The London Merchant: or, the History of George Barnwell

play by Lillo

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June 30, 2026

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The London Merchant: or, the History of George Barnwell is a domestic tragedy by George Lillo, first performed in 1731. This play is significant because it shifted the focus of tragedy from aristocratic or royal figures to members of the middle class.1

The story, based on an old ballad, follows a London apprentice who commits theft and murder. Despite his eventual repentance, he is executed. The play's themes and its portrayal of ordinary people in tragic circumstances greatly influenced the development of bourgeois drama in England, France, and Germany. Denis Diderot even wrote a play in imitation of it.1

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George Lillo
…in whose domestic tragedy The London Merchant: or, the History of George Barnwell (1731) members of the middle class replaced the customary aristocratic or royal heroes. The play greatly influenced the rise of bourgeois drama in Germany and France, as well as in England.
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…in whose domestic tragedy The London Merchant: or, the History of George Barnwell (1731) members of the middle class replaced the customary aristocratic or royal heroes. The play greatly influenced the rise of bourgeois drama in Germany and France, as well as in England.
Read More

domestic tragedy
…century by George Lillo with The London Merchant, or the History of George Barnwell (1731). The popularity of this sordid drama of an apprentice who murders his uncle-guardian influenced domestic tragedy in France and Germany, where the dramatist and critic G.E. Lessing, in his Hamburgische Dramaturgie (1767–69), paved the way…
Read More
…century by George Lillo with The London Merchant, or the History of George Barnwell (1731). The popularity of this sordid drama of an apprentice who murders his uncle-guardian influenced domestic tragedy in France and Germany, where the dramatist and critic G.E. Lessing, in his Hamburgische Dramaturgie (1767–69), paved the way…
Read More