Edward Alleyn
Elizabethan actor and founder of Dulwich College.
Wikipedia / Wikimedia Commons
Edward Alleyn (1 September 1566 – 21 November 1626) was an English actor and a leading figure in Elizabethan theatre. He also founded the College of God's Gift in Dulwich.
Alleyn was born in London, possibly in Bishopsgate, based on his own writings. He recorded his birth date in a diary several times but never clearly named his birthplace. The St. Botolph parish registers show he was baptised the day after he was born. He was the younger son of Edward Alleyn, an innkeeper and porter to Queen Elizabeth I, and Margaret Townley, daughter of John Townley. His mother’s connection to the Lancashire Towneley family is unclear; Alleyn claimed she was John Townley’s daughter, but this does not match the known family tree. Nonetheless, a road passing Alleyn’s School was named after her in 1884. He was baptised at St Botolph-without-Bishopsgate and was known to contemporaries as “Ned.” His surname also appears as Allen or Alleyne.
His father died when Alleyn was four. His mother then married an actor named Brown, and Alleyn grew up in a theatre household. It is unknown when he began acting, but by 1583 his name was on the list of the Earl of Worcester’s players. He was widely considered the finest actor of his time, with Richard Burbage as his only close rival. He originated the title roles in three of Christopher Marlowe’s major plays: Doctor Faustus, Tamburlaine, and Barabas in *The Jew of Malta*—parts likely written for him. He was noted for his physical size and commanding presence. Other roles thought to be his include Orlando in Robert Greene’s *Orlando Furioso* and possibly Hieronymo in Thomas Kyd’s *The Spanish Tragedy*. He may have led in lost works by George Peele, such as *The Battle of Alcazar*. In a private letter, he mocked himself as a “fustian king.”
In 1593, Alleyn and his fellow players toured the provinces, including rural areas, earning little money. Despite the bubonic plague in London, they risked their health for the troupe’s success and financial stability. The tour, involving players from Lord Strange’s Men and the Admiral’s Men, reached Bristol, Shrewsbury, Chester, and York. Alleyn retired around 1598 at the height of his fame. Queen Elizabeth supposedly asked him to return to the stage, which he did in 1604, the year after her death. Ben Jonson praised his acting. Thomas Nashe, in *Pierce Penniless* (1593), admired him alongside actors J
- born
- 1 September 1566, Bishopsgate, London (or so recorded; birthplace not distinctly identified by Alleyn)
- died
- 21 November 1626
- field
- Actor, theatre entrepreneur, college founder
- nationality
- English
- known_for
- Foremost actor of Elizabethan era; founder of the College of God's Gift in Dulwich
Lore & Background
Edward Alleyn was born on 1 September 1566 in Bishopsgate, London, or so it was recorded in the Biographia Britannica as a product of Alleyn's own writing. He was baptized at St Botolph-without-Bishopsgate. His father was an innkeeper and porter to Queen Elizabeth I, and his mother, Margaret Townley, was the daughter of John Townley, though her link to the Lancashire Towneley family is somewhat of a mystery. Alleyn was four years old when his father died; his mother remarried an actor named Brown, and Alleyn was believed to have been raised in theatre culture.
Alleyn's acting career began by at least 1583, when his name was on the list of the Earl of Worcester's players. He created the title roles in Marlowe's Doctor Faustus, Tamburlaine, and The Jew of Malta, parts probably written especially for him. He was known for his physical size and handling of commanding parts. In 1593, during a bubonic plague outbreak in London, Alleyn and fellow players toured the provinces, including Bristol, Shrewsbury, Chester, and York, risking their health for the troupe's success. He retired around 1598 but returned to the stage in 1604.
Alleyn went into business with his father-in-law Philip Henslowe and became wealthy, part-owning the Rose Theatre, the Paris Garden, and the Fortune Theatre. He also held the post of 'master of the king's games of bears, bulls and dogs.' In 1605 he bought the manor of Dulwich and began building the College of God's Gift, completed in 1617, though the charter was not granted until 21 June 1619. He married Joan Woodward in 1592; after her death in 1623, he married Constance, daughter of John Donne, but had no children.
Reader's Guide
Edward Alleyn's significance lies in his dual legacy as the foremost actor of the Elizabethan stage and as a philanthropist who founded the College of God's Gift at Dulwich. His performances in Marlowe's major plays set a standard for dramatic acting, and his business acumen, in partnership with Philip Henslowe, made him a wealthy owner of playhouses and bear-pits. The College of God's Gift, established in 1619, later split into Dulwich College, James Allen's Girls' School, and Alleyn's School, and has expanded internationally. Alleyn is unusual among 16th-century drama figures because a large selection of his private papers survived, published in 1843 as The Alleyn Papers. His gravestone fixes his death on 21 November 1626, and he was buried in the chapel of his college. A memorial window to him exists in the cathedral that was his parish church, and his portrait is at Dulwich Picture Gallery.
Did You Know?
- Alleyn's surname is alternatively spelled Allen or Alleyne.
- He was known to contemporaries as 'Ned'.
- He baited a lion with mastiffs before James I at the Tower of London.
- His second wife, Constance, was the daughter of poet John Donne and was 37 years his junior.
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