Shakespeare's Lost Art
To: Any Shakespeare Student
The following document has been compiled over the last 15 years, and was posted on the Armistead Family Genealogy Forum on the Internet as Revision 94, last year.
However, since it has been removed from the above, and has been deleted from some of my e-mail records, by unknown hackers, it is being transmitted to many Art and Shakespeare experts and to various editors in America, Britain and in Europe to insure that it is plagiarized by more than 100 copy cats, or none! But, earlier revisions are still posted. And, try "Ancient Faces Genealogy Forum" , under Armistead, for more sonnet corrections and more details to this theory.
Hopefully, it will help Shakespeare researchers determine the true history of William Shakespeare and his descendants, many of whom may have blossomed on illegitimate vines at some point in Time.
I sincerely hope you find my research interesting, accurate and not too offensive or slanderous to living royal family members, which I don't claim "to be or not to be".
And, I reserve the right to change my theory, before it is ever published, and my current interpretations of Shakespeare's Sonnets, 2 of which are included below, and 150 more are held in reserve, just in case someone else tries to claim my research. A total of more than 280 changes have been made to correct the typo-errors and transcription errors in 21 sonnets out of the 154 sonnets; so, about 500 more errors and changes are predicted.
THE ARMISTEAD HOUSE of ORANGE THEORY
(Rev. 99, about 32 pages, total.)
BRIEF: The true identity of "William Shakespeare" has been a controversial mystery for four centuries; therefore, this paper discusses a few possibilities, like:
1...Edward de Vere, the XVII Earl of Oxford;
2...Edmund Spencer "the poet";
3...William Cecil "an adviser to Queen Elizabeth" and "the guardian of Edward de Vere";
4...The Rev. Charles Fitz-Geoffrey, who wrote frequently about Lady de Vere;
5...Sir Francis Drake, "the Pirate", who painted rare flowers and plants, and
.....painted new ports and landscapes, and dined with private violin music on
.... the Queen's silverware while sailing around the world on the Golden Hind;
6...King William I, "the silent", Henry of Orange, who had three wives and many children;
7...Prince Philip William Henry (the Dutch King's oldest son, who spent about 14 years in Spanish prisons); and, even
8...Sir John Hawkins, a cousin of Sir Francis Drake;
where, several of the above possibilities may be connected to the mysterious Armistead Family that appeared in Virginia after 1637 on the royal frigate "The Tristan & Jane", which had more servants than passengers and a small army of bodyguards.
SONNET DEDICATION CLUES
So, the best place to begin this paper may be with the dedication note in Shakespeare's original book of sonnets, which was published in about 1610, after the colonization of Jamestown and after the death of Queen Elizabeth I "the virgin" in 1603.
The following is the dedication note to William Shakespeare that appeared in Shakespeare's first book of sonnets, and which was written by the publisher, Thomas Thorpe, who was a trusted friend and had a spelling problem.
"To the onlie (only) begetter of these insuing (ensuing) sonnets, Mr. W.H., all happinesse and that eternitie (eternity) promised by our ever-living poet wisheth (I wish to) the well-wishing adventurer in setting forth. T. T."
"Ever-living" is a compliment to the age of "Mr. W.H." (about age 76); plus, this dedication note indicates that T. Thorpe knew about Shakespeare's next adventure to Jamestown on the ship, "The Sea Venture". (Ref: Use a Google search.)
THE OXFORDIAN THEORY FLAW
Today, hundreds of university professors are being convinced that Edward de Vere, the XVII Earl of Oxford, who was raised by William Cecil, wrote all of Shakespeare's plays and sonnets and that William Cecil exploited them. But, the name "Edward de Vere", an orphan, could have been used as an assumed name for an impostor child, to claim all House of Oxford property with the help of William Cecil. (See: History on the Internet.)
