During the first four years of his reign, Henry VIII. kept up the theatrical establishment of his father, but in 1514 he added a new company of actors to his domestic retinue, and henceforth we find payments to the “King’s players” and to the “King’s old players.” And associated with the year 1516 we find an enumeration12 of the players’ dresses under the title of “Garments for Players,”[134] which is of considerable value and interest as throwing light on the nature of the theatrical amusements of the period. It appears that the nobility continued to patronise plays, and, following the example of the King, most of them kept theatrical retainers of their own. According to Collier,[135] one of the earliest indications of anything like a classical taste in matters connected with the English stage is to be found in 1520, when, for the entertainment of four French hostages who had been left in this country for the execution of the treaty relating to the surrender of Tournay, Henry caused his great chamber13 at Greenwich to be staged when, among{336} the performances, “there was a goodly comedy of Plautus played.”
Princess Mary’s connection with the drama dated from childhood, for before she had completed her sixth year we read of dramatic representations held in her presence and for her entertainment; and by an account in the Chapter House, Westminster, of the household expenses of the natural son of Henry VIII., who had been created Duke of Somerset and Richmond in June 1525, it appears[136] that “he had been several times entertained by the performances of players,” and that the council appointed for his care and custody16 had paid ￡3, 18s. 8d. for rewards to actors and minstrels. Mary ascended17 the throne in 1553, and a play was ordered on the occasion, but a month had barely transpired18 when she issued a proclamation, one object of which was to prevent the performance of plays calculated to advance the principles and doctrines19 of the Reformation. Mary kept up the theatrical and musical establishments of her father at an expense of between two and three thousand pounds a year in salaries only, independently of board, liveries, and incidental charges. The same establishment under Elizabeth, in the fourth year of her reign, was on a much more economical scale. But during her reign the stage found every encouragement, for her Majesty20 caused a stage to be erected21 at Windsor Castle for the regular performance of the drama, “with a wardrobe for the actors, painted scenes, and an orchestra consisting{337} of trumpeters, luterers, harpers, ringers, minstrels,” &c.
On the 18th January 1561, an English tragedy in five acts, entitled “Ferrex and Porrex, or Gorbaduc,” was performed before Queen Elizabeth, being the joint22 composition of her cousins, Sir Thomas Sackville and Thomas Norton. In her progress in 1564, Elizabeth was entertained at King’s College, Cambridge, with a play entitled “Ezechias,” and two years afterwards she witnessed a performance in Christ Church Hall, Oxford23, of Edwards’s “Palamon and Arcyte.” At this period plays were occasionally exhibited on a Sunday in spite of the denunciations of the Puritans. Elizabeth herself visited a theatrical exhibition on Sunday, and in after years James I. allowed plays to be acted at Court on the same day. It appears that in 1586 a correspondence took place between the Court and the city of London regarding the fitness or unfitness of certain theatrical representations, especially on Sundays.
Among the Harleian MSS. is an interesting account of the entertainments given before Elizabeth and her Court in 1568, wherein we find a payment of ￡634, 9s. 5d. to Sir Thomas Benger, for materials and work “within the Office of the Revels25,” between the 14th July 1567 and the 3rd March 1568, during which interval26 it appears “seven plays” and “one tragedy” were represented before her Majesty.[137] And, it may be added,{338} that it was apparently27 part of the duty of the Master of the Revels to have the plays rehearsed to him before they were presented at Court.
In 1574 the grant of the first “Royal Patent” was conceded in this country to performers of plays, whereby the persons named in it were empowered, during the Queen’s pleasure, to use, exercise, and occupy the art and faculty28 of playing comedies, tragedies, interludes, and stage plays, as well for the recreation of the Queen’s subjects as for her own solace29 and pleasure, within the City of London and its liberties, and within any cities, towns, and boroughs30 throughout England. Associated with the theatrical amusements were the masks and shows, which were conducted on a very expensive and imposing31 scale, an account of which we have given elsewhere. And, as it has been often pointed15 out, many of these were specially24 provided to gratify the vanity of the Queen, to whom some marked and delicate compliment was generally made. In the summer of 1601, the Queen was at an entertainment given by the Lord Keeper, and on her way to the mansion32 she was entertained by a dialogue “betweene the Bayly and the Dary-mayd,” in which the following was supposed to be spoken by the bailiff of the Lord Keeper: “The Mistress of this fayre companie, though she knowe the way to all men’s hearts, yet she knowes the way to few men’s houses, except she love them very well.”
James I., some years before he succeeded to the English throne, evinced a strong disposition33 to{339} favour theatrical amusements. In the Society of Antiquaries is preserved a manuscript which shows the extent and amount of his dramatic establishment, and from it we find that the annual fee of the Master of the Revels had been raised to ￡100, besides diet in Court, although each of the players was only allowed—as they had been from the time of Henry VIII.—￡3, 6s. 8d. per annum.
