John Fletcher (1) (1579–1625)

The cataloguing in many places (even in reputable libraries) of works by the Jacobean playwrights Francis Beaumont (1584–1616) and John Fletcher (1579–1625) and their various collaborators tends to be confusing. Works by Fletcher alone can be found catalogued under Beaumont or under Beaumont & Fletcher; works by Beaumont alone can be found catalogued under Fletcher or under Beaumont & Fletcher; collaborations by Beaumont & Fletcher can be found catalogued under Fletcher alone or under Beaumont alone; collaborations by Fletcher and Massinger can be found catalogued under Fletcher alone or under Beaumont & Fletcher; and some works are catalogued correctly! Collected and selected editions usually include a mix. (These confusions occurred even in the 17th century.) Here’s a breakdown: it’s a lot, but all of these are present in single play volumes or in Beaumont & Fletcher collections listed on LT.

Works by Beaumont alone: The Knight of the Burning Pestle; Salmacis & Hermaphroditus; Masque of the Inner Temple.

Works by Fletcher alone: The Faithful Shepherdess; Bonduca; Valentinian; The Woman’s Prize, or, The Tamer Tamed; Monsieur Thomas; The Island Princess; The Loyal Subject; The Mad Lover; The Pilgrim; A Wife for a Month; Rule a Wife & Have a Wife; The Chances; The Wild-Goose Chase; Women Pleased; Wit without Money; The Humourous Lieutenant, or, Demetrius & Enanthe.

Works by Beaumont & Fletcher together: The Maid’s Tragedy; Philaster, or, Love Lies A-Bleeding; A King & No King; Cupid’s Revenge; The Scornful Lady; The Coxcomb; The Woman Hater; The Captain; Love’s Pilgrimage; The Noble Gentleman

Works by Beaumont & Fletcher and Philip Massinger: Thierry & Theodoret; Beggars Bush; Love’s Cure.

Works by Fletcher and Massinger: Barnavelt; The Custom of the Country; The Double Marriage; The Elder Brother; The False One; The Little French Lawyer; The Lovers’ Progress; The Prophetess; The Sea Voyage; The Spanish Curate; A Very Woman.

Works by Fletcher and various collaborators: The Fair Maid of the Inn (with Massinger, John Webster & John Ford); Henry VIII (with Shakespeare); The Two Noble Kinsmen (with Shakespeare); Four Plays in One (with Nathan Field); The Queen of Corinth (with Massinger & Field); The Knight of Malta (with Massinger & Field); The Honest Man’s Fortune (with Massinger & Field & Cyril Tourneur); The Maid in the Mill (with William Rowley); The Night Walker (revised by James Shirley); Rollo Duke of Normandy, or, The Bloody Brother (with Massinger & ?Jonson, ?Chapman, ?Field)

Works printed with the Beaumont & Fletcher canon but which are by other authors altogether: The Nice Valour by Thomas Middleton; Wit at Several Weapons by Middleton & Rowley; The Laws of Candy by John Ford.