Heinrich Julius

Heinrich Julius (born October 15, 1564, Schloss Hessen, near Wolfenbüttel, Saxony [Germany]—died July 20, 1613, Prague [now in Czech Republic]) was a duke of Brunswick, a representative of early Baroque culture who was important in the development of German drama. His work incorporated the theatrical effect of English Elizabethan drama and the English clown, or fool, into German theatre.

A gifted scholar, theologian, and patron of the arts, Heinrich Julius became rector of the University of Helmstedt in 1576 and bishop of the Roman Catholic see of Halberstadt in 1578. He succeeded his father as duke of Brunswick in 1589. In 1592 he invited English actors and dramatists (notably Thomas Sackville) to Wolfenbüttel and thereafter maintained a troupe at his court. The composer Michael Praetorius also joined his court as organist; he later became kapellmeister (musical director) there. Heinrich Julius was an autocrat by conviction and a persecutor of Jews and witches. He wrote in a didactic tone aimed at instilling the ideology of the landed aristocracy. His moralizing plays (Von einem Wirthe [1593; “Of an Innkeeper”]; Von einem Buler und einer Bulerin [1593; “Of Two Lovers”]; Von einer Ehebrecherin [1594; “Of an Adulteress”]), written for his personal troupe and influenced by the English tradition, treat topics of everyday middle-class life in a realistic style.

His best-known tragedy, Von einem Ungeratnen Sohn (1594; “Of a Spoiled Son”), showed a predilection for the scenes of horror and crime that characterized the repertoire of the English actors working in Germany. Heinrich’s best work, the comedy Von Vincentio Ladislao (1594), showed his skill at characterization and used elements of the much-imitated style of the English actors, the exaggerated language and the pretensions of the braggart, as objects of satire. In 1607 he lost interest in the duchy and moved to Prague, where he became an adviser to Emperor Rudolf II.