Prince Henry had a company of players, and after his death, and on the marriage of the Elector Palatine of the Rhine to the Princess Elizabeth, the players transferred their services to the Prince Palatine, and “it is a new feature in theatrical history,” writes Collier,[138] “that on this occasion they produced a patent under the Great Seal very similar to that which James I. had granted about ten years before to Laurence Fletcher, William Shakespeare, and the other servants of the Lord Chamberlain.”
But it seems that the plays acted at Court did not always give satisfaction, for in one of John Chamberlain’s letters to Sir Dudley Carlton occurs this paragraph: “They have plays at Court every night, both holidays and working days, wherein they show great patience, being for the most part such poor stuff that, instead of delight, they send the auditory away with discontent.” And he adds, “Indeed our poets’ brains and inventions are grown very dry, insomuch that of five new plays there is not one that pleases; and therefore they{340} are driven to furbish over their old, which stand them in best stead, and bring them most profit.”
The fondness of James for theatricals36 is further evidenced by the fact that in 1617, during his journey to the north, he was attended by a regular company of players, and a warrant issued for their payment is thus recorded in the registers of the Privy37 Council: “11th July 1617.—A warrant to the L. Stanhope, Treasurer38 of his Majestie’s Chambers39, to cause payment to be made to certain players for three Stage Playes, that were acted before his Majestie, in his journey to Scotland, such summes of money as is usual in the like kinde.”
Prince Charles retained a company of musicians in his pay, besides his dramatic performers; and after his accession to the throne we find entries of payment for plays performed at Court at Christmas, and Twelfth-tide. It would seem that, at a very early date, players who called themselves the servants of any particular nobleman, usually wore his badge or livery. Accordingly in 1629 we find the King’s players allowed, every second year, four yards of bastard40 scarlet41 for a cloak, and a quarter yard of crimson42 velvet43 for a cape44 to it.
Charles II., again, was passionately45 fond of theatrical entertainments. On one occasion, when Sir William Davenant’s play of “Love and Honour” was first acted, his Majesty presented Betterton, the actor, with his coronation suit, in which the player performed the character of Prince Alonzo. The Duke of York followed his Majesty’s example by{341} giving the suit which he had worn on the same occasion to Hains, who acted the part of Prince Prospero.
Previous to the Restoration of Charles II., it may be remembered, no woman was allowed on the stage, in connection with which Colley Cibber gives this anecdote46: The King coming to the house rather before his usual time, found the dramatis person? not ready to appear, whereupon he sent one of his attendants to ascertain47 the cause of the delay. The manager at once went to the royal box, and informed the merry monarch that “the queen was not yet shaved.” Charles good-humouredly accepted the explanation, and laughed heartily48, until the male queen was effeminated and the curtain drew up.
At the time of James II. playhouses, and players, were constantly anathematised by the clergy49, and the Duchess of York had a strong moral objection to the coarse comedies of the era. But she liked a good play, and was wont50 to remark that “there was no sin, she believed, in going to theatres, provided the pieces selected for representation were not of an objectionable character; but that the stage might and ought to be rendered a medium of conveying moral instruction to the people, instead of flattering and inculcating vice34.”
Mary II. was a patron of the drama, and, in 1689, she expressed a wish to see Dryden’s “Spanish Friar” performed, which had been forbidden by James II. because its licentious51 comic scenes held up the Romish Church to ridicule52. But{342} her Majesty was disappointed, for, to quote the words of her friend Nottingham, “the only time she gave herself the diversion of a play has furnished the town with discourse53 for a month. Some unlucky expressions confused her, and forced her to hold up her fan, often look behind her, and call for her palatine or hood14, or anything she could contrive54 to speak of to her woman. Every speech in that play seemed to come home to her, as there was a strong report about town that her father, James II., was dead in Ireland; and when anything applicable was said, every one in the pit turned their heads over their shoulders, and directed their looks most pointedly55 at her.” “Nor,” as Miss Strickland writes, “could this be wondered at; for a daughter sitting to see a play acted, which was too free for the morals of that age, at the moment when reports were prevalent that her own father was dead, was indeed a sight to be gazed upon with consternation56.”
George I. was fond of seeing the play of “Henry VIII.,” and on one occasion when it was being acted at Hampton Court, he paid particular attention to that part of the play where Henry VIII. commands his minister, Wolsey, to write circular letters of indemnity57 to every county where the payment of certain heavy taxes had been disputed—
“Let there be letters writ35 to every shire
Of the King’s grace and pardon. The grieved commons
Hardly conceive of me. Let it be noised
That through our intercession, this revokement
And pardon comes. I shall, anon, advise you
Further in the proceeding58.”
