SOURCE: Williams, George Walton. Introduction to The Changeling, by Thomas Middleton and William Rowley, edited by George Walton Williams, pp. ix-xxiv. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1966.

In the following essay, Williams discusses the collaborative authorship, popularity, plot, and themes of The Changeling.

Thomas Middleton and William Rowley probably wrote The Changeling in the spring of 1622, for one of the literary sources of the play was entered for printing on March 11, 1622, and the play was complete on May 7, 1622, when it was licensed for performance by the company under the protection of Princess Elizabeth, Queen of Bohemia.¹ The earliest evidence for the existence of the play is this licensing:

Licensed to be acted by the Lady Elizabeth's Servants at the Phoenix, May 7, 1622 [by Sir Henry Herbert Master of the Revels].

There is reason to believe that the play was an immediate success, as it was soon performed by the company...