William Shakespeare’s life can be traced year by year from 1564, when he was baptized in Stratford-upon-Avon, to 1616, when he died there, through parish registers, property deeds, legal papers, and the printed books that carried his name.
This timeline sets out those documented events in order. Where a date comes from a record, it is given exactly; where it is an estimate, such as the date a play was written, it is marked as approximate. For the full story of his life, see our biography of William Shakespeare.
At a Glance
Here are the key dates of Shakespeare’s life for quick reference.
Early Life in Stratford (1564–1582)
Shakespeare’s first eighteen years are known almost entirely through his father’s career and the parish register. Our article on Shakespeare’s early life and education covers this period in depth.
1564: Born in Stratford-upon-Avon
William, son of John Shakespeare, is baptized at Holy Trinity Church on April 26. His exact birth date is not recorded; it is traditionally celebrated on April 23. His father is a glover and wool dealer, and his mother, Mary Arden, comes from a landowning family.
1568: His Father Becomes Bailiff
John Shakespeare is elected bailiff of Stratford, the town’s highest office, roughly equivalent to mayor. As the son of a leading townsman, William would have been entitled to a free place at the local grammar school, though no school records from the period survive.
1582: Marries Anne Hathaway
In late November, a bond is issued in Worcester allowing William Shakespeare, aged 18, to marry Anne Hathaway, about eight years older, after only one reading of the banns. Anne is already pregnant. Our article on Shakespeare’s marriage and family life tells the story.
Family and the Lost Years (1583–1591)
Within three years of the marriage, Shakespeare has three children, and then the records fall silent.
1583: His Daughter Susanna Is Born
Susanna Shakespeare is baptized on May 26, six months after the wedding.
1585: The Twins Hamnet and Judith Are Born
The twins are baptized on February 2. They were probably named after Hamnet and Judith Sadler, friends and neighbors of the family. No further children are recorded.
1585 to 1592: The Lost Years
For about seven years, no surviving record mentions Shakespeare. At some point in this period he leaves Stratford and begins working in the London theater, but how and when is unknown. Our article on the lost years weighs the theories.
Early Career in London (1592–1598)
By 1592, Shakespeare is established enough in London to be attacked in print, and within six years he is a published poet, a leading playwright, and a man of property. Our article on Shakespeare’s career in London covers these years.
1592: The “Upstart Crow”
A pamphlet published under the name of the playwright Robert Greene, Greene’s Groats-worth of Wit, sneers at an “upstart crow” who thinks himself “the only Shake-scene in a country.” It is the first known reference to Shakespeare as a writer for the stage. The same year, plague closes the London theaters, and they stay mostly shut until 1594.
1593: Venus and Adonis Is Published
With the theaters closed, Shakespeare publishes Venus and Adonis, a long narrative poem dedicated to Henry Wriothesley, Earl of Southampton. It is his first printed work and becomes a bestseller.
1594: Lucrece and the Lord Chamberlain’s Men
The Rape of Lucrece, also dedicated to Southampton, is published, along with Titus Andronicus, the first of his plays to appear in print. When the theaters reopen, Shakespeare becomes a founding member of a new acting company, the Lord Chamberlain’s Men, and he stays with it for the rest of his career.
1596: A Coat of Arms and the Death of Hamnet
Shakespeare’s son, Hamnet, is buried in Stratford on August 11, aged eleven. The cause of his death is not recorded. In October, the College of Arms grants a coat of arms to John Shakespeare, making the family gentlemen, probably at William’s instigation and expense.
1597: Buys New Place
Shakespeare buys New Place, one of the largest houses in Stratford. His family lives there while he works in London, and it is where he will die.
1598: Named as Poet and Playwright
The writer Francis Meres, in a book called Palladis Tamia, praises Shakespeare’s “sugared sonnets” circulating among his friends and names twelve of his plays. The same year, his name begins to appear on the title pages of printed plays, a sign that it now helps sell books.
The Globe Years (1599–1602)
These are the years of the Globe, and of many of the plays for which Shakespeare is best known, including Julius Caesar, As You Like It, Twelfth Night, and Hamlet, all written around 1599 to 1601.
1599: The Globe Opens
Shakespeare’s company dismantles its old playhouse, the Theatre, and uses the timber to build the Globe on the south bank of the Thames. Shakespeare is one of its shareholders. The same year, two of his sonnets, including Sonnet 138, appear in a collection called The Passionate Pilgrim.
1601: His Father Dies
John Shakespeare is buried in Stratford on September 8. Earlier in the year, on February 7, supporters of the Earl of Essex pay Shakespeare’s company to stage Richard II, a play about the deposing of a king, on the eve of Essex’s failed rebellion. The company is questioned but not punished. Shakespeare’s poem The Phoenix and the Turtle is published this year.
