A Chaste Maid in Cheapside: “She that in life and love refuses me, In death and shame my partner she shall be.”

By Thomas Middleton

Thomas Middleton was born in London in April 1580 and baptised on 18th April. Middleton was aged only five when his father died. His mother remarried but this unfortunately fell apart into a fifteen year legal dispute regarding the inheritance due Thomas and his younger sister. By the time he left Oxford, at the turn of the Century, Middleton had and published Microcynicon: Six Snarling Satirese which was denounced by the Archbishop of Canterbury and publicly burned. In the early years of the 17th century, Middleton wrote topical pamphlets. One – Penniless Parliament of Threadbare Poets was reprinted several times and the subject of a parliamentary inquiry. These early years writing plays continued to attract controversy. His writing partnership with Thomas Dekker brought him into conflict with Ben Jonson and George Chapman in the so-called War of the Theatres. His finest work with Dekker was undoubtedly The Roaring Girl, a biography of the notorious Mary Frith. In the 1610s, Middleton began another playwriting partnership, this time with the actor William Rowley, producing another slew of plays including Wit at Several Weapons and A Fair Quarrel. The ever adaptable Middleton seemed at ease working with others or by himself. His solo writing credits include the comic masterpiece, A Chaste Maid in Cheapside, in 1613. In 1620 he was officially appointed as chronologer of the City of London, a post he held until his death. The 1620s saw the production of his and Rowley's tragedy, and continual favourite, The Changeling, and of several other tragicomedies. However in 1624, he reached a peak of notoriety when his dramatic allegory A Game at Chess was staged by the King's Men. Though Middleton's approach was strongly patriotic, the Privy Council silenced the play after only nine performances at the Globe theatre, having received a complaint from the Spanish ambassador. What happened next is a mystery. It is the last play recorded as having being written by Middleton. Thomas Middleton died at his home at Newington Butts in Southwark in the summer of 1627, and was buried on July 4th, in St Mary's churchyard which today survives as a public park in Elephant and Castle.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Stage Door
• Release date: Nov 1, 2016
• ISBN: 9781785438936

Book preview

A Chaste Maid in Cheapside by Thomas Middleton

A Chaste Maid in Cheapside was written in early 1613; it represents the culmination of Middleton's achievements in the genre of city comedy.

Thomas Middleton was born in London in April 1580 and baptised on 18th April.

Middleton was aged only five when his father died. His mother remarried but this unfortunately fell apart into a fifteen year legal dispute regarding the inheritance due Thomas and his younger sister.

By the time he left Oxford, at the turn of the Century, Middleton had and published Microcynicon: Six Snarling Satirese which was denounced by the Archbishop of Canterbury and publicly burned.

In the early years of the 17th century, Middleton wrote topical pamphlets. One – Penniless Parliament of Threadbare Poets was reprinted several times and the subject of a parliamentary inquiry.  

These early years writing plays continued to attract controversy.  His writing partnership with Thomas Dekker brought him into conflict with Ben Jonson and George Chapman in the so-called War of the Theatres. 

His finest work with Dekker was undoubtedly The Roaring Girl, a biography of the notorious Mary Frith. 

In the 1610s, Middleton began another playwriting partnership, this time with the actor William Rowley, producing another slew of plays including Wit at Several Weapons and A Fair Quarrel.

The ever adaptable Middleton seemed at ease working with others or by himself. His solo writing credits include the comic masterpiece, A Chaste Maid in Cheapside, in 1613.

In 1620 he was officially appointed as chronologer of the City of London, a post he held until his death.

The 1620s saw the production of his and Rowley's tragedy, and continual favourite, The Changeling, and of several other tragicomedies.

However in 1624, he reached a peak of notoriety when his dramatic allegory A Game at Chess was staged by the King's Men. Though Middleton's approach was strongly patriotic, the Privy Council silenced the play after only nine performances at the Globe theatre, having received a complaint from the Spanish ambassador.

What happened next is a mystery.  It is the last play recorded as having being written by Middleton.

Thomas Middleton died at his home at Newington Butts in Southwark in the summer of 1627, and was buried on July 4th, in St Mary's churchyard which today survives as a public park in Elephant and Castle.

