What is William Davenant?
{{no sources|date=November 2024}} Sir '''William Davenant''' was an English [[poet]] and [[playwright]]. There were also rumours about Davenant being a [[bastard]] [[son]] of [[William Shakespeare]] though they have not been proven. ==Early Life== Davenant was born in 1606 and (according to [[John Aubrey]]) Shakespeare was his [[godfather]]. Shakespeare died in 1616 when Davenant was 10 years old. Two years later, Davenant wrote a [[poem]] about remembering Shakespeare but he only [[publish]]ed it as an [[adult]]. Davenant was taught to become a [[playwright]] by [[Ben Jonson]] and was known for a play called Madagascar. After Jonson died, [[King]] [[Charles I]] appointed Davenant as [[poet laureate]]. ==English Civil War== When [[Oliver Cromwell]] led a [[rebellion]] against King Charles, William Davenant fought against Cromwell so Charles gave Davenant a [[knighthood]] and called him Sir William Davenant. Davenant also got [[military]] supplies from [[France]] to [[England]]. After Charles was overthrown and his head cut off, Charles’s [[wife]] [[Henrietta Maria]] ran away to her [[brother]] [[Louis XIII]] in France and her [[son]] and Sir William Davenant came with her. Henrietta Maria appointed Davenant [[governor]] of [[Maryland]] to give him an excuse to [[sail]] to [[North America]] and convince people there to [[fight]] for them against Cromwell. But on the way there Davenant was captured and brought to [[England]]. Cromwell wanted to [[kill]] Davenant but Davenant’s [[friend]] [[John Milton]] asked Cromwell not to do that so Cromwell locked Davenant in the [[Tower of London]]. ==Interregnum== Cromwell eventually released Sir William Davenant from the Tower and Davenant found out that Cromwell had banned public performance of plays. So Sir William Davenant turned his own [[home]] into a private [[theatre]] and since people weren’t writing plays at the time, most of the plays he put on were the ones by [[William Shakespeare]]. ==The Restoration== When [[Charles II]] became [[king]] of [[England]], h