The Young King: or, The Mistake

By Aphra Behn

Aphra Behn was a prolific and well established writer but facts about her remain scant and difficult to confirm. What can safely be said though is that Aphra Behn is now regarded as a key English playwright and a major figure in Restoration theatre. Aphra was born into the rising tensions to the English Civil War. Obviously a time of much division and difficulty as the King and Parliament, and their respective forces, came ever closer to conflict. There are claims she was a spy, that she travelled abroad, possibly as far as Surinam. By 1664 her marriage was over (though by death or separation is not known but presumably the former as it occurred in the year of their marriage) and she now used Mrs Behn as her professional name. Aphra now moved towards pursuing a more sustainable and substantial career and began work for the King's Company and the Duke's Company players as a scribe. Previously her only writing had been poetry but now she would become a playwright. Her first, “The Forc’d Marriage”, was staged in 1670, followed by “The Amorous Prince” (1671). After her third play, “The Dutch Lover”, Aphra had a three year lull in her writing career. Again it is speculated that she went travelling again, possibly once again as a spy. After this sojourn her writing moves towards comic works, which prove commercially more successful. Her most popular works included “The Rover” and “Love-Letters Between a Nobleman and His Sister” (1684–87). With her growing reputation Aphra became friends with many of the most notable writers of the day. This is The Age of Dryden and his literary dominance. From the mid 1680’s Aphra’s health began to decline. This was exacerbated by her continual state of debt and descent into poverty. Aphra Behn died on April 16th 1689, and is buried in the East Cloister of Westminster Abbey. The inscription on her tombstone reads: "Here lies a Proof that Wit can never be Defence enough against Mortality." She was quoted as stating that she had led a "life dedicated to pleasure and poetry."

• Language: English
• Publisher: Copyright Group
• Release date: Jun 6, 2016
• ISBN: 9781785438424

Aphra Behn

Born in the first few decades of the seventeenth century, Aphra Behn is one of early literature’s best-known female writers. Behn had the lucky distinction of being able to support herself strictly by her “pen,” something unheard of for women of her time. Throughout her long career, she wrote in various forms—poetry, plays, prose—and is known as a member of the ‘fair triumvirate of wit’ alongside fellow scribes Eliza Haywood and Delarivier Manley. Although little is known about her early life, Behn’s father held a post as lieutenant governor of Surinam, and Behn’s experiences during her stay most likely formed the basis for her most famous work, Oroonoko. Behn was also a popular dramatist in her time, penning critical successes like The Rover and The Feigned Courtesans. Her literary exploits aside, Behn is also known to have acted as a political spy for King Charles II of England during the Second Anglo-Dutch War. Behn died in 1689, and is buried in Westminster Abbey.

Book preview

The Young King; Or, The Mistake by Aphra Behn

Aphra Behn was a prolific and well established writer but facts about her remain scant and difficult to confirm. What can safely be said though is that Aphra Behn is now regarded as a key English playwright and a major figure in Restoration theatre

Aphra was born into the rising tensions to the English Civil War. Obviously a time of much division and difficulty as the King and Parliament, and their respective forces, came ever closer to conflict.

There are claims she was a spy, that she travelled abroad, possibly as far as Surinam. 

By 1664 her marriage was over (though by death or separation is not known but presumably the former as it occurred in the year of their marriage) and she now used Mrs Behn as her professional name.   

Aphra now moved towards pursuing a more sustainable and substantial career and began work for the King's Company and the Duke's Company players as a scribe.

Previously her only writing had been poetry but now she would become a playwright. Her first, The Forc’d Marriage, was staged in 1670, followed by The Amorous Prince (1671). After her third play, The Dutch Lover, Aphra had a three year lull in her writing career. Again it is speculated that she went travelling again, possibly once again as a spy.

After this sojourn her writing moves towards comic works, which prove commercially more successful. Her most popular works included The Rover and Love-Letters Between a Nobleman and His Sister (1684–87).

With her growing reputation Aphra became friends with many of the most notable writers of the day. This is The Age of Dryden and his literary dominance.

From the mid 1680’s Aphra’s health began to decline.  This was exacerbated by her continual state of debt and descent into poverty.

Aphra Behn died on April 16th 1689, and is buried in the East Cloister of Westminster Abbey. The inscription on her tombstone reads: Here lies a Proof that Wit can never be Defence enough against Mortality. She was quoted as stating that she had led a life dedicated to pleasure and poetry.

Index of Contents

ARGUMENT

SOURCE

FOOTNOTES

THEATRICAL HISTORY

TO PHILASTER

THE YOUNG KING; or, The Mistake - PROLOGUE

DRAMATIS PERSONAE

DACIANS

SCYTHIANS

SCENE, The Court of Dacia, Between the Two Armies Just Before the Town.

ACT I

SCENE I. A Grove Near the Camp.

SCENE II. A Grove of Trees.

ACT II

SCENE I. A Castle or Prison on the Sea.

SCENE II. Another Room in the Prison.

SCENE III. A Grove.

SCENE IV. A Chamber.

ACT III

SCENE I.

SCENE II. A Grove Near the Camp.

SCENE III. Scythian Tents.

SCENE IV. The Dacian Tents.

SCENE V. Changes to the Wood.

ACT IV

SCENE I. A Flat Wood.

SCENE II. Between the Two Camps.

SCENE III. A Prison.

SCENE IV. The Scythian Tents.

SCENE V. Cleomena's Apartments.

SCENE VI. A Street.

SCENE VII. Thersander's Tent.

ACT V

SCENE I.

SCENE II. The Grove.

SCENE III. A Prison.

