1758


 * 1758**

//King George II//

During the year 1758, King George II succeeded his father, King George I, from the House of Hanover.

April 15 - Samuel Johnson, author of //A Dictionary of the English Language//, begins publishing the series of essays //The Idler//, a series of 103 essays, published in the //Universal Chronicle//, which was arguably created just for sole purpose of Johnson’s essays. These essays gave insight into the lives of citizens and criticized or critiqued society and norms of the time.

April 21 - Thomas Secker, renown for his riveting lectures on the Church of England, was enthroned as Archbishop of Canterbury, who is the senior bishop and principal figure of the Church of England.

April 24 - Robert Dodsley, one of the foremost publishers of his day, and his brother, James, sign a contract with Edmund Burke, an Irish statesmen renown for his support of the American Revolutionaries and opposition to the French Revolution, to launch //The Annual Register//. //The Annual Register// was a reference work that recorded and analyzed major events and developments of the year, essentially providing us with a huge history of England.

April 29 - Seven Years' War: B attle of Cuddalore -- A British fleet under George Pocock engages the French fleet of Anne Antoine d'Aché off the Carnatic coast of India. The results were indecisive.

June 23 - Seven Years' War: Battle of Krefeld -- Hanoverian forces, comprised of Brits, Hanoverians, and Prussians, under Ferdinand of Brunswick, brother of the Duke of Brunswick, defeat French forces. This battle was located in Rhine-Westphalia

July 8 - French and Indian War: Battle of Carillon, also known as the Battle of Ticonderoga -- French forces held Fort Carillon against the British at Ticonderoga, New York. In the battle, a French army of about 4,000 men under General Louis-Joseph de Montcalm and the Chevalier de Levis decisively defeated an overwhelmingly numerically superior force of British troops under General James Abercrombie, which frontally assaulted an entrenched French position without using field artillery. The battle was the bloodiest of the war, with over 3,000 casualties suffered, of which over 2,000 were British.

August 3 - Seven Years' War: At the Battle of Negapatam off the Carnatic coast of India, Admiral Pocock again engages d'Aché's French fleet. The outcome of this battle, too, was indecisive

14 September - French and Indian War: At the Battle of Fort Duquesne, a British attack on Fort Duquesne is defeated.

27 October - The ship, //Dublin Trader//, leaves Parkgate, Cheshire, for Dublin, and founders in the Irish Sea. She carries 70,000 Irish pounds in money and £80,000 in goods, while among the 60 passengers lost are Edward, fifth Earl of Drogheda, Theophilus Cibber, the actor, and the Irish mezzotint engraver Michael Ford.

25 November - French and Indian War: French forces abandon Fort Duquesne to the British who then name the area Pittsburgh.

Summary of the T heatre Season:

A painting of Haymarket, circa 1760

The 1758 Theatre Season consisted of two separate seasons: 1757, and 1758. It began in September of 1757 until August of 1758, thus prompting Theatre Season 1758, whic h led into August of 1579. During this Season, it was noted that no riots broke out, despite a slightly agitated audience. Indeed, this was so highly carried out that the manager of Drury Lane’s estimated box receipts indicates a loyal audience, Drury Lane’s estimated ticket sales being £30,058, for 181 performances.

In the beginning of the 1757 Season, Drury Lane’s interior was redesigned, thus launching a spectacular, lavish theatre season. John Home’s tragedy //Agis//, was performed at Drury lane in February 1758, with a record ten performances. Additionally, Murphy’s //The Upholsterer// was put onto the stage on March 30 and the anonymous //No Matter//// What // was put onto the stage on April 25. The Drury Lane Company consisted of 81 performers: 62 actors and actresses, 11 dancers, four singers, and four specialist musicians.

Similarly, Covent Garden gave169 performances over the course of the 1757 Season with a company of 84: 56 actors and actresses, 22 dancers, and 6 singers. Covent Gardens produced 86 different plays, including two new afterpieces; //The Anniversary//, an anonymous sequel to //Lethe,// and //Madrigal and Truletta,// by Joseph Reed.

