Gabriel Spenser, also spelt Spencer, (c. 1578 – 22 September 1598) was an Elizabethan actor. He is best known for episodes of violence culminating in his death in a duel at the hands of the playwright

Ben Jonson Benjamin Jonson ( 11 June 1572 – ) was an English playwright, poet and actor. Jonson's artistry exerted a lasting influence on English poetry and stage comedy. He popularised the comedy of humours; he is best known for the satire, satirical ...

Acting career

Spenser appears in a number of documents as an actor associated with two of the major theatre companies of the day. Spenser first appears in records working for

Francis Langley Francis Langley (1548–1602) was a theatre builder and theatrical producer in Elizabethan era London. After James Burbage and Philip Henslowe, Langley was the third significant entrepreneurial figure active at the height of the development of Eng ...

, in the Earl of Pembroke's Men, though he may have already been working for the

Lord Chamberlain's Men The Lord Chamberlain's Men was an English company of actors, or a "playing company" (as it then would likely have been described), for which William Shakespeare wrote during most of his career. Richard Burbage played most of the lead roles, includ ...

.Alan Palmer, Veronica Palmer, ''Who's Who in Shakespeare'', Palgrave Macmillan, 1999, p. 238. The stage direction "enter Gabriel" in the

First Folio ''Mr. William Shakespeare's Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies'' is a collection of plays by William Shakespeare, commonly referred to by modern scholars as the First Folio, published in 1623, about seven years after Shakespeare's death. It is cons ...

version of Shakespeare's ''

Henry VI, Part 3 ''Henry VI, Part 3'' (often written as ''3 Henry VI'') is a Shakespearean history, history play by William Shakespeare believed to have been written in 1591 and set during the lifetime of King Henry VI of England. Whereas ''Henry VI, Part 1, ...

'' has often been thought to refer to Spenser's role in the play — that of a messenger. The names of actors are sometimes accidentally substituted for roles in published versions of plays. It has also been suggested that Spenser was the actor responsible for the so-called

bad quarto A bad quarto, in Shakespearean scholarship, is a quarto-sized printed edition of one of Shakespeare's plays that is considered to be unauthorised, and is theorised to have been pirated from a theatrical performance without permission by someone ...

of ''

Romeo and Juliet ''The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet'', often shortened to ''Romeo and Juliet'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare about the romance between two young Italians from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's ...

'' published in 1597, if it was a

memorial reconstruction Memorial reconstruction is the hypothesis that the scripts of some 17th century plays were written down from memory by actors who had played parts in them, and that those transcriptions were published.British LibrarRetrieved: 10 December 2007. Th ...

. In July 1597 Spenser was imprisoned after performing in '' The Isle of Dogs'', an allegedly seditious play co-written by Ben Jonson and

Thomas Nashe Thomas Nashe (also Nash; baptised 30 November 1567 – c. 1601) was an English Elizabethan playwright, poet, satirist and a significant pamphleteer. He is known for his novel '' The Unfortunate Traveller'', his pamphlets including '' Pierce P ...

. It is not known why only Spenser and one other actor, Robert Shaw, were imprisoned, along with Jonson (Nashe fled London). The report of their arrest says that "the rest of the players or actors in that matter shall be apprehended", but no one else ever was. He was released after eight weeks. In November of that year Spenser left the Earl of Pembroke's Men to join Philip Henslowe's company the

Admiral's Men The Admiral's Men (also called the Admiral's company, more strictly, the Earl of Nottingham's Men; after 1603, Prince Henry's Men; after 1612, the Elector Palatine's Men or the Palsgrave's Men) was a playing company or troupe of actors in the Eli ...

. Spenser joined as a shareholder, entitling him to a portion of the daily takings. Langley sued Spenser for breach of contract. In March 1598 Spenser appears in a document as a witness to a contract drawn up between Henslowe and

Thomas Heywood Thomas Heywood (early 1570s – 16 August 1641) was an English playwright, actor, and author. His main contributions were to late Elizabethan and early Jacobean theatre. He is best known for his masterpiece ''A Woman Killed with Kindness'', a ...

Killing of Feake

Benjamin Jonson by Abraham van Blyenberch

In December 1596, while still a member of Langley's company, Spenser got into an argument with James Feake, the son of a goldsmith, at the house of a Shoreditch barber. It culminated with Spenser stabbing Feake with his sword, mortally wounding him. According to the inquest, the argument had escalated to the point that Feake attempted to throw a copper candelabrum at Spenser, who responded by attacking him with his still-sheathed sword, which penetrated his eye and entered his brain. Feake languished for three days before he died. There is no record of any punishment meted out to Spenser, who may have successfully argued self-defence.C.C. Stopes, ''Burbage and Shakespeare's Stage'', Ardent, 2010, p. 71-73.

Death

On 22 September 1598, Spenser fought a duel with Ben Jonson on Hoxton fields. The cause of the duel is not known. According to Jonson's account, related many years later, Spenser had initiated the duel and had the advantage of a much longer sword. Spenser wounded Jonson in the arm, but Jonson managed to strike back, killing him. The inquest says he died from a six-inch deep stab wound in his right side. Jonson confessed to the killing, but escaped capital punishment by pleading

benefit of clergy In English law, the benefit of clergy ( Law Latin: ''privilegium clericale'') was originally a provision by which clergymen accused of a crime could claim that they were outside the jurisdiction of the secular courts and be tried instead in an ec ...

. He was sentenced to be branded on the thumb. During his imprisonment he converted to Roman Catholicism. Henslowe appears to have been very angry with Jonson and refused to produce his next play. It has been suggested that Jonson's many enemies never subsequently taunted him as the murderer of Spenser because the latter was widely believed to have deserved his fate. However, Heywood appears to praise Spenser in his ''Apology for Actors'', listing him with other deceased actors whose "deserts yet live in the remembrance of many". Spenser was buried in St Leonard's, Shoreditch, which is also the resting place of several other Elizabethan actors. A memorial plaque was put up in 1913 by the London Shakespeare League to commemorate him and the others who rest there.Andrew Davies, ''Literary London'', Macmillan, 1988, p. 198.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Spenser, Gabriel English duellists Duelling fatalities 1598 deaths 16th-century English male actors English male stage actors Male actors from London Year of birth uncertain 1570s births