Among the numerous unsupported conjectures respecting this tragedy may be mentioned that, when Shakespeare drew the characters of, 1. Hamlet; 2. Horatio; 3. Claudius; 4. The Queen, he had in his mind, 1. The Earl of Essex or Sir Phillip Sydney or himself; 2. Lord Southampton or Fulke Greville; 3. The Earl of Leicester; 4. Mary, Queen of Scots. Although some of these suggestions are ingeniously supported, there is not one of them which rests on any kind of real evidence or external probability.
Burbage was the first actor of Hamlet in Shakespeare's tragedy. His performance is spoken of in terms of high commendation, but there is no record of his treatment of the character, his delineation probably differing materially from that of modern actors. Stage tradition merely carries down the tricks of the profession, no actor entirely replacing another, and, in the case of Hamlet, hardly two of recent times, whose performances I have had the opportunity of witnessing, but who are or have been distinct in manner and expression, and even in idea. Few actors or readers can be found to agree respecting Shakespeare's conception of the character. This, however, may be safely asserted, that no criticism on Hamlet will ever be permanent which does not recognize the sublimity of his nature. Horatio understood Hamlet better than anyone, and his judgment of him doubtless expressed Shakespeare's own estimate:
"Now cracks a noble heart—good night, sweet prince;
And flights of angels sing thee to thy rest!"
A "noble heart" that ever shrank from an act that would have resulted in his own aggrandizement, for, although the monarchy was elective, not hereditary, the succession of Hamlet had been proclaimed by the King and tacitly accepted.
[ DOWNFALL OF IRISH LIBERTY
"FLIGHT OF THE EARLS" ]
A.D. 1603
JUSTIN McCARTHY
At the accession of Henry VIII to the English throne that portion of Ireland mainly colonized from England, the ruling country, was known as the English pale—that is, district. It comprised "the four shires" or counties of Dublin, Kildare, Meath, and Louth. Beyond this district the country was held by various Celtic clans ruled by their own chieftains. Early in Henry's reign the English lords began to show their independence of royal authority, and also to ally themselves with the native chieftains. Henry saw that the Irish, who had often before aimed at independence of England, were about to renew the struggle. He determined to forestall them, and sent one lord deputy after another to Ireland in charge of the royal interests.