book|last=Probes|first=Christine McCall|title=Placing the plays of Christopher Marlowe: Fresh Cultural Contexts|editor=Deats, Sara Munson |editor2=Logan, Robert A.|publisher=Ashgate|location=Aldershot, England|year=2008|pages=149|chapter=Senses, signs, symbols and theological allusion in Marlowe's ''The Massacre at Paris''|isbn=978-0-7546-6204-4}}</ref>
 One page perhaps survives in manuscript. It is known as the "Collier leaf," after the Shakespearean scholar [[John Payne Collier]], who is known to have been a notorious forger, although modern scholars think that this particular leaf is probably authentic. It supplies a longer version of a speech of the Guise's than appears in the printed text, adding twelve lines of blank verse.
+==Synopsis of Marlowe's play==
-=== Revivals ===
+The play begins in Paris, at the wedding of Henry of Navarre (a [[Huguenots|Huguenot]] noble) to Margaret of Valois (sister to the Catholic king). It is immediately clear that the Queen Mother, Catherine de Medici, has violent intentions towards Navarre, and the Huguenots have a deep distrust of the Catholics, who are under the leadership of the Duke of Guise (who quickly makes it clear he intends to murder the Queen of Navarre and one of her admirals).
+Guise's plot is executed quickly, with the Queen of Navarre receiving poisoned gloves and her admiral being shot by a sniper as he helps carry the Queen of Navarre's body. The admiral does not die but is instead gravely injured. The royal family and the Guise faction leaders begin to plot a massacre while Charles, the King of France, visits the wounded admiral.
-England - (Amateur) in 1963 there was a student production by Cambridge University's [[Marlowe Society]].
+The admiral is soon murdered in his bed by Guise nobles, and the massacre spreads throughout Paris. Henry of Navarre is held inside the palace, the marriage between himself and the Catholic princess proving to have been useless in stemming an uprising.
-England - (Amateur) In 1966 there was a student production at Marlowe's old college, Corpus Christi, Cambridge.
+The massacre, led by Guise and his close compatriots, calls for the blood of Huguenots, especially  any Huguenots who have close ties to the Navarre line (including tutors and pastors). The massacre is considered successful, and the Queen Mother calls her son back from abroad to be crowned Henry III of France. He is welcomed and feted by his mother, who makes it clear to those in court that she is still the real power behind the throne and that she makes all the decisions.
-Scotland and tour - In 1981 on 30 Jan - 14 Feb there was a two-week run of the play at the [[Glasgow Citizen's Theatre]], with [[Robert Gwilym]] as the Guise, and which saw a 20-year-old [[Gary Oldman]] make his professional debut. It then toured to Holland and Germany. It was directed by [[Philip Prowse]].
+Navarre is able to escape during this time and return to his home territory. He discovers Guise is raising an army to come after him, led by a general named Joyeux. Navarre immediately raises his own army and sends them to meet the French army before they reach his homeland. Navarre soon receives word that Joyeux has been killed and they have achieved a decisive victory against the French.
-England - In 1985, on 15 and 16 October, two performances with a cast of ten actors, including [[Lindsay Duncan]], at the Other Place in Stratford-upon-Avon, as part of the RSC Youth Festival, directed by [[Paul Marcus]].
+Guise is angered by his defeat, and Henry III is ready to be done with Guise entirely. Word of this plan reaches not only Guise, who begins to plan a counterattack, but also Navarre, who sends word to Henry III that he would like to join forces against the Guise. But before the two can combine their forces, Henry III convinces Guise to attend the royal court at Blois. There he has Guise murdered by three assassins and shows the body to Guise's son so that word of what has been done will get out to the people. He also orders the Duke's brothers Dumaine and the Cardinal of Lorraine murdered to reduce the risk of revenge. Henry informs his mother of what he has done, and she is saddened and angry that he has acted on his own without her. Dumaine learns of his brothers murders, and a Jacobin friar offers to assassinate Henry III.
-England - In 1996 in July a staged reading of the play took place at Shakespeare's Globe's Bear Gardens Theatre on Bankside, directed by Benjamin May.
+The two Kings of France and Navarre join forces against the Catholic League in Paris. Pretending to deliver a letter, the friar stabs Henry III, who kills the friar in the struggle. When it becomes clear that the King will not survive, he names Navarre as heir to the French throne. The play ends with Navarre, now Henry IV, vowing yet more revenge on the Catholic League.
