Ben Jonson, The Masque of Queens

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The Masque of Queens

was the third masque Ben Jonson wrote for Queen Anne. It was presented at Whitehall in 1609 and when it was published Jonson wrote that

It was my first and special regard, to see that the nobility of the invention should be answerable to the dignity of their persons. For which reason I chose the argument to be, A Celebration of honourable and true Fame, bred out of Virtue… her Majesty . . . had commanded me to think on some dance or show that might proceed hers, and have the place of a foil, or false masque.

It was my first and special regard, to see that the nobility of the invention should be answerable to the dignity of their persons. For which reason I chose the argument to be,

A Celebration of honourable and true Fame, bred out of Virtue

… her…

918 words

Citation: Lewcock, Dawn. "The Masque of Queens". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 14 June 2007 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=209, accessed 19 March 2024.]

209 The Masque of Queens 3 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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