Lamilia's Fable

This fable shows how Sidney anagrams seal the origin of Shakespeare via Fox, Gray, Ewe, and Bellwether.

This fable is told by Lamilia in Greene’s Groats-Worth of Wit. A “perpetual league” is set up by fox, gray, ewe, and bellwether. Soon they are hunted by whelp, shepherds, and dogs. Their corresponding identities in the real world can be resolved by Sidney anagrams, which will reveal the origin of Shakespeare from Robert Greene’s view.

Mar-prelate Controversy

In 1588, some puritans attacked the Church of England with pamphlets under the code name Martin Marprelate. Authorities fought back by privately hired poets as anti-Martinists. After the end of Marprelate controversy in 1589, the anti-Martinist Robert Greene (badger) was no longer needed and deserted. Earl of Oxford (fox) visited him for a new project. They persuaded Mary Sidney (ewe) and her husband Henry Herbert (bellwether) to form a “perpetual league.”

This origin of Shakespeare is from Robert Greene’s view. Later The Birth of Merlin tells the birth and settlement of Shakespeare from Wilton House’s view.

Lamilia’s fable answers the question why Wilton House will use a front man William Shakespeare (as a Sparrowhawk). The man can protect members of the perpetual league from possible Catholic’s revenge in the future like Mary Tudor _(1516–58). Plays and poems of Shakespeare first appeared around 1590, and Queen Elizabeth was 57 then and heirless. Her successor was uncertain. The event of Christopher Marlowe’s blasphemy charge in 1593, and Ben Jonson’s short imprisonment for The Isle of Dogs in 1597, both show that a firewall is needed to protect poets and their patrons.

List of Animals

Key to solve this fable is the Ewe and Bell wether: “a wanton Ewe straggling from the fould . . . this ewe is lady of all these lands and her brother chief bellwether of sundry flocks.”

Animal	Reflecting
fox	Earl of Oxford
gray & badger	Robert Greene
ewe	Mary Sidney
bellwether	Henry Herbert
whelp	Thomas Walsingham
shepherds	authorities
dogs	censors
badgers	Wilton House poets

Translation

After the Marprelate controversy, Earl of Oxford (fox) came for poets to discredit the Catholic that threatened England. Oxford found Robert Greene (badger) and told him to seek a new master. Mary Sidney (ewe) and her husband Henry Herbert (bellwether) were persuaded. They set up a perpetual league under Wilton House. Oxford exhorted Mary Sidney to speak out. Thomas Walsingham (whelp) spied that and the authorities (shepherds) disciplined them. Oxford escaped. Greene was silenced. Mary Sidney was spared. A mortal enmity between Wilton House poets (badgers) and censors (dogs) continued since then.

The Fable

The Fox on a time came to visit the Gray, partly for kindred, chiefly for craft, and finding the hole empty of all other company, saving only one Badger enquiring the cause of his solitariness: he described the sudden death of his dam and sire with the rest of his consorts.

The Fox made a Friday face, counterfeiting sorrow: but concluding that death’s stroke was inevitable persuaded him to seek some fit mate wherewith to match. The badger soon agreed, so forth they went, and in their way met with a wanton Ewe straggling from the fould: the Fox bade the Badger play the tall stripling, and strut on his tiptoes: “for” (quoth he) “this ewe is lady of all these lands and her brother chief bellwether of sundry flocks.”

To be short, by the Fox’s persuasion there would be a perpetual league, between her harmless kindred and all other devouring beasts, for that the Badger was to them all allied: seduced she yielded: and the Fox conducted them to the Badger’s habitation. Where drawing her aside under colour of exhortation, pulled out her throat to satisfy his greedy thirst.

Here I should note, a young whelp that viewed their walk, informed the shepherds of what happened. They followed, and trained the Fox and Badger to the hole: the Fox afore had craftily conveyed himself away: the shepherds found the Badger raving for the ewe’s murder: his lamentation being held for counterfeit, was by the shepherds’ dog worried. The Fox escaped: the Ewe was spoiled: and ever since, between the Badgers and the dogs hath continued a mortal enmity.

Notes

*Fox . . . partly for kindred: This line can spell Earl of Oxford, suggesting the identity of the Fox. *partly for: a hint that the word Fox is “partly” taken from Earl of Oxford, and “for” from Oxford as shown in the diagram. Oxford’s name Edward de Vere appears in later lines.