{343}
The story goes that on one occasion when the above lines were spoken, the King said to the Prince of Wales, who had not yet been expelled from Court, “You see, George, what you have one day to expect.”
George II. has been censured59 for encouraging the representation of immoral60 dramas, “a perverted61 taste,” which, it is said, “was strong upon him from the first.”[139] When Prince of Wales he witnessed the acting62 of Otway’s “Venice Preserved,” but, on discovering afterwards that certain scenes had been omitted, he commanded them to be restored. In the later part of his life, George II. took advantage of his position to make loud remarks on the performances at which he was present, a recorded instance of which occurred at Drury Lane, when his Majesty commanded Farquhar’s “Beaux Stratagem” and Fielding’s “Intriguing63 Chambermaid” to be performed. But the representation does not appear to have given satisfaction, for Walpole, writing to Mann, says: “A certain king that, whatever airs you may give yourself, you are not at all like, was last week at the play. The intriguing chambermaid in the farce64 says to the old gentleman, ‘You are villainously old, you are sixty-six; you cannot have the impudence65 to think of living above two years.’ The old gentleman on the stage here turned about in a passion and said, ‘This is d—d stuff!’ and the royal critic was energetically right.”
One of the greatest honours ever rendered to a{344} dramatist by royalty66 was conferred by Queen Caroline, wife of George II., on Mottley, an obscene playwright67. But when his benefit night was announced “as to take place soon after the Queen’s drawing-room had been held, the Queen herself, in that very drawing-room, sold Mottley’s tickets, delivering them with her own royal hand to the purchasers, and condescending68 to receive gold for them in return.”[140]
Frederick Prince of Wales, father of George III., was fond of private theatricals, and endeavoured to instil69 his taste for dramatic performances into his children.
More than once we find the little princes and princesses “fretting their hour upon the stage,” their instructor70 being the celebrated71 actor, James Quin, who was also the stage manager. In after years the old actor took a pride in speaking of the days when he was a Court favourite, and when the first speech of George III., delivered from the throne, was much commended for the graceful72 manner in which it was spoken; “Ay!” said Quin, “it was I who taught the boy to speak.”
The first of these juvenile73 dramatic performances took place on 4th January 1749—the piece selected for representation being Addison’s “Cato”—and the last occasion of these juvenile theatricals at Leicester House appears to have been on 11th January 1750, on which day Bubb Dodington mentions in his diary that he was invited to witness{345} the representation of Rowe’s tragedy of “Lady Jane Grey” by the royal children.
In after days George III.’s early acquired taste for the drama seems to have kept pace with his life, for so frequent were his visits to the theatre that the people of London are said to have been as well acquainted with his features as with those of their next-door neighbour. His glee during the performance of a broad farce, or a droll74 hit in a pantomime, may at times have been too exuberantly75 manifested, but his subjects did not love him the less because he was completely at home in the midst of them. Neither did his sense of the ridiculous prevent his enjoying the higher beauties of the drama. Frequently Mrs. Siddons, and sometimes Garrick, were sent for to read plays or poetry in the royal circle either at Buckingham House, or Windsor.[141] “He is said,” writes Thackeray,[142] “not to have cared for Shakespeare or tragedy much; farces76 and pantomimes were his joy; and especially when the clown swallowed a carrot, or a string of sausages, he would laugh so outrageously77 that the lovely princess by his side would have to say, ‘My gracious monarch, do compose yourself.’ But he continued to laugh, and at the very smallest farces, so long as his poor wits were left him.”
But the fondness of George III. for the drama on one occasion was not unattended with risk, for as he was on his way to the Haymarket Theatre,{346} on 25th July 1777, a madwoman attacked and did some damage to his chair. And as he was entering his box in Drury Lane Theatre, on 15th May 1800, he was shot at by a madman named James Hadfield. But he did not lose his composure, and he slept as quietly as usual during the interval between the play and the after-piece. What nowadays would be considered an unpardonable offence was occasionally taken by actors with their royal patrons. When Parsons, for instance, was playing the Chief Carpenter in the “Siege of Calais,” advancing close to the royal box, he exclaimed, “An’ the King were here and did not admire my scaffold, I would say, D—n him! he has no taste”—an impudent78 sally which amused the King even more than the audience.
An act of indecorum, but trivial compared with that of Parsons, happened when the young King of Denmark—who married the sister of George III.—was present in October 1768, at the tragedy of “Jane Shore,” during the performance of which he went fast asleep, and remained so to the amusement of the audience, but to the annoyance79 of Mrs. Bellamy, who played Alicia.
