Apprentice Programme - William Shakespeare

April 26th, 1564, is generally thought to be Shakespeare’s birthday. The first of 8 children, he attended Stratford grammar school but did not have an extensive education. Although famous for his plays, it was his poetry that first brought him recognition.

The next record of Shakespeare’s life is the date November 28, 1582, when he married Anne Hathaway.

Their first daughter, Susanna, was baptised on May 26, 1582 and a set of twins, Hamnet and Judith, were born two years later. Hamnet died of the plague at the age of eleven. Scholars refer to the period between 1585 and 1592 as ‘the Lost Years’ as there are no records of Shakespeare’s activities during this time. Stories vary, but many claim he was a schoolteacher whilst some believe he trained as a butcher.

By 1592 we know he was living in London, establishing himself as an actor and playwright whilst working for a company known as the ‘Lord Chamberlain’s Men’, later changing their name to ‘The King’s Men’ when King James I was crowned in 1603.

This period in Shakespeare’s life was his most prolific. His poetry appeared before his plays, with two poems published in 1593 and 1594. It is thought that most of Shakespeare’s sonnets were written around this time too. As for plays, records suggest the first appeared in 1594 and continued at a rate of 2 every year until 1611.

The earliest works include ‘Henry VI’ and ‘Titus Andronicus’. ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’, ‘The Merchant of Venice’ and ‘Richard II’ all date from the mid to late 1590s. His most famous tragedies including ‘Hamlet’, ‘Othello’, ‘King Lear’ and ‘Macbeth’ were written in the early 1600s. His later plays, often referred to as the Romances, date from 1608 onwards and include ‘The Tempest’.

Shakespeare retired in 1611, returning to Stratford for the final years of his life. He died on April 23, 1616 at the age of 52. The first collected edition of his works, known as the ‘First Folio’, was published in 1623.

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