Also, Edmond Spenser, "the poet" (1552-1599), published a complete book of sonnets as The Faerie Queene in a very short period of time. So, Edmond Spenser could be another alias of Edward de Vere (1550-1604) or William Shakespeare (baptized 1564--d.1616), since all composed great sonnets in their youth and were "in love" with Princess "Bess". Edmond Spenser worked for William, Lord Pembroke, which may have been another alias for William "the silent" of Orange while living in England.
However, if William Cecil (Lord Burghley) died in 1598, and Edmond Spenser died in 1599, and Edward de Vere died in 1604; then, who with the initials of " W.H." submitted 154 sonnets to Thomas Thorpe in 1609 and embarked on a new sea adventure? Plus, who wrote the play, "The Tempest", which was written and performed after the death of all of the above and which may have described a storm encountered in 1609 near Bermuda on the ship, Sea Venture, and the kidnapping of Pocahontas with the aid of the Governor of Virginia, Sir Thomas Gates.
MORE RANDOM CLUES
Prince Philip William Henry (1554-1622?), the oldest son of King William I, "the silent", Henry, spent about 14 years in prison (1582 to 1596), where he had time to paint and to write plays, as did John Drake, who was captured by the Spanish in South America, and was said to be the young "painter-cousin" of Sir Francis Drake. But, all of the "Drake Family" may have used fictitious names, since pirates needed fictitious names.
Sir Francis Drake appeared from a mysterious family of thirteen children, similar to William I "the silent", and accomplished many things, like defeating the Spanish Armada with less ships. Earlier, King William "the silent" defeated the Iron Duke at Alkmaar.
King William "the silent" Henry lost three brothers in the 80 year war with Spain, as did Sir Francis Drake, and the dates of their deaths, coincidentally, coincide with each other. Plus, Sir Francis Drake always dined at sea with live violin music, which sounds more like a king's son than a preacher's son, whom history claims was raised on an abandoned ship, as a pauper, on the Thames River with twelve brothers and no sisters.
But, can the names of all of Drake's brothers be found? Perhaps not, but it is well documented that William "the silent" fled from the Netherlands, while his uncle, Lamoraal, the Count of Edmond, remained and tried to be friendly with Philip II of Spain, and lost his head. So, perhaps his young sisters were disguised as boy decoys.
Sir Francis Drake was a very intelligent man, has no known descendents, and had the same reddish-brown beard as Edward de Vere; plus, few of Drake's brothers have any known descendents. Therefore, I think, the surname, Drake, was fictitious while on covert missions to defeat King Phillip II, an old adversary of King William "the silent", since the family walked up the gangplank, like a platoon of young ducks.
Therefore, if you hypothesize that the Royal Family of Orange-Hesse-Nassau escaped the Spanish "Reign of Terror" and the "The Iron Duke" of Alba on an old, camouflaged, dilapidated bark, and lived on the Thames River until the Dutch Royal Family could organize a rebellion, you might be able to follow a new twist in history that is about to be discussed in this paper. A "bark" was also used to travel around the world, later.
Three brothers, of each, were killed in the war with Spain. So, Louis Henry (1538-1573) may have been known as "Joseph Drake ", Adolf Henry (1540-1568) may have been known as " John Drake", and Hendrik Henry (1550-1573) may have been known as "Thomas Drake". Younger John Drake "the cousin" commanded a ship at age 21.
And, John Henry (1536-1636), the eldest brother of William "the silent" (1533-1623), became King John VI of Hesse-Kassel (from 1592-1627) after William "the wise" (aka. Sir John Hawkins, the pirate) died at sea. Next, William "of sonnet 135" Armistead (1605-1649) became King William V of Hesse-Kassel (from 1627 to1637). Then in 1637, William V abdicated and sailed to Virginia on the " Tristam and Jane" to marry Lady Anne Lovelace, the Duchess of Kent, and to raise their oldest, illegitimate son, William (Philip), who was born after the siege of Groll in 1628 or 29, and had been hidden in the royal family of King Fredrick V Henry, as Philip (1629-1650).
WAS SHAKESPEARE A DUTCH ARTIST, TOO?
