Coventry Corpus Christi Plays

One of the greatest medieval drama cycles in England was mounted annually at Coventry at Corpus Christi until suppressed in 1579 and is of particular importance because it was almost certainly seen by William Shakespeare when he was a boy in nearby Stratford-upon-Avon.

One of the greatest medieval drama cycles in England was mounted annually at Coventry at Corpus Christi until suppressed in 1579, and is of particular importance because it was almost certainly seen by William Shakespeare when he was a boy in nearby Stratford-upon-Avon. The two extant pageants from this cycle have been re-edited and are presented here for the first time in a modern critical edition. The introduction provides a full survey of knowledge about the Coventry cycle from the local dramatic records and other sources of information. Comprehensive critical and textual notes are included as well as a select bibliography and glossary. Appendices print the earliest fragments of the Weavers’ pageant, texts of royal entries from the Coventry Leet Book, the songs (including the famous Coventry Carol) from the Shearmen and Taylors’ pageant, and an analysis of various versions of the Doctors play.