SCENE IV. A Tent.

SCENE V. Changes to Thersander's Tent.

EPILOGUE

APHRA BEHN – A SHORT BIOGRAPHY

APHRA BEHN – A CONCISE BIBLIOGRAPHY

THE DORSET SQUARE THEATRE – A SHORT HISTORY

ARGUMENT

Orsames, heir to the Dacian throne, has been kept in a castle from His infancy, never having seen any human being save his old tutor, Geron, owing to an Oracle which foretold great cruelties and mischiefs If he should be allowed to wear the crown. The Queen of Dacia designs Her daughter Cleomena as her successor, and with this intent gives her An Amazonian education. The Dacians and Scythians are at war, but Thersander, The Scythian prince, has joined the Dacians under the name Of Clemanthis, inasmuch as he loves the princess, who in her turn Becomes enamoured of him. He is recognized but not betrayed by Urania, a Scythian lady who, her lover Amintas  having been previously captured, Allows herself to be taken prisoner and presented to Cleomena.

Amintas is confined in the old castle where Urania,  Visiting him, is accidently seen by Orsames.

He is, however, persuaded by Geron that it is an apparition. Amintas is freed by Urania, who has gained Cleomena's friendship. Honorius, the Dacian general, offers Thersander his daughter Olympia, and the young Scythian is obliged to feign acceptance. Cleomena hears Honorius telling the Queen his design and goes off enraged, only to see Thersander seemingly courting Olympia. She raves and threatens to ill him, but eventually parts with disdain, bidding him quit the place. Orsames is now brought from the castle during his sleep, crowned, seated on the throne and treated in every respect as King. His power is acknowledged, the Queen kneels before him, and Olympia entering, he falls violently in love with her. At a supposed contradiction he orders one courtier to instant execution and another to be cast into the sea. Immediately after, during a banquet, a narcotic is mingled with his wine and he is conveyed back to the castle whilst under its influence, leaving the Queen fearful that her experiment is of no avail as he has displayed so tyrannical and cruel a nature.

A battle between the Dacians and Scythians follows, in which the Latter are victorious owing to Thersander having, under his own name, Returned to their camp. The Dacian chiefs then challenge him to single Combat. He crosses over once again as Clemanthis and the lot falls upon himself. He thereupon dresses Amintas in the clothes of Clemanthis and arranges that in a pretended duel with him himself shall gain the upper hand. Meanwhile two rival princes to the hand of Cleomena post assassins in the wood to kill Thersander, and these, deceived by the garb of Clemanthis, mistake Amintas for the prince, and leaving him half dead on the ground and covered with blood and wounds, take their flight, imagining they have fully carried out their masters' wishes. Amintas is just able to gasp the name 'Thersander', and Cleomena promptly concludes that Thersander has slain Clemanthis. She then herself assumes the attire of Clemanthis and goes out to the duel. She is wounded, her sex discovered, and she is borne from the field, whilst Thersander remains plunged in despair.

Meanwhile Orsames in his prison forces Geron to tell him the truth as to his adventure, whilst outside the populace are clamouring for him as king. Cleomena, disguised as a shepherd-boy, carries a letter to Thersander, and stabs him as he reads it. The Scythian king has her thrown into a dungeon, but Thersander obtains her release. Amintas meanwhile has been cured of his wounds by a Druid leech. Thersander is visited by Cleomena and reveals to her his identity with Clemanthis.

They are at length united, and this event, with the arrival of Orsames, Who has been placed on the throne by the Dacians, joins the two countries in a lasting peace. It is explained that the Oracle is

satisfied by his previous reign of a night.

SOURCE

The plot of The Young King, which, as the Biograpbia Dramatitca well remarks, 'is very far from being a bad one', is taken from the eighth part of La Calprenède's famous romance, Cléopatre. The adventures of Alcamenes (Thersander) and Menalippa (Cleomena) are therein related for the benefit of Cleopatra and Artemisa, temporarily imprisoned on shipboard. The narrative, which occupies some hundred pages, is n good example of those prolix detached episodes and histories peculiar to this school, which by their perpetual crossing and intertwining render the consecutive reading of a heroic romance so confused and difficult a task. Yet in this particular instance the tale is extraordinarily well told and highly interesting. Mrs. Behn has altered the names for the better. Barzanes in the novel becomes Honorius in the play; Euardes, Ismenes; Phrataphernes, Artabazes; Beliza, Semiris; whilst La Calprenède dubs the Scythian king, Arontes and the queen of Dacia, Amalthea.

Cléopatre, commenced in 1646, was eventually completed in twelve volumes. There is an English translation of the eighth part by James Webb (8vo, 1658), which he terms Hymen's Praeludia, or, Love's Masterpiece, and dedicates with much flowery verbiage to his aunt, Jane, Viscountess Clanebuy. A translation of the whole romance, by Robert Loveday, was published folio, 1668.

The story, however, is not original even in La Calprenède, being taken with changed names from Il Calsandro smascherato di Giovanni Ambrogio Marini (Part 1, Fiorenza, 1646; Part 2, Bologna, 1651), a French version of which, by Georges de Scudéri, appeared in 1668.

Some critics have seen a resemblance between the character of the young prince Orsames and that of Hippolito, 'one that never saw woman,' in Dryden and Davenant's alteration of The Tempest (1667).[1] But the likeness is merely superficial. Mrs. Behn has undoubtedly taken the whole episode of Orsames directly from Calderon's great philosophic and symbolical comedia, La Vida es Sueño (1633).[2] That Mrs. Behn had a good knowledge of Spanish is certain, and she has copied with the closest fidelity