The following painting was said to have been painted by an obscure Dutch artist, who happened to be employed by the Royal House of Orange as an architect's sketch artist. Many art experts claim that he painted this exceptional painting, which was far ahead of any previous drawings by Bartholomeus Van Bassen (1590-1652), three years before the New Church (Neiuwe Kerk) and tomb at Delft were finished.
Therefore, Van Bassen may have falsely claimed this work of art by adding his name to a painting by the real designer and artist, which could have been King William I (aka. Sir Francis Drake) or Philip William Henry (aka. John Drake "the painter") or any other anonymous Dutch artist, as good as Rembrandt, who lived about that same period of time, since art experts already know that the people in this painting were not created by Van Bassen, but by another artist or artists. Plus, this painting is noted for its unique 3-D lighting, shadow, and color techniques.
The soldier in red is symbolic for his spirit finding his love, Queen Elizabeth and her son, after his death. Pocahontas, kneeling, is in the foreground and his other two wives are in the background with one son, each.
"The Tomb of William the Silent in an Imaginary Church"
(See the entitled painting on the Internet)
By: Bartholomeus Van Bassen and friends. (ca. 1620)
Museum of Fine Arts, Budapest. Oil on canvas (44 x 60 in.)
"The actual setting of the tomb of William the Silent is in the Nieuwe Kerk in Delft, where the monument stands in the choir and the seated effigy of the prince faces the nave. In the present painting Van Bassen has turned the tomb 180 degrees and enlarged it in relation to the church interior, thus making it a more awe-inspiring presence. The tomb has been commissioned by the States General in commemoration of the "Father of the Fatherland", William the Silent, who had been assassinated at his residence, the Prinsenhof, in Delft, in 1584. Work on the mausoleum began in 1614, after designs by the Amsterdam architect Hendrick de Keyser (1565-1621). The tomb was finished only in 1623, by Hendrick's son Pieter (1595-1676), three years after the date of Van Bassen's painting. The picture is the earliest painted rendering of the monument. Since the figures on the top of the monument were never "in situ", Van Bassen probably worked from designs or a model."
NOTE: The above quotation and picture are from an Internet Site found by a "google search" of the artist, Bartholomeus Van Bassen. One other painting of a church interior was also claimed by Van Bassen and is available on the Internet. But, why was the above church claimed to be imaginary, if Van Bassen was on the monument design team? Did he add his name to an unclaimed painting, like many other questionable artists? And, was the decision to build the monument made after the painting was finished?
OTHER DUTCH PAINTING CLUES
"Soldier with a Laughing Girl", by Jan Vermeer, may have been falsely claimed by "Ver Meer" experts, since it displays a rare, old map, and may have captured the "in love look" of Queen Elizabeth with William "the silent" of Orange in about 1576. And, the artist, Johannes Vermeer "von Delft" (1632-1675), was actually Johan Moritz von Nassau, who may have been the last, illegitimate son of John Maurice (Moritz) Henry (1567-1632) of Orange and Hesse-Kassel.
In fact, some of the best portraits of Queen Elizabeth are by unknown artists, which could have been by "Shakespeare", Edmond de Vere, William "the silent" or by Phillip William Henry of Orange. And, since they were created after about age 63, my best guess is that they were created after John Drake "the painter" was released from jail in 1596. (See: The Secret Voyage of Sir Francis Drake , by Samuel Bawlf, 2003.)
"The Artists Studio", by VerMeer, may also date itself, secretly, with a real Dutch map of the lowlands; plus, some researchers claim that the art museum in Delft was built in 1633 as a home for infant Johan Moritz von Nassau (aka. Jan Vermeer), and which was later converted into a museum to display more, secret, Royal Dutch Art.
"The Geographer", unlike most works of art, was boldly autographed, incorrectly dated and sold by the art dealer, "VerMeer"; since, both John Maurice and Wilhelm Fredrick V of Orange died before any of VerMeer's paintings were claimed.
