This article contains information about the literary events and publications of 1640.

Events

January 21 Events Pre-1600 * 763 – Following the Battle of Bakhamra between Alids and Abbasids near Kufa, the Alid rebellion ends with the death of Ibrahim, brother of Isa ibn Musa. * 1525 – The Swiss Anabaptist Movement is founded wh ...

– '' Salmacida Spolia'', a

masque The masque was a form of festive courtly entertainment that flourished in 16th- and early 17th-century Europe, though it was developed earlier in Italy, in forms including the intermedio (a public version of the masque was the pageant). A mas ...

written by Sir

William Davenant Sir William Davenant (baptised 3 March 1606 – 7 April 1668), also spelled D'Avenant, was an English poet and playwright. Along with Thomas Killigrew, Davenant was one of the rare figures in English Renaissance theatre whose career spanned bo ...

and designed by

Inigo Jones Inigo Jones (15 July 1573 – 21 June 1652) was an English architect who was the first significant Architecture of England, architect in England in the early modern era and the first to employ Vitruvius, Vitruvian rules of proportion and symmet ...

, is performed at

Whitehall Palace The Palace of Whitehall – also spelled White Hall – at Westminster was the main residence of the English monarchs from 1530 until 1698, when most of its structures, with the notable exception of Inigo Jones's Banqueting House of 1622, ...

. It is the final royal masque of the

Caroline era The Caroline era is the period in English and Scottish history named for the 24-year reign of Charles I of England, Charles I (1625–1649). The term is derived from ''Carolus'', Latin for Charles. The Caroline era followed the Jacobean era, the ...

. *

March 17 Events Pre-1600 * 45 BC – In his last victory, Julius Caesar defeats the Pompeian forces of Titus Labienus and Pompey the Younger in the Battle of Munda. * 180 – Commodus becomes sole emperor of the Roman Empire at the age of ...

( St. Patrick's Day) – Henry Burnell's play ''Landgartha'' is first performed, at the Werburgh Street Theatre in

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

. It is one of the earliest plays from a native Irish playwright. *c.

April 16 Events Pre-1600 * 1457 BC – Battle of Megido – the first battle to have been recorded in what is accepted as relatively reliable detail. * 69 – Defeated by Vitellius' troops at Bedriacum, Roman emperor Otho commits suicide. * ...

–

James Shirley James Shirley (or Sherley) (September 1596 – October 1666) was an English dramatist. He belonged to the great period of English dramatic literature, but, in Charles Lamb (writer), Charles Lamb's words, he "claims a place among the worthies of ...

returns to England from Ireland. *

May 4 Events Pre-1600 * 1256 – The Augustinian monastic order is constituted at the Lecceto Monastery when Pope Alexander IV issues a papal bull ''Licet ecclesiae catholicae''. * 1415 – Religious reformer John Wycliffe is condemned a ...

– Theatre manager William Beeston is sent to the Marshalsea Prison for staging a play (possibly

Richard Brome Richard Brome ; (c. 1590? – 24 September 1652) was an English dramatist of the Caroline era. Life Virtually nothing is known about Brome's private life. Repeated allusions in contemporary works, like Ben Jonson's '' Bartholomew Fair'', in ...

's '' The Court Beggar'' or his '' The Queen and Concubine'') which offends the Stuart regime. This constitutes the only repression of the theatre to occur during the reign of King Charles I. *

May 28 Events Pre-1600 * 585 BC – A solar eclipse occurs, as predicted by the Greek philosopher and scientist Thales, while Alyattes is battling Cyaxares in the Battle of the Eclipse, leading to a truce. This is one of the cardinal dates from ...

–

Pedro Calderón de la Barca Pedro Calderón de la Barca y Barreda González de Henao Ruiz de Blasco y Riaño (17 January 160025 May 1681) (, ; ) was a Spanish dramatist, poet, and writer. He is known as one of the most distinguished Spanish Baroque literature, poets and ...

joins the Catalan campaign led by the Duke of Olivares. *English Cavalier poet Richard Lovelace, serving in the

Bishops' Wars The Bishops' Wars were two separate conflicts fought in 1639 and 1640 between Scotland and England, with Scottish Royalists allied to England. They were the first of the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, which also include the First and Second En ...

in Scotland, writes " To Lucasta, Going to the Warres" (published

1649 Events January–March * January 4 – In England, the Rump Parliament passes an ordinance to set up a High Court of Justice, to try Charles I for high treason. * January 17 – The Second Ormonde Peace concludes an allian ...

) and the unperformed tragedy ''The Soldier'' (lost).

New books

*''The Bay Psalm Book'', the first book printed in North America * Uriel da Costa – ''Exemplar Humanae Vitae'' *

Diego de Saavedra Fajardo Diego de Saavedra Fajardo (24 August 1648) was a Spanish Diplomacy, diplomat and Intellectual, man of letters. Biography He was born in Algezares, in what is now the province of Murcia. After receiving a religious education at Salamanca, he t ...

