The Historical Register For The Year 1736

The Historical Register for the Year 1736 is a 1737 play by Henry Fielding published by William W. Appleton. A denunciation of contemporary society and politics, it was presented for the first time in April 1737.

In satirizing contemporary politicians, "good" society and the more influential figures of the London theatre of the time, The Historical Register for the year 1736 is responsible, in more than one way, for his having been censored from the stage.

The play gives a critical survey of English manners and morals, it exposes the corruption of political life and the false values of the beau monde. It also satirizes some influential figures of the London theatre of its time.

It was owing to such satires that Prime Minister Robert Walpole's government in 1737 introduced a Licensing Act for the theatre, which put drama under the direct control of the Lord Chamberlain (a law which was not changed until 1968). This censorship has been blamed for the decline of drama in the 18th century. It also brought Fielding's career in the theatre to an end.

Read more about The Historical Register For The Year 1736:  Plot Summary, Impact

Famous quotes containing the words historical, register and/or year:

    What are your historical Facts; still more your biographical? Wilt thou know a Man ... by stringing-together beadrolls of what thou namest Facts?
    Thomas Carlyle (1795–1881)

    Never to walk from the station’s lamps and laurels
    Carrying my father’s lean old leather case
    Crumbling like the register at the hotel....
    Philip Larkin (1922–1986)

    It’s enough for you to do it once for a few men to remember you. But if you do it year after year, then many people remember you and they tell it to their children, and their children and grandchildren remember and, if it concerns books, they can read them. And if it’s good enough, it will last as long as there are human beings.
    Ernest Hemingway (1899–1961)