Index of Contents

DRAMATIS PERSONAE

ACT I

Scene I - A Street in Front of Yellowhammer’s Shop

Scene II - Allwit’s House

ACT II

Scene I - A Street

Scene II - Another Street

Scene III - A Hall in Allwit’s House

Scene IV - The Street Outside Allwit’s House

ACT III

Scene I - A Church

Scene II - Allwit’s House

Scene III - Sir Oliver’s House

ACT IV

Scene I - Yellowhammer’s House

Scene II - A Bank of the Thames

ACT V

Scene I - Allwit’s House

Scene II - Yellowhammer’s House

Scene III - Sir Oliver’s House

Scene IV - A Church

Thomas Middleton – A Short Biography

Thomas Middleton – A Concise Bibliography

DRAMATIS PERSONAE

Mr. YELLOWHAMMER, a goldsmith

MAUDLIN, his wife

TIM, their son

MOLL, their daughter

TUTOR to Tim

SIR WALTER WHOREHOUND, a suitor to Moll

SIR OLIVER KIX, and his wife, LADY KIX, kin to Sir Walter

Mr. JOHN ALLWIT, and his wife, MISTRESS ALLWIT, whom Sir Walter keeps

A WELSH GENTLEWOMAN, Sir Walter's whore

WAT and NICK, his bastards by Mistress Allwit

DAVY Dahumma, his man

TOUCHWOOD SENIOR, and his wife, MISTRESS TOUCHWOOD, a decayed gentleman

TOUCHWOOD JUNIOR, another suitor to Moll

TWO PROMOTERS

SERVANTS: three of Allwit's, three of Sir Oliver's

Three or four WATERMEN

Sims, a PORTER

A GENTLEMAN

A WENCH with Touchwood Senior's bastard

Jugg, Lady Kix's MAID

A DRY NURSE

A WET NURSE

A MAN with a basket

A SECOND MAN with a basket

TWO PURITANS, the first named Mistress Underman

FIVE GOSSIPS

A MIDWIFE

A PARSON

A THIRD NURSE

SUSAN, Moll's maid

ACT I

SCENE I - A Street in Front of Yellowhammer's Shop

Enter MAUDLIN and MOLL, a shop being discovered.

MAUDLIN

Have you played over all your old lessons o' the virginals?

MOLL

Yes.

MAUDLIN

Yes, you are a dull maid alate, methinks you had need have somewhat to quicken your green sickness; do you weep? A husband. Had not such a piece of flesh been ordained, what had us wives been good for? To make salads, or else cried up and down for samphire. To see the difference of these seasons! When I was of your youth, I was lightsome, and quick, two years before I was married. You fit for a knight's bed—drowsy-browed, dull-eyed, drossy-spirited! I hold my life you have forgot your dancing: when was the dancer with you?

MOLL

The last week.

MAUDLIN

Last week? When I was of your bord, he missed me not a night, I was kept at it; I took delight to learn, and he to teach me, pretty brown gentleman, he took pleasure in my company; but you are dull, nothing comes nimbly from you, you dance like a plumber's daughter, and deserve two thousand pounds in lead to your marriage, and not in goldsmith's ware.

[Enter YELLOWHAMMER.

YELLOWHAMMER

Now what's the din betwixt mother and daughter, ha?

MAUDLIN

Faith, small, telling your daughter Mary of her errors.

YELLOWHAMMER

Errors! Nay, the city cannot hold you, wife, but you must needs fetch words from Westminster; I ha' done, i'faith. Has no attorney's clerk been here alate and changed his half-crown-piece his mother sent him, or rather cozened you with a gilded twopence, to bring the word in fashion for her faults or cracks in duty and obedience, term 'em e'en so, sweet wife? As there is no woman made without a flaw, your purest lawns have frays, and cambrics bracks.

MAUDLIN

But 'tis a husband solders up all cracks.

MOLL

What is he come, sir?

YELLOWHAMMER

Sir Walter's come.

He was met at Holborn Bridge, and in his company

A proper fair young gentlewoman, which I guess

By her red hair, and other rank descriptions,

To be his landed niece brought out of Wales,

Which Tim our son, the Cambridge boy, must marry.

'Tis a match of Sir Walter's own making

To bind us to him, and our heirs for ever.

MAUDLIN

We are honoured then, if this baggage would be humble,

And kiss him with devotion when he enters.

I cannot get her for my life

To instruct her hand thus, before and after,

Which a knight will look for, before and after.

I have told her still, 'tis the waving of a woman

Does often move a man, and prevails strongly.

But sweet, ha' you sent to Cambridge,

Has Tim

Reviews for A Chaste Maid in Cheapside

[mstrust · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Moll is the maid, or pretty young daughter, of Yellowhammer, a goldsmith. She has two men vying for her hand. One is the wealthy Knight, Sir Walter Whorehound, who already has two mistresses, one of whom has several of his children. Yellowhammer favors Sir Walter for a son-in-law. The second suitor is Tuchwood Junior, whose older brother is a local conman. He is Moll's choice, which forces scheming.A second plot line involves Tuchwood Senior's con of the wealthy Sir and Lady Kix, a couple who are at each others throats over their lack of children.This play is a comedy that gets crude and raunchy and probably had its audiences choking with laughter. Puritan women get sloppy drunk, the aristocratic are impotent and obnoxious, the newly educated are pretentious fops and there are constant double entendres about sex. The play did well enough that it was still being published nearly two decades later, then seems to have disappeared from the stage completely until a revival in 1956.Since this was most likely written around 1613 (it was first performed that year), getting the most out of it would take some doing. I mean that even if you're familiar with Shakespearean language, this is a little more challenging. I read from the Fountainwell Drama Texts, edited by Charles Barber, and it was a decent enough copy but I did feel there were some explanations missing.