In fact, several Dutch "artists" may have claimed more unsigned works of art by either Phillip William Henry or William "the silent". One could be a self-portrait by William "the silent" at about 26 years old. Many landscapes of new harbors may have been painted on the Golden Hinde trip around the world. And, the Dutch artist known for the paintings of flowers and plants may have claimed paintings by "John Drake" on the same trip. (See: All unsigned portraits of King William "the silent" and the Marquis or Margrave de Veere.)
The seaport of Veere (in Zeeland) is about 180 miles East of London, with easy access to the Thames River by sail boats, like a Pinnance. And, a weekend trip was possible.
Therefore, if you research the House of Orange-Nassau and the House of Hesse-Kassel you will discover that few experts agree on key descendants of William "the silent" of Orange, and even the Royal Web Site of Queen Wilhelmina is constantly being altered or corrected as new key dates are discovered in the present Royal Line of the Netherlands. Hence, the reasons for the American Revolution, the War of 1812, the Civil War, WWI and WWII, etc., may have been related to royal claims or royal politics in England, Europe and America by different royal families.
KING JAMES BIBLE TRANSLATION CLUES
Many of Shakespeare's Sonnets are similar to the parables of Jesus Christ, and are intended to make people think. So, Shakespeare may have translated Psalms for the King James Bible group, who worked at the Varina Monastery in Virginia between 1596 and 1605.
To find Shakespeare's hidden name in Psalms 46, count 46 words from the beginning and 46 words, backwards, from the first period. "Selah" was added later, which may have been a secret nick-name of Queen Elizabeth I, or William Cecil, and was intentionally inserted to let her know that Shakespeare was still alive, somewhere, after 1600. However, Elizabeth I died in 1603, prior to the printing of the King James Bible. William "the silent" is known to have translated the Chronicles of Ovid, at age 46, while Sir Francis Drake was circumnavigating the world.
Edward de Vere was also known for editing the Pilgrim's version of the Bible in English. And, the first edition of the King James Bible was printed in about 1605, say experts.
THE ARMISTEAD COAT OF ARMS CLUEThe gold armor on the knight shaking a broken spear may be an obvious clue to the above royal theory. But, it is difficult to find this Coat of Arms in color in books on Heraldry. The shield should be white with a red chevron, with three silver goblets filled with royal-blue grapes in a point (pointing upwards), and the ribbons should be royal blue and white. The motto on the gold ribbon should read: " Suivez La Raison", or "Follow the Reason".
The basic red, white and blue colors now appear on both the English and U. S. Flags. Gold armor (I'm told) only exists on Royal Coats of Arms. The House of Orange (pronounced Or-an-je) began on the Rhone River between Italy and France. Note: "Or" is the symbol for gold in descriptions of coats of arms.
If, the Armistead Coat of Arms was originated for "Will" of sonnet 135, then the date of issue should be about 1612, and may have been designed by King William "the silent", his father, or by Philip William Henry, his half-brother. And, all existing configurations of the Armistead Coat of Arms available over the Internet are incorrect. The true configuration of the Coat of Arms appears in some genealogy records about Lt. Col. George Armistead, who inspired Francis Scott Keys to write the words for our National Anthem at Fort McHenry (in 1812), and Gen. Lewis Addison Armistead, who led "Pickett's Charge" at the "Battle of Gettysburg" during the Civil War after donating a wagon (or two) of gold from the Mexican War to help finance the "Rebels of Virginia".
Gen. Lewis Addison Armistead was the only Confederate soldier to breach the wall at Gettysburg on horseback, and died of gunshot wounds about three days later. The South, of course, lost the battle and the Civil War. And, one wagon load of looted gold from the Mexican War may still be buried, somewhere, in Arizona near the Santa Fe Trail, say some.
MORE SHAKESPEARE CLUES FROM SONNETS
In the last several years, I have discovered many clues and typo-errors in Shakespeare's sonnets, which tell "Shakespeare's" life story with poetry, like a mystery. In the process, I have discovered several clues about the author's relationship with the "love of his life", the true identity of both, and the author's speaking problems after about 1582.