She waited for her opportunity, and having to pronounce the words, “O thou false lord,” she approached the royal box, and uttered them “in such a piercing tone, that the King awoke in sudden amazement80, but with perception enough to enable him to protest that he would not be married to a woman with such a voice though she had the whole world for a dowry.”[143] {347}
It was on 3rd December 1779, when the “Winter’s Tale” was being played by royal command at Drury Lane, that the Prince of Wales, afterwards George IV., was subdued81 by the beauty of the charming actress, Mary Robinson, in her character of Perdita. An intrigue82 ensued, and he corresponded with her under the name of “Florizel.” He provided for her a costly83 establishment, “and when after two years the connection terminated, she obtained from him a bond for ￡20,000, which she afterwards surrendered.” And although he had sworn to be “unalterable to my Perdita through life,” he abandoned her, and left her to want. But Charles Fox obtained for her an annuity84 of ￡300, and, when sojourning in France, Marie Antoinette gave a purse knitted by her own fingers to “la belle86 Anglaise.”
Queen Victoria, too, not only patronised the drama, but she gave it every encouragement, the performance of a good play well acted being a source of recreation which she thoroughly87 enjoyed. But, as is well known, owing to the lamented88 death and irretrievable loss of the Prince Consort89, her Majesty during her many years of mourning abandoned many of the former amusements of her Court as distasteful in her bereavement90; and it was only in the later years of her life that dramatic representations were once more occasionally seen at Windsor, the memory of which is of too recent occurrence to need further notice.
The prominence91 assigned to the drama in the diversions at the Court of Louis XIV. did much to{348} encourage this department of literature in France,[144] for we are told that the stigma92 attaching to the stage had to a large extent been wiped away “by the homage93 of society, the elevation94 of the theatre to the level of a State institution,” and a remark by Louis XIV. that a gentleman did not cease to be one by going on the stage.
It was in 1680 that Louis XIV. formed a company of players, undertaking95 to pay them 12,000 livres a year, and placing them under the control of the First Gentlemen of the Chamber—the origin of the Théatre Fran?aise, more popularly designated the Comédie Fran?aise. The company consisted of a sufficient number of members—twenty-seven—“to do justice to a tragedy or comedy in the Maisons Royales, when his Majesty wished to be so diverted.” However much the King’s name was maligned96 in death, in this outburst of feeling the stage had little or no share, for the players could not forget that the late King had been a lover of the drama from his boyhood, and had raised their art to the dignity of a State institution, and had treated them at Court as on a level with distinguished97 men of letters, painters, and savants.[145]
Louis XV., on the other hand, showed an apathetic98 indifference99 towards the stage, and in the words of Matthieu Marais he cared for neither the drama nor music, and it is said that “the sight of his dull and immovable face never failed to depress the players’ spirits.”
[Image unavailable.]
LOUIS XIV.
{349}
Plays of an irreligious or seditious tendency found no sympathy with Louis XVI., and he interdicted100 the production of “The Mariage de Figaro” by Beaumarchais, remarking that the author of it “scoffs at everything that ought to be respected in government,” but his Majesty was eventually induced to withdraw his veto.
Marie Antoinette took a keen interest in all kinds of theatricals, and private representations were performed in her apartments. According to Montjoie,[146] she condescended101 to take characters not always of the most dignified102 description; she also played in comic operas. This sort of amusement, he adds, was imitated, and all classes of society imbibed103 a taste for theatrical representations; “there was not a man of rank, a financier, nor even a citizen in easy circumstances, who would be without his theatre. Formerly104 a private gentleman would have been disgraced if suspected of metamorphosing himself into an actor, even in a private house. The Queen, however, by her example having put an end to this prejudice, the head of the magistrates105, unmindful of the dignity of his position, performed the lowest comic parts.”[147] Indeed, the theatre was a constant topic of conversation at Court, and when the Queen had not been present she never omitted asking, “Was it well attended?”
It was in 1774 that the King addressed Marie Antoinette thus: “You are fond of flowers. Well, I have a bouquet106 to offer you: it is the Little{350} Trianon”;—a fatal present, as it turned out, for this “Little Trianon” became “the imputed107 cause of ruinous extravagance, and the fancied scene of improper108 indulgences.” During her residence here the favourite amusement was private theatricals, at which the King regularly attended.
On one occasion when Marie Antoinette went to the opera, a striking proof was given by the audience of their extraordinary and marked affection for her. The opera of “Iphigenia” by Glück was being performed, in the second act of which there is a chorus, in which Achilles sings the first verse, turning to his followers109 and saying—
“Chantons, célébrez votre reine!”
Instead of that the actor gave these words—
“Chantons, célébrons notre reine,
L’hymen, qui sous ses lois l’encha?ne,
Va nous rendre à jamais heureux.”
The audience took this up with enthusiastic ardour. “All was shouting and clapping of hands, and—what never happened at the opera before—the chorus was encored, and there were cries of ‘Long live the Queen,’” at which expression of feeling the Queen was so affected110 that she shed tears.
