Agnes de Castro, a Tragedy by Catharine Trotter
This month’s featured text is Agnes de Castro, a Tragedy as it is acted at the Theatre Royal by his Majesty's Servants by Catharine Trotter. Catharine is believed to have been born in 1679 to aristocratic Scottish parents. When her father died in 1684, the family was left without support in spite of their aristocratic connections. At age fourteen, Catharine anonymously published a lesser known novel entitled Olinda’s Adventures. At age sixteen, her play Agnes de Castro was performed at the Theatre Royale. Though the play was presented anonymously, it was no secret who the author was. After finishing her fifth play, her dramatic writing career ended shortly before her marriage to the Reverend Patrick Cogburn in 1708. Later in life she wrote philosophical discourses, especially focusing on defending the works of John Locke and Samuel Clarke. She passed away in 1749 just a few months after her husband. Two years after Catharine’s death, her biography was published by Thomas Birch.

Agnes de Castro is an adaptation of Aphra Behn’s novel Agnes de Castro, or The Force of Generous Love. The drama is set in Portugal and tells the story of a Spanish woman, Agnes, who is a friend of the Princess of Portugal. The prince falls in love with Agnes, however, and the story develops into an astounding display of love, betrayal, revenge, and murder. An added nuance of the story is the aversion portrayed between the Spanish and Portuguese characters. The drama shows an unlikely hero in Agnes who, unusual for female characters of the day, remained firm in her convictions and loyalties, even to the point of death.

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