What do you think? To be or not go through these 20 fascinating Shakespeare facts? To read or not to read! Learn more about England’s national stage playwright and his nickname, Bard of Avon, William Shakespeare! Find out about his remarkable life, his knack for inventing words, as well as the reason he left his wife with an odd item as part of his will. If you’ve enjoyed these interesting Shakespeare facts, We’ve got even more bizarre and amazing facts on Beano.com such as these amazing interesting facts and bizarre historical facts, as well as for Disney lovers, here is this Mary Poppins information!
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20 William Shakespeare Fun Facts
- He was from Stratford Upon Avon
William Shakespeare was born in Stratford Upon Avon, Warwickshire, England. When Shakespeare was at birth, the town was a market town, with various traders. Shakespeare’s dad, John, has a wide range of different trades throughout his lifetime, such as the corn trader, glover cashier, ale taster, moneylender and even the position of Mayor of the town at one time. - He was born in 1564.
Shakespeare began his life in April 1564. We don’t have the exact date of birth, since the birth dates of those days weren’t recorded. Instead, the day on which you were baptized was registered – in this instance, April 26April 26. Shakespeare began his career in Tudor, England, during Elizabeth I, which is often referred to as the ‘Golden Age’ for the arts and culture. Being a child from an upper middle class family, It would have been uncommon for William to earn an income as a writer. This made his accomplishments even more impressive. - He got married when he was 18 years old.
The records indicate that Shakespeare got married to Anne Hathaway, 26, at the age of 18. Anne was pregnant at the time, suggesting that the wedding could be rushed as it was not considered acceptable to have a child unless you were already married. Anne and William were together until the time of their death, even though William was frequently away. - He was a victim of some Mystery Years
The period 1585-1592 was’missing the picture of Shakespeare’s life, and in the end, we don’t know what he was doing. Many thrilling speculations are suggesting that he was sitting in court, traveling throughout the world, or was already performing on stage. It’s likely to be somewhat less thrilling the likelihood is that you could be doing law classes or had gone into hiding after being found poaching on an aristocrat’s local estate. - He invented Loads of Words
There are hundreds of words created by or first recorded by Shakespeare and Shakespeare, including a lot that we still use. In actual fact, there are too many to mention here! Shakespeare also came up with a number of well-known phrases, like “Break the Ice” As luck will have it’ “Cruel to be kind Green-eyed Monster’ and ‘The world is your oyster.’ There are many more! There are a lot more! Shakespeare Birthplace Trust has a entire page of them on this site! - He Never Left England
Shakespeare’s plays are located all over the world; Italy, France, Denmark, Scotland and Greece, to mention several, however, there’s no evidence to suggest that Shakespeare has ever left England. We don’t know what he was up to during his “Mystery Years” and considering that certain of the geography used in the plays is suspicious, we can affirm that he did not visit every place he wrote about. A lot of his stories were based upon existing folklore, and they could have been based on the places he was provided with. - Shakespeare wrote his name and spelled it A plethora of different ways
Today, we are able to use “standardized spelling,” which basically means that words have one proper spelling. At the time of Shakespeare spelling was still to be controlled, and everyone used whatever spelling they desired to sound or what they believed they should spell it. Shakespeare was no exception and even spelled his name in many different ways! There’s even a Wikipedia page on the subject! There were abbreviations such as “Willm Shakp”, and various spellings like ‘Shakespear “William Shaksper and William Shakspeare.’ It was good that we chose to use ‘Shakespeare’ at the final! - He wrote 39 plays
There is no precise and definitive number of plays Shakespeare composed, since some of them are lost in the ages; However, the figure is around 39. Shakespeare’s plays are generally classified into Comedies The Tragedies, the Comedies, and the Histories. Most comedies are happy, while tragedies usually have tragic endings and stories are about real individuals who existed, such as Julius Caesar and Henry V. - and a plethora of poems
Shakespeare composed over 150 sonnets in his entirety and a number of other poems. Sonnets are mostly loved poems, and include several of his most well-known poems like ‘Shall I liken you to a summer’s day or a summer’s day?’. Some of his poems like Lucrece, are more than two thousand lines! - Christopher Marlowe Was His Nemesis
Nemesis makes the sound of being more thrilling than it actually was. In reality, they were in fact rivals. Both playwrights were part of Elizabethan London, so they were competing with patrons (Rich people who would give the playwrights money) and the audience. Marlowe as well as Shakespeare were also believed to collaborate on certain plays, which included the plays of Shakespeare’s historical period. Unfortunately, Marlowe was killed in an altercation in a pub, putting an end to any collaborations in the future. - He was a favorite of the King
In the years following Elizabeth I death in 1603 the throne was then taken by Scottish monarch James VI (or I of England). James thought he was a bit of a genius and even wrote his own books. He was a huge lover of the arts and was an avid patron of Shakespeare’s acting troupe, later known as ‘The King Men’. He was fascinated by witchcraft and demonology. He even wrote an entire book about the subject. He also loved Scottish history. It’s not surprising that Shakespeare’s Macbeth was a hit with him in such a way! The scholars believe that Shakespeare wrote Macbeth with the King in mind, hoping to impress the King and hopefully make some more money. - He was an actor as Also a Writer
In Tudor the period writers were often able to act as actors and even appear as actors in the plays they wrote as well. Shakespeare played in a variety in his plays and in others and likely began acting before he ever had a production. Writers typically wrote for a specific group of actors. Shakespeare was likely an actor and a stage manager, director, and possibly even costume designer! - He was the father of three children.