A similar demonstration111 occurred the last time the Queen was ever in a playhouse, the play on this occasion being Grétry’s “Les Evenements Imprévus.” By mistaken kindness, one of the leading ladies bowed to the Queen as she sang the words, “Ah, how I love my mistress!” in a duet.{351}
Instantly twenty voices shouted from the pit, “No mistress, no master! liberty!” A few counter voices cried, “Vive le Roi! Vive le Reine!” but the pit drowned them, “No master, no Queen!” A quarrel ensued, but the Queen as composed as before was loudly cheered as she quitted the theatre—never to be seen again at a dramatic performance.
In Maria Theresa, who became Empress of Germany in 1745, the drama had a strong supporter, a taste which had always been wisely encouraged. The story goes that her father composed an opera at a time when war was raging, his country falling into ruins, and his Court receiving the bribes112 of his enemies.
At the Court of Vienna the drama, at one time or another, has been in popular request. Leopold I. made music and the theatre his great hobby, next to his passion for hunting. According to Vehse,[148] he had a theatre, and he caused at Vienna and Sch?nbrunn brilliant operas and pastorals to be performed, in which “the scenery and the costumes were most magnificent.” It is reported that the getting up of one of these operas, “Il Pomo d’Oro,” cost as much as 100,000 florins—grand battle scenes, rehearsed under the superintendence of the Court fencing-master, being introduced. The whole of Vienna, we read, became imbued113 with the Emperor’s fondness for music and the drama, which was equally shared by his second wife, Claudia of Tyrol, who, it is said, sometimes made use of these operatic representations to “tell{352} her lord and husband things which he was not likely to hear elsewhere.” Thus on one occasion she had a piece performed entitled, “La Lanterne de Diogene,” in which the speeches addressed to Alexander the Great were intended to set forth11 before Leopold the abuses rife114 at the Court. But the Emperor’s third wife, the saintly Eleanora of Mantua, had no sympathy for the stage, and it is said accompanied her husband to the opera only with inward groans115; and, instead of reading the libretto116, she studied the Psalms117.
Joseph II., again, was fond of the theatre, and he did much for it. One of his favourite comedies was Grossman’s “Not more than Six Dishes,” which appears to have been an amusing satire118 on the prodigality119 and the general manners of the nobility, who consequently, we are told, did their utmost to have the piece suppressed. An opera which never failed to amuse the Emperor was one by Paisiello, called “Il Re Teodoro,” the libretto of which was another satire, pointed at King Gustavus III. of Sweden, who, during his stay at Venice in the year 1783, had “displayed a most ridiculous profusion120, which even extended to his dressing-gown.”
As a young man Frederick the Great took great pleasure in theatrical amusements, and in the year 1737 he acted at Rheinsberg, when he took the part of Philoctèle in Voltaire’s “?dipe.” He had a strong partiality for the French drama, and soon after his accession to the throne he summoned a French company to Berlin; but he was apt to criticise121 “the exaggerated pathos122 of the French{353} actors,” remarking of Le Cain: “This man would be the Roscius of our age if he exaggerated less. I like to see our passions represented as they really are; but as soon as Nature is crushed by art, I remain quite unmoved.”
He established the Italian opera in Berlin, and until the Seven Years’ War he was a frequent attendant at the opera and ballet, as well as at the French comedy. The theatre, we are told, “cost the Emperor nearly four hundred thousand dollars a year. The admission was free, the boxes being assigned to the Court, the ministers, privy councillors, &c. The pit was filled by the military, every regiment123 of the garrison124 sending a certain number of men.” But it would seem that the “gentlemen of the green-room” gave the Emperor some trouble, for he once wrote: “The opera people are such a blackguardly set that I am heartily tired of them.” And on another occasion he wrote still more strongly: “I shall send them all off to the ——, such blackguards may be had any day; I must have money for cannon125, and cannot spend so much on those mountebanks.”
The dancers, too, caused him some considerable trouble, and even Vestris, the French dieu de la danse, found no engagement in Berlin, the Emperor remarking, “Mon. Vestris is mad; who in the world but a fool would give four thousand dollars to a dancer, besides three thousand to his sister, and one thousand to his brother.”
But, much as Frederick liked theatrical amusements and dancing, he was an inveterate126 opponent{354} of aerial feats127 and rope-dancing shows as highly dangerous, and forbade them throughout his dominions128 by a special cabinet order, which ran thus: “If such people have a wish to break their necks we cannot prevent their doing so in foreign countries, but in our own provinces our humanity, and fatherly care for our subjects, forbid us to allow them an opportunity.”
