The Dating and Attribution of Alphonsus, Emperor of Germany

Abstract:Alphonsus, Emperor of Germany is usually considered to be an Elizabethan revenge tragedy, with 1594 often suggested as a likely date of composition; some scholars have attributed the play to George Peele. Martin Wiggins has, however, recently contested the traditional date in British Drama 1533–1642: A Catalogue, giving 1630 as his own ‘best guess’. This note questions the premises behind Wiggins’s decision while putting forward new arguments in support of the traditional dating on dramaturgical grounds — arguments that perhaps lend weight to the idea that Peele had a hand in the play.