Buckle up! Joseph Atwill has done it again. In Caesar's Messiah, Atwill revealed a secret Roman plot, instigated by the Flavian Dynasty, to create a hidden subtext within the messages of the Gospels. The purpose of the subterfuge was to "convert the followers of the Jewish Messiah into followers of Caesar without their knowing it." By instilling a theme of pacifism, the Flavians hoped to subdue militant Judaism. Atwill made his discovery by comparing references within Josephus' Wars of the Jews to the Gospels. In doing so, he found "typological parallels" that conclusively support his theory of the common literary influences of both Wars of the Jews and the Gospels.  

Atwill has a unique ability to pick out patterns in literature that are not discernible to anyone else, including Biblical scholars. So much so, that his bold insights have generated criticism "debunking" his interpretation of the Gospels. Most Christians, understandably, would categorically dismiss, if not take umbrage at what Atwill has to say. This, however, is not his intention. That aside, Atwill's insights are unquestionably fascinating and compelling to those who genuinely seek a fuller understanding of the historical origins of Christianity. 

In Shakespeare's Secret Messiah, Atwill takes it a step further and boldly reveals not only the identity of the true author of Shakespeare's plays, but what "she" was attempting to both reveal and conceal. You guessed it. The true author, a woman, was aware of the Flavian conspiracy and, in an era of censorship compounded by the fact that "she" was Jewish, used hidden messages within the plays to attack the Flavian Caesars for their duplicity and thus invoke her revenge. Take for example, Shakespeare's first tragedy, Titus Andronicus. The play has often been called a puzzle, but, Atwill tells us, the title alone is vastly revealing. Titus refers to Titus Flavius, and Andronicus references an individual named in 2 Maccabees who was a conqueror of Jerusalem, as was Titus, son of Vespasian, and brother to Domitian.  This, the author tells us, was the clue that led him to analyze the plays of Shakespeare. But who, in Atwill's assessment, was Shakespeare?

Skeptical that a "Christian from Stratford" was the playwright, the author summarizes a list of alternative candidates. The usual list of suspects includes Edward de Vere (Earl of Oxford), William Stanley (Earl of Derby), Mary Sidney, and Christopher Marlowe. Atwill reviews the literary evidence in support of each candidate, but then goes on to characterize the true author as someone who was motivated to invoke revenge against the Romans. This leads us to a fascinating lady named Emilia Bassano.  Who was she?

Emilia Bassano was a descendant of Sephardic Jews of Moroccan ancestry living in Venice before immigrating to London in 1548 to become musicians in the court of Henry VIII. Emily was born in London, and, given that her family had "converted" to Christianity, she was christened at St. Botolph, Bishopsgate, on January 27, 1569. She attended the court of Elizabeth I, and, in 1592, married her cousin, Captain Alphonso Lanier, a musician. Her husband died in 1613. It should be noted that Atwill is not alone in connecting Emilia Bassano to Shakespeare. A.L. Rowse has articulated his view that Emilia was the 'dark lady' of the Sonnets. (It is interesting that Emilia was called  "the Moor" by her family and that the Bassano family coat of arms was the mulberry tree, called "morus" in Latin, translated as 'moor' in English.) It should also be recognized that Emilia was a highly accomplished author in her own name, having published Salve Deus in 1611. This was the first book "registered" by a woman in England.  Reminding the reader that Emilia came from a family of musicians, Atwill observes that the plays of Shakespeare are "intensely musical," and that many of the songs in the plays "can be seen as autobiographical of Emilia Bassano." Atwill also notes that the plays reveal an intimate knowledge of Italy where the Bassano family had lived for centuries. The connection to Venice, in particular, is found in The Merchant of Venice which also has a common thread with The Jew of Malta authored by Christopher Marlowe.

Emilia Bassano's association with Christopher Marlowe is the link connecting Shakespeare to the Flavian Dynasty and their conspiracy to influence the outcome of Messianic Christianity.  Marlowe was a member of "The School of Night" founded by Sir Walter Raleigh which "met secretly" to discuss "forbidden knowledge."  Marlowe was aware of the Flavian scheme to redefine Christianity. Emilia Bassano, in turn, learned of the conspiracy through Christopher Marlowe.  Emilia wrote Salve Deus and then the plays to create "a literary counterattack" and as revenge against the Romans for their treatment of the Jews. At the time of his murder, Marlowe was under investigation by the Court of the Star Chamber for heresy. His death, in 1593, "ended his efforts to expose the truth about Christianity." The book he was writing at the time of his death has never been found.