Romeo and Juliet William Shakespeare Biography

William Shakespeare was born and raised in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, and was baptized on April 26, 1564. He died on April 23, 1616. He is considered the greatest writer and dramatist in the English language and is touted as the national poet of England. He is known as the “Bard of Avon,” or simply “the Bard.” His body of work includes plays and poetry, especially sonnets. Most of what he produced rank among the classics today. He was married to Anne Hathaway when he was 18, and the couple had three children—Susanna, Hamnet, and Judith. During his own time, Shakespeare’s writings were often considered crude and tasteless by his peers.

Sometime between 1585 and 1592, he began a successful career in London as an actor, writer and part-owner of Lord Chamberlain’s Men, a playing company, which was later renamed the King’s Men. His audience was not limited to the educated upper class; his plays were accessible to a broader and varied audience across classes. Not much is known about his personal life, which has led to several speculations about his appearance, religious beliefs, and sexuality. His early plays are regarded as some of the best works ever produced; notably, they were primarily comedies and histories. His later works mainly include tragedies. In fact, Shakespeare mainly wrote tragedies until 1608, all of which are considered the finest examples of the genre. Allegedly, he retired to Stratford at the age of 49, where he died at 52.