THE JEW OF MALTA by Christopher Marlowe

[CrackSmokeRepublican]

THE JEW OF MALTA

by Christopher Marlowe

 

DRAMATIS PERSONAE

Machevill, the Prologue

Barabas, the Jew
Ferneze, Governor of Malta
Calymath, Son to the Emperor of Turkey
Don Mathias
Don Lodowick, the Governor's Son
Martin del Bosco, the Spanish Vice-Admiral
Ithamore, a Turkish Slave
Friars:
       Jacomo
       Barnardine
Pilia-Borza
Two Merchants
Three Jews

Abigail, Daughter to Barabas
Katherine, Mother to Mathias
Bellamira, a Courtesan
Abbess

Nuns, Knights, Officers, Bassoes, Turks, Guard,
Slaves, Messenger, Carpenters, Attendants.

 

THE PROLOGUE

   Enter Machevill.

MACHEVILL. Albeit the world think Machiavel is dead,
   Yet was his soul but flown beyond the Alps;
   And, now the Guise is dead, is come from France,
   To view this land, and frolic with his friends.
   To some perhaps my name is odious;
   But such as love me guard me from their tongues,
   And let them know that I am Machiavel,
   And weigh not men, and therefore not mens words.
   Admired I am of those that hate me most.
   Though some speak openly against my books,
   Yet will they read me and thereby attain
   To Peter's chair; and when they cast me off,
   Are poisoned by my climbing followers.
   I count religion but a childish toy
   And hold there is no sin but ignorance.
   Birds of the air will tell of murders past?
   I am ashamed to hear such fooleries.
   Many will talk of title to a crown.
   What right had Caesar to the empire?
   Might first made kings, and laws were then most sure
   When, like the Draco's, they were writ in blood.
   Hence comes it that a strong built citadel
   Commands much more than letters can import:
   Which maxim had but Phalaris observed,
   He'd never bellowed in a brazen bull,
   Of great ones envy: o'the poor petty wights
   Let me be envied and not pitied!
   But whither am I bound? I come not, I,
   To read a lecture here in Britanie,
   But to present the tragedy of a Jew
   Who smiles to see how full his bags are crammed,
   Which money was not got without my means.
   I crave but this. Grace him as he deserves,
   And let him not be entertained the worse
   Because he favours me.

 

ACT ONE, SCENE ONE

   Enter Barabas in his counting-house, with
   heaps of gold before him.

BARABAS. So that of thus much that return was made;
   And of the third part of the Persian ships
   There was the venture summed and satisfied.
   As for those Samnites and the men of Uz
   That bought my Spanish oils and wines of Greece,
   Here have I pursed their paltry silverlings.
   Fie, what a trouble tis to count this trash!
   Well fare the Arabians, who so richly pay
   The things they traffic for with wedge of gold,
   Whereof a man may easily in a day
   Tell that which may maintain him all his life.
   The needy groom, that never fingered groat
   Would make a miracle of thus much coin,
   But he whose steel barred coffers are crammed full,
   And all his lifetime hath been tired
   Wearying his fingers ends with telling it,
   Would in his age be loath to labor so,
   And for a pound to sweat himself to death.
   Give me the merchants of the Indian mines
   That trade in metal of the purest mold,
   The wealthy Moor, that in the eastern rocks
   Without control can pick his riches up
   And in his house heap pearl like pebblestones,
   Receive them free and sell them by the weight,
   Bags of fiery opals, sapphires, amethysts,
   Jacinths, hard topaz, grass green emeralds,
   Beauteous rubies, sparkling diamonds,
   And seldseen costly stones of so great price
   As one of them, indifferently rated
   And of a carat of this quantity,
   May serve in peril of calamity
   To ransom great kings from captivity.
   This is the ware wherein consists my wealth.
   And thus methinks should men of judgment frame
   Their means of traffic from the vulgar trade,
   And as their wealth increaseth, so enclose
   Infinite riches in a little room.
   But now how stands the wind?
   Into what corner peers my halcyon's bill?
   Ha! to the east? Yes; see how stand the vanes!
   East and by south: why then I hope my ships
   I sent for Egypt and the bordering isles
   Are gotten up by Nilus winding banks.
   Mine argosy from Alexandria,
   Loaden with spice and silks, now under sail,
   Are smoothly gliding down by Candy shore
   To Malta, through our Mediterranean sea.
   But who comes here?

