Thomas May facts for kids

Thomas May (born 1594 or 1595 – died 1650) was an English poet, playwright, and historian during the time of the Renaissance. He is best known for his historical writings about the English Civil War.

Early Life and First Works (Before 1630)

Thomas May was born in Mayfield, England. His father, Sir Thomas May, worked for the king's court. Thomas May went to Cambridge University and finished his studies in 1613. While at Cambridge, he wrote his first published poem. It was part of a collection of poems remembering Henry, Prince of Wales, who died in 1612. Most poems in that book were in Latin, but May's was in English.

Friends in the Theater World

In 1615, May started studying to become a lawyer in London at Gray's Inn. We don't know much about what he did for the next five years.

During the 1620s, May became friends with people involved in plays. In 1620, his play The Heir was performed. It was a romantic comedy. Even though the theater company usually performed in a lively outdoor place called the Red Bull Theatre, May's play was first shown in a private setting.

May became friends with Thomas Carew, a poet and diplomat, in the early 1620s. Carew even wrote a poem for May's play The Heir when it was published in 1622. May also likely knew Philip Massinger, another playwright. May wrote a poem praising Massinger's play The Roman Actor in 1629, calling him his "very deserving friend." By the late 1620s, May also knew the famous writer Ben Jonson personally.

Translating Ancient Stories

One of May's most important works was his translation of a Latin poem called Bellum Civile by Lucan. This poem tells the story of the end of the Roman republic during the Roman civil wars between Pompey and Julius Caesar. It talks about how the Romans lost their freedom and criticizes Caesar's ambition.

The first part of May's translation came out in 1626, and the full ten books were published a year later. It was very popular and was printed again several times. The 1627 edition had special messages to important English noblemen. Many of these nobles were thought to be against King Charles I's attempts to collect taxes without Parliament's approval. These messages were later removed from other editions, possibly by people who censored books.

May also wrote other plays and translations. In 1626, his play Cleopatra was performed. He also wrote two more plays based on ancient Greek and Roman stories: Antigone (published 1631) and Julia Agrippina (published 1639). These plays focused on political ideas.

In the late 1620s, May translated more Latin poems. He translated Virgil's Georgics in 1628 and some poems from Martial's Epigrams in 1629. The translation of Martial's poems hinted at May's own life, mentioning Martial's poverty and his choice to become a poet instead of a lawyer.

May's Life in the 1630s

It seems that May didn't get much fame or money for his writing until the end of the 1630s.

Continuing Lucan's Story

In 1630, May published a new work called Continuation of Lucan. In this work, May continued the story of Lucan's poem, describing events up to Caesar's assassination in 44 BC. This book was also reprinted several times.

This work might have made May interested in writing historical poems. Over the next five years, he wrote poems about English kings Henry II and Edward III. These works were well-received at the king's court and were dedicated to King Charles I. It was even said that May was paid for these writings.

May and Ben Jonson's Friends

May had many friends who were writers. After the Restoration (when the monarchy was brought back), a nobleman named Edward Hyde wrote that before the English Civil War, he and May were part of a close group of lawyers and writers. This group was led by the famous writer Ben Jonson.

This group was more serious than other groups of writers who just admired Jonson. According to Hyde, the group also included Thomas Carew, John Selden (a lawyer), John Vaughan (another lawyer), Charles Cotton, and Sir Kenelme Digby. This group likely started in the 1620s. Both Vaughan and Jonson wrote poems praising May's translation of Lucan, and Carew was friends with May by 1622.

May became very close with Sir Kenelme Digby, partly because of Jonson. Digby later managed Jonson's writings after he died. Jonson and May were the first two poets to write poems remembering Digby's wife, Venetia, who died in 1633. May also praised Digby's writings about another famous poet, Edmund Spenser.

Ben Jonson died in 1637. The next year, May wrote a poem for a collection honoring Jonson. This poem compared Jonson to Lucan. Later, a story spread that May had expected to receive Jonson's royal payment after he died, but it went to another writer, William Davenant, instead. This story was probably made up to make May look bad because he later supported Parliament.

May's comedy play, The Old Couple, was published later in 1658, but it was performed in 1636.

May and Parliament (The 1640s)

In 1640, May published a Latin version of his Continuation of Lucan, called Supplementum Lucani. This important work was published in Leiden, a center for scholars in Europe. It had special messages from Dutch thinkers. It kept the dedication to King Charles I, but some people believe it showed more dislike for kings and Caesar than the original.

Supporting Parliament

In the early 1640s, May started to support Parliament. In 1642, he wrote a paper arguing for regular meetings between the King and Parliament. This was likely to support the Triennial Act, which required Parliament to meet often. His writing strongly criticized kings, like Charles I, who tried to rule without Parliament. However, he also warned against giving too much power to the common people, saying it could lead to chaos.

In this work, May showed himself to be a careful and traditional thinker. He didn't want any one group to have too much power. This made him a constitutionalist Parliamentarian. Other friends from the Jonson group, like Hyde and Vaughan, also shared these views early on. They supported some early changes, but later Hyde switched to the King's side, and Vaughan retired. John Selden, another friend from the Jonson group, remained a moderate Parliamentarian until he died.

Writing History for Parliament

Because of his early writings, the House of Commons asked May to write a History of the Parliament. This book came out in 1647. In it, May described recent English history as the peaceful time of Queen Elizabeth being ruined by the greed and foolishness of the Stuart kings.

In October 1649, after King Charles I was executed and England became a republic, May wrote a letter to the members of the Rump Parliament (the part of Parliament that remained). He called them "Senators," like in ancient Rome. May advised them not to make laws that gave too much freedom of thought, saying it would upset potential allies. He also dismissed people like John Lilburne, who wanted more democracy, saying they didn't own enough land to have a say. He told the Members of Parliament to listen to the "better sort" of people. He praised the king's execution and other events as miracles from God.

In 1650, May published a shorter, revised history of Parliament. This version used a more direct Latin style, without as many fancy words or references to ancient texts. It was first published in Latin in April 1650 and quickly translated into English, probably by May himself, as the Breviarie. This English version came out in June 1650.

Thomas May died in November 1650. Important republican leaders, Henry Marten and Thomas Chaloner, were put in charge of his burial and given money for it. May was buried in Westminster Abbey. His tombstone called him the "defender of the English commonwealth." However, after the monarchy was restored, his body was dug up and reburied in a pit in the yard of St Margaret's, Westminster. May's decision to support Parliament made him many enemies, and he was strongly criticized by many people at the time.