New Place was the second-largest house in Stratford-upon-Avon. When he bought the property on 4 May 1597, Shakespeare was preparing to return to his hometown as a successful playwright and businessman. New Place had been built by Sir Hugh Clopton in 1483. By the time Shakespeare acquired it, it had three storeys, five gables, two […]Continue reading
Shakespeare first made his name in London as the poet who wrote Venus and Adonis. Shakespeare’s poem is an erotic and ironic tale of frustrated seduction. It was printed in ten editions during the poet’s lifetime and it was an instant favourite. In Epigrammes in the oldest cut, and newest fashion (1599) John Weever wrote a […]Continue reading
When Stratford-upon-Avon’s burgesses were elected to office, they were entitled to send their children to be educated at the local Grammar School free of charge. As the son of a burgess, William Shakespeare would have enrolled at New King’s Grammar School to embark on a study of Latin authors between the ages of seven and […]Continue reading
Stratford-upon-Avon was Shakespeare’s hometown and he lived there until he moved to London in the early 1590s. Shakespeare grew up on Henley Street, just a few minutes’ walk away from the Town Hall. It was a central location as the Town Hall was the centre of civic life after a royal charter from Edward VI […]Continue reading
Welcome to Shakespeare’s World blog! The only blog dedicated to exploring Shakespeare’s life and works in historical context. We’ll be exploring key events in Shakespeare’s life as well as his immediate and extended family. Some of the questions we will ask are: How did Shakespeare get a free education? Was Shakespeare a ‘jack-of-all-trades’? What was […]Continue reading