1602: Buys Land in Stratford
Shakespeare pays £320 for 107 acres of farmland in Old Stratford, near his hometown. His brother Gilbert takes delivery of the deed on his behalf.
The King’s Men (1603–1608)
Under a new king, Shakespeare’s company rises to royal patronage, and he writes the great tragedies of Othello, King Lear, and Macbeth.
1603: The Company Becomes the King’s Men
Queen Elizabeth I dies in March. Her successor, James I, takes Shakespeare’s company under his patronage, and the Lord Chamberlain’s Men become the King’s Men. The same year, the first edition of Hamlet is printed.
1604: Othello at Court
Othello is performed before the king on November 1. Around this time, Shakespeare is lodging in London with the Mountjoy family, French Protestant headdress makers, in Silver Street near Cripplegate.
1605: Invests in Stratford Tithes
On July 24, Shakespeare pays £440 for a share in the tithes of Stratford and nearby villages, a lease on local farm revenues that brings him a steady income.
1606: King Lear at Court
King Lear is performed before James I on December 26. Macbeth, with its Scottish setting and its witches, is written around the same time.
1607: Susanna Marries
Shakespeare’s elder daughter, Susanna, marries John Hall, a Stratford physician, on June 5. His youngest brother, Edmund, an actor, is buried in London on December 31.
1608: A Granddaughter, and His Mother’s Death
Shakespeare’s first grandchild, Elizabeth Hall, is baptized in February. His mother, Mary, is buried in Stratford in September. In August, the King’s Men also take over the Blackfriars, an indoor theater that lets them perform through the winter, and Shakespeare becomes one of its seven shareholders.
Last Years (1609–1616)
In his final years, Shakespeare writes the late romances, collaborates with a younger playwright, and gradually withdraws to Stratford. Our article on Shakespeare’s later life and death covers this period in depth.
1609: The Sonnets Are Published
The publisher Thomas Thorpe issues Shake-speares Sonnets, the full sequence of 154 sonnets, followed by the poem A Lover’s Complaint. Whether Shakespeare approved the publication is unknown.
1611: The Tempest at Court
The Tempest, often thought of as his farewell to the stage, is performed before the king on November 1. It is probably the last play he writes alone.
1612: A Witness in Court
On May 11, Shakespeare gives evidence in a lawsuit between his former landlord, Christopher Mountjoy, and Mountjoy’s son-in-law, Stephen Belott, over a promised marriage settlement. His signature on the deposition is one of only six that survive.
1613: The Globe Burns
On March 10, Shakespeare buys the Blackfriars Gatehouse in London for £140. On June 29, a cannon fired during a performance of Henry VIII, written with John Fletcher, sets the Globe’s thatched roof alight, and the theater burns to the ground. It is rebuilt within a year. His brother Richard is buried in Stratford this year.
1616: Death in Stratford
His younger daughter, Judith, marries Thomas Quiney on February 10. Shakespeare signs his will on March 25. He dies on April 23 and is buried inside Holy Trinity Church, Stratford, on April 25. The cause of his death is unknown.
After His Death
Shakespeare’s reputation was secured after his death by the book his fellow actors put together, and his family line ended within two generations.
1623: The First Folio and the Death of Anne
Two of Shakespeare’s fellow actors, John Heminges and Henry Condell, publish Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies, now called the First Folio. It collects 36 plays, about half of which had never been printed before. Anne Shakespeare dies on August 6 and is buried beside her husband. Our guide to the Quarto and Folio editions explains why the Folio matters.
1670: The Last Descendant Dies
Shakespeare’s granddaughter Elizabeth, Lady Barnard, dies without children. She is his last direct descendant.
Common Questions
The questions readers ask most often about the dates of Shakespeare’s life, answered briefly.
When Was Shakespeare Born?
In April 1564. He was baptized on April 26, and his birthday is traditionally celebrated on April 23, though the exact date is not recorded.
When Did Shakespeare Die?
On April 23, 1616, in Stratford-upon-Avon, at the age of 52. He was buried in Holy Trinity Church two days later.
When Did Shakespeare Write His Plays?
From around 1590 to around 1613. The exact dates of most plays are estimates, based on records of performance, publication, and style.
What Are Shakespeare’s Lost Years?
The period from 1585 to 1592, between the baptism of his twins and his first mention in London, when no records of him survive.
When Was the First Folio Published?
In 1623, seven years after Shakespeare’s death. Without it, about half of his plays might have been lost.
Explore His Life
Three articles that tell the story behind the dates.