Shakespeare and his partner Anne have three daughters: Susanna, Judith and Hamnet. Unfortunately, the only Judith and Susanna survived to adulthood and no direct descendant of Shakespeare lives, as one of his children are not even born. Both girls probably were not literate like most people at the time. - He Could Have Died On His Birthday
Shakespeare died on April 23April 23 1616. Since we don’t know the date of his birthday and when it was, there’s a high chance that he was killed on his birthday! This isn’t exactly the ideal method to celebrate! Shakespeare was just 52 when he passed away and that’s not too surprising since many people of the seventeenth century passed away before reaching the age of old, usually due to illnesses that are easily prevented in the present. What is the number of plays Shakespeare could write? - “The 2nd Best Bed Is Actually an Awesome Present
If you have an interesting fact about Shakespeare most likely it’s that he gave his wife the the’second-best bed as part of his will. A lot of people think it was quite rude of him. Why not the best bed in the world? Actually, the second most comfortable bed was the one they slept in, the most luxurious one which was used for guests. Additionally, beds were valued and costly, and a high-quality one was rare. Therefore, Shakespeare actually gave his wife a very nice and important present! - You can still visit his House
Shakespeare’s House is now a popular tourist place situated in Stratford Upon Avon. The place where he was born is still in use, which is remarkable considering its around 500 years old! It is also possible to visit Anne Hathaway’s House as well as the location where the House that he constructed for his family was located. - He’s a Record-Breaker
William Shakespeare has broken many records as a writer. In addition to being translated into numerous languages, he’s the most popular playwright ever. He’s also the most film author, and hundreds of TV and film versions of his work are being made. Bravo! William! - You can visit The Globe
While it’s true that the first Globe Theatre was the home of Shakespeare’s acting troupe is gone, there is a replica constructed in its place in the Southbank in London. It is believed that the Globe was destroyed by an earlier fire mostly because it was constructed mostly from straw and wood, which are not a great combination. Its replica Globe is constructed from similar materials but is much more fire-proof and comes with the Jacobean style stage and authentic seating and an open area as it was in the time of Shakespeare! The Globe plays Shakespeare’s plays regularly which means that if you’d like to watch a play, you can just like the original audience! - His Grave is Infected
It’s not surprising that a person like Shakespeare enjoyed a little comedy. On his gravestone, Shakespeare has written a message to grave robbers and those who are looking to purchase an item from the famous actor’s final resting location: ‘Good-hearted friend Shakespeare, for Jesus sake, do not allow yourself to dig in the dust in this tomb. Blessed is the person who saves these stones. and cursed be the one who is able to move my bone.’ Spooky! It seems like it’s working but no one’s been able to disturb him as of yet! - Some people think he didn’t write his works.
Certain scholars have concluded that Shakespeare’s works are enough for a tradesman’s son. They believe that Shakespeare could have been a disguise for an aristocrat or perhaps aristocrats writing in a group who did not want their names to be known to the world. However, the truth is that this idea is nothing more than a case of class snobbery. Rich and educated people simply couldn’t imagine how someone as brilliant as Shakespeare could possess the intelligence and artistic skills to write his masterpieces. However, there is plenty of evidence to prove that Shakespeare did exactly that!
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