William Shakespeare: Life Story

Sometime in the late 1580s Shakespeare began his writing career. Writers were paid a capital sum by the company, which then owned the play. Fees for plays were generally in the region of a few pounds – perhaps as much as £10, but they were often written in collaboration, so the fee was shared. No royalties were paid, and there was nothing to prevent someone copying the play down and publishing it. It has been calculated that by 1592, Shakespeare had written at least five scripts, but this did not stop him acting – he is documented as appearing on stage in 1592, 1598, 1603 and 1608.

By 1592, Shakespeare was sufficiently popular for Henry VI to be performed to a full crowd on Friday, 3 March at the Rose Theatre (although there is not absolute certainty that this performance was of his play). But just as his career might have been looking up, theatre life was abruptly curtailed with the advent of a severe bout of plague. The increasingly puritan government of the city blamed the theatres as one of the main causes of plague – not because of the opportunity for contagion but because playacting was considered by them to be sinful.

At the end of 1592 the Privy Council banned all assemblies other than attendance at church. This included theatres, bear baiting and bowling, the most popular London pastimes. Although the theatres opened for a short time again further closures happened over the next couple of years until the plague epidemic finally subsided in late 1594.

So far as is known Shakespeare remained in London during that period. His plays had begun to bring him some fame and in April 1593, he dedicated his poem, Venus and Adonis, his first work to appear in print, rather than being performed, to Henry Wriothesley, Earl of Southampton. The dedication is fulsome and has given rise to much speculation about Shakespeare’s relationship with Southampton – were they lovers or were they fellow Catholic recusants?

In fact the only definite tie between the two men is this dedication, and that, thirteen months later of Shakespeare’s second poem, the Rape of Lucrece.Writers frequently dedicated works to people in high places whom they never met, and despite the rivers of ink poured out on the topic, nothing is certainly known about what, if any, relationship Shakespeare and Southampton may have had.

Shakespeare’s biographer, Anthony Holden, believes that the two men were closely linked and that Shakespeare spent much of this plague period living in Southampton’s house, and financially supported by him – not an unusual occurrence. Perhaps helped by the dedication, Venus and Adonis proved far and away Shakespeare’s most successful work during his lifetime, running to ten editions. Despite the success of his poetry, Shakespeare then returned exclusively to plays, the exception being his short poem, the Phoenix and the Turtle, which was only published in a collection of another writer’s work.

Shakespeare did not dedicate anything else to Southampton, or any other aristocrat, although an ongoing relationship of some sort might be inferred from the content of Shakespeare’s play Richard II, written towards the end of the 1590s. This had strong political overtones, supporting the faction led by Southampton’s close friend the Earl of Essex.

The closures of the theatres during the plague years led to the disbanding of most of the companies. By 1594, of the old companies, only the Admiral’s Men remained, who now faced competition with the newly formed Lord Chamberlain’s Men. This company was under the patronage of Henry Carey, Baron Hunsdon, the Queen’s cousin and Lord Chamberlain. Named members included Richard Burbage, Will Kemp, noted for his comic parts, John Heminges and William Shakespeare. Shakespeare had gathered enough money to come one of the shareholders, although nobody can demonstrate the source of his funds, and remained with the company permanently.

Hunsdon did not really employ or manage the company, but players were legally required to have a patron or master of some social standing – the ‘ masterless man’ was a figure much dreaded by the Elizabethan authorities as a source of crime and the undermining of a hierarchical society. Hunsdon demonstrated his patronage in 1594 by requesting permission from the Lord Mayor to allow his company to return to the stage.

On 15 March 1595 the accounts of the treasurer of the Queen’s Privy Chamber show that Shakespeare, and the rest of the Lord Chamberlain’s Men were paid for performances in front of Elizabeth at Greenwich during Christmas 1594. They followed up this royal command performance with playing at Gray’s Inn.

Shakespeare took lodgings in Bishopsgate and carried on writing his plays, in between acting. His first play written for the Lord Chamberlain’s Men was Romeo and Juliet based on Arthur Brooks' poem of 1562 entitled The Tragical History of Romeo and Juliet. This text had also given Shakespeare some ideas for an earlier comedy, perhaps his first: The Two Gentlemen of Verona.