   Enter a Merchant.

   How now?
MERCHANT. Barabas, thy ships are safe,
   Riding in Malta road, and all the merchants
   And have sent me to know whether yourself
   Will come and custom them.
BARABAS. The ships are safe thou sayst, and richly fraught?
MERCHANT. They are.
BARABAS. Why, then go bid them come a shore,
   And bring with them their bills of entry.
   I hope our credit in the custom-house
   Will serve as well as I were present there.
   Go send em threescore camels, thirty mules,
   And twenty wagons, to bring up the ware.
   But art thou master in a ship of mine,
   And is thy credit not enough for that?
MERCHANT. The very custom barely comes to more
   Than many merchants of the town are worth,
   And therefore far exceeds my credit, sir.
BARABAS. Go tell 'em the Jew of Malta sent thee, man.
   Tush, who amongst em knows not Barabas?
MERCHANT. I go.
BARABAS. So, then, there's somewhat come.
   Sirrah, which of my ships art thou master of?
MERCHANT. Of the Speranza, sir.
BARABAS. And sawst thou not
   Mine argosy at Alexandria?
   Thou couldst not come from Egypt or by Caire,
   But at the entry there into the sea,
   Where Nilus pays his tribute to the main,
   Thou needs must sail by Alexandria.
MERCHANT. I neither saw them nor inquired of them:
   But this we heard some of our seamen say:
   They wondered how you durst with so much wealth
   Trust such a crazed vessel, and so far.
BARABAS. Tush, they are wise! I know her and her strength.
   But go, go thou thy ways, discharge thy ship,
   And bid my factor bring his loading in.

   Exit Merchant.

   And yet I wonder at this argosy.

   Enter a Second Merchant.

SECOND MERCHANT. Thine argosy from Alexandria,
   Know, Barabas, doth ride in Malta road,
   Laden with riches, and exceeding store
   Of Persian silks, of gold, and orient pearl.
BARABAS. How chance you came not with those other ships
   That sailed by Egypt?
SECOND MERCHANT. Sir, we saw 'em not.
BARABAS. Belike they coasted round by Candy shore
   About their oils or other businesses.
   But 'twas ill done on you to come so far
   Without the aid or conduct of their ships.
SECOND MERCHANT. Sir, we were wafted by a Spanish fleet
   That never left us till within a league,
   That had the galleys of the Turk in chase.
BARABAS. Oh, they were going up to Sicily.
   Well, go
   And bid the merchants and my men dispatch
   And come ashore, and see the fraught discharged.
SECOND MERCHANT. I go.

   Exit Second Merchant.

BARABAS. Thus trowls our fortune in by land and sea,
   And thus are we on every side enriched.
   These are the blessings promised to the Jews,
   And herein was old Abrams happiness.
   What more may heaven do for earthly man
   Than thus to pour out plenty in their laps,
   Ripping the bowels of the earth for them,
   Making the seas their servant, and the winds
   To drive their substance with successful blasts?
   Who hateth me but for my happiness?
   Or who is honoured now but for his wealth?
   Rather had I, a Jew, be hated thus,
   Than pitied in a Christian poverty;
   For I can see no fruits in all their faith,
   But malice, falsehood, and excessive pride,
   Which methinks fits not their profession.
   Haply some hapless man hath conscience,
   And for his conscience lives in beggary.
   They say we are a scattered nation:
   I cannot tell, but we have scrambled up
   More wealth by far than those that brag of faith.
   There's Kirriah Jairim, the great Jew of Greece,
   Obed in Bairseth, Nones in Portugal,
   Myself in Malta, some in Italy,
   Many in France, and wealthy every one,
   Ay, wealthier far than any Christian.
   I must confess we come not to be kings.
   That's not our fault. Alas, our numbers few,
   And crowns come either by succession
   Or urged by force, and nothing violent,
   Oft have I heard tell, can be permanent.
   Give us a peaceful rule; make Christians kings,
   That thirst so much for principality.
   I have no charge, nor many children,
   But one sole daughter, whom I hold as dear
   As Agamemnon did his Iphigen;
   And all I have is hers. But who comes here?

