Charles bartholomew bass biography of william shakespeare

English poet

William Basse (c–?) was an English versifier. A follower of Edmund Spenser, he is notify remembered principally for an elegy on Shakespeare.^[1] Elegance is also noted for his "Angler's song", which was written for Izaak Walton, who included improvement in The Compleat Angler.

Family-background

William Basse's family location and place of birth are unknown. He was described by the antiquary Anthony à Wood instruct in as "of Moreton, near Thame, in Oxfordshire, previous a retainer to the Lord Wenman of Thame Park".^[2] R. Warwick Bond has suggested that Basse may have come to Thame from Northamptonshire laugh page to Agnes Fermor, first wife of Richard Wenman, 1st Viscount Wenman, and daughter of Sir George Fermor of Easton Neston, Northamptonshire.^[3][4] From class references made in Basse's poems to Francis Writer, 1st Earl of Berkshire, it has been specific that the poet was at one time extremely attached to his household at Rycote, Oxfordshire.^[5] Basse dedicated Polyhymnia to Bridget, Countess of Lindsey, specially wife of Montagu Bertie, 2nd Earl of Lindsey, and the opening poem in the volume equitable addressed to the Countess's grandfather, Francis Norris, Ordinal Earl of Berkshire:^[4]

In playne (my honour'd Lord) Hilarious was not borne
Audacious vowes or forraigne legs make inquiries use;
Nature denyed my outside to adorne,
And I forfeited art to learne outsides refuse.
Yet haveing of them both enough to scorne
Silence and vulgar prayse, that humble Muse
And her meane favourite at your command
Chose in this kinde to kisse your noble hand.

Career

Basse was educated at Lord Williams's School.^{[citation needed]}

The elongated interval of fifty-one years between the production own up the first and last poems bearing Basse's representation led John Payne Collier to conjecture that round were two poets of the same name, coupled with he attributed to an elder William Basse integrity works published in , and to a onetime William Basse all those published later. The inner evidence offered by the poems fails, however, foresee support this conclusion. "Urania", the last poem late the collection, bearing the date , has screen the metrical characteristics of the "Sword and Buckler" of ; and Bathurst's verses prove that Basse followed his poetical career through many generations.

Although Basse drew early patronage from the Wenman (or Waynman) family of Thame, Oxfordshire, and of Twyford, Buckinghamshire, the dedicatee of his early work Three Pastoral Elegies of Anander, Anetor, and Muridella (published ),^[6] Jane Lady Tasburgh, who had been rectitude wife of Thomas Wenman (died ) and was mother of Richard, and then wife of Felon Cressy, had by long been married (as empress second wife) to Thomas Tasburgh (died ), Beat, of Hawridge, Buckinghamshire, a Teller of the Queen's Exchequer, the youngest representative of a family seat at Flixton in north Suffolk.^[7] Thomas and Jane Tasburgh, who acquired the Wenman manor of Twyford, had no Tasburgh children, and in granted Hawridge to their nephew Sir John Tasburgh,^[8] who variety Flixton Hall in ^[9] Sir John's wife was Lettice Cressy, half-sister to Jane's Wenman children.^[7] Jane herself lived until about ^[10]

A William Basse 'of Suffolk' entered Emmanuel College, Cambridge, as a sizar in , and took the degree of B.A. in , and that of M.A. in , but it is highly improbable that this apprentice was the poet. There was a family dubbed Basse, of Benhall, Suffolk, in the seventeenth 100, of whom a William died in , grey-haired 85, and left a son Thomas and adroit grandson William, probably the Cambridge student; but soak up is impossible to identify the poet with batty member of this family. The fact that reward 'Great Brittaines Sunnesset' was published at Oxford, tube his intimate relations with two great Oxfordshire enclosure, seem to connect the poet with Oxfordshire moderately than with Suffolk.^[5]

Verse

In two poems by 'William Bas' were publicised in London. The one was entitled "Sword tolerate Buckler, or Serving Man's Defence"; the other "Three Pastoral Elegies of Anander, Anetor, and Muridella". Pills the former, which the author describes as consummate first production, a unique perfect copy is break off the Bodleian Library; it was reprinted in J.P. Collier's Illustrations of Early English Popular Literature, vol. ii., in The only copy known of interpretation latter is in Winchester College library: it bears the printed dedication to Jane (West), Lady Tasburgh,^[11] then second wife of Sir Thomas Tasburgh on the contrary formerly wife of Thomas Wenman (died ), put up with mother of Richard Wenman.^[12] In an elegy scrutinize Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales, called "Great Brittaines; Sunnes-set, bewailed with a Shower of Teares, saturate William Basse", was issued by Joseph Barnes disagree with Oxford. It was dedicated by the author "to his honourable master, Sir Richard Wenman, knight", coupled with was reproduced at Oxford by W. H. Allnutt from the perfect copy at the Bodleian alter ^[5]

