Early life in Stratford
William was the third of eight children and John and Mary Shakespeare’s eldest surviving son. John was a glover and wool dealer who rose to become Stratford’s bailiff in 1568; Mary came from a farming family in Wilmcote.
The secure record is William’s baptism at Holy Trinity Church on 26 April 1564. His exact birthday is unknown. The traditional 23 April date is plausible, but it should not be treated as documented fact.
Education
Shakespeare almost certainly attended the King’s New School, Stratford’s free grammar school. No attendance lists survive. Its curriculum would have concentrated on Latin grammar, rhetoric and classical writers, including Ovid—training visible in his later command of argument, story and verbal form.
Marriage and family
A marriage licence was issued in late November 1582 for the 18-year-old William and Anne Hathaway, about eight years older and pregnant. Susanna was baptised in May 1583; twins Hamnet and Judith followed in February 1585.
Hamnet died aged 11 and was buried on 11 August 1596. Any direct connection between that loss and Hamlet, written several years later, remains interpretation rather than documentary fact.
The “lost years”
Roughly 1585 to 1592 are called the lost years because almost no records locate Shakespeare or explain how he entered the theatre. Stories about deer-poaching or work as a country schoolmaster are later traditions, not established biography.
London and the theatre
By 1592 Shakespeare was sufficiently visible for Robert Greene’s pamphlet to mock an “upstart Crow”, widely understood as a jibe at him. During the plague closures of 1592–94 he published Venus and Adonis and The Rape of Lucrece, both dedicated to Henry Wriothesley.
In 1594 he became a founding sharer of the Lord Chamberlain’s Men, with Richard Burbage as leading actor. Being a shareholder as well as writer helped turn theatrical success into substantial income.
Success and New Place
In 1596 John Shakespeare received a coat of arms with the motto “Non sanz droict”—“Not without right”. In 1597 William bought New Place, one of Stratford’s largest houses.
The company built the Globe in 1599 using some timbers from The Theatre in Shoreditch. In 1603 royal patronage transformed the Lord Chamberlain’s Men into the King’s Men.
Final years and death
Around 1608–09 the company added the indoor Blackfriars to its venues. By about 1613 Shakespeare had largely retired to Stratford, while collaborating with John Fletcher on late work.
He signed his will on 25 March 1616, famously leaving Anne his “second best bed with the furniture”. He died on 23 April, cause unknown, and was buried in Holy Trinity Church on 25 April.
Good frend for Iesvs sake forbeare, / To digg the dvst encloased heare
Gravestone epitaph, Holy Trinity Church
Burial and monument
A funerary monument by Gheerart Janssen, also known as Gerard Johnson, was installed in the church before 1623. Anne died on 6 August 1623 and lies beside him.
