If You Know Not Me, You Know Nobody

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

If You Know Not Me, You Know Nobody is a two-part play by Thomas Heywood, depicting the life and reign of Elizabeth I of England, written very soon after the latter's death. The title deliberately echoes that of Samuel Rowley's 1605 play When You See Me You Know Me.

Part 1 is a chronicle history of the main events in the reign of Mary I, ending with the accession of Elizabeth. It was entered into the Stationers' Register on July 5, 1605, and published in quarto soon after by the bookseller Nathaniel Butter. The play was popular, and subsequent quartos were issued in 1606, 1608, 1610, 1613, 1623, 1632, and 1639. The play was most likely written for and performed by Queen Anne's Men, and remained in their repertory many years.

Part 2 devotes its first three acts to the building of the Royal Exchange, with comic episodes: only in Act IV do Elizabeth and other characters of political importance (notably Sir Francis Drake) appear, as the focus abruptly switches to the Spanish Armada's attempted invasion of England. Drake's victory rounds off the play.

The full title of Part 2 is was entered into the Stationers' Register on Sept. 14, 1605, and was first printed in quarto in 1606, again by Nathaniel Butter. Subsequent quartos appeared in 1609 and 1632, plus an undated edition that is thought to have been issued in 1623. The 1632 quarto features an alternative text of Act V.

[edit] References

• Chambers, E. K. The Elizabethan Stage. 4 Volumes, Oxford, Clarendon Press, 1923.
• Dobson, Michael, and Nicola J. Watson. England's Elizabeth: An Afterlife in Fame and Fantasy. Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2003.