Do records show Shakespeare's travel to Italy?

[Dominic Hughes]

I haven't seen much, if any, commentary from any of the participants
in the authorship debate on the news that a seminary in Rome has
produced records that it claims show that William Shakespeare of
Stratford spent some time in the "lost years" in Rome.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/vaticancityandholysee/6864627/Shakespeare-was-a-secret-Catholic-new-exhibition-shows.html

The Venerable English College has claimed that England's leading
playwright was a secret Catholic who spent "lost years" in Rome.

Father Andrew Headon, the vice-rector of the college, said that
college records correspond with a previously undocumented period in
Shakespeare's life after he left Stratford in 1585 and before he
emerged as a playwright in London in 1592. "There are several years
which are unaccounted for in Shakespeare's life," said Father Headon.

A leather parchment kept by the college is signed by "Arthurus
Stratfordus Wigomniensis" in 1585, "Shfordus Cestriensis" in 1587 and
"Gulielmus Clerkue Stratfordiensis" in 1589.

The college believes these signatures are: "(King) Arthur's
(compatriot) from Stratford (in the diocese) of Worcester,"
"Sh(akespeare from Strat)ford (in the diocese) of Chester" and
"William the Clerk from Stratford".

What say any of you? If this evidence is not forged (as Crowley would
no doubt contend) does it possess any weight in the authorship
debate?

Dom

[Melanie Sands]

Why should they be forged?
And - is it definite that "Shakespeare's family was Catholic" -
and wouldn't there be other Guillemusses in Stratford
and not only Shakespeare

And why do they interpret "Shfordus Cestriensis"
as being Shakespeare of Stratford and of Chester...
Stratford, Chester, yes - but where do they read
the shaking spear?

But - it's all possible. People travelled even then.

Melanie

On 5 Aug., 15:32, Dominic Hughes <mah...@aol.com> wrote:
> I haven't seen much, if any, commentary from any of the participants
> in the authorship debate on the news that a seminary in Rome has
> produced records that it claims show that William Shakespeare of
> Stratford spent some time in the "lost years" in Rome.
>

> http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/vaticancityandholyse...

[Dominic Hughes]

I'm quite confident that these records are not forgeries.

As for your other questions, I think the 1589 entry for "Gulielmus
Clerkue Stratfordiensis" is the most interesting. I'd wonder how many
Williams, of a certain age, and from Stratford, would have been in a
position to travel to Rome, to a college known for training English
priests? Do we have any other records of a clerk named William coming
from Statrford in 1589?

While it isn't definite that Shakespeare's family was Catholic there
is evidence for the proposition.

> > Dom- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

[elizabeth weir]

On Aug 5, 6:32 am, Dominic Hughes <mah...@aol.com> wrote:
> I haven't seen much, if any, commentary from any of the participants
> in the authorship debate on the news that a seminary in Rome has
> produced records that it claims show that William Shakespeare of
> Stratford spent some time in the "lost years" in Rome.
>

> http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/vaticancityandholyse...

>
> The Venerable English College has claimed that England's leading
> playwright was a secret Catholic who spent "lost years" in Rome.
>
> Father Andrew Headon, the vice-rector of the college, said that
> college records correspond with a previously undocumented period in
> Shakespeare's life after he left Stratford in 1585 and before he
> emerged as a playwright in London in 1592. "There are several years
> which are unaccounted for in Shakespeare's life," said Father Headon.
>
> A leather parchment kept by the college is signed by "Arthurus
> Stratfordus Wigomniensis" in 1585, "Shfordus Cestriensis" in 1587 and
> "Gulielmus Clerkue Stratfordiensis" in 1589.
>
> The college believes these signatures are: "(King) Arthur's
> (compatriot) from Stratford (in the diocese) of Worcester,"
> "Sh(akespeare from Strat)ford (in the diocese) of Chester" and
> "William the Clerk from Stratford".
>
> What say any of you? If this evidence is not forged (as Crowley would
> no doubt contend) does it possess any weight in the authorship
> debate?

What year were Shaksper's children born? And didn't
he marry Anne Hathaway at some point between 1585
and 1592?

I have a lot of respect for the English College of Rome
(in this era at least). I've read several books and articles
written by two scholarly Jesuits, Fr. Thomas McCoog S.J.,
who had a lot to say about Oxford and Fr. Paul McLane S.J.
of Notre Dame University who wrote a very entertaining book,
The Oak and the Briar, on the relationship between Leicester
(the Oak) and Oxford (the Briar).

I have to say that I'm skeptical that Shaksper spent the
Lost Years in Italy. The leading Catholic Bard theorist
Richard Wilson (who wrote the finest piece of criticism
on The Tempest, Voyage To Tunis) locates Shaksper at
Houghton Towers to make the case that Shaksper was
young Shakeshafte. That would definitely interfere with
the Jesuit dating.

There's a logistics problem because Shaksper had
to have been in Stratford to impregnate Anne Hathaway
about the time that young Shakeshafte is preparing to
leave Houghton Towers.

Young Shakeshafte was having problems of his own
since Leicester, Mary Sidney's uncle and guardian
found out that Mary was expecting and announced
that he would "hunt Bacon down and kill him."

Sir Francis Walsingham sent his young spy to Houghton
Towers since Sir Francis knew Leicester dare not go
into Catholic Lancashire where the Catholic earls would
gladly kill him.

> Dom