   Enter three Jews.

FIRST JEW. Tush, tell not me; 'twas done of policy.
SECOND JEW. Come, therefore, let us go to Barabas,
   For he can counsel best in these affairs:
   And here he comes.
BARABAS. Why, how now, countrymen?
   Why flock you thus to me in multitudes?
   What accidents betided to the Jews?
FIRST JEW. A fleet of warlike galleys, Barabas,
   Are come from Turkey and lie in our road,
   And they this day sit in the council house
   To entertain them and their embassy.
BARABAS. Why, let 'em come, so they come not to war,
   Or let 'em war, so we be conquerors.
   Nay, let 'em combat, conquer, and kill all,
   (Aside) So they spare me, my daughter, and my wealth.
FIRST JEW. Were it for confirmation of a league,
   They would not come in warlike manner thus.
SECOND JEW. I fear their coming will afflict us all.
BARABAS. Fond men, what dream you of their multitudes?
   What need they treat of peace that are in league?
   The Turks and those of Malta are in league.
   Tut, tut, there is some other matter in't.
FIRST JEW. Why, Barabas, they come for peace or war.
BARABAS. Haply for neither, but to pass along,
   Towards Venice by the Adriatic sea,
   With whom they have attempted many times,
   But never could effect their stratagem.
THIRD JEW. And very wisely said; it may be so.
SECOND JEW. But there's a meeting in the senate house,
   And all the Jews in Malta must be there.
BARABAS. Umh, all the Jews in Malta must be there?
   Ay, like enough. Why then, let every man
   Provide him and be there for fashion's sake.
   If anything shall there concern our state,
   Assure yourselves I'll look (Aside) unto myself.
FIRST JEW. I know you will. - well, brethren, let us go.
SECOND JEW. Lets take our leaves. - farewell, good Barabas.
BARABAS. Do so. Farewell, Zaareth; farewell, Temainte.
   And, Barabas, now search this secret out.
   Summon thy senses; call thy wits together:
   These silly men mistake the matter clean.
   Long to the Turk did Malta contribute,
   Which tribute - all in policy, I fear -
   The Turks have let increase to such a sum
   As all the wealth of Malta cannot pay,
   And now by that advantage thinks, belike,
   To seize upon the town; ay, that he seeks.
   Howe'er the world go, I'll make sure for one,
   And seek in time to intercept the worst,
   Warily guarding that which I ha' got.
   Ego mihimet sum semper proximus.
       [I am always my own nearest and dearest.]
   Why, let 'em enter, let 'em take the town.

   Exit.

http://www2.prestel.co.uk/rey/jew.htm

[Anonymous]

And what did you discover about the play?

[CrackSmokeRepublican]

It's a typical Jew Scam story. Reveals the character quite well.

[Anonymous]

It's a typical Jew Scam story. Reveals the character quite well.

ah!

you need to dig deeper

and understand the true importance of this work!

[Ahmed]

The Jew Of Malta By Kit Marlowe (or Francis Bacon) works on a number of levels; partly about the Jesuits and Knights of Malta being a crypto-Jew run gang: And the wider implication that Christianity (or at least parts of the Bible and entire ecumenical structure) is Saul's canard against Christ (peace be upon him).

