William ShakespeareBy Monica Hemingway

The Beginning• William Shakespeare was born in

Stratford-upon-Avon • He was supposedly born on April

23, 1564

Lower part of England

The room Shakespeare was born in

Holy Trinity Church

Parents• William

Shakespeare’s father, John Shakespeare, was a glover, whittawer, and a leather merchant

• Mary Arden, his mother, was a landed local heiress

John Shakespeare’s Job• In 1565, John Shakespeare took a place at the town’s council as an alderman

• In 1568, he was the high bailiff, which is equivalent of a town mayor.

• Proper Attire: A black gown with fur and a thumb ring

Education• Nobody knows, for sure, where he

attended school

• Shakespeare had knowledge in:

• Latin

• Classical Greek

Those were mandatory classes at the Grammar School of Stratford

Grammar School in Stratford

Shakespeare’s School

• Shakespeare must of left school at the age of 14 or 15, which was normal

• Discipline was rough

• Children learned to read and write by the age of 4 or 5

The First Lost Years• Between 1578 – 1582• He may have travelled to Italy• He may have gone out to find a job

such as :– Law Clerk– Schoolmaster– Scrivener– Soldier– Sailor

• 1579 – Anne Shakespeare dies

Shakespeare–Criminal Record?Sir Thomas was so covetous

To covet so much deer

When horns enough upon his head

Most plainly did appear

Had not his worship one deer left?

What then? He had a wife

Took pains enough to find him horns

Should last him during his life.

Marriage• Shakespea

re married Anne Hathaway on November 28, 1582

Family• Susanna,

the first daughter, was born on May 26, 1583

• Hamnet and Judith, twins, were born on February 2, 1585

Names• William named Hamnet and Judith

after his friends, Hamnet and Judith Sadler

• The couple owned a bakery

• They became the twin’s god-parents

• Hamnet and Judith’s first baby was a boy named William

The Second Lost Years• Between 1582 – 1592

• He definitely left Stratford

• Probably to pursue his career in London

The Summer of 1588• William Shakespeare is 24 years

old

• Volunteered at the Armada Muster

• Met a girl who was the daughter of Richard Woodward, a land owner

Bitter Disappointments• Hamnet, one of the twins, died in

childhood at the age of 11

• Hamnet’s death was caused by an illness

• John Comb, one of Shakespeare’s friends, died and left him £5

Robert Greene• Robert Greene was a Cambridge

MA

• He was born in 1558

• He was a writer and a pamphleteer

•Robert Greene called Shakespeare an “upstart young cow” in 1592

The Globe Theatre• The original Globe

Theatre was built by James Burbage in 1576.

• In 1597, the company technically owned the Theatre

• The landlord, Giles Allen, wanted to tear the Theatre down.

The Globe Theatre (cont.)• The company then purchased

property at Blackfriars in Upper Frater Hall

• The bough along £600 for theatrical use

• The old lease allowed the company to dismantle the building themselves…

The Second Globe Theatre• The men took down the Theatre

• Moved the materials across the Thames to Bankside

• Then, proceeded to use the materials in constructing the second Globe Theatre

The second Globe Theatre

The Aftermath• Giles Allen returned to London

• He sued the carpenter for £800 • The courts found in favor of the

Lord Chamberlain’s Men

• The court ordered Allen to desist from any other legal charges

Shakespeare’s Career • Some of his plays were made even

before 1592

• Made his career with Francis Meres and Philip Henslowe

Shakespeare’s Career (cont.)• He was the principal poet for the

Chamberlain’s Men

• The greatest honor and the most important opportunity in Shakespeare’s life

Titus Andronicus• George Peele had been known to be the original author

• Changed the name to Titus and Vespasian

• In 1598, Shakespeare’s partner showed proof that the play was an original of Shakespeare’s

This is the only surviving contemporary illustration from the play, because the Globe Theatre gets

burned down in 1613

Shakespeare is reciting a play in front of the Court

of Queen Elizabeth l.

Arden of Feversham• No one knows who

wrote the play

• Printed in 1592

• Made before Shakespeare’s play, Henry IV

Comedy• Shakespeare’s

first comedies were:

• The Taming of the Shrew

• The Two Gentlemen of Verona

• The Comedy of Errors

Shakespeare Lost A Play• The play Cardenio had been known

to exist in Shakespeare’s time

• It was played in theatres

• It was very popular

• We have no record of the play whatsoever

Writing: Romeo & Juliet• Shakespeare used:

• Knight’s Tale (1559)

• Diana (1560)

• Romeus and Juliet (1562)

• In 1595, he took all these together and made the play Romeo & Juliet

Venus and Adonis • A poem

• Earl of Southampton is Shakespeare’s patron

• Probably made for/to the Earl of Southampton

The dedication page to the play.

New Place• In about 1594, William

Shakespeare purchased property• He purchased the second largest

house in town• Is was called New Place

Fires• In 1594, only part of Stratford

burned down

• In 1595, another fire happened in Stratford, but it was even worse.

Afterwards• 1601 - John Shakespeare dies

• 1607 - Edmund Shakespeare dies

• 1608 - Mary Shakespeare dies

Retirement• He wrote his will in 1611:

Pg.1 Pg. 2 Pg. 3

Will • Most of his properties went to his

daughter Susanna

• £300 went to Judith, one of the twins

• He left his “second best bed” to his wife

Shakespeare’s Tombstone

Good friend, for Jesus’ sake ,forbearTo dig the dust enclosed here;Blest be the man that spares these stonesAnd curst he that moves my bones.

1613• The Globe Theatre burned to the

ground

• A cannonball shot during the play of Henry VIII

• It ignited the thatched roof of the gallery

The Globe Theatre: Rediscovered• The foundations of the Theatre

were rediscovered in 1989

• People began to reconstruct it is 1993

• The latest Globe Theatre was completed in 1996

Publishing• In 1623, after Shakespeare’s

death, Shakespeare’s plays published by William Jaggard. The first folio contained 36 plays and sold for…

£1

Facts• Shakespeare

invented the word "assassination” and “bump”

• There are no authentic portraits of William Shakespeare

Facts (cont.)• There are more than 80 spelling

variations of the name “Shakespeare”

• Whenever William Shakespeare wrote his name, he never wrote his name correctly

This signature on his will says:

William Shakspear

Facts (cont.)• Some planet’s moons are named

after characters in Shakespeare’s plays

• There is a rumor that Shakespeare has an illegitimate son

• Shakespeare’s family was mostly illiterate

Grandchildren• Susanna married John Hall, a

doctor, in 1607• In 1608, Elizabeth Hall is born

• Judith married Thomas Quiney, a vintner, in 1616

• In 1616, Shakespeare Quiney is born

• In 1617, Richard Quiney is born• In 1619, Thomas Quiney is born

Coat of Arms

“Not Without Right”

The Shakespeare Family Tree

Key = Died in childhood/plague.

= Marriage

John Shakespeare Mary Arden

Joan Margaret

William Shakespeare

Gilbert Joan Anne Richard Edmund

Anne Hathaway

Susanna John Hall Hamnet Thomas Quiney Judith

Elizabeth Shakespeare Richard Thomas