*the Gray: Badger was called gray or grey in the 16th century. The word “Gray” appears only once in this fable, and is replaced by badger. Gray has the usage of gloomy, dim, or between black and white. The Gray may reflect a group of gloomy persons, or anti-Martinists when combining “all other company” and Badgers in later lines.

*chiefly for craft: This line can spell the Catholic. Craft has the usage of a deceiving art. Earl of Oxford came chiefly to seek gloomy poets (the Gray) to play craft against the Catholic, unlike the Marprelates who attacked the authorities directly.

*all other company: This term can spell anti-Martin Marprelate. Other has the usage of anti-. The end of Marprelate controversy also ended the anti-Martinists. Marprelate can be a perfect anagram of mar-prelate; Martin of anti-Mr as anti-clergy-masters, hinted by “my masters of the clergy” in Marprelate pamphlets.

*one Badger enquiring the cause of his solitariness: The Badger’s state “solitariness” can spell Robert Greene, suggesting the identity of the Badger. Badger has the usage of a man with a badge, a middlemanm, or a nocturnal animal. Badger can be a both-way anagram of bad-edger, a poet inciting on the edge of censorship.

*sudden death: Death has the usage of disappearance. The authorities disappeared suddenly when anti-Martinists were not longer needed, and Robert Greene was then deserted.

*dam and sire: indicating the authorities that hired anti-Martinists. Greene might allude the Queen as the dam and Archbishop of Canterbury as the sire. Greene cursed them by playing “dam and sire” as a perfect anagram of a-damn’d-sire; sire has the usage of an important person or master.

*rest of his consorts: indicating rest of the anti-Martinists, such as Thomas Nashe, John Lyly, and others.

*Friday face: Friday face is a grave, gloomy expression. Friday fast is to restrain oneself from indulging, alcohol, and animal meat in Christian practice, which may result a Friday face.

*counterfeiting sorrow: faking sorrow on Friday penance, a mock at those with fake faith, also Earl of Oxford who betrayed the “perpetual league” at the end.

*match: Both “mate” and “match” appear in Roberto’s tale for a peasant and Marian, also Lamilia and Lucanio. It suggests a poet must check first his patron or patroness. Lucanio should check Lamilia; the peasant should check whether the maid on the bed is his bride or not.

*wanton Ewe straggling from the fould: This line can spell Mary Sidney Wilton House, suggesting the identity of the Ewe. Straggle has the usage of to wander or stray; fould is an obsolete form of fold, an enclosure for constraining animals, alluding to the poets being protected but also confined by Wilton House.

“Wanton” is close to Wilton by replacing -an- with -il-. Straggling has the usage of wanton, undisciplined, or arranging dispersedly. Ewe sounds like you. Lucanio can be a perfect anagram of you-clan. Lucanio reflects Wilton House poets, a clan supported by Mary Sidney.

*straggling from: This term can spell anagrammatism or anagram. Wilton House poets straggled away from the censorship via anagrams. Straggle has the usage of to scatter or disperse (letters), which is the method for composing anagrams. Pamphlets of Martin Marprelate were sharp and full of hatred. Wilton House poets used anagrams and riddles to smooth their words.

*Badger play the tall stripling, and strut on his tiptoes: Stripling has the usage of a young person or juvenile; strut of to flaunt, swagger or stand out. Stripling contains strip and can spell stripping; strip has the usage of to unclothe or remove covering.

The Badger stands tall to act as a human being as a hint, that Badger and “strut on” can spell Robert Greene; “and strut on his tiptoes” can spell Protestant. The moral is that Greene would stand out for the Protestant which was welcomed by the Herberts.

*her brother chief bellwether of sundry flocks: The term “bellwether of sundry” can spell Henry Herbert Wilton House, suggesting the identity of the bellwether. Bellwether is a sheep leading a flock with bell on its neck, alluding to Henry Herbert as the master of Wilton House. Bellwether is used here for it contains most letters in the anagram.

The ewe reflects Henry Herbert’s wife Mary Sidney. Brother has the usage of a companion of some trade or society; brother can spell Herbert, the reason to set the bellwether as ewe’s brother instead of her mate or father.

*Fox’s persuasion there would be: This line can spell Protestant Wilton House. The persuasion is to favor the Protestant. Both the Herbert and Sidney family supported the Protestant.