Never, it is said, were stage representations of such gorgeousness exhibited in Rome until the period of the sojourn85 of Christina, ex-Queen of Sweden, in Italy in 1668, when her influence seems to have had an extraordinary effect on all classes of society. Thus we are told how the entire Sacred College were now for ever going to the play, “and the balcony of her box was every night crowded by cardinals129, who looked with edification on the ballerinas, and listened with delight to the exquisitely130 dressed singing-girls, who resorted to Rome at the invitation of Christina. The etiquette131, when she was present, was of the very strictest, the noblest in Rome being compelled to remain uncovered as long as she was in the house. The gay cardinals, who lolled over the balcony in front of her box, alone wore their caps, in allusion132 to which privilege a paper was one night fixed133 beneath the balcony, on which was inscribed134, “Plenary indulgence for the gentlemen in purple.”[149]
In the spring of 1757 a strange event occurred in the little Court of Stanislaus Leczinski, ex-King{355} of Poland, and who at that time kept his Court at Nancy. The theatrical company in the service of his Majesty announced the performance of “Le Glorieux,” for the début of an actor, a young boy, recently arrived at Nancy. On the appointed evening the Court, together with every person of distinction in the town, flocked to the little theatre to witness the appearance of the young actor, who was to personate the humble135 character of the poorly dressed lacquey in the play of Destouches. King Stanislaus was in his box, accompanied by the Marchioness de Boufflers, anxious to see the boy whose past was so romantic, and which, briefly136 told, was as follows: “During the wanderings of a party of strolling-players, the wife of one of them augmented137 the company by giving birth to a boy. The child was placed under the care of a nurse, with a liberal allowance for its maintenance; but she lodged138 it in the hospital of the Enfans Trouvés; but after a lapse139 of seven years the treachery of the nurse was discovered, and the child was restored to its parents.” This child was the new débutant, whose natural air and correct accentuation of the little part allotted140 to him charmed every one, and when, in accordance with his part, he took with a cool gesture a pinch of snuff, which was followed by a fit of sneezing he could not repress, the King smilingly exclaimed, “God bless you,” words which instantly resounded141 through the pit.
At the conclusion of the play the child was brought to the King’s box, and his Majesty{356} drawing him towards him, and wiping away the powder from his forehead, conferred upon him a royal kiss. The boy was sensible of the honour, and shyly turning his eyes towards where the Marchioness was seated, said—
“Ah, all the pretty ladies behind the scenes kissed me and embraced me.”
“And I suppose,” said the King, “you think all the pretty ladies in the boxes ought to do the same.” And without waiting for the ceremony of presentation, the boy ran to Madame de Boufflers and kissed her on each cheek.
Such was the début of Joseph Alvaham Bernard, commonly called Henry, on making his first appearance at the Court Theatre of Nancy in 1750.
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monarch
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| n.帝王，君主，最高统治者 | |
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poetical
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| adj.似诗人的；诗一般的；韵文的；富有诗意的 | |
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primitive
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| adj.原始的；简单的；n.原(始)人，原始事物 | |
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barons
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| 男爵( baron的名词复数 )； 巨头； 大王； 大亨 | |
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secular
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| n.牧师，凡人；adj.世俗的，现世的，不朽的 | |
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allied
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| adj.协约国的；同盟国的 | |
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reign
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| n.统治时期，统治，支配，盛行；v.占优势 | |
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eldest
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retinue
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| n.侍从；随员 | |
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theatrical
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| adj.剧场的，演戏的；做戏似的，做作的 | |
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forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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enumeration
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| n.计数，列举；细目；详表；点查 | |
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chamber
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| n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所 | |
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hood
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| n.头巾，兜帽，覆盖；v.罩上，以头巾覆盖 | |
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pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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16
custody
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| n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留 | |
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17
ascended
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| v.上升，攀登( ascend的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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18
transpired
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| （事实，秘密等）被人知道( transpire的过去式和过去分词 )； 泄露； 显露； 发生 | |
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19
doctrines
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| n.教条( doctrine的名词复数 )；教义；学说；（政府政策的）正式声明 | |
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majesty
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| n.雄伟，壮丽，庄严，威严；最高权威，王权 | |
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21
ERECTED
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| adj. 直立的，竖立的，笔直的 vt. 使 ... 直立，建立 | |
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22
joint
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| adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合 | |
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23
Oxford
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| n.牛津（英国城市） | |
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24
specially
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| adv.特定地；特殊地；明确地 | |
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25
revels
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| n.作乐( revel的名词复数 )；狂欢；着迷；陶醉v.作乐( revel的第三人称单数 )；狂欢；着迷；陶醉 | |
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26
interval
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| n.间隔，间距；幕间休息，中场休息 | |
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27
apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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28
faculty
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| n.才能；学院，系；(学院或系的)全体教学人员 | |
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29
solace
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| n.安慰；v.使快乐；vt.安慰(物)，缓和 | |
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30
boroughs
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| （尤指大伦敦的）行政区( borough的名词复数 )； 议会中有代表的市镇 | |
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31
imposing
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| adj.使人难忘的，壮丽的，堂皇的，雄伟的 | |
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32
mansion
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| n.大厦，大楼；宅第 | |
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33
disposition
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| n.性情，性格；意向，倾向；排列，部署 | |