– ''Idea de un príncipe político cristiano'' (literally, "The Idea of a Christian Political Prince;" in English, ''The Royal Politician'') * Thomas Fuller – ''Joseph's coloured Coat'' *

James Howell James Howell ( – ) was a Welsh writer and historian. The son of a Welsh clergyman, he was for much of his life in the shadow of his elder brother Thomas Howell (bishop), Thomas Howell, who became Lord Bishop of Bristol. Education In 1613 he ...

– '' Dodona's Grove'' * Cornelius Jansen – '' Augustinus'' * Thomas Stephens – '' Arte da lingoa Canarim'', a grammar of the

Konkani language Konkani, (Devanagari: , Konkani in the Roman script, Romi: , Kannada script, Kannada: , Koleluttu: , Nastaliq: ; IAST: , ) formerly Concani or Concanese, is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Konkani people, primarily i ...

John Wilkins John Wilkins (14 February 1614 – 19 November 1672) was an English Anglican ministry, Anglican clergyman, Natural philosophy, natural philosopher, and author, and was one of the founders of the Royal Society. He was Bishop of Chester from 1 ...

– ''A Discourse Concerning a New Planet'' * Francisco de Rioja – ''Aristarco o censura de la proclamación católica de los catalanes'' *

Baltasar Gracián Baltasar Gracián y Morales (; 8 January 16016 December 1658), better known as Baltasar Gracián, was a Spanish Jesuit priest and Spanish Baroque literature, Baroque prose writer and philosopher. He was born in Belmonte de Gracián, Belmonte, n ...

– ''El político Don Fernando el Católico'' * Juan Eusebio Nieremberg – ''De la diferencia entre lo temporal y lo eterno. Crisol de desengaño''

New drama

* Henry Burnell – ''Landgartha'' *

Pierre Corneille Pierre Corneille (; ; 6 June 1606 – 1 October 1684) was a French tragedian. He is generally considered one of the three great 17th-century French dramatists, along with Molière and Racine. As a young man, he earned the valuable patronage ...

– ''

Horace Quintus Horatius Flaccus (; 8 December 65 BC – 27 November 8 BC), Suetonius, Life of Horace commonly known in the English-speaking world as Horace (), was the leading Roman lyric poet during the time of Augustus (also known as Octavian). Th ...

'' *

– '' Salmacida Spolia'' * John Fletcher & James Shirley – '' The Night Walker'' (published) * Henry Glapthorne – ''The Hollander'', ''Wit in a Constable'', and ''The Ladies' Privilege'' (published) *John Gough – ''The Strange Discovery'' * William Habington – ''The Queen of Arragon'' * Samuel Harding – ''Sicily and Naples'' * Jean Mairet – ''L’Illustre corsaire'' * Nathaniel Richards – ''Messalina'' (published) * Joseph Rutter- ''The Cid, Part 2'' (published) * George Sandys – ''Christ's Passion'' (English translation of

Hugo Grotius Hugo Grotius ( ; 10 April 1583 – 28 August 1645), also known as Hugo de Groot () or Huig de Groot (), was a Dutch humanist, diplomat, lawyer, theologian, jurist, statesman, poet and playwright. A teenage prodigy, he was born in Delft an ...

's ''Christus Patiens'') *Lewis Sharpe – ''The Noble Stranger'' published *

– '' The Imposture'' performed; a single-volume collection of eight plays published; '' The Arcadia'', '' The Humorous Courtier'', and '' Saint Patrick for Ireland'' published; '' The Coronation'' published but misattributed to John Fletcher * Francisco de Rojas Zorrilla – ''Los bandos de Verona'' *

– ''Psiquis y Cupido'' * Valentín de Céspedes – ''Las glorias del mejor siglo'' *

Lope de Vega Félix Lope de Vega y Carpio (; 25 November 156227 August 1635) was a Spanish playwright, poet, and novelist who was a key figure in the Spanish Golden Age (1492–1659) of Spanish Baroque literature, Baroque literature. In the literature of ...

– ''Parte XXIV de comedias'' * ''Entremeses nuevos'' * Fray Alonso Remón – ''Las tres mujeres en una'' * Francisco de Rojas Zorrilla **''Donde hay agravios no hay celos'' **''No hay amigo para amigo'' **''Progne y Filomena''

Poetry

Thomas Carew Thomas Carew (pronounced as "Carey") (1595 – 22 March 1640) was an English poet, among the 'Cavalier' group of Caroline poets. Biography He was the son of Sir Matthew Carew, master in chancery, and his wife Alice, daughter of Sir John Rive ...

– ''Poems'' * Robert Sempill the younger – ''The Life and Death of Habbie Simpson, Piper of Kilbarchan'' * John Tatham – ''Fancy's Theatre'' *''Romances varios de diversos autores''

Births

April 2 Events Pre-1600 * 1513 – Having spotted land on March 27, Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León comes ashore on what is now the U.S. state of Florida, landing somewhere between the modern city of St. Augustine and the mouth of the St ...

