Cover of The Spanish Tragedy

The Spanish Tragedy

by Thomas Kyd

First published
1594
Reading level
Easy
Price
Free

About the book

"The Spanish Tragedy" by Thomas Kyd is an Elizabethan tragedy written between 1582 and 1592. This groundbreaking work established the revenge play as a new genre in English theatre. The play features violent murders and personifies Revenge as its own character, influencing countless later works including Shakespeare's "Hamlet." Highly popular in its time, it contains elements like a play-within-a-play used to trap a murderer and a ghost seeking vengeance. The work is considered one of the most influential plays of Renaissance theatre.

  • English drama
  • Tragedies (Drama)

Updated September 2026. Public domain in the USA. Text and summary from Project Gutenberg eBook #35330. The Spanish Tragedy on Wikipedia.

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