William Kemp, noted Morris Dancer and Shakespeare's Fool.
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Origins of Morris dance:Three origin theories have been proffered:
Early history:The earliest recording (1466) is a Christmastime performance in Cornwall noted by the Arundell family, of whom sir John served in France with Henry VI. For the next 50 years most recorded performances were in London and Richmond on the Thames in processions for Trade Guilds or at the Royal Court. (If there were more rustic performances, these could well have gone unrecorded). Between 1500-1700, widely recorded throughout England, initially in towns rather than in villages. But after 1700, the predominant area of dance is the Cotswolds.Morris Dancing (and May poles, bear baiting, wrestling, church Ales etc) banned at several times by the Puritans and Presbyterians e.g. in 1614 by act of Parliament, and during and after Civil War (1642-1653). Reinstated each time by royalists. 1600-1900 included the transition from an agricultural to an industrial society with great technological change in agriculture, a large population increase, alternating periods of agricultural distress and plenty, all of which probably affected the maintenance or abandonment of the Morris. Morris dancing died out in most villages during the1800's. Whitsun Ales were stopped or reduced to one day by the local clergy and squires as they were too rowdy. (Perhaps they did not fit with Victorian and Industrial Age values and work ethic). The Dovers games were ended (by the local clergy), where dancers from various teams competed with each other. There was an increasing distance between the upper and middle classes and lower classes. The increased poverty in agricultural communities following the Napoleonic war and mechanization also contributed to reduced celebrations.
Where the Morris was danced:Cotswold Morris was danced in parts of Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire, Northamptonshire, Warwickshire, and Buckinghamshire, an area encompassed by a circle of 40 mile radius. Over 150 towns or villages in this region had a team at sometime between 1700-1900. (Other areas of England had distinct dance forms: Border Morris, Molly Dancing, Long Sword Dancing, Rapper Dancing, North West Clog, The Helston Furry Dance, The Abbots Bromley Horn Dance, etc.)A typical team:A team (in the 1800s) typically had 10 men: 6 dancers, 1 spare dancer, a fool, a collector (with cake and sword), and a musician. A few instances of all female teams also. Most dances for 6 men (3 on each side) or one man jigs. Dances for 3, 4, 8, or 12 men recorded, but rarely. Danced with handkerchiefs or sticks, though the latter appear to date from the mid 1700s onward.Dancers were usually manual workers, farm laborers, sometimes unemployed, and poor. (Think of the rustic characters from Hardy or Dickens) Morris dancing was an entertainment, street theatre, a cultural pursuit. For the men it was recreation, a chance to dress up and stand out from the crowd or for otherwise disadvantaged men to represent their village (at competitions), a source of free drink and food and money, or a holiday touring on foot for 1-2 weeks away from their homes. A seasonal celebration:Danced at a number of times during the year, but the most common time was Whitsuntide (a 1 week holiday 6 weeks after Easter), an agricultural holiday, a lull between sowing and the summer hay harvest when many festivals, physical sports etc were practiced, including from at least from the 1550s to 1830s the Whitsun Ale, a 1 week binge/festival/village-get-together funded by tradesmen and the local Lord, with chosen "officials" such as "Lady of the Ale", Fool, Squire, and, of course, Morris dancers.Source of information:Ribbons, Bells, and Squeaky Fiddles:The Social History of Morris Dancing in the English South Midlands 1600-1900 by Keith Chandler. Thanks to Mark Biggin, my teammate on Berkeley Morris for preparing this synopsis. Back to The Elizabethan World |
Last updated on 11/15/03