By Albert Fenech
Young and older
From where did he get his facts to write ‘The Jew of Malta’?
In my research and writing journalistic career spread over 55 years I have investigated and written about the lives of many hundreds of individuals and the impact they have had on society in general, heritage and culture.
The most fascinating I have come across is the life of Christopher Marlowe, an Elizabethan playwright at the time of William Shakespeare. Both Marlowe and Shakespeare were of the same age.
To begin with, what was his real name? The names he used varied from Christopher Marlowe to Chris Marloe, Chris Marley and to Kit Marlowe, as well as a number of others according to the country and situation he was in at the time.
St George’s Church in Canterbury; only the tower now remains after heavy bombing in WWII.
Perhaps his greatest attribute is that over the years many scholars have firmly believed that many of Shakespeare’s plays were shadow scripted by Marlowe and then script play-acted by Shakespeare.
However, compared to the rest of his life, this is a very minor factor. He was the second of nine children of shoemaker John Marlowe and Katherine of Dover but became the eldest when his sister Mary died in 1568.
King’s School in Canterbury
In those days actual birthdates were not recorded. The New Year itself was placed on 25th March and a birth within that year was computed from that day onward. This made Marlowe a few months older than Will Shakespeare. Thus in that old style dating he was born at some time during 1564.
He was baptised at St George’s Church in Canterbury and by the age of 14 was a pupil at The King’s School in Canterbury and having won a scholarship he graduated to a student at Corpus Christi College in Cambridge (pictured below).
Expectations were that he would become an Anglican clergyman and received a Bachelor of Arts in 1584 and became efficient in Latin, translating the works of Ovid.
In 1587 the university declined to award him a Masters amidst rumours that he was about to move to the English Seminary at Rheims in northern France to study to become a Roman Catholic priest! That would have been a direct violation of a Royal Edict in 1585 which made it a criminal offence for a British citizen to be ordained in the Roman Catholic Church.
William Shakespeare
For long periods his actual whereabouts were unknown amidst rumours that he was actually in Rheims.
His adult life was one of confusion galore. He has been attributed to have become a spy, a brawler, a heretic, a magician, a rascal, a duelist, a tobacco-user and a counterfeiter!
In trying to sum it up, the writer J.B. Steane wrote, “it seems absurd to dismiss all these Elizabethan rumours and accusations as ‘the Marlowe myths’. Much has been written of his brief adult life including speculation that: he was involved in royally-sanctioned espionage; his vocal declaration that he was an atheist; his (possible) same-sex interests and the puzzling circumstances surrounding his death”.
The English Seminary at Rheims
He died in mysterious circumstances on 30th May, 1593, aged 29 – amazing that so much should have been attributed to have been crammed into a person at such a young age! There are strong rumours his death was faked to prevent him being sentenced to death as an atheist!
Obviously, I cannot pronounce on any of these circumstances, but my particular fascination is his play “The Famous Tragedy of the Rich Jew of Malta”, later adapted as “The Jew of Malta” and which he wrote in 1589 or 1590.
This was NOT a time of telecommunications, mobile phones, Messenger, Facebook or apps but a time when news was spread by verbal communication or otherwise a written report that took weeks to be conveyed.
The basis of his play is and was simply fantastically accurate, so, where did he obtain his information? It concerns the Great Siege of Malta in 1565 by the Ottoman Turks who were driven off on 8th September by the Knights of St John of Jerusalem and their Maltese and mainly Spanish soldiers.
Memorial to Marlowe near to the Friar’s Theatre in Canterbury
Did Marlowe actually visit Malta and gain his information first-hand?
Many dubbed his play as being critically anti-Jewish, but reading right through it establishes it is critically anti-religious all-round irrespective of whether Judaism, Christianity or Islam and gave vent to Marlowe’s total anti-clericalism and anti-religiousness.
Without going into great detail, the plot centres around a rich Jewish merchant named Barabbas and contains phrases like “I count religion but a childish toy” and “there is no sin but ignorance”. Centuries later this could be attributed to Lenin and the foundation of the Soviet Union!
It describes the Knights stripping Jews in Malta of all their wealth to help pay for the country’s defence and describes the ebb and flow of the siege with great accuracy and that Barabbas was “bought” by the Knights to propagate anti-Muslim sentiments.
Finally, the Christian Governor appointed by the Knights double-crosses Barabbas, a Turkish prince is held hostage and the death of Barabbas after he be ordered he be burnt at the stake and while burning “Barabbas curses all”.
The Great Siege of Malta 1565 painted by Charles Philippe Lariviere in 1842
Among his most famous works there are also his plays Dr Faustus, Dido Queen of Carthage, Tamburlaine and The life of Edward II of England, combined with his poetry.
What to make of all this? I go back to my title “Christopher Marlowe – riddled with mystery, intrigue and improbable truths”.
The final word goes to Elizabeth I who when informed of the Christian victory in Malta’s Great Siege of 1565 wrote to the Grandmaster of the Knights Jean Parisot de Valette – “This Malta victory has saved Christendom in Europe”
ALBERT FENECH
