William Shakespeare: Life Story

In the late 1590s and early 1600s national events were reflected in Shakespeare’s writing. Renewed threats from Spain and the huge campaign in Ireland gave support for military plays such as Henry V and Julius Caesar. In an action which was overtly political, in February 1600 Sir Gelli Meyrick, an ally of the Earl of Essex, requested that The Globe perform Richard II and to include the deposition scene, previously unprinted as too contentious.

According to later testimony by one of the players, Augustine Phillips, the Lord Chamberlain’s Men had demurred, claiming that the play was out of date and that they would not attract a sufficiently large audience. Meyrick insisted and offered to underwrite the costs – adding 40 shillings to whatever might be received from the box office.

On 7 February 1601 the play was performed. Its political significance was quickly grasped – it was an invitation to depose the monarch. Elizabeth herself is said to have exclaimed ‘I am Richard II, know you not that?’ Essex was brought before the Privy Council but refused to attend and broke into open rebellion. Unsurprisingly he had little support and ended on the block, with Southampton’s sentence commuted to imprisonment.

Whatever the misdemeanours of Essex and Southampton, it does not appear that the Queen herself blamed the players. The evening before the Earl was to be executed they were commanded to court to play in front of Elizabeth although there is no information about what was performed. Would they have chosen a comedy, as far from political overtones as possible? Or perhaps a play showing military glory for a monarch.

In September 1601, Shakespeare’s father died at a very ripe age for the times and Shakepeare inherited the house in Henley Street where he had been born. Nevertheless he continued with his writing career, producing Twelfth Night which might have been played for the Queen and her guest Virginio Orsini, Duke of Bracciano, at Christmas 1600 and which was certainly staged for the Middle Temple lawyers in February 1602.

Shakespeare was now becoming a man of some means. He purchased land to the north of Stratford and a cottage near his house at New Place for the price of £120. The vendor of the land was one William Coomb. The Coombs were highly unpopular in Stratford as they were attempting to enclose much of the old common land. This led to an ongoing feud between Coombs' men and many of the townsfolk. Shakespeare does not seem to have been concerned about this and appears in fact to have been on excellent terms with the Coombs, and he even bequeathed his sword to William’s great-nephew, Thomas.