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34
vice
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| n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的 | |
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35
writ
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| n.命令状，书面命令 | |
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36
theatricals
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| n.（业余性的）戏剧演出，舞台表演艺术；职业演员；戏剧的( theatrical的名词复数 )；剧场的；炫耀的；戏剧性的 | |
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37
privy
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| adj.私用的；隐密的 | |
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38
treasurer
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| n.司库，财务主管 | |
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39
chambers
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| n.房间( chamber的名词复数 )；（议会的）议院；卧室；会议厅 | |
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40
bastard
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| n.坏蛋，混蛋；私生子 | |
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41
scarlet
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| n.深红色，绯红色，红衣；adj.绯红色的 | |
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42
crimson
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| n./adj.深(绯)红色(的)；vi.脸变绯红色 | |
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43
velvet
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| n.丝绒，天鹅绒；adj.丝绒制的，柔软的 | |
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44
cape
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| n.海角，岬；披肩，短披风 | |
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45
passionately
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| ad.热烈地，激烈地 | |
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46
anecdote
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| n.轶事，趣闻，短故事 | |
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47
ascertain
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| vt.发现，确定，查明，弄清 | |
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48
heartily
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| adv.衷心地，诚恳地，十分，很 | |
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49
clergy
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| n.[总称]牧师，神职人员 | |
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50
wont
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| adj.习惯于；v.习惯；n.习惯 | |
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51
licentious
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| adj.放纵的，淫乱的 | |
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52
ridicule
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| v.讥讽，挖苦；n.嘲弄 | |
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53
discourse
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| n.论文，演说；谈话；话语；vi.讲述，著述 | |
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54
contrive
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| vt.谋划，策划；设法做到；设计，想出 | |
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55
pointedly
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| adv.尖地，明显地 | |
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56
consternation
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| n.大为吃惊，惊骇 | |
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57
indemnity
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| n.赔偿，赔款，补偿金 | |
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58
proceeding
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| n.行动，进行，(pl.)会议录，学报 | |
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59
censured
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| v.指责，非难，谴责( censure的过去式 ) | |
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60
immoral
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| adj.不道德的，淫荡的，荒淫的，有伤风化的 | |
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61
perverted
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| adj.不正当的v.滥用( pervert的过去式和过去分词 )；腐蚀；败坏；使堕落 | |
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62
acting
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| n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的 | |
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63
intriguing
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| adj.有趣的；迷人的v.搞阴谋诡计(intrigue的现在分词)；激起…的好奇心 | |
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64
farce
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| n.闹剧，笑剧，滑稽戏；胡闹 | |
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65
impudence
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| n.厚颜无耻；冒失；无礼 | |
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66
royalty
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| n.皇家，皇族 | |
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67
playwright
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| n.剧作家，编写剧本的人 | |
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68
condescending
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| adj.谦逊的,故意屈尊的 | |
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69
instil
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| v.逐渐灌输 | |
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70
instructor
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| n.指导者，教员，教练 | |
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71
celebrated
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| adj.有名的，声誉卓著的 | |
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72
graceful
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| adj.优美的，优雅的；得体的 | |
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73
juvenile
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| n.青少年，少年读物；adj.青少年的，幼稚的 | |
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74
droll
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| adj.古怪的，好笑的 | |
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75
exuberantly
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| adv.兴高采烈地，活跃地，愉快地 | |
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76
farces
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| n.笑剧( farce的名词复数 )；闹剧；笑剧剧目；作假的可笑场面 | |
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77
outrageously
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| 凶残地； 肆无忌惮地； 令人不能容忍地； 不寻常地 | |
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78
impudent
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| adj.鲁莽的，卑鄙的，厚颜无耻的 | |
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79
annoyance
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| n.恼怒，生气，烦恼 | |
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80
amazement
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| n.惊奇，惊讶 | |
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81
subdued
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| adj. 屈服的，柔和的，减弱的 动词subdue的过去式和过去分词 | |
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82
intrigue
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| vt.激起兴趣，迷住；vi.耍阴谋；n.阴谋，密谋 | |
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83
costly
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| adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的 | |
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84
annuity
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| n.年金；养老金 | |
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85
sojourn
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| v./n.旅居，寄居；逗留 | |
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86
belle
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| n.靓女 | |
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87
thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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88
lamented
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|
| adj.被哀悼的，令人遗憾的v.（为…）哀悼，痛哭，悲伤( lament的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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89