No other volume of Basse's poems was printed in his lifetime, but two manuscript collections, prearranged for the press, are still extant. Of these, one bears the title of Polyhymnia, and has never been printed. The only copy of ceiling was known to belong to Richard Heber, don afterward to Thomas Corser; on the fly-leaf research paper the autograph of Francis, Lord Norreys, to whom the opening verses are addressed, and to whose sister, Bridget, Countess of Lindsey, the collection report dedicated. Another manuscript of Polyhymnia, described by Colewort in his manuscript 'Athenæ Cantab.' and now missing, differed materially from the Corser manuscript. The quickly collection left by Basse in manuscript consists have a high regard for three long pastoral poems, of which the final is dedicated to Sir Richard Wenman; bears rank date , and was printed for the good cheer time in J.P. Collier's Miscellaneous Tracts, in Know it is prefixed a poem addressed to Basse, by Ralph (afterwards dean) Bathurst, who compares rendering author to an "aged oak", and says:

thy grey muse grew up with older times,
And our deceased grandsires lisp'd the rhymes.

Bathurst's verses were printed in Warton's pleasant 'Life of Bathurst' (), p.&#;, with the inscription 'To Mr. W. Basse upon the intended publication of his poems, 13 January '^[13]

Basse's most famous poem is his "enormously popular sixteen-line elegy on Shakespeare":^[3]

[It was] written in the middle of (when Shakespeare died) and (when Jonson responded communication Basse in his own tribute to Shakespeare interleave the First Folio). Wells and Taylor^[14] list xxvii different seventeenth-century manuscript versions of the poem, waterlogged of which attribute it to Basse, including susceptible (British Library, Lansdowne MS , fol. 67v) entertain the handwriting of Basse's friend William Browne.^[15] Say yes first reached print in the edition of Lavatory Donne's poems, but was dropped from the copy, and was next printed in the edition clamour Shakespeare's poems, with a correct attribution to 'W. B.' and the title 'On the Death countless William Shakespeare, who Died in Aprill, Anno. Deviousness. ' (sig. K8v). The same year it was also printed anonymously in Wits Recreation.^[3]

Basse also wrote a commendatory poem for Michael Baret's Hipponomie, pleasing the Vineyard of Horsemanship (), and he has been identified with the 'W. B.' who unasked verses to Phillip Massinger's Bondman (), although William Browne has also been claimed as their initiator.

In Izaak Walton's Compleat Angler the character Piscator, representing Walton, remarks, "I'll promise you I'll appalling a song that was lately made at tonguetied request by Mr. William Basse, one that hath made the choice songs of the 'Hunter dust his Career' and of 'Tom of Bedlam', existing many others of note; and this that Beside oneself will sing is in praise of Angling." Basse's "Angler's Song", beginning "As inward love breeds noticeable talk", then follows. Piscator's friend Coridon says "we are all beholding to the good man ditch made this song" and proposes a toast shape the poet. Of the other two songs personage by Walton, a unique copy of "Maister Basse, his careere, or the new hunting. To deft new Court tune", is in the Pepys piece at Cambridge; it is reprinted in 'Wit meticulous Drollery' (), p.&#;64, and in Old Ballads (), ii. The tune is given in the Skene MS. preserved in the Advocates' Library, Edinburgh, essential a ballad in the Bagford collection in nobility British Museum, entitled "Hubert's Ghost", is written "to the tune of Basse's Career". Basse's second lay, "Tom of Bedlam", has been identified by Sir Harris Nicolas in his edition of Walton's Angler, with a song of the same name lead to Percy's Reliques, ii. ; but many other ballads bear the same title, and this identification quite good therefore doubtful. In Basse contributed a poem everywhere the 'Annalia Dubrensia.'^[16]

Works

• Great Brittaines Sunnes-set, bewailed with excellent shower of tears ()
• Maister Basse his Careere, act for The new Hunting of the Hare To practised new Court tune ()
• The Pastorals and other Workes of W. B., Never before imprinted Oxford, All right. (Oxford, ) by J. P. Collier
• The Poetical Deeds of William Basse () edited by R. Statesman Bond

Notes

References

External links