Shakespeare's sonnets were originally fumbled by his printer, Thomas Thorpe, with numerous typo-errors, or were intentionally altered to hide the lady of his affections. And, the first, 1609 edition seems to differ from the later editions of Shakespeare's Sonnets, and which was altered, years later. Yet, few scholars seem to read his sonnets very carefully, and many college professors make contorted excuses for Thorpe's old German-English spelling, transcription and grammar errors.
Therefore, hopefully, the following random clues, data and reasons may shine some new light on the existing Shakespeare Mystery, where several theories already exist. So, try to "Follow my Reasons" and my interpretations of Shakespeare's sonnets, twenty-one of which appear below.
To begin, let's hypothesize that "W.H." were the initials of King William I Henry, "the silent", of Orange, who claimed most of Virginia, explored America for 40 years, made frequent trips to London, and had supported the "Sea Beggars" or Pirates after he had been imprisoned by King Philip II of Spain. He was, also, the target of paid assassins on two different occasions, in 1582 and in 1584.
1) History claims that King William I "the silent" Henry of Orange was assassinated in 1584. Or, did he have more fun and freedom in London as "Sir Francis Drake", and married a younger, more beautiful woman in 1585 to taunt Queen Elizabeth I, who refused to marry him? And, Van Miereveld painted a portrait of William "the silent" in 1620, 35 years after history claims he was assassinated, which can be found in The World of Vermeer (Time-Life books, 1967, p. 28). Some experts claim Michhiel Janz.van Miereveld painted over 10,000 portraits, or about 1 per day for 30 years.
2) And, did William "the wise" Henry of Hesse-Kassel, his cousin, decide to retire to Virginia to escape Spanish assassins, too? Or, did he die at sea as Sir John Hawkins, a pirate?
SHAKESPEARE'S SONNET TYPO-ERRORS
All typesetting was done by hand in 1609 and errors were common. (Example: The Bible.) Therefore, the keys for correcting any of Shakespeare's sonnets are rhythm and rhyme, and lisping speech. So, try correcting any one of his sonnets that you can't read and understand, since many are like badly solved cross-word puzzles, where one wrong letter in a word can mislead and confuse any proof-reader, who doesn't think, logically. The word, "Its" should replace "his" in most sonnets and should reduce all previous theories about Shakespeare being a homosexual or bisexual. (See any Oxford Dictionary about the usage of "his" and "its" after 1600.)
However, any official, final interpretations of his sonnets should be approved by numerous Oxford or Rhodes Scholars.
SONNET 1 PROBLEM and CLUES
Shakespeare's Sonnet 1 is difficult to understand, may miss one rhyme (die), and has no continuity. Therefore, my interpretation, "Intelligent Breeding", compensates for phonetic dictation and typo-errors, and assumes that this sonnet was written to Queen Elizabeth I, who was a virgin, or to a sister, Elizabeth, of William "the silent". My suggested corrections to suspected typo-errors are in bold italics or are enclosed in brackets.
Shakespeare's Sonnet 1...........................................Intelligent Breeding
From fairest creatures we desire increase,..........Some fairest creatures we sire to increase,
That thereby beauty's rose might never die,..........That nearby beauty's rose might never see[:]
But as the riper should by time decease,...........So as they ripen [,] should by time decease,
His tender heir might bear his memory:..............Their tender heir might bear their memory:
But thou contracted to thine own bright eyes,........But thou contracted to thine own bright eyes,
Feed'st thy light's flame with self-substantial fuel,...Feed'st thy life's flame with self-sustaining fuel,
Making a famine where abundance lies,.................Making a famine where abundance lies,
Thy self thy foe, to thy sweet self too cruel:........Thy self thy foe, to thy sweet self too cruel:
Thou that art now the world's fresh ornament,.......Thou that art now the world's fresh ornament,
And only herald to the gaudy spring,.....................And only herald to the gaudy spring[.]
Within thine own bud buriest thy content,..............Within thine own bud buriest thy content,
And, tender churl, mak'st waste in niggarding:........And, tender churl, mak'st waste in niggarding:
Pithy the world, or else this glutton be,.................Pithy the world, or else disgruntled be,
To eat the world's due, by the grave and thee.......To meet the world's few, with thy gravity.
