The Battle of Alcazar (play)

The Battle of Alcalazar is a play attributed to George Peele, perhaps written no later than late 1591 if the play "Muly Molucco" mentioned in Henslowe's diary is this play (see below), and published anonymously in 1594, that tells the story of the battle of Alcácer Quibir in 1578.

Likely allusions to the Spanish Armada in the play appear to limit its earliest possible date. The primary historical source for the play, John Polemom's The Second Part of the Book of Battles, Fought in Our Age, was published in 1587. The play may also have been an attempt to capitalise on popular interest in the Drake-Norris Expedition, the so-called English Armada, of 1589, in which Peele was interested (see below).

The Presenter
Moroccans
Abdelmelec – also known as Muly Molocco, rightful King of Morocco
Abdil Rayes – his Queen
Calsepius Bashaw – general of the Turkish troops supporting Abdelmelec
Zareo – a Moor of Argier, follower of Abdelmelec
Celybin – a captain in Abdelmelec's army
Muly Mahamet Seth – brother to Abdelmelec
Rubin Archis – widow of Abdelmelec's brother, Abdelmunen
Rubin's Young Son
Muly Mahamet – the Moor, nephew to Abdelmelec
Calipolis – Muly Mahamet's wife
Muly Mahamet's son
Pisano, Muly Mahamet's Captain
Messenger
A boy serving Muly Mahamet
Attendant
Ambassadors from Muly Mahamet to the King of Portugal

Lord Strange's Men acted a play called Muly Molloco 14 times between 21 February 1592 and 20 January 1593; this is generally thought to be The Battle of Alcazar under an alternative title (no other play about "Muly Molucco" is known from this era, and one of the characters in the play refers to another as "Muly Molucco"). A later revival of the play was staged by the Admiral's Men, either in 1598 or 1600–02. The 1594 quarto was printed by Edward Allde for the bookseller Richard Bankworth. The play was published anonymously, though the attribution to Peele rests on both internal stylistic evidence and an assignment of authorship of a quoted passage in the anthology England's Parnassus (1600). The Parnassus attribution is questionable as the person making the attribution is known to have erred in the attribution of authorship elsewhere.

The Battle of Alcazar is a five-act non-fiction play that tells the story of the battle. Like Shakespeare's Henry V (1599), it is narrated by a Chorus who describes the action in terms far more heroic than it warrants: King Sebastian of Portugal is referred to as "an honourable and courageous prince", but is in fact shown to be foolish in invading Morocco, having been duped by Mulai Mohammed, who is presented as a Machiavellian villain.

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Wikipedia