Course: Penshurst Place and the Sidney Family of Writers

It has been a pleasure to read your responses to this week’s work after another exhausting two weeks of online teaching at Lancaster. Victoria attached a link to one of …

This, probably the most familiar psalm, was popular in the early modern period too as an expression of confidence in God’s infinite love. The image of a caring God is …

In this step we will explore Lady Mary Wroth’s sonnet ‘In this strange labyrinth how shall I turn?’ by reading its turns and twists. Print out and read through Lady …

Sir Henry Sidney, the father of the first generation of Sidney writers, died in 1586. In this step we will examine the sermon preached at his funeral in Penshurst Church …

‘To the Angel Spirit’ is Mary Sidney Herbert’s dedicatory poem to her brother, Sir Philip Sidney, written when she had completed their translation of the Psalms of David. After Sir …

Watch this interview with actress Charlie Mulliner who played the role of Venus in the 2018 production of Love’s Victory at Penshurst Place. How does the role link to Lady …

This week we will study how the men and women of the Sidney family made different kinds of theatre from those which took place in the London playhouses of Shakespeare …

In this interview, Professor Marion Wynne-Davie discusses the use of household spaces for women’s drama, the banqueting house at Nonesuch for Lumley’s “Iphigenia,” (1557) and the Sidney-Herbert country houses from …

This step introduces Jonson’s poem in an interview with Professor Richard Dutton. Listen to Richard speaking and then read the poem which you will find in the downloads section below, …

Sonnets were handwritten and circulated in manuscript between intimates at the court, as critic Patricia Fumerton has argued, so the writing of a sonnet was a physical as well as …

Watch this video Introduction by Philip Sidney to his family home, Penshurst Place. Then post a comment on your impressions of the house and its meaning to the family. Tag …

Listen to the poem read by Richard Dutton and watch images of Penshurst place today. (The video transcript does not set out the poem in lines so, if you wish …

In this step we will learn about Sir Henry Sidney and Mary Dudley Sidney, the parents of the Sidney writers, and their eldest son, Sir Philip Sidney. Watch this video …

In this step we will learn about Philip’s sister, Mary Sidney Herbert, his brother, Robert Sidney, who became the owner of Penshurst Place, and their children who became the next …

In this step we will read Act 5 Scene 1 to find out how Musella and Philisses react when their love is threatened by an arranged marriage. As you read …