*perpetual league: indicating the circle of Wilton House poets. Shakespeare is set to be the code name of the perpetual league with William Shakespeare as its front man, whose function is like a firewall to protect Wilton House.

This perpetual league is named Mr. W. H. as personified Wilton House in Sonnets’ dedication. Initials of a name play an important role in Sidney anagram. Pyrocles and Musidorus in Pembroke’s Arcadia reflect Philip Sidney and Mary Sidney. The three names in Shakespeare’s funerary monument, Pylium, Socratem, and Maronem, can match Philip Sidney and Mary.

*between her harmless kindred and all other devouring beasts: Ewe’s or “her harmless kindred” can spell Mary Sidney, indicating members of the Herberts (Mary Sidney’s sons and daughters) not involved in the “perpetual league” between 1590 and 1592. The devouring beasts alludes to poets who actually wrote for Wilton House.

*Badger’s habitation: This term can spell Robert Greene, suggesting the identity of the Badger. Habitation has the usage of settlement.

*under colour of exhortation: This line can spell Earl of Oxford, suggesting the quality of Oxford. Colour has the usage of one’s particular quality or covering; exhortation of persuasion or inducement.

*pulled out her throat: Let Mary Sidney (the Ewe) speak out her mind, which caused attention and trouble.

*young whelp: Thomas Walsingham _(1561-1630) was related to the spy-master Francis Walsingham _(1532-90) and succeeded his job after his death in 1590, still young in the spy job when Greene’s pamphlet published in 1592. Philip Sidney married Francis Walsingham’s daughter Frances in 1583. Thomas Walsingham was a literary patron of several poets related to Wilton House, and the master of Ingram Frizer who killed Christopher Marlowe in 1593. Marlowe’s assumed fake death would need Walsingham to cover up and the Herbert family to sustain.

Thomas Walsingham’s name can be spelt from this line, but the needed words are far apart, unlike other Sidney anagrams. The term Whelp may be based on an anonymous ballad after the fall of Walsingham Abbey in 1538.

Weep Weep O Walsingham,

Whose days are nights,

Blessings turned to blasphemies,

Holy deeds to despites.

These lines can fit the failure of the Fox and Badger. Greene used whelp to weep Walsingham, who turned the poets’ “holy deeds to despites.”

*viewed their walk: Walk has the usage of the way to conduct oneself. This line can spell Edward de Vere, whose conduct is being viewed.

*informed the shepherds: Shepherds are rulers of domestic animals and enemies of beasts, alluding to the authorities. Inform has the usage of to impart information; “informed” suggests the whelp being a spy.

*trained the Fox and Badger to the hole: Train has the usage of to discipline, entice, or trace; hole of a restricted dark place. Edward de Vere and Robert Greene were traced and disciplined by the authorities.

*Fox craftily conveyed himself away: This line can spell Edward de Vere, Earl of Oxford, who deserted the “perpetual league.” This also shows in “Fox escaped” in later lines.

*ewe’s murder: The Ewe being murdered alludes that Mary Sidney was betrayed by Edward de Vere. Later she was spared in “Ewe was spoiled.”

*shepherds’ dog worried: Worry has the usage to tear with the teeth, to kill by compressing the throat, or to harass by hostile speech. The Badger (Robert Greene) worried by the dog (censor) alludes to Robert Greene’s state when he wrote this pamphlet.

*Fox escaped: Edward de Vere was one of the founders of Shakespeare project, but he quitted in early stage. For that he was mocked by Shakespeare in various places, e.g. Oliver the son of Rowland, A Lover’s Complaint, Shakespeare’s sonnet 99, the Devil in The Birth of Merlin, etc.

*Ewe was spoiled: Spoil has the usage of to pillage, take off arms, or rid of sins. Mary Sidney was deformed but spared by the authorities, most likely by Queen Elizabeth who approved her marriage, but did not expect Henry Herbert was infected with syphilis and passed the disease to his wife and children.

*the Badgers and the dogs: The Badgers allude to poets with an invisible badge of Wilton House. *dogs: government officers or censors, as dogs to shepherds.

*mortal enmity: Enmity between poets and censors, like badgers and dogs, will last endlessly. This was Greene’s assumption in 1592. Wilton House erected a Shakespeare statue in 1743 but still concealed the secret of the “perpetual league.”