Overview 

William Shakespeare (1564-1616) was an English dramatist, poet, and actor, considered to be one of the greatest playwrights of all time. His works have transcended their origin in Elizabethan and Jacobean England to be performed in countries around the world throughout the centuries. Shakespeare is also credited with the invention of over 1,700 words in the English language. 

Early Life 

William Shakespeare was baptized in Stratford-upon-Avon on April 26, 1564; it is assumed that his birthday was a couple of days before this date, as infants were baptized quickly due to high infant mortality during this time, and his birthday is often celebrated on April 23—perhaps a date of convenience as this was his death date, as well. Born to John Shakespeare, a glove-maker, and Mary Shakespeare (née Arden, of the prominent Arden family in Stratford), Shakespeare grew up in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, his parents’ oldest surviving child. (Two elder girls died in infancy; Shakespeare had three younger brothers—Gilbert, Richard, and Edmund,—and two younger sisters—Anne, who died at seven, and Joan.) John Shakespeare was involved in local offices, becoming an alderman in 1565 and a bailiff (a position corresponding to mayor) in 1568. As the child of the town’s most prominent citizen, it is understood that Shakespeare likely attended Stratford’s grammar school until age 15, where he would have studied Latin, learning to memorize, write, and speak the language and its classic plays. 

Marriage and Children

Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway in late 1582, who was expecting their first-born child, Susanna,  born six months after their marriage and baptized on May 26, 1583. The couple’s twins, Judith and Hamnet were baptized on February 2, 1585. (Hamnet died at age 11.) Shakespeare’s eldest daughter, Susanna married John Hall, a Stratford physician—producing one grandchild of Shakespeare’s in 1608—and his younger daughter, Judith, married Thomas Quiney, a Stratford vintner. The family subsequently died out; there are no known direct descendents of Shakespeare. 

London Theatre

Following a period between 1582 and 1592, known as “the Lost Years” due to a lack of knowledge of Shakespeare’s life during this time, Shakespeare’s name popped up in the writing of a fellow dramatist, Robert Greene, intending “Shake-scene” as an insult of sorts. By 1592, Shakespeare was an established London actor and playwright. In 1593, Shakespeare published his long poem Venus and Adonis, likely written while the plague stopped London theatre from 1592 to 1593. In 1594, the first quarto of Shakespeare’s earlier works was published. (Plays were often published in quarto form, where four pages were printed on each side of a large sheet, folded into eight pages to create a gathering.) From roughly 1594 onward, Shakespeare was a founding member of the Lord Chamberlain’s company of players—later, the King’s Men under King James I—which performed first in The Theatre, and later in the Globe Theatre once it was finished in 1599. Shakespeare became a shareholder in the company and theatre, becoming concerned with the finances of his plays, as well. As a dramatist, he wrote, on average, two plays a year for roughly twenty years. He steadily became more famous throughout the years, as evidenced by the increasing size of his name on publications of his works, “clearly a selling point.” 

Later Years 

Shakespeare bought property in Stratford-upon-Avon—the largest home, known as New Place—after becoming wealthy due to his involvement in London theatre. He also inherited his old family home on Henley Street upon his father’s death in 1601. Made on March 25, 1616, his will famously bequeathed his “second-best bed” to Anne Hathaway, and his property to the male heir of his eldest daughter, Susanna. Dying on April 23, 1616, Shakespeare was buried at Holy Trinity Church in Stratford-upon-Avon. (Anne Hathaway died seven years after Shakespeare’s death.)

Legacy

Shakespeare’s works were long performed as part of the repertory of the King’s Men. His colleagues gathered to publish the First Folio of 1623, which published 36 plays together, nearly half of which were texts published for the first time. His works have been celebrated by literary critics and audiences throughout the years.