The Appeal of Southwark: A Cultural Melting Pot

            Segregated by the natural boundary of the Thames River, Southwark, the area south of the city proper, constituted a place in which renaissance Londoner’s could enjoy activities and pleasures that were often considered detrimental to the morality of the individual as well as the general welfare of society. Despite the city’s discontent the rapid diversification of cultural rituals and traditions, the area of Southwark, then referred to as the Liberties, became a place of exile and controversy that embraced what others in London deemed scandalous. in his article “Toward a Rhetoric of Space in Elizabethan London,” Steven Mullaney asserts that despite the theatres being “Effectively banished from the city by increasing strict regulations, popular drama translated the terms of its exile to its advantage.” <Mullaney>

            Mullaney identifies that Elizabethan theatres such as the Globe, Swan, and Rose were significant promoters of the cultural proliferation that occurred throughout the Renaissance; however, contrary to the theatre’s undeniable success they were certainly not the only institutions that inspired Londoners to defy tradition and cross the Thames into Southwark. The Globe Exhibition dedicates a large selection of information that attributes Southwark’s popularity to various leisurely opportunities including: playhouses, pleasure gardens, bull-baiting, taverns/alehouses, and brothels. Located at what was once Holland Street, Holland’s Leaguer was a brothel notorious for its blatant defiance of regulations enacted by the Privy Council. Originally constructed as a manor house the property was leased in the 1630’s by Elizabeth Holland and under her management, the property was renovated into perhaps one of the most frequented whorehouse south of the Thames. <Fumerton>The brothel immediately became the target of puritan regulations and in 1632, following the Privy Council’s attempt to permanently close its door, the loyal patrons responded by locking themselves inside. The “siege” on Holland’s Leaguer was later documented in at least three texts including a play by Shakerley Marmion, a ballad composed by Lawrence Price, and a pamphlet written by Nicholas Goodman. <Fumerton> All three written accounts were entitled “Holland’s Leaguer” and satiated the public’s insistence upon a reputable account of the incident.

            Perhaps the most prevalent example of the cultural multiplicity demonstrated in Southwark is Southwark Cathedral. The cathedral’s Gothic architecture dates back to the 13^th century making it the oldest building of its kind in London; the foundation of the cathedral is even older and dates to the early 12^th century following the Norman invasion of 1066. Considering the Liberties reputation as a breeding pool of vagabonds and frequenters of ill-repute, the presence of a Cathedral is one example of the dramatic irony that characterizes the “great book faire” described by Mullaney. Despite its religious affiliations, Southwark Cathedral symbolically represents the conglomerate of burgeoning cultures throughout the Renaissance. The Cathedral’s symbolic representation is predominantly depicted by St. Andrew’s alter dedicated to the saint of impartial acceptance regardless of religion or cultural identity.