-USA - (Amateur) In 1999, director Jeff Dailey staged the play with a youth group for The Marlowe Project at the Producer's Club in New York.
+==Adaptations of Marlowe's play==
-Australia - (Amateur) In 2001 an adapted version of the play, with much new material, was written by the leading Australian playwright [[Tommy Murphy (Australian playwright)|Tommy Murphy]] for a production by [[Australian Theatre for Young People]] at the Newton Theatre, Sydney.
+An adaptation of the play was broadcast on [[BBC Radio 3]] on 30 May 1993, the 400th anniversary of Marlowe's death, along with ''[[Dido, Queen of Carthage (play)|Dido, Queen of Carthage]]'', directed by [[Allen Drury]] and Michael Earley and featuring Timothy Walker as Anjou, Jeremy Blake as the Duke of Guise, Sally Dexter as Queen Catherine, Ben Thomas as Navarre, Teresa Gallagher as Margaret/Duchess of Guise and Andrew Wincott as Conde/Mugeroun/Son of Guise.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/06efc8ab1f3f4967adf6dccd16294dcc|title=Sunday Play - BBC Radio 3 - 30 May 1993 - BBC Genome|website=genome.ch.bbc.co.uk|date=30 May 1993 }}</ref>
+==Lee's play==
-USA - In 2001 in February the play was given a reading by Target Margin Theatre in New York.
+[[Nathaniel Lee]]'s play ''[[The Massacre of Paris]]'' was written during the 1680s when the author was in and out of [[Bethlem Royal Hospital|Bedlam]]. The premiere took place in 1689.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=E7E8AAAAIAAJ&dq=%22Thy+genius%2C+lo%22&pg=PA61 Curtis Price, ''Henry Purcell and the London stage''] (Cambridge University Press 1984)</ref>
+[[Henry Purcell]] set the prophecy addressed to [[Charles IX of France|Charles IX]] from act V, "Thy genius, lo", in two versions, the one for baritone ([[Franklin B. Zimmerman|Z]] 604a) appearing in ''[[Orpheus Britannicus]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://imslp.org/wiki/Orpheus_Britannicus_(Purcell,_Henry)|title=Orpheus Britannicus (Purcell, Henry) - IMSLP/Petrucci Music Library: Free Public Domain Sheet Music|website=imslp.org}}</ref> For a revival in 1695 he recast the speech as a recitative for treble.<ref>Price, p. 21</ref>
-Holland - In 2001 the play was adapted by Hafid Bouazza, and directed for [[Toneelgroep Amsterdam]] by [[Ivo van Hove]].
+==References==
-Ireland - In 2002 an adapted version of the play, with new material added by Alex Johnston, was performed by Bedrock theatre company at the Project Arts Centre in Dublin, with Karl Shiels as the Guise, and Andrea Irvine as Catherine de' Medici, directed by Jimmy Fay.
-England - (Amateur) In 2003 on 2 July Blood and Thunder Theatre Company performed a staged reading of the play with students and amateurs in the Octagon Theatre of St Catherine's College, Cambridge, as part of the Marlowe Society of America's Conference, directed by Kelley Costigan.
-Australia - In 2008 6–17 August Doorslam theatre company performed the play at Theatre Works, St. Kilda, Melbourne, with Myles Tankle as the Guise, Joel Davey as Henry III, and Jenny Lovell as Catherine de' Medici, directed by Mark Wilson and Jenny Lovell.
-England - In 2011 on 18 September Shakespeare's Globe's Read Not Dead project gave the play a fully staged reading, directed by James Wallace, with [[Linda Marlowe]] as Catherine de' Medici, [[Dominic Rowan]] as the Guise, Ben Deery as Henry III, and Charlie Anson as Navarre.
-USA - (Amateur) In 2013 on 25 June a fully staged graduate student production took place in the Blackfriars Theatre in Staunton, Virginia as part of the Seventh International Marlowe Conference.
-England - (Amateur) In 2014 12–15 February, Cambridge University's [[Marlowe Society]] performs the play at the ADC theatre, directed by Gareth Mattey.
-England - In 2014 11-29 March the first professional run of the play in England in four centuries took place at the site of its first performance at The Rose Playhouse on Bankside, presented by The Dolphin's Back, with John Gregor as The Guise, Kristin Milward as Catherine de' Medici, James Askill as Henry III, and Lachlan McCall as Navarre, directed by James Wallace.
