William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon, a market town in Warwickshire, England, to John Shakespeare, a successful glover and alderman, and Mary Arden, the daughter of an affluent landowning farmer. Though the exact date of his birth is unknown, he was baptized on April 26, 1564, and his birthday is traditionally celebrated on April 23. He grew up during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, a time of English cultural flourishing and exploration, which would profoundly influence his later works.

At age 18, Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway, who was eight years his senior and pregnant with their first child. The marriage was likely hastily arranged, as Anne was already three months pregnant. Their daughter Susanna was born six months later in May 1583. The couple went on to have twins, Hamnet and Judith, in 1585. Despite spending much of his professional life in London, Shakespeare maintained his family home in Stratford and regularly returned to visit, though details of their marital relationship remain largely unknown.

Shakespeare arrived in London and began his career in the theatre, though the exact date and circumstances of his arrival remain mysterious—the period between 1585 and 1592 is known as his 'lost years.' By 1592, he had established himself as an actor and playwright, with several of his early plays already performed. He became associated with the Lord Chamberlain's Men, one of London's leading theatre companies, where he would spend most of his career as both a writer and performer.

Shakespeare published his first work, the narrative poem 'Venus and Adonis,' dedicated to Henry Wriothesley, Earl of Southampton, who may have been his patron. The poem was an immediate success and became one of the most popular works of poetry in the Elizabethan era. During this period, London's theatres were closed due to plague outbreaks, prompting Shakespeare to focus on poetry. The following year he published another narrative poem, 'The Rape of Lucrece,' also dedicated to Southampton.

The Globe Theatre, in which Shakespeare was a shareholder, opened on the south bank of the Thames River. This iconic theatre would become the primary venue for performances of his plays, including Julius Caesar, Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, and Macbeth. As both a shareholder and the company's principal playwright, Shakespeare enjoyed significant financial success and creative freedom. The Globe could accommodate up to 3,000 spectators and featured an open-air design with a thrust stage that influenced how Shakespeare wrote his plays.

Following the death of Queen Elizabeth I and the accession of King James I, the Lord Chamberlain's Men were renamed the King's Men and came under the direct patronage of the new monarch. This royal patronage brought increased prestige, financial security, and frequent performances at court. Under James I, Shakespeare wrote some of his greatest tragedies, including Othello, King Lear, and Macbeth (which particularly pleased James with its Scottish themes and treatment of witchcraft). The company performed more often at court than any other company of the era.

Shakespeare's collection of 154 sonnets was published, though many were likely written years earlier. These poems, dedicated to a mysterious 'Mr. W.H.,' explore themes of love, beauty, mortality, and time. The sonnets include some of the most famous love poems in the English language and have sparked centuries of debate about their autobiographical elements and the identities of the 'Fair Youth,' the 'Dark Lady,' and the 'Rival Poet' mentioned in various poems. The sonnets demonstrated Shakespeare's mastery not only of dramatic verse but also of lyric poetry.

During a performance of Shakespeare's play Henry VIII (or All Is True), a theatrical cannon misfired, igniting the thatched roof of the Globe Theatre. The entire theatre burned to the ground in less than an hour, though remarkably, no one was seriously injured, with one report noting only that a man's breeches caught fire and were extinguished with a bottle of ale. The Globe was rebuilt by 1614 with a tiled roof, but by this time, Shakespeare had already begun to retire from active writing and was spending more time in Stratford.

William Shakespeare died in Stratford-upon-Avon at age 52, on what is believed to be his birthday, April 23, 1616. The cause of his death remains unknown, though there is a tradition that he died of a fever contracted after a night of heavy drinking with fellow writers Ben Jonson and Michael Drayton. He was buried in Holy Trinity Church in Stratford, where his grave bears a curse against moving his bones. His will famously left his 'second-best bed' to his wife Anne. Though he left no direct descendants (his only son Hamnet died in 1596), his literary legacy transformed English literature and theatre forever, with 38 plays, 154 sonnets, and several poems that continue to be performed, studied, and celebrated worldwide.