There's also a bit of Talmudic dogma thrown in: such as conspiring to foment war amongst Gentiles for the poltical-economic prosperity of the Jew.

The Spaniard slave owner (defintely a Marrano Jew) is himself a product of the machinations that led to the break up of Islamic Spain and percieved triumph of Christians; who found themselves in bondage to the Jewish elements they tried to remove. Once again the instigation of conflict by criminal factions of Jewry is only generated by each victim's zealous devotion to their own creed as opposed to dealing with the universal enemy before them. In his book 'The Secret Jews' Joachim Prinz states: "Jews had invaded Spain from within...rather than solving the 'Jewish question' the mass (forced) conversions had created a new problem: a powerful middle class made up of secret Jews."

The play recounts in stages, every Kaabalist / Talmudic Jew criminal enterprise that took hold in Europe; from the Pharisee subversion of Gospel, to Freemasonry, Zohar etc.

Another aspect is the triumph of individual decency over the unnatural, manmade constraints of organised religion and how the Talmudic follower despises this above all else (i.e. the Jew plots to poison his own daughter in the nunnery).

Where the play falters somewhat, is in it's Masonic propaganda insinuating that Gentiles (via Masonry) can use the Talmudic style of conspiracy to further their own goals; this is a delusion since Masonry, at its root, is the Kaabalah, though many Freemasons don't know this fact.

It takes a dim view of the major faiths in general (as it seeks to promote the Masonic religion): "...I count religion but a childish toy, And hold there is no sin but ignorance" and though Judaism fares the worst, Christianity and Islam are also shown to be quite reactionary and hubristic.
 
The playwright(s) conclusion also suggests that the Jew will never be content until he has destroyed everyone and everything, including himself.

[/tab]

.

Christopher Marlowe







The Books


http://www.gutenberg.org/browse/authors/m#a410



http://www.marlowe-society.org/marlowe/life/freethinkers1.html



http://www.kirjasto.sci.fi/marlowe.htm



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_Marlowe



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[Christopher Marlowe]

Nice coverage, Ahmed.  I don't agree with all of your critique, but you inspired me to re-read the play and see what was there to support it.  

I didn't see the point about Saul in the play.  (I used to buy into that view when I was a lad, inspired by Nietzsche and "The Anti-Christ".  But later in life I began to see Saul/Paul as the genuine article.) There is a part early on in "Jew of Malta" that shows a duplicitous nature in practitioners of the Christian Faith:

Though some speak openly against my books,
   Yet will they read me and thereby attain
   To Peter's chair; and when they cast me off,
   Are poisoned by my climbing followers.

Re-reading this play, I was trying to see

Masonic propaganda insinuating that Gentiles (via Masonry) can use the Talmudic style of conspiracy to further their own goals

and it might be said that there is some evidence supporting this claim.  

At the beginning, Machevill says:

Hence comes it that a strong built citadel
   Commands much more than letters can import:
   Which maxim had but Phalaris observed,
   He'd never bellowed in a brazen bull,

But is this referring to Masonry or Machiavellian tactics? Unless it is proposed that Machiavelli is himself a mason, it seems the prologue is talking about the Machiavellian system generally; i.e. employing trickery and force in order to triumph. I assume that the Mason argument is that the "strong built citadel" is a hidden reference to masonry.  

(Another item of interest in this phrase is the reference to Phalaris, who was a tyrant in ancient Sicily that used to stick his enemies into a bronze bull and then burn them alive. The bull was constructed so that their screams sounded like the snorting of a bull.  After Phalaris was overthrown, he was thrown into the bull and roasted: "bellowed in a brazen bull".  What poetry!)

Another possible masonic reference can be seen at the end where Barabas is seen with the "carpenters":

Enter Barabas with a hammer, above, very busy.
   and Carpenters.

BARABAS. How stand the cords? How hang these hinges? Fast?
   Are all the cranes and pulleys sure?
FIRST CARPENTER. All fast.