Original Sonnet by: William Shakespeare.................Poetic Interpretation by: James H. Armistead
Copyright ©2005 by James H. Armistead
Sonnet 001 notes:
Line 1: The word "Some" fits better than "From", if discussing reproduction or breeding.
Line 1: The word "sire" fits the lecture better than "desire" and "to" corrects the grammar.
Line 2: The word "see" rhymes better with line 4, like Sonnet 9, where "die" rhymes with "sky" or Sonnet 11, where "die" rhymes with "thereby".
Line 3: "Bess" may have appeared in the original, since his sonnets were to a specific person.
Line 3: "riper" is a typo-error and should be "ripen" and "the" should be corrected with "they". "So" connects the thoughts together better.
Line 4: "his" or "its" refers to the word "sire" in line 1; but, "their" might fit better than "his" or "its", since he making a general statement.
Line 6: Both of the spelling or typesetting errors should be obvious to most people.
Line 10: The verb "could" or "might" could replace the word "and", optionally.
Line 13: "Disgruntled" sounds like "this glutton", and fits the logic of this sonnet, better.
Line 14: "To meet the world's few, with thy gravity" fits better and completes the lecture to Elizabeth "the churl" or a selfish, morose beauty (previously raped by Shakespeare?). (See: Sonnet 20.)
SONNET 116 ERRORS AND CLUES
This sonnet is so full of errors, it is unbelievable that it is considered to be Shakespeare's greatest and best "Love Sonnet". Even in High School, as a "C" English student, I noticed some of the errors and almost failed English, since I argued with my Shakespeare loving teacher.
Shakespeare's Sonnet 116............................................True Love
Let me not to the marriage of true minds--.....................Let thee knot to the marriage of two minds
Admit impediments. Love is not love--............................Amidst impediments. Love is not lace
Which alters when it alteration finds,.............................Which alters when its alteration binds,
Or bends with the remover to remove:............................Or bends with the remover to replace.
O, no! it is an ever-fixed mark,--.....................................O, no, it is an ever lasting mark,
That looks on tempests and is never shaken;--...................That looks on tempests and is never shaken;
It is the star to every wandering bark,--............................It is the star to every wand'ring bark,
Whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken--........Whose worth's unknown, although its height be taken.
Love's not Time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks...............Love's not Time's fool, 'though rosy lips and cheeks
Within his bending sickle's compass come;--........................Within its bending sickle come and bloom;
Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,--...................Love alters not with its brief hours and weeks,
But bears it out even to the edge of doom.--........................But bears it out [,] even to the edge of doom.
If this be error and upon me proved,--.................................If this be error and upon me proved,
I never writ, nor no man ever loved.--.................................I never wept, nor no man ever wooed.
By: William Shakespeare....................................... ..............Poetic Interpretation by: James H. Armistead
Copyright ©2005 by James H. Armistead
Sonnet 116 notes:
Line 1: "True minds" is a stupid statement. "Not" should be a "knot", if married.
Line 2: "Love" is NOT many things, but is always "love"; so, "lace" fits best.
Line 3: "His" was used as an impersonal pronoun in the 1500's and should be changed to "its" in several places for modern English.
Line 3: "Binds" rhymes with "minds" and makes better logic than "finds".
Line 4: "replace" is needed to rhyme with "lace".
Line 10; "bloom" is needed to rhyme with doom, not come.
Line 14: Love causes weeping, "writ" was incorrect even in 1570, and "wooed" was the key word that rhymes with "proved".
And, if you haven't noticed many software system characters are incompatible, like some marriages. So, why don't students demand a divorce or a better marriage of software systems, to the King's software?
If this is scrambled without carriage returns and line feeds, then blame programmers, who use to work for Teletype!
(TO BE CONTINUED, maybe)
Reply With Quote
Armistead-Shakespeare Theory (Rev. 122)
Bookmarks