Further to recent posts about Britain’s Royal Family (A Right Royal Mess) and John Dryden (John Dryden: Literary Convert), I thought I’d post some additional comments, sent to me via e-mail, about Dryden and some royal converts in Dryden’s time:

I enjoyed reading your recent book The Quest for Shakespeare. After reading it, I wondered if Dryden might be seen as a bridge between the older Recusant period and the newer Enlightenment and Modern periods. He, as you know, had strong classical interest, but I understand was innovative and modern for instance even in such matters as lighting effects and other technical things. He seemed to be a man of his time so to speak.

A few years ago I read Antonia Fraser’s book The Royal Charles. This book indicates, as well as other sources, that a kind of Catholic Revival took place during the reign of Charles II (who evidently died a Roman Catholic) including his Roman Catholic wife and queen, his Catholic convert brother, James II, and the poet laureate, John Dryden. I believe I read that Blessed Claude de la Colombiere also gave spiritual conferences in the royal court at that time. I suppose it was largely due to this revival that afterwards Parliament was sure to select non-Catholic kings. The recent partial rescinding of English law just enacted begins to reverse the restrictions that prohibit the Church of Rome from the royal family.