Are the "carpenters" a reference to "masons"?  Or are they poisoned at the end, as Barabas supposes?

BARABAS. Leave nothing loose, all levelled to my mind.
   Why, now I see that you have art indeed.
   There, carpenters, divide that gold amongst you.
   Go, swill in bowls of sack and muscadine.
   Down to the cellar; taste of all my wines.
FIRST CARPENTER. We shall, my lord, and thank you.

   Exeunt Carpenters.

BARABAS. And if you like them, drink your fill and die!

The play does a neat summary of the various schemes that talmudic Jews have been perpetrating through the centuries. And the human weaknesses that allow the Jewish criminals a foothold are also exhibited: greed, lust, hatred.  

I'm still confused as to what the author is saying, beyond the obvious warning to society that these criminals need to be dealt with directly and with force.

FERNEZE. Should I in pity of thy plaints or thee,
   Accursed Barabas, base Jew, relent?
   No, thus I'll see thy treachery repaid,
   But wish thou hadst behaved thee otherwise.
BARABAS. You will not help me, then?
FERNEZE. No, villain, no.

Ferneze is through dealing with Barabas.  And truly, nothing else can be done with that fellow.  He is a bad egg.  The naming of the villain is a clever choice: Barabas was the criminal whom the Jews asked Pilate to release instead of Jesus:

And he had then a notorious prisoner, that was called Barabbas. They therefore being gathered together, Pilate said: Whom will you that I release to you, Barabbas, or Jesus that is called Christ?  For he knew that for envy they had delivered him.  And as he was sitting in the place of judgment, his wife sent to him, saying: Have thou nothing to do with that just man; for I have suffered many things this day in a dream because of him.  But the chief priests and ancients persuaded the people, that they should ask for Barabbas, and take Jesus away.

And the governor answering, said to them: Whether will you of the two to be released unto you? But they said, Barabbas. Pilate saith to them: What shall I do then with Jesus that is called Christ? They say all: Let him be crucified.  The governor said to them: Why, what evil hath he done? But they cried out the more, saying: Let him be crucified.  And Pilate seeing that he prevailed nothing, but that rather a tumult was made; taking water washed his hands before the people, saying: I am innocent of the blood of this just man; look you to it.  And the whole people answering, said: His blood be upon us and our children.

Then he released to them Barabbas, and having scourged Jesus, delivered him unto them to be crucified.

What was Barabas' crime?

And there was one called Barabbas, who was put in prison with some seditious men, who in the sedition had committed murder.

Sedition is the act of inciting others to rebel against lawful authority. At this point in the Bible the Jews are choosing one like the Anti-Christ as their representative, rather than the Son of God.  The irony is that "Barabas" literally means "son of the father".  Basically, the Jews are choosing evil over good and thus bringing condemnation on themselves.  This action is seen to mirror that of their father, the devil, who wanted to supplant God.

You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and he stood not in the truth; because truth is not in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father thereof.

The actions of Barabas display a perverse spirit that can only revel in its own satisfaction.  In lieu of charity we find a mean spirit; Instead of mercy there is spite; His only piety is a pretense: a feint to advance a scheme. His only love is for gold.  Barabas is beyond redemption because his soul is cursed. He hates God.  

For, so I live, perish may all the world!

What can you do with someone like that?

But I don't believe Marlowe is seriously advocating that everyone become a Machiavelli.  That system was what the Jew employed:

But to present the tragedy of a Jew
   Who smiles to see how full his bags are crammed,
   Which money was not got without my means.
   I crave but this. Grace him as he deserves,
   And let him not be entertained the worse
   Because he favours me.

So the Jew employs the means of Machiavelli. The Jew favors Machiavelli.  And Machiavelli says:

I count religion but a childish toy
   And hold there is no sin but ignorance.
   Birds of the air will tell of murders past?
   I am ashamed to hear such fooleries.
   Many will talk of title to a crown.

