The Noble Spanish Soldier

Part of the Globe Quartos series, co-published with Shakespeare's Globe marking their rediscoveries of forgotten plays by Shakespeare's contemporaries.

A revenge tragedy set in the Spanish court, Thomas Dekker's The Noble Spanish Soldier begins with the king rejecting his betrothed lover Onelia, with whom he has a son, and instead marrying the Italian princess Paulina. As the King becomes a tyrant, a faction of courtiers grows against him, led by the Duke of Medina, the Cardinal, and the eponymous noble soldier, Balthazar. Meanwhile, Queen Paulina and her evil henchman Malateste plot to kill Onelia and her son.

Filled with powerful dramatic moments of violence, pathos, satire and humour, The Noble Spanish Soldier is an under-performed and under-studied Renaissance play that deserves wider appreciation.

This edition of the play is edited by Zachary Lesser.