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There are few hard facts about William Shakespeare 's life. What is certain is that Shakespeare was baptised in Stratford-upon-Avon in Warwickshire , England , April 26 , 1564 , at age 18 married Anne Hathaway , had three children, and died on April 23 , 1616 at the age of 52. Shakespeare was one of the first playwrights to retire before he died. EARLY LIFE William Shakespeare (also spelled Shakspere, Shaksper and Shake-speare, as spelling in , the son of John Shakespeare , a successful glover and alderman from Snitterfield , and of Mary Arden , a daughter of the Gentry . They lived on Henley Street, having married around 1557. The date of his birth is not known, but his baptismal record was dated April 26 , 1564 . This is the first official record of Shakespeare, as birth certificates were not issued during Queen Elizabeth's time. Because baptisms were normally performed within a few days of birth, a tradition arose that he was born on April 23 , but this has no historical basis. It is the Feast Day of Saint George , the Patron Saint of England, which might seem appropriate for England 's greatest playwright. This date provides a convenient symmetry because Shakespeare died on the same day, April 23 ( May 3 on the Gregorian Calendar ), in 1616. Shakespeare's parents had eight children: Joan (1558), Margaret (1562-63), William, Gilbert (1566-1612), Joan (1569-1646), Anne (1571-79), Richard (1574-1613), and Edmund (1580-1607). A Shakespeare Genealogy Shakespeare's father, prosperous at the time of William's birth, was prosecuted for participating in the black market in Wool , and later lost his position as an Alderman . Some evidence pointed to possible Roman Catholic sympathies on both sides of the family.For a more complete discussion of this see the Catholic Encyclopedia article The Religion of Shakespeare Shakespeare probably attended King Edward VI Grammar School in central Stratford. 'Will in the World' by Stephen Greenblatt, Quebecor World, Fairfield; United States, 2004, p. 25 The King honored in the school's name (Edward VI) had nothing to do with the original founding of the school, which had Roman Catholic origins. It had been established in the early fifteenth century, far before Edward's time.'Will in the World' by Stephen Greenblatt, Quebecor World, Fairfield; United States, 2004, p. 25 While the quality of Elizabethan-era grammar schools was uneven, the school probably would have provided an intensive education in Latin grammar and literature. As a part of this education, the students would likely have been exposed to Latin plays, in which students performed to better understand the language. One of Shakespeare's earliest plays, '' The Comedy Of Errors '', bears similarity to Plautus ''The Two Menaechmuses'', which could well have been performed at the school.'Will in the World' by Stephen Greenblatt, Quebecor World, Fairfield; United States, 2004, pp. 27-8 It is presumed that the young Shakespeare attended this school,Honan, Park. ''Shakespeare: A Life''. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999, 43. although his attendance cannot be confirmed because the school's records have not survived. This school, which made frequent use of corporal punishment, was free to male children in Stratford dating from an endowment by a Catholic chaplain in 1482. 'Will in the World' by Stephen Greenblatt, Quebecor World, Fairfield; United States, 2004, p. 25 There is no evidence that his formal education extended beyond grammar school. Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway (who was 26) at the age of 18, on November 29 , 1582 at Temple Grafton , near Stratford. Two neighbours of Hathaway, Fulk Sandalls and John Richardson, posted bond that there were no impediments to the marriage. There appears to have been some haste in arranging the ceremony: Hathaway was three months pregnant. On May 26 , 1583 , Shakespeare's first child, Susanna , was baptized at Stratford. Twin children, a son, Hamnet , and a daughter, Judith , were baptized on February 2 , 1585 . Hamnet died in 1596, Susanna in 1649 and Judith in 1662. After his marriage, Shakespeare left few traces in the historical record until he appeared on the deer, that he worked as a country school teacher, and that he minded the horses of theater patrons in London. There is no direct evidence to support any of these stories and they all appeared to have started after Shakespeare's death. "The Lost Years," Shakespeare Time line, accessed Nov. 7, 2006. | |||
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