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William Haughton | |
|---|---|
| Born | Unknown England |
| Died | 1605 England |
| Occupation | Playwright |
| Literary movement | English Renaissance theatre |
| Spouse | Alice |
William Haughton (died 1605) was anEnglishplaywright in the age ofEnglish Renaissance theatre.[1]
Most of what little biographical information there is about him is derived from the papers ofPhilip Henslowe, proprietor of theRose Theatre.[1] Henslowe's earliest reference to him refers to him as "young" Haughton. He wrote all his known dramatic work for Henslowe, for production by theAdmiral's Men andWorcester's Men. (Henslowe's papers refer to Haughton as Hawton, Hauton, Haughtoun, Haulton, Howghton, Horton, Harton, and Harvghton[2]—a fine example of the famously flexible Elizabethan orthography. His name is spelled Houghton in his 1605 will.)
On 10 March 1600 Henslowe lent Haughton tenshillings "to release him out ofThe Clink".[1]
A William Haughton received an M.A. from Oxford in 1604, but Baugh doubts that this was the playwright. Haughton made his will on 6 June 1605, with his sometime dramatic collaboratorWentworth Smith and one Elizabeth Lewes as witnesses. It was proved on 20 July 1605. He was ofAll Hallows Staining at that time, a London church whose tower survives. He left a widow Alice and children.
During the years 1597 to 1602 he collaborated in many plays withHenry Chettle,Thomas Dekker,John Day,Richard Hathwaye and Wentworth Smith.[1] Haughton's hand has also been sought in several anonymous plays of the period, includingWiley Beguiled,The Wit of a Woman,The Merry Devil of Edmonton,Captain Thomas Stukeley andA Warning For Fair Women.
A merry comedy entitledEnglishmen for My Money, or A Woman will have her Will (1598) is ascribed to his sole authorship, and Fleay credits him with a considerable share inPatient Grissel (1599).[1] The latter attribution has been confirmed and refined by W. L. Halstead and by Cyrus Hoy (1980), giving the subplot concerning Sir Owen the Welsh Knight and his wife Gwenthyan, as well as that concerning the Duke's sister Julia and her three foolish suitors to Haughton, leaving the main plot to Dekker and Chettle.
The Devil and his Dame, mentioned as a forthcoming play by Henslowe in March 1600, is identified byFleay asGrim the Collier of Croydon, which was printed in 1662. In this play an emissary is sent from the infernal regions to report on the conditions of married life on earth.[1] This attribution has recently been confirmed by William M Baillie (see below).
Grim is reprinted in vol. viii, andEnglishmen for My Money iii, vol. 5, ofWC Hazlitt's edition ofDodsley'sOld Plays.Englishmen for My Money was edited in old-spelling by A. C. Baugh in 1917, and appeared as a Tudor Facsimile Text in 1911.Grim has been edited by William L. Baillie as part ofA Choice Ternary of English Plays: Gratiae Theatrales (1984), and appeared as a Tudor Facsimile Text in 1912.Patient Grissell appears in Fredson Bowers' edition of Dekker's Dramatic Works. In May 1600 he brokered a play, now lost, to Henslowe calledThe English Fugitives, possibly based onLewes Lewknor'sThe Estate of English Fugitives published in 1595.
Known plays by Haughton, either singly or in conjunction with others, include:
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Haughton, William".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 13 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 66.| International | |
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