Details

The monument includes the surviving remains of an Elizabethan and Jacobean
theatre believed to be the Globe Theatre. The Globe, built in the spring of
1599, was the third such theatre on historic Bankside, following the Rose of
1587 and the Swan of 1596.
A lease on the Globe estate and the cost of construction was divided, one half
provided by Cuthbert and Richard Burbage, and the other half by the actors
John Heminges, William Kempe, Augustine Phillips, Thomas Pope and William
Shakespeare.
The Globe was constructed by a carpenter, Peter Streete, utilising timbers
from the Theatre which had been built in Shoreditch in 1576 by the Burbage
family, and dismantled in 1598.
The Globe, described in the prologue to Shakespeare's Henry V as "this wooden
O", is considered to have been either circular or polygonal in shape. This
view is supported by a drawing of London's Bankside area made in the 1630s by
the German Wenceslaus Hollar, published in 1647 which shows such a round
structure, identified as the Globe. This external shape is a reflection of
the internal organisation of the theatre which took the form of a central
circular area comprising stage and yard both enclosed by galleries, the latter
probably rising in more than one tier. The site is also known to have had a
thatched roof and two doors. Spectators would have been accommodated both in
the galleries and the central yard.
The first Globe caught fire and burned down following the discharge of a
cannon during the first performance of Shakespeare's Henry VIII on the 29th
June 1613. The Globe was rebuilt in 1614 at a cost of 1,400. It was owned
again by a similar partnership although the builder of the second Globe is
unknown. This second Globe was built on the foundations of the first and it is
presumed to have been similar but this one certainly had external stair towers
and a stage projecting from the south-west. It was finally pulled down in
1644 on Cromwell's orders.
Sufficient documentary evidence survives to confirm that the Globe was located
close to the modern Southwark Bridge on the south bank of the Thames. However
the exact position of the theatre has only been confirmed by recent partial
excavation work in this area. This work has established the survival of
archaeological remains, revealing two sections of foundation walls, one of
chalk and timber and the other of brick and mortar and an area of the theatre
floor. The chalk and timber wall is interpreted as part of the foundations of
the first theatre while the brick wall belonged to the second. As well as
confirming the location of the theatre these remains also support the
argument for polygonal shape.
The remains of the theatre are adjacent to and at the level of Park Street,
several metres below the level of Southwark Bridge Road. The above ground
structures on the site including the listed buildings of Anchor Terrace (as
numbered 1-15 adjacent to Southwark Bridge Road) and the modern surfaces and
make-up of Southwark Bridge Road itself are excluded from the Scheduling,
although the ground beneath them is included.

MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

Built in 1599, the Globe theatre represents one of the earliest purpose-built
commercial playhouses in England, and was one of an important cluster of four
known Tudor-Jacobean theatres on the south bank of London. Documentary
evidence indicates that such playhouses were not common and indeed there is
little evidence at present to suggest that any were built outside London. Of
this small group of documented sites only the Globe, along with its near
neighbour the Rose, have been identified by excavation. The site is a rare
and important survival. Of particular note is the site's links with England's
premier playright William Shakespeare.
Documentary evidence indicates that Shakespeare was a part owner of the site
and that many of his major works, including Hamlet, Othello, Henrv VIII, Lear
and Macbeth had their first performance here, and indeed were specifically
written with this setting in mind. Such works were as popular then as now and
the Globe is known to have attracted large audiences. The contemporary
importance of the Shakespearean works was such that leading actors such as
Richard Burbage were involved in activity at the site, Burbage himself
playing the title roles in many of Shakespeare's works. The stature the
theatre gained through this Shakespearean connection was such also that other
leading dramatists, including Ben Johnson and Thomas Dekker also wrote works
specifically for performance there.
The theatre enjoyed continued importance after its rebuilding for, while
Shakespeare produced no new plays for it, it thrived on new works by Beaumont
and Fletcher, Heywood, Middleton and Webster among others.
Recent archaeological investigation has confirmed that remains of the theatre
survive, these including wall foundations and an area of the theatre floor.
Of particular note and importance is the survival of waterlogged deposits,
including timber. These are likely to retain considerable evidence of wood-
working technology along with other environmental evidence which would not
normally survive on a `dry' site.
Taken together these various factors indicate the particular importance of the
site for Shakespearean scholars and those interested in the development of
modern theatre within England. Furthermore the site is of considerable
importance for those involved in investigation of the nature of this area of
London in the 16th and 17th centuries.

Source: Historic England