William Shakespeare's Life and Times

When and where was he born?

John Shakespeare's House in Stratford-upon-Avon

Although the specific date is not known, it is believed that William Shakespeare was born on April 22 or 23, 1564 at Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England.

What was his upbringing like?

He was one of eight children (five of which survived to adulthood). His dad, John Shakespeare, was a glove-maker. He received his earliest education from a tutor, but at age seven, he entered the King's New School in Stratford, a free school that was chartered near his home. At the King's New School, he learned a little bit of Latin and some Greek. At around age thirteen, he left school and became an apprentice to a butcher.

For what is Shakespeare so well known?

Shakespeare is well known for his accomplishments as both a playwright and a poet. Through the course of his lifetime, he wrote 38 plays, 154 sonnets, two narrative poems, and a plethora of other poems. Today, his plays are both performed and read.

How did he die?

Nobody truly knows how he died, but there are many theories. John Ward, the vicar of Holy Trinity Church in Stratford, noted in his diary that Shakespeare died from a fever that he contracted as the result of drinking too much. Many historians believe Ward's dianosis is credible because a serious outbreak of typhus had emerged sometime near the time of Shakespeare's death. However, Shakespeare's physician thought he died of a cerebral hemorrhage or an apoplexy.

What did the great playwrite have engraved into his tombstone?

"Good friend for Jesus' sake forbeare,
To dig the dust enclosed here!
Blest be the man that spares these stones,
And curst be he that moves my bones."

How did Shakespeare's life reflect that he was a "man of words"?

Shakespeare's life reflects that he was a "man of words" because he had no one to specifically train him to write good poetry or stellar plays, but rather, he acquired the skill to powerfully manipulate and use words on his own accord. Though playwright Robert Greene criticized Shakespeare for trying to match the rank of university-educated playwrights such as Christopher Marlowe and Thomas Nash, it was Shakespeare's writing that vastly influenced the English language, giving him the title, the "Bard of Avon."