consort
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| v.相伴；结交 | |
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90
bereavement
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| n.亲人丧亡，丧失亲人，丧亲之痛 | |
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91
prominence
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| n.突出；显著；杰出；重要 | |
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92
stigma
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| n.耻辱，污名；(花的)柱头 | |
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93
homage
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| n.尊敬，敬意，崇敬 | |
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94
elevation
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| n.高度；海拔；高地；上升；提高 | |
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95
undertaking
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| n.保证，许诺，事业 | |
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96
maligned
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| vt.污蔑，诽谤（malign的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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97
distinguished
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| adj.卓越的，杰出的，著名的 | |
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98
apathetic
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| adj.冷漠的，无动于衷的 | |
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99
indifference
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| n.不感兴趣，不关心，冷淡，不在乎 | |
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100
interdicted
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| v.禁止（行动）( interdict的过去式和过去分词 )；禁用；限制 | |
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101
condescended
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| 屈尊，俯就( condescend的过去式和过去分词 )； 故意表示和蔼可亲 | |
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102
dignified
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| a.可敬的，高贵的 | |
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103
imbibed
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| v.吸收( imbibe的过去式和过去分词 )；喝；吸取；吸气 | |
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104
formerly
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| adv.从前，以前 | |
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105
magistrates
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| 地方法官，治安官( magistrate的名词复数 ) | |
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106
bouquet
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| n.花束，酒香 | |
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107
imputed
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| v.把（错误等）归咎于( impute的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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108
improper
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| adj.不适当的，不合适的，不正确的，不合礼仪的 | |
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109
followers
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| 追随者( follower的名词复数 )； 用户； 契据的附面； 从动件 | |
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110
affected
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| adj.不自然的，假装的 | |
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111
demonstration
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| n.表明，示范，论证，示威 | |
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112
bribes
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| n.贿赂( bribe的名词复数 )；向（某人）行贿，贿赂v.贿赂( bribe的第三人称单数 )；向（某人）行贿，贿赂 | |
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113
imbued
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| v.使（某人/某事）充满或激起（感情等）( imbue的过去式和过去分词 )；使充满；灌输；激发（强烈感情或品质等） | |
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114
rife
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| adj.(指坏事情)充斥的，流行的，普遍的 | |
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115
groans
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| n.呻吟，叹息( groan的名词复数 )；呻吟般的声音v.呻吟( groan的第三人称单数 )；发牢骚；抱怨；受苦 | |
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116
libretto
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| n.歌剧剧本，歌曲歌词 | |
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117
psalms
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| n.赞美诗( psalm的名词复数 )；圣诗；圣歌；(中的) | |
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118
satire
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| n.讽刺，讽刺文学，讽刺作品 | |
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119
prodigality
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| n.浪费，挥霍 | |
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120
profusion
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| n.挥霍；丰富 | |
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121
criticise
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| v.批评，评论；非难 | |
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122
pathos
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| n.哀婉，悲怆 | |
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123
regiment
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| n.团，多数，管理；v.组织，编成团，统制 | |
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124
garrison
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| n.卫戍部队；驻地，卫戍区；vt.派(兵)驻防 | |
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125
cannon
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| n.大炮，火炮；飞机上的机关炮 | |
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126
inveterate
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| adj.积习已深的，根深蒂固的 | |
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127
feats
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| 功绩，伟业，技艺( feat的名词复数 ) | |
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128
dominions
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| 统治权( dominion的名词复数 )； 领土； 疆土； 版图 | |
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129
cardinals
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| 红衣主教( cardinal的名词复数 )； 红衣凤头鸟（见于北美，雄鸟为鲜红色）； 基数 | |
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130
exquisitely
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| adv.精致地；强烈地；剧烈地；异常地 | |
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131
etiquette
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| n.礼仪，礼节；规矩 | |
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132
allusion
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| n.暗示，间接提示 | |
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133
fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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134
inscribed
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| v.写，刻( inscribe的过去式和过去分词 )；内接 | |
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135
humble
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| adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低 | |
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136
briefly
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| adv.简单地，简短地 | |
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137
Augmented
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| adj.增音的 动词augment的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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138
lodged
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| v.存放( lodge的过去式和过去分词 )；暂住；埋入；（权利、权威等）归属 | |
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139
lapse
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| n.过失，流逝，失效，抛弃信仰，间隔；vi.堕落，停止，失效，流逝；vt.使失效 | |
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140
allotted
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| 分配，拨给，摊派( allot的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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141
resounded
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| v.（指声音等）回荡于某处( resound的过去式和过去分词 )；产生回响；（指某处）回荡着声音 | |
参考例句： |
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