Was Shakespeare a Catholic

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXXI, Issue 22, 28 May 1903, Page 19

Was Shakespeare a Catholic

The learned Protestant histoiian Green, in the fifth volume of his ' History of the English People,' states that during Kdward VI 's reign, as a icsJhlt of the Reformation in England, ' di\iiuty ceased to bo taught m the universities, students had fallen ofl" in numbers, libraries weic scattered and burned, and the intellectual impulse had died away.' And Fioude, in his 'Ilistoiy of England,' says that, during the same period, ' the dumlty schools were planted with cabbages, and the Oxford laundresses dried clothes m the schools of art ' Contio\ersy, mostly of the Billings-gate order, wagged its voluble tongue unceasingly But real learning had died away It could not, howe\er, fail to be galvanised at last into life again by the swnt and active revival of literature that had btaited in Italy in pre-Ketormation days It forced its way into England at last. The revival began thei c (as Green points out)towards the close of Elizabeth's reign And one of its brightest glories was William Shakespeare.

There has been of lato years a marked degree of interest among litoiary workers in the personal history of Shakespeare A lively discussion is still going on as to his leligion, and some volumes and innumerable ai tides ha\e appeared upon the subject Mr Yeatmnn, in Ins ' Gentle Shakespeare,' insists sti ongly that the gieat poet was a Catholic and the grandson of a lady oi the gieat Catholic family of Griffith oi Wichnoie of the loyal house of Powis A learned American testimony is now forthcoming in support of Mr Yeatmnn \s contention And a lew weeks ago Dr Applet on Moigan — a distinguished author, and piesident ot the Shakespeare Society of New York — wrote an at tide which places him among the ranks of those who hold that Shakespeare was a Catholic 'His article,' saj s the ' Catholic Times,'

' which first appeared in " Action and Utterance," is reprinted in " New Shakespearean a," the organ of the New York society. He points o>at that the entry in the Stratford-on-Avon records that John Shakespeare " came not to church for fear of process for debt " was the effort of some friendly clerk to get him off the fines levied under 23 Eliz., c. 2, for non-attendance at Protestant worship. It was unnecessary to wait until Sunday to serve a " process for debt " upon a resident of Stratford,' who owned property in the town and was on the street during week days, even if process " for debt " or for anything else of a civil nature could have been served on a Sunday. As a matter of fact, from investigation made by Mr. J. P. Ycatman, author of "The Gentle Shakespeare,' we learn that the town clerk was a Catholic. Any additional light on this important subject must be very welcome to the literary world. It is well when those who discuss it are, like I3r. Appleton Morgan, free from bias.'