The Catholic Martyrological Tradition of the Reformation and the Early Editions of Richard Rowlands Verstegan’s Théâtre des cruautés (1588)

Abstract

Richard Rowlands Verstegan’s Theatrum crudelitatum haereticorum nostri temporis (1587) is widely recognized as one of the most iconic and compelling illustrated martyrologies of the late sixteenth century. Despite this, the publication history of the work’s French translation, the Théâtre des cruautés des héreticques de nostre temps, has never been clarified by Verstegan scholars. This article provides a clear and definitive publication history of the French translation of the work. In doing so, I provide vital insight into the exact time in which the translation was produced, allowing Verstegan scholars to better investigate the work’s place in France’s ever-changing political context of the late sixteenth century.