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William Shakespeare biography :
The Bard of Avon was reputed to have been born on 23
April 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon. There are no records of his birth,
only that of a baptism on 26 April 1564. His parents were John
Shakespeare and Mary Arden.
Very little is known about Shakespeare’s youth. Even Shakespearean
scholars cannot determine which academic institution he attended in
his youth. They, however, believe that, based on young Shakespeare’s
knowledge of Latin and Classical Greek, he most probably attended free
grammar school in Stratford. William Shakespeare never had formal
university schooling.
In 28 November 1582, William married a pregnant Anne Hathaway who was
8 years his senior. They had three children: Susanna, and twins Hamnet
and Judith. It is unfortunate that Hamnet did not live to see
adulthood, he died at age 11.
It is not known when Shakespeare arrived in London, but the scholars
surmise it to be around 1588. He must have shown much promise as, even
during the early stages of his career; he received many an attack on
his works. These, however, did not faze the playwright as he continued
to write and act in plays such as Lord Chamberlain’s Men.
William Shakespeare is probably, compared to his contemporaries, the
most successful playwright during his time. He published and sold
several of his works, and his company can be considered as the most
successful group in London. Shakespeare retired in Stratford in 1611.
Just as his birth was full of mystery, so was his death. William
Shakespeare supposedly passed away on his birthday, 23 April 1616.
Seven years after his death, John Heminges and Henry Condell, two of
his companions in Lord Chamberlain’s Men, published The First Folio, a
compilation of previously unpublished works. His Sonnets were first
seen through this book. |
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