Persians on the battlefield, yet with uncharacteristic magnanimity he pardons and releases Cosroe and Cassana, and then surprises all by abdicating his position in favor of his nephew Maximinian. Dioclesian marries Drusilla and retires to a farm in Lombardy. Maximinian is now co-ruler with Charinus, but the two come into conflict. Maximinian believes that his own rule will never be secure as long as Dioclesian lives: the soldiers admire the abdicated uncle more than the nephew in power. In the play's climax, Maximinian leads his troops against Dioclesian; but an apparent divine intervention (Delphia-inspired) – earthquake, thunder, lightning, and a godly hand in the clouds – turns Maximinian repentant. Dioclesian and Drusilla are left to enjoy their country retirement, unmolested. The play's comic relief is supplied by the clown character Geta, a servant and follower of Dioclesian who is promoted to an officer, without any of the qualities that would qualify him for the position. The play's departures from historical fact are almost too many to list. The actual Maximian was Diocletian's co-ruler, not his heir; Carinus died in 285, before Maximian was elevated to Caesarship; Maximian retired at the same time as Diocletian; when he became emperor, Diocletian was not a common soldier but a consul; Diocletian retired to Dalmatia, not Lombardy; etc. etc. The play contains surprisingly old-fashioned features for a work of the 1620s; its chorus, dumbshow, and Marlovain bombast suggest a work of the previous generation of dramas. It is possible that The Prophetess is a reworking of the lost play Diocletian from 1594. The play contains spectacular elements; critics have wondered exactly how the entrance of Delphia and Drusilla in II, iii, "in a Throne drawn by Dragons," could have been staged. References English Renaissance plays 1622 plays Plays by John Fletcher (playwright) Plays by Philip Massinger Plays by John Fletcher and Massinger Cultural depictions of Diocletian