London's Love to Prince Henry

London's Love to Prince Henry (31 May 1610), was a pageant on the River Thames organised by the city of London for the investiture of Prince Henry as Prince of Wales.[1]

Prince Henry by Robert Peake

This pageant was performed on the Thames between Chelsea and Whitehall. It was organised by the Lord Mayor of London, and written by Anthony Munday who subsequently published an account of the spectacle.

Prince Henry's barge coming from Richmond encountered Corinea, Queen of Cornwall (John Rice), at Chelsea riding on a whale. She declared London's love for him. Next at Whitehall, Henry met Amphion, a Genius of Wales, (Richard Burbage, riding a dolphin, who bid the Prince farewell. Musicians were concealed in the whale and the dolphin.[2] The mayor and the guilds followed the prince in fifty barges.

Corinea wore a "watrie habit yet riche riche and costly, with a Coronet of Pearles and Cockle shelles on her head." Amphion was "a grave and judicious Prophet-like personage, attyred in his apt habits, every way answerable to his state and profession, with a wreathe of Sea-shelles on his head, and his harpe haging in fayre twine before him."[3]

Frederick Ulrich, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg nephew of Anne of Denmark, was among the audience and passengers on the prince's barge. The following Monday a water-fight and fireworks night was planned, and announced by the appearance of Proteus. This event was rained off, but on 5 June 1610 the aquatic theme continued with the court masque Tethys' Festival.

The delayed sea fight took place on 6 June. A Turkish pirate ship defending a castle engaged with two merchant ships. The merchants came under fire from the pirate castle, then two warships assisted, many sailors appeared to be killed and thrown in the sea, and finally the pirate castle was blown up in a firework display.[4]

References
  • Anthony Munday, London's love, to the Royal Prince Henrie meeting him on the river of Thames, at his returne from Richmonde, with a worthie fleete of her citizens, on Thursday the last of May (London, 1610).
  • David M. Bergeron, 'Creating Entertainments for Prince Henry's Creation (1610)', Comparative Drama, vol. 42, No. 4 (Winter 2008), pp. 433–449.
  1. Martin Wiggins & Catherine Richardson, British Drama 1533-1642: A Catalogue: 1609-1616, vol. 3 (Oxford, 2015), pp. 72-4.
  2. Martin Wiggins & Catherine Richardson, British Drama 1533-1642: A Catalogue: 1609-1616, vol. 3 (Oxford, 2015), pp. 72-4.
  3. Anthony Munday, London's love, to the Royal Prince Henrie meeting him on the river of Thames (London, 1610), pp. 14, 19.
  4. Anthony Munday, London's love, to the Royal Prince Henrie meeting him on the river of Thames (London, 1610), pp. 24-5.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.