''Lucius'' or ''Lucius, the First Christian King of Britain'' is a 1717

tragedy A tragedy is a genre of drama based on human suffering and, mainly, the terrible or sorrowful events that befall a tragic hero, main character or cast of characters. Traditionally, the intention of tragedy is to invoke an accompanying catharsi ...

by the British writer

Delarivier Manley Delarivier "Delia" Manley (1663 or – 24 July 1724) was an English author, playwright, and political pamphleteer. Manley is sometimes referred to, with Aphra Behn and Eliza Haywood, as one of " the fair triumvirate of wit", which is a later at ...

. It is based on the life of

Lucius of Britain Lucius (Welsh language, Welsh: Lles map Coel, Lleirwg, Lleufer or Lleufer Mawr) was a supposed 2nd-century List of legendary kings of Britain, king of the Britons traditionally credited with introducing Christianity into Great Britain, Britain. L ...

, the second century ruler of Britain traditionally considered to have introduced

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

to Britain. It was Manley's final play to be staged. It premiered at the

Theatre Royal, Drury Lane The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, commonly known as Drury Lane, is a West End theatre and listed building, Grade I listed building in Covent Garden, London, England. The building faces Catherine Street (earlier named Bridges or Brydges Street) an ...

on 11 May 1717 with a cast that included

John Thurmond John Thurmond (died 1727) was a British stage actor. To distinguish him from his son, also an actor named John, he is sometimes called John Thurmond the Elder. His earliest known stage performance was in 1695, when he played in ''Cyrus the Great' ...

as Honorius,

Lacy Ryan Lacy Ryan (c. 1694–1760), English actor, appeared at the Haymarket Theatre about 1709. Life By 1718 he had joined the company at Lincoln's Inn Fields, where he shared the lead with his friend James Quin. He took leading roles in ''Richar ...

as Vortimer,

Barton Booth Barton Booth (168210 May 1733) was one of the most famous British dramatic actors of the first part of the 18th century. Early life Booth was the son of The Hon and Very Revd Dr Robert Booth, Dean of Bristol, by his first wife and distant co ...

as Lucius,

John Mills Sir John Mills (born Lewis Ernest Watts Mills; 22 February 190823 April 2005) was an English actor who appeared in more than 120 films in a career spanning seven decades. He excelled on camera as an appealing British everyman who often portray ...

as Arminius, John Bowman as Prince of Cambria,

Anne Oldfield Anne Oldfield (168323 October 1730) was an England, English actress and one of the highest paid actresses of her time. Early life and discovery She was born in London in 1683. Her father was a soldier, James Oldfield. Her mother was either Ann ...

as Rosalinda and

Christiana Horton Christiana Horton (c. 1696 – c. 1756) was an English actress. Discovered at Southwark Fair, she first appeared in London as Melinda in ''The Recruiting Officer'' in 1714 at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. Here she remained twenty year ...

as Emmelin.''The London Stage, 1660-1800: Volume II'' p.578

References

Bibliography

* Burling, William J. ''A Checklist of New Plays and Entertainments on the London Stage, 1700-1737''. Fairleigh Dickinson Univ Press, 1992. * Nicoll, Allardyce. ''History of English Drama, 1660-1900, Volume 2''. Cambridge University Press, 2009. * Hartley, Cathy. ''A Historical Dictionary of British Women''. Routledge, 2013. * Van Lennep, W. ''The London Stage, 1660-1800: Volume Two, 1700-1729''. Southern Illinois University Press, 1960. 1717 plays West End plays Plays by Delarivier Manley Plays about kings Plays based on real people Plays set in England Plays set in the 2nd century British tragedy plays {{1710s-play-stub