The reference to birds is scriptural:

Detract not the king, no not in thy thought; and speak not evil of the rich man in thy private chamber: because even the birds of the air will carry thy voice, and he that hath wings will tell what thou hast said.

And also:

For there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed: nor hidden, that shall not be known. 3 For whatsoever things you have spoken in darkness, shall be published in the light: and that which you have spoken in the ear in the chambers, shall be preached on the housetops.

Machiavelli is mocking the Holy Scriptures, saying that, of course birds will talk about these things because it is of great interest to talk about how power is stolen.  But the scripture is warning us that everything done in secret will be revealed.  We, like the Jews in scripture, are free to choose to believe the word of God, or to reject Him.  

I don't believe Marlowe is promoting this Machiavellian viewpoint because the protagonist, the Jew, loses in the end.  Surely the ends of that system are what was enjoyed by the Jew: damnation. He is boiled alive. It is a common theme of Marlowe's plays: the one who overreaches is punished. Just like Satan. Just like Cain.

One slight criticism I might make of "The Jew of Malta" is that the first two acts are better written than the last three.  The plot seems to get a little repetitive after the daughter dies and the challenge would be to keep the audience interested past that point.  Of course I am only judging the written work.  In performance there might be tools that a director could employ to sustain the energy of the piece.  The most obvious is that there are many occasions for humor in this play, and after the precedents have been established, the actors can play off of the audience's expectations.  The last three acts might therefore be working out the jokes that are essentially set up at the beginning.  This type of humor resembles Richard III, which sounds fairly serious in the reading, but in performance it comes off like a black comedy.

[Wimpy]

Well done!  Thanks for the analysis Christopher.

[Ahmed]

Excellent analysis there Christopher Marlowe, I just did a brief overview from memory but you've produced a through, sequential evaluation

[Ahmed]

But is this referring to Masonry or Machiavellian tactics? Unless it is proposed that Machiavelli is himself a mason

Machiavelli, though not known to have been a Mason himself, kept questionable company in Pope Julius II; who was loved by the usurers from which he took out war loans and satirized by Hieronymus Bosch in 'Christ Crowned with Thorns' (Bosch being a bit of a hypocrite since he too promoted Masonic interests as seen in 'The Garden of Earthly Delights'). Macheveill also dedicated 'The Prince' "To the Magnificent Lorenzo Di Piero De' Medici", though that could well be a reference to his grandfather and Masonic ally Lorenzo de' Medici or Lorenzo The Magnificent.

'The Medici Archive Project', founded in 1993 by Dr. Edward L. Goldberg details the extent to which the house of Medici were involved with European Jewry.

'The Medici Archives Fact Paper 38-I' By Samuel Kurinsky

"The 'Israelite Communities' of Florence, Siena, Pisa and Livorno were political creations of the Medici rulers. Like the Medici Grand Dukedom itself, these communities took shape in the course of the sixteenth century. Both the Medici and the Jews were expelled from Florentine territory in the 1490s. When the Medici returned to power in 1512, the Jewish ban fell into abeyance, until the next expulsion of the Medici in 1527. In 1537, Cosimo de 'Medici seized definitive control of the Florentine government and reorganized it as the Grand Dukedom of Tuscany. By the mid-1540's, less than ten years after he gained the throne, Cosimo I began recruiting affluent Spanish and Portuguese Jews for resettlement in Florence and his chief port city of Pisa.  In 1567 he reimposed badges of identification for Jews, in 1569 shut the Jewish banks, and in 1570-71 restricted Jewish settlement to two new ghettos in Florence and Siena."

So in 4 years these particular Jews had destabilized the economy to such an extent that Cosimo had to do a complete rollback and shutdown.

Wonder what they were up to...

