Comments on: The Earl of Southampton – Shakespeare’s Patron

By: Jonathan Wallace

Jonathan Wallace — Mon, 25 Sep 2023 09:35:56 +0000

In reply to Ajibade. Where is it written that The Earl patronised Shakespeare ?

By: Jonathan Wallace

Jonathan Wallace — Mon, 25 Sep 2023 09:34:51 +0000

In reply to Julie. 99.9% of Shakespeare's biography is speculation. For The Earl of Southampton not to have mentioned Shakespeare at all, not once, is surprising.

By: Esme Flyte

Esme Flyte — Thu, 21 Apr 2022 08:09:21 +0000

In reply to Dana anderson. It's really the tone, not just the occasional flippant mention of love. See sonnets 20, 52, 71, and 95. This essay, if you can even call it that, mentions a very watered down and, frankly, the most utterly boring version of Wriothesley's life ever to be put to pen, and Charlotte Stopes exists. If the entire sequence consisted of, say, sonnets 1-17, then I might give you some credit, but you sound like Charlton Ogburn on a bad day, and that's hardly a compliment.

By: Ajibade

Ajibade — Tue, 10 Aug 2021 19:47:01 +0000

In reply to Anna. Well, at the time, the Bard was only known as a dramatist and a playwright. So, choosing the Earl to be his patron could only mean an act of gaining recognition as a poet.

By: Anna

Anna — Fri, 18 Jun 2021 13:07:20 +0000

Hi, I am doing academic research into the link between Shakespeare and The Earl of Southampton. While reading your article I noticed a peculiar line….you wrote: ‘the fact he was Shakespeare’s patron’. Where is the source material for this fact? As far as I, and other researchers are aware, there is no evidence of any financial link between the Bard and the Earl.

Thank you for your time.
Anna

By: Cindy Wilday

Cindy Wilday — Fri, 26 Jun 2020 09:14:43 +0000

In reply to Trevor Cameron. OMG i'm so excited. I have just found through ancestry that William Wriothesley was one of my great grandparents. I will watch the film recommended to find out more information x

By: Dana anderson

Dana anderson — Thu, 26 Mar 2020 22:11:59 +0000

In reply to Julie. The “evidence” is likely the language of many sonnets which were dedicated to Southampton. Shakespeare uses references to “love” often in many sonnets. Today we read “love” as suggesting romance or sex. In Shakespeare’s time it meant a high level of respect and did not connote the sexual meaning of today.

By: Bernadette Nixon

Bernadette Nixon — Mon, 16 Mar 2020 10:41:32 +0000

is this man connected to “call call me” in H. Mantells recent trilogy?

By: Georgia

Georgia — Wed, 08 Jan 2020 17:28:09 +0000

The photography is stunning…I felt like I was breathing Tudor air…and I celebrate the return of Kenneth Baranagh to the big screen…I just watched the film twice and can’t wait to see it again. As an American unfamiliar with Shakespeare I think that this version has as much chance at being true as any other and it would seem that much of his life wasn’t documented so it’s anybody’s guess…I can’t imagine Kenneth going there if he didn’t think this was a real possibility…well done!

By: Julie

Julie — Fri, 25 Oct 2019 22:44:18 +0000

Have just watched the new film ‘All is True’ which suggests that Shakespeare and the Earl of Southampton were lovers. Not sure where the evidence is for this. The film is great but there are many, possibly imagined, revelations about Shakespeare ‘s life. Visually stunning and superbly acted but I think it is largely speculation.