-England - In 2014 on 18 and 19 March, the play was performed twice in the crypt of [[Canterbury Cathedral]] by [[Fourth_monkey_theatre_company|Fourth Monkey Theatre Company]], in association with the [[Marlowe Theatre]] and the [http://www.marlowe-society.org/ Marlowe Society], as part of the [http://www.marlowe-society.org/news/news2014/news2014_001_marlowe450.html Marlowe450] season. Directors were  Andy Dawson and Paul Allain.
-==Lee's play==
-[[Nathaniel Lee]]'s play ''The Massacre at Paris'' was written during the 1680s when the author was in and out of [[Bethlem Royal Hospital|Bedlam]]. The premiere took place in 1689.<ref>[http://books.google.com/books?id=E7E8AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA61&lpg=PA61&dq=%22Thy+genius,+lo%22&source=bl&ots=NZpTWhv6Bs&sig=ykTqx6af7odsr24SgUruYS6JN4I&hl=en&sa=X&ei=J0RfUd-ADY3OigKeroGQDg&sqi=2&ved=0CDIQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q=%22Thy%20genius%2C%20lo%22&f=false Curtis Price, ''Henry Purcell and the London stage''] (Cambridge University Press 1984)</ref>
-[[Henry Purcell]] set to omen to [[Charles IX of France|Charles IX]] from act V, "Thy genius, lo", in two versions, the one for baritone ([[Franklin B. Zimmerman|Z]] 604a) appearing in ''[[Orpheus Britannicus]]''.<ref>[http://imslp.org/wiki/Orpheus_Britannicus_(Purcell,_Henry) Book I, p. 135]</ref> For a revival in 1695 he recast the speech as a recitative for treble.<ref>Price, p. 21</ref>
-==Notes==
 <references/>
-==References==
-{{Wikisource|The Massacre at Paris}}
-* [[Edmund Kerchever Chambers|Chambers, E. K.]] ''The Elizabethan Stage.'' 4 Volumes, Oxford, Clarendon Press, 1923.
-* Halliday, F. E. ''A Shakespeare Companion 1564&ndash;1964.'' Baltimore, Penguin, 1964.
-* Ilsemann, Hartmut. ''William Shakespeare - Dramen und Apokryphen. ''Aachen, Shaker, 2014.
 == External links ==
+*{{Wikisource-inline|The Massacre at Paris|''The Massacre at Paris''|single=true}}
+*{{Commons category-inline|The Massacre at Paris|''The Massacre at Paris''}}
 * [http://www.marlowe-society.org/marlowe/work/massacre/intro.html Marlowe Society overview of ''The Massacre at Paris'']
 * [http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/1496 ''The Massacre at Paris'' eText] at [[Project Gutenberg]]
-* [http://www.shak-stat.engsem.uni-hannover.de/eauthormassacre.html Rolling delta results]
 {{Christopher Marlowe}}
+{{Authority control}}
 {{DEFAULTSORT:Massacre at Paris, The}}
 [[Category:Plays by Christopher Marlowe]]
 [[Category:English Renaissance plays]]
+[[Category:Cultural depictions of Henry III of France]]
+[[Category:Cultural depictions of Henry I, Duke of Guise]]
+[[Category:Plays set in France]]
+[[Category:Plays set in the 16th century]]
 [[Category:1593 plays]]

v t e Christopher Marlowe
Plays	Dido, Queen of Carthage Tamburlaine the Great, Parts One and Two The Jew of Malta Doctor Faustus Edward II The Massacre at Paris
Poems	The Passionate Shepherd to His Love Hero and Leander
People	Thomas Nashe Philip Henslowe Thomas Heywood Ingram Frizer Eleanor Bull Nicholas Skeres Robert Poley George Chapman Edward Alleyn Thomas Kyd
In fiction	Marlowe The School of Night Tamburlaine Must Die A Dead Man in Deptford It Was Marlowe Shakespeare in Love Kit Marlowe The Marlowe Papers
Adaptations	Doctor Faustus Edward II The Life of Edward II of England The Massacre at Paris Lessons in Love and Violence
Miscellaneous	English Renaissance theatre Blank verse Admiral's Men Shakespeare authorship question Marlovian theory Lust's Dominion (attributed play, rejected) The School of Night
Related	Marlowe Memorial Marlowe portrait