by the
Burbages. If the Theatre of 1576 cost nearly L700, and the second
Globe cost L1400, the sum of L400 seems too small.

[Footnote 400: The London _Times_, October 2, 1909.]

[Footnote 401: Possibly he gives this evidence in his _The Children of
the Chapel at Blackfriars_, p. 29, note 4.]

Nor do we know exactly when the Globe was finished and opened to the
public. On May 16, 1599, a post-mortem inquisition of the estate of
Sir Thomas Brend, father of Sir Nicholas, was taken. Among his other
properties in Southwark was listed the Globe playhouse, described as
"vna domo de novo edificata ... in occupacione Willielmi Shakespeare
et aliorum."[402] From this statement Mr. Wallace infers that the
Globe was finished and opened before May 16, 1599. Though this is
possible, the words used seem hardly to warrant the conclusion.
However, we may feel sure that the actors, the Lord Chamberlain's Men,
had moved into the building before the end of the summer.

[Footnote 402: Wallace, in the London _Times_, May 1, 1914.]

Almost at once they rose to the position of leadership in the drama,
for both Shakespeare and Burbage were now at the height of their
powers. It is true that in 1601 the popularity of the Children at
Blackfriars, and the subsequent "War of the Theatres" interfered
somewhat with their success; but the interference was temporary, and
from this time on until the closing of the playhouses in 1642, the
supremacy of the Globe players was never really challenged. When James
came to the throne, he recognized this supremacy by taking them under
his royal patronage. On May 19, 1603, he issued to them a patent to
play as the King's Men[403]--an honor that was as well deserved as it
was signal.

[Footnote 403: Printed in The Malone Society _Collections_, I, 264.]

In the autumn of 1608 the proprietors of the Globe acquired the
Blackfriars Theatre for the use of their company during the severe
winter months. This splendid building, situated in the very heart of
the city, was entirely roofed in, and could be comfortably heated in
cold weather. Henceforth the open-air Globe was used only during the
pleasant season of the year; that is, according to the evidence of the
Herbert Manuscript, from about the first of May until the first of
November.

On June 29, 1613, the Globe caught fire during the performance of a
play, and was burned to the ground--the first disaster of the sort
recorded in English theatrical history.