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- Lee Jamieson
- 1564: Shakespeare Born. The life of William Shakespeare begins in April 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon, England when he was born into a prosperous family (his father was a glove maker).
- 1571-1578: Schooling. Thanks to the social standing of William Shakespeare's father, he managed to gain a place at King Edward IV Grammar School in Stratford-upon-Avon.
- 1582: Married Anne Hathaway. A shotgun marriage to ensure that their first child was not born out of wedlock sees the young William Shakespeare married to Anne Hathaway, daughter of a wealthy local farmer.
- 1585-1592: The Shakespeare Lost Years. The life of William Shakespeare disappears from the history books for several years. This period, now known as the Lost Years, has been the subject of much speculation.
Timeline of Shakespeare's Life. 1564: William Shakespeare born in Stratford-upon-Avon. 1582: Shakespeare marries Anne Hathaway. 1583: Shakespeare’s first child, Susanna, is born. 1585: Shakespeare’s twins, Judith and Hamnet, are born. 1592: Shakespeare is first alluded to as a playwright, in Greene’s Groates-worth of Wit.
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- Overview
- April 26, 1564
- 1582
- c. 1589–92
- 1592
- c. 1592–94
- 1594
- Autumn 1599
- April 23, 1616
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William Shakespeare is baptized at the Holy Trinity Church in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The exact date of his birth is not known. The standard of the time was to baptize an infant three days after birth, so Shakespeare’s birthday is traditionally celebrated on April 23. He is the son of John and Mary Arden Shakespeare.
Shakespeare marries Anne Hathaway, also of Stratford. The pair have three children: Susanna (baptized May 26, 1583) and twins Hamnet and Judith (baptized February 2, 1585). Hamnet, Shakespeare’s only son, dies at age 11.
Shakespeare composes his first full-length tragedy, Titus Andronicus, a violent story of revenge and political strife in ancient Rome. The exact date range of its composition has never been determined, but he likely wrote it after relocating to London sometime in the late 1580s.
The first reference to Shakespeare as a part of the literary world of London comes from a pamphlet written by Robert Greene, a fellow dramatist. In the pamphlet Greene insults the young Shakespeare as an “upstart crow.”
During a pause in his theatrical career that was caused by an outbreak of plague in London, Shakespeare begins writing poetry. The work produced during this period includes the poems Venus and Adonis (1593) and The Rape of Lucrece (1594) and his sonnet sequence (published 1609).
Shakespeare joins the Lord Chamberlain’s Men theatrical company (later called the King’s Men), with whom he works for the remainder of his career as a dramatist. The company features actor Richard Burbage, who was widely acclaimed as the best English actor of the era.
Construction of the Globe Theatre, home of the Lord Chamberlain’s Men, is completed. It is the first theater to be specifically built for an existing acting company. Most of Shakespeare’s greatest plays were first performed at the open-air Globe. The theater was destroyed in 1644 but its lasting fame, because of its connection with Shakespeare, led...
Shakespeare dies in his hometown of Stratford. Knowing that his end was near, he had made his will the previous month, bequeathing his property to the male heirs of his elder daughter, Susanna. Historians have long puzzled over his decision to leave his wife, Anne (who would die in 1623), his “second-best bed.” Shakespeare is buried on the grounds of the parish church of Stratford.
William Shakespeare summary
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Since William Shakespeare lived more than 400 years ago, and many records from that time are lost or never existed in the first place, we don’t know everything about Shakespeare’s life. For example, we know that he was baptized in Stratford-upon-Avon, 100 miles northwest of London, on April 26, 1564.
May 13, 2024 · William Shakespeare (baptized April 26, 1564, Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England—died April 23, 1616, Stratford-upon-Avon) was a poet, dramatist, and actor often called the English national poet. He is considered by many to be the greatest dramatist of all time.
His earliest plays seem to date from the late 1580s to the mid-1590s and include the comedies Love’s Labour’s Lost, The Comedy of Errors, The Taming of the Shrew, and A Midsummer Night’s Dream; history plays based on the lives of the English kings, including Henry VI (parts 1, 2, and 3), Richard III, and Richard II; and the tragedy Romeo and Jul...
Shakespeare timeline. William Shakespeare's life began in Stratford-upon-Avon in 1564. Although his career as an actor, theatre manager and playwright took him to London, Shakespeare remained a country boy at heart. He returned there often to visit his family, use his library and to write in familiar surroundings.
