Kan Wang
996869946
M. Sergi
ENG331H1 S
Key words: Sheriffs’ Breakfast, Shooting, Black Monday, Common Hall, and
Calves Heads & Bacon
Legends: li – pounds, s – shillings, d – pence
Abstract: The Sheriffs’ Breakfast is an ancient tradition in
Chester. Since there are few records in the REED relating to the Sheriff’s
Breakfast, it is hard to tell with certainty if the event continues to exist
today. The very first record is found in 1511-12 and there are no records after
1640. Though men call the event an ancient custom, it is only fully recorded
for roughly 140 years. Does the event disappear immediately after 1640, or are
the records destroyed as time passes?
The
city of Chester resides on the border between England and Wales, and often played
the dissenter to the central government in London during the Tudor Dynasty. Since
it is distant from the centralized influence of the capital, Chester was able
to produce many interesting but unorthodox plays and events. This paper focuses
on extant documents regarding the Sheriffs’ Breakfast play recorded between 1511
and 1640 in Records of Early English
Drama (REED). Although the first
record traces back to 1511, most of the relevant extant documentation was written
after 1608. In order to develop understanding of the event and performances
thereof, this paper will look at the play over a period of roughly 140 years. As
the records continue through time, information relating to the event becomes
clearer. Furthermore, by reading from the records over a span of time, I can
see that the procedures of the event changed. In this essay, I will focus on two
questions: what is the reason for length of time between the first record and
the second record, and why do these records stop as of 1640. Since the Sheriffs’
Breakfast is praised in the extant documentation, what is the reason for its
sudden disappearance?
The
Sheriffs’ Breakfast does not seem to relate with Early English Drama because it
is a civic ceremony. Then why is it recorded in the Reed? The geographical
location of Chester requires law enforcement to protect the city from the
frequent Welsh attacks. By having a civic ceremony that practices the shooting
skills of men, the event serves as both entertainment and training for the
performers in military action. As men from different guilds came together to conduct
plays, they could also be required to practice their aim in archery, thereby
performing two acts simultaneously. The food, on the other hand, is a prop that
commonly appears in plays, and the food used in the Sheriff’s Breakfast represents
an affordable example of a third function that the play held (see table 1).
The first
record of the Sheriff’s Breakfast appears in 1511-12; this list was compiled by
the mayor, Thomas Smith. It is a short and general list that tells us the event
took place on the Black Monday, which is the Monday during the Easter Week. During
the event, men competed in shooting and then had breakfast. Aside from this
information, there is no mentioning of the location or price for the breakfast.
The next record follows eighty-eight years later, by a mayor named Henry
Hardward who repeats the first record (REED Chester, 198). In these first two
entries, a common phrase is particularly interesting: “the shooeting on black
munday upon the Roodee in Easter Week for a breakfast, by the sherriffes of
this city called Calves head & Bacon” (REED Chester, 23). I wonder if the
city or the breakfast is called Calves head & Bacon.
When I look at
these two early records, it is understandable to imagine the Sheriff’s
Breakfast as a yearly gathering that went relatively unchanged for nearly a
century. Because of the inexpensive costs for the production, it is possible
that there was less necessity for detailed accounting of the event. The next
four records, however, gradually provide more information about the Sheriffs’
Breakfast. By this time, the mystery of “Calves heads and Bacon” is resolved as
it becomes clearly stated as the breakfast. These four records are
comparatively particular and complete in comparison with the first two records,
and these four records display differences between the performances. This
proves my point that the customs and procedures have altered through time. The
chart below notes the differences between these four events (REED Chester, 253,
322, 352, 434):
Table 1
|
|
1608-9
|
1618-9
|
1622-3
|
1636-7
|
|
Formations
|
Men vs. Sheriffs
|
Equal numbers on both sides
|
Two sheriffs, one on each side with men
|
Two sheriffs, one on each side with men
|
|
Price for food
|
Winners pay ii d.
Losers pay iv d.
|
Winners pay ii d.
Losers pay iv d.
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
|
How to win
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
Three shots determiner
|
Three shots determiner
|
From this
data, we can see the formations of the event varied significantly over time. The
recorders believed that the event has long been the same, noting that “There
is, an anchant, Custome, in this cittie of Chester in the memory of man” (REED
Chester, 434). The notion of the origins of the event would assumingly have
been by word of mouth, as the first record does not provide specific detail and
it continued in this way for some eighty-eight years. It is certain to say that
they interpret from the original record and add or take out any procedures they
see fit; then take them as the original procedures of the event. Though the
records are changed by Cestrians, it is also made under the influence of London.
The
pressure from London may be a factor why the first two records were recorded
with a large gap between them. James I of England became King in 1603, ending the
Tudor Dynasty. In 1608, the records regarding the Sheriffs’ Breakfast begin to
flourish. This could possibly indicate that during most of the Tudor Dynasty,
this event was suppressed. The practice of shooting could have been viewed as a
military threat to the central government in London. For this reason, the crown
may have ordered Chester to end the event. Without any records, there is no
proof to persecute the city for disobeying the royal decree. Though looking at
the later records, Chester not only continues with the event, it flourishes.
Mayor Robert
Harvey writes down the last extant record in 1639-40. In this list, the
descriptions are general again. The breakfast is now only for the city
officials and the winners. The location changed from the Common Hall to a tavern.
The price for food is also increased, totaling 13 li. 6 s. and 8 d (REED
Chester, 451). These changes all combine to suggest that a committee, possibly
organized by the city officials, organized the event. As a result, more
regulations and restrictions would apply to join in the performance. Since
people would find it harder to participate in the event and the losers were no
longer accommodated with meals, we can imagine the possibility of a public’s
general loss of interest in the event. The added regulations and alterations to
the shooting game itself could explain why there was a sudden drop of the event
after 1640.
Though
the Sheriffs’ Breakfast is a civic ceremony, it was very influential on Early
English Drama. The food and the setting of the breakfast on long tables are
often borrowed into drama. The breakfast, calves-heads and bacon, only costs ii
to iv d.; which are favoured by the guild that is responsible for the foods in
a play because they are cheap yet filling. A play similar to Fulgens and Lucres, with a party that
has a long table full of foods, can be influenced by such an event. Since the
meats are cheap to buy, the guilds can make the table look deluxe and the
actors are able to have a good meal.
There
are little records on the Sheriffs’ Breakfast, but it seems very well received
by the people of Chester. Though the procedures are not as original as
Cestrians claim to be, they are added to make the game and event interesting.
At the end of the records, people always write “the event deserues not only
continuance but also greate commendation” (REED Chester, 322), to remind that
there can be pressure from London and the Church. It is unknown if the
Sheriffs’ Breakfast exists after 1640, but it is certain that due to the loss
of interests, and pressure from the central government, this event is not as
popular as before.
Citation:
Clopper, Lawrence M.. Records of
Early English Dreama – Chester. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1979.
Print
Fitzgerald, Christina M., and John T. Sebastian. The Broadview Anthology of Medieval Drama. Toronto: Broadview
Press, 2013. Print
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