– Marianna Alcoforado, Portuguese nun and purported letter-writer (died 1723) * June 5 –

Pu Songling Pu Songling ( zh, t= , 5 June 1640 – 25 February 1715) was a Chinese writer during the Qing dynasty, best known as the author of '' Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio'' (''Liaozhai zhiyi''). Biography Pu was born into a poor merchant famil ...

(蒲松龄), Chinese writer (died

1715 Events For dates within Great Britain and the British Empire, as well as in the Russian Empire, the "old style" Julian calendar was used in 1715, and can be converted to the "new style" Gregorian calendar (adopted in the British Empire in ...

) * August 8 – Amalia Catharina, German poet (died

1697 Events January–March * January 8 – Thomas Aikenhead is hanged outside Edinburgh, becoming the last person in Great Britain to be executed for blasphemy. * January 11 – French writer Charles Perrault releases the book '' Histoires ...

) * September 6 – Heinrich Brewer, German historian (died c. 1713) * December 6 – Claude Fleury, French historian (died 1723) * December 14 (baptized) –

Aphra Behn Aphra Behn (; baptism, bapt. 14 December 1640 – 16 April 1689) was an English playwright, poet, prose writer and translator from the Restoration (England), Restoration era. As one of the first English women to earn her living by her writ ...

(Eaffrey Johnson), English dramatist (died

1689 Events Notable events during this year include: * Coup, war, and legislation in England and its territories. ** The overthrow of Catholic king James of England, Ireland, and Scotland in the Glorious Revolution. ** The latter realms ente ...

) ''Uncertain dates'' * David-Augustin de Brueys, French theologian and dramatist (died 1723) * Madame de Villedieu, French dramatist and novelist (died 1683)

Deaths

January 25 Events Pre-1600 * 41 – After a night of negotiation, Claudius is accepted as Roman emperor by the Senate. * 750 – In the Battle of the Zab, the Abbasid rebels defeat the Umayyad Caliphate, leading to the overthrow of the dyn ...

– Robert Burton, English scholar (born 1577) *February/March – Richard Rowlands, English antiquary (born c. 1550) *

March 8 Events Pre-1600 * 1010 – Ferdowsi completes his epic poem '' Shahnameh''. * 1126 – Following the death of his mother, queen Urraca of León, Alfonso VII is proclaimed king of León. * 1262 – Battle of Hausbergen between ...

(burial) – Samuel Ward, English Puritan preacher and writer (born 1577) *

– Philip Massinger, English dramatist (born 1583) *

March 22 Events Pre-1600 * 106 – Start of the Bostran era, the calendar of the province of Arabia Petraea. * 235 – Roman emperor Severus Alexander is murdered, marking the start of the Crisis of the Third Century. * 871 – Æthel ...

–

, English poet (born 1595) *April – Uriel da Costa, Portuguese philosopher (born c. 1585) *

– Paul Fleming, German poet (born

1609 Events January–March * January 12 – The Basque witch trials are started in Spain as the court of the Spanish Inquisition, Inquisition at Logroño receives a letter from the commissioner of the village of Zugarramurdi, and ...

) *

April 28 Events Pre-1600 * 224 – The Battle of Hormozdgan is fought. Ardashir I defeats and kills Artabanus V, effectively ending the Parthian Empire. * 357 – Emperor Constantius II enters Rome for the first time to celebrate his victor ...

(burial) –

William Alabaster William Alabaster (also Alablaster, Arblastier) (27 February 1567buried 28 April 1640) was an English Neo-Latin poet, playwright, and religious writer. Alabaster became a Roman Catholic convert in Spain when on a diplomatic mission as chapla ...

, English poet and playwright (born 1567) *

May 30 Events Pre-1600 * 70 – Siege of Jerusalem: Titus and his Roman legions breach the Second Wall of Jerusalem. Jewish defenders retreat to the First Wall. The Romans build a circumvallation, cutting down all trees within . * 1381 – ...

– André Duchesne, French historian (born 1584) * October 1 –

Claudio Achillini Claudio Achillini (; 18 September 1574 – 1 October 1640) was an Italian philosopher, theologian, mathematician, poet, and jurist. He is a major figure in the history of Italian Baroque poetry. Biography Born in Bologna, he was a grandson to ...

, Italian philosopher and poet (born 1574) *December ** William Aspley, English publisher (born c. 1573) **Sir John Melton, English politician and writer (unknown year of birth) *''unknown dates'' ** Charles Aleyn, English poet (unknown year of birth) ** Daniel Naborowski, Polish Baroque poet (born

1573 Year 1573 (Roman numerals, MDLXXIII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. Events January–March * January 25 (22nd day of 12th month of Genki (era), Genki 3 – At the Battle of Mikatagahara in Japan, ...

) *''probable'' –

Elizabeth Melville Elizabeth Melville, Lady Culross (c.1578–c.1640) was a Scottish people, Scottish poet. In 1603 she became the earliest known Scottish woman writer to see her work in print, when the Edinburgh publisher Robert Charteris issued the first edition ...

, Scottish poet (born c. 1578)

References

{{Year in literature article categories