The General (Roger Boyle, Earl of Orrery)

3 Annotations

First Reading

Terry F  •  Link

"The Generall" by the Earl of Orrery (was Lord Broghill), first performed in London 28 September, 1664 (written 1661 staged in Dublin as "Altemira" in 1662).

Reviews argue this was a play by the sometime Cromwellian Orrery by which he affirmed loyalty to Charles II by depicting the priority of male bonding over female love interests, criticizing usurpation and regicide.

See http://www.enotes.com/literary-cr…
and http://books.google.com/books?id=…

Cum grano salis  •  Link

the play ran for 5 nights failing to be accepted unlike Henry fifth, that was well received a few days earlier which ran for ten nights.
Roger Boyle, 1st Earl of Orrery

Roger Boyle, 1st Earl of Orrery (April 25, 1621 - 1679), British soldier, statesman and dramatist, 3rd surviving son of Richard Boyle, 1st Earl of Cork, was created baron of Broghill on February 28, 1627.

He educated at Trinity College, Dublin, and, according to Wood,

the orrery, an astronomical instrument--consisting of an apparatus which illustrates the motions of the solar system by means of the revolution of balls moved by wheel-work--invented, or at least constructed, by Graham, was named after the earl, also at Oxford.
..................
In addition to Lord Orrery's achievements as a statesman and administrator, he gained some reputation as a writer and a dramatist. He was the author of:

* An Answer to a Scandalous Letter ... A Full Discovery of the Treachery of the Irish Rebels (1662), printed with the letter itself in his State Letters (1742)
* another answer to the same letter entitled Irish Colors Displayed ... being also ascribed to him
* Parlhenissa, a novel (1654)
* English-Adventures by a Person of Honor (1676), whence Otway drew his tragedy of the Orphan
* Treatise of the Art of War (1677), a work of considerable historical value

There are some poems, of little interest, including verses:

* On His Majesty's Happy Restoration (unprinted)
* On the Death of Abraham Cowley (1677)
* The Dream (unprinted)
* Poems on most of the Festivals of the Church (1681)

Plays in verse, of some literary but less dramatic merit:

* Henry V (1664), tragedy
* Mustapha (1665), tragedy
* Tryphon (acted 1668), tragedy
* The Black Prince (1669), tragedy
* Herod the Great (published 1694), tragedy
* Altemira (1702), tragedy
* Guzman (1669), comedy
* Mr Anthony, comedy

A collected edition was published in 1737, to which was added the comedy As you find it.

The General is also attributed to him.

http://www.irelandinformationguid…

see this on page

Roger Boyle, 1st Earl of Orrery
\http://books.google.com/books?id=DPB1kAfLGiEC&pg=PA36&lpg=PA36&dq=general+roger+boyle+earl+of+orrery&source=web&ots=p6ji6Cgdkl&sig=Ovzf62glCg8HEI2r0c2t-3gj5hY

see this on page 37.

Paul Chapin  •  Link

Actually, the orrery (the astronomical instrument) was named for Roger Boyle's grandson Charles, the 4th Earl of Orrery.

Wikipedia:
The first modern orrery was built circa 1704 by George Graham. Graham gave the first model (or its design) to the celebrated instrument maker John Rowley of London to make a copy for Prince Eugene of Savoy. Rowley was commissioned to make another copy for his patron Charles Boyle, 4th Earl of Orrery, from which the device took its name.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orre…

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References

Chart showing the number of references in each month of the diary’s entries.

1664

1669