"Livorno was also a major center of Jewish commerce, second only to Amsterdam, it was also a leading center of Jewish study and mysticism, particularly under the influence of Rabbi Joseph ben Emanuel Ergas (1685-1732) and other proponents of the Kaballah. Indeed, the Jews of Florence, Siena, Pisa and Livorno were conspicuous for the breadth and diversity of their interests and activities. Vitale Nissim de Pisa, from one of the oldest banking families in Tuscany, was a distinguished Talmudist and his son Simone graduated as a Doctor of Medicine"

Love the line "were conspicuous for the breadth and diversity of their interests and activities..."

I bet they were.

In 1593, Cosimo's son Ferdinando I granted Jews free residence, unlimited access to trade, and even partial self-government in this new Medicean free-port on the Mediterranean.

Factions within the conspiracy often fought each other, and in doing so only bolstered the usurer's trade; wars within wars if you will: The Pope Sixtus IV, Pazzi -Salviati affair being a prime example.

Lorenzo The Magnificent was probably best known for gathering Masonic figures like Marsiglio Ficino, Cristoforo Landino, John Argyropoulos and the infamous Pico della Mirandola at 'Academy of the Medici'.  Leonardo Da Vinci also rose to fame through Medici's contacts and commissions. Da Vinci later stated that:  "The Medici made me and the Medici destroyed me."

How many of the above actually knew that they were involved in a glorified Kaabalist Jew cult is unknown.

[Ahmed]

I don't believe Marlowe is promoting this Machiavellian viewpoint because the protagonist, the Jew, loses in the end. Surely the ends of that system are what was enjoyed by the Jew: damnation. He is boiled alive. It is a common theme of Marlowe's plays: the one who overreaches is punished. Just like Satan. Just like Cain.

I agree with your findings in principle Kit, but I put it you that Martin del Bosco (the Marrano Jew) is more cunning a villain than the usurer Barabus. For its on his advice that Ferneze breaks treaty with the Turks, its from the slaves he trades in that Ithamore is sold to Barabus (hence becoming a Gentile vessel to enact Talmudic schemes) put to task after the infamous "Hast thou no trade?" speech.

How far could Barabus have got had del Bosco not escalated the situation? Perhaps internal mischief and villainy, but never to such heights IMO.  

Is Marlowe warning us to treat anyone from Spain with great suspicion, since in 1500 crypto-Jew elements were at the height of power? Del Bosco's slave ship is called 'The Flying Dragon' (recurring Masonic / Kaabalist symbol: Dragon Royal Court, Order of The Dragon, Serpents Of Wisdom, Leathern Apron Club etc)  And who's the first person to propose the idea of war? None other than an unnamed First Knight (Knight of Malta crypto seizing an opportunity).

So in a sense, the play's arch villain does get his richly deserved comeuppance, but only because he was a villain who became known to all. Yet the undetected, much greater, threat is that of the enemy within; the enemy that generates base sentiments and appeals to the foolhardy, vainglorious nature of man.

In fact, when I recently re-read Frenze and Bosco's scenes (after reading your analysis) I was reminined of Cicero's quote on the enemy within.

The ending (whereby Frenze decides to keep Claymath prisoner) alludes to the capture of Turk Sinan Reis's son in Tunis by the Spaniards (i.e. crypto-Jews and their acolytes under the guise of Catholicism). Instead of his imprisonment in Elba being ransom for the city, in 1544, Ottoman Captain Barbarossa threatened to bombard Piombino unless Resis's son was freed (which he was) and also promoted him to lay siege to Tuscany.  

This increase in militarism meant the moneylenders had a field day, which was the intention all along.  

The actions of Barabas display a perverse spirit that can only revel in its own satisfaction. In lieu of charity we find a mean spirit; Instead of mercy there is spite; His only piety is a pretense: a feint to advance a scheme. His only love is for gold. Barabas is beyond redemption because his soul is cursed. He hates God.

Very true, I wonder if Shylock's line "...would any of the stock of Barabas had been her husband rather than a Chrisitan" was a reference to the Biblical Barabus or the character in this play.