The Little Theatre in Haymarket, the Fairs, and Marylebone Gardens (during the summer) were active, producing medley concerts, faragoglios, and plays performed in Haymarket. Booths were put up along the Sothwark Fair, where Signora Seratina and Reinhold entertained with 73 minor performances. Overwhelmingly, the 1757 Season was bustling with activity.

The following Season maintained the active pace and income of the 1757, with high profit margins and no rioting. During January 22-29, the theatres were closed for a week in order to mourn the death of the Princess Royal of England, Countess Dowager of Holland and Governante of the United Provinces and the Ministry of the Stadholder. What is most notable about this seas was the increased number of performances by child actors and the increased employment of child actors.

Society began to accept public reviews of performances in //The London Chronicle// and //Public Advertiser//, as well as //The Gentleman’s Magazine//. This season saw a number of Shakespeare revivals, like // Anthony and Cleopatra // on January 3. What we see though is that play-goers wanted original works, with Shakespeare’s play receiving negative reviews from the press.

The News: //Lloyd’s Evening Post// //and British Chronicle// began in 1757 by printer James Emonson. It was named after Lloyd’s Coffee House in London, where letters to the editor and advertisements were received. It was published three evenings a week, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, in an effort to provide their consumers with news a day earlier than other papers, which tended to publish on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Unlike other newspapers of the time, //Lloyd’s Evening Post// did not provide book reviews, but provided excerpts of books.

It was an eight-page folio, with a section dedicated to foreign affairs, country news, port news, a lottery section and its poems, short stories, and excerpts from magazines. Indeed, throughout the year, the foreign affairs section had a number of articles referring to the wars occurring throughout the year, like the Prussian tensions with its neighbors, as well as location of troops in Hamburg, Copenhagen, and Berlin. In April, //Lloyd’s Evening Post and British Chronicle// followed up on the political negotiations taking place in The Hague.

Its country news and port news, sections were dedicated mainly to national affairs, with updates on cargo, industry, and other valuable information for gentlemen invested in industry and agriculture. Additionally, once a week, lotteries were printed for the gambling people of London as well as an editorial, similar to an opinion piece of today. Regarding the book excerpts, some notable works are the //Aenied//, //The Odyssey//, and short articles from //The Gentleman’s Magazine//.

//The Beggar's Opera// William Hogarth, A Scene from the Beggar's Opera

In this ballad opera, Peachum, a thief-catcher, discovers that his daughter, Polly, has married famous highwayman, Macheath. After discussing with his wife, Mrs. Peachum, the couple decides that will condone the marriage so long as Macheath can be killed in order to get to his money and plot to kill him. Meanwhile, Macheath goes to a tavern in order to hid from his parents-in-law and discovers, too late, that two women have been contracted by Peachum to capture him. He ends up at Newgate Prison, where he discovers Lockit is the jailer. Macheath had promised to marry Lucy Lockit, the daughter of the jailer, but failed to do so. After much convincing, Lucy agrees to free Macheath, only for Polly to come to the jail and claim him as her husband. Lucy frees Macheath, but Lockit, under the impression that Macheath would marry Lucy, becomes concerned that if Macheath dies, Peachum will be in charge of Macheath’s fortune. Polly meets Lucy and attempts to come to an agreement, except Lucy tries to poison Polly. Both women agree to find Macheath and convince their fathers to let him go. More drama ensues for Macheath as four pregnant women claim him as the father of their children. Eventually, Macheath declares he is ready to be hanged, but he is reprieved and everyone celebrates his marriage to Polly.

Works Cited: "1758 in Great Britain." //Wikipedia//. Wikimedia Foundation, 04 Mar. 2014. Web. 21 Apr. 2014. Avery, Emmett L. "1757 Theatre Season." //The London Stage//. Carbondale, IL: Southern Illinois Univ. Pr., 1968. N. pag. Print. Avery, Emmett L. "1758 Theatre Season." //The London Stage//. Carbondale, IL: Southern Illinois Univ. Pr., 1968. N. pag. Print. Gay, John, Edgar V. Roberts, Edward Smith, and John Christopher Pepusch. //The Beggar's Opera//. Lincoln: U of Nebraska, 1969. Print. // Lloyd's Evening Post, and British Chronicle // [London]. 1758, Vol. II ed.: n. pag. //17th-18th Century Burney Collection Newspaper//. Web.