New Light on Henry Lanman, Owner of the Curtain

Abstract

This note lays out new information on Henry Lanman, the owner or part-owner of the Curtain theatre in late-Elizabethan London. It shows that Lanman was a longtime servant of the courtier and politician Sir Christopher Hatton, a fact which helps to clarify a number of aspects of Lanman’s life. It also discusses the Lanman family’s strong association with Catholicism. Finally, it considers the possibility that Hatton acted as an informal protector of Lanman and his theatre.