William Shakespeare

Born the son of a glove maker and a rich landowner in April 26, 1564, William Shakespeare did not grow up in poverty. He attended good schools and learned all the basics a well-rounded young man of means required. But, studying all the great playwrights led to the stage. He was one of eight children and the oldest surviving son, so turning to a career in the theater would not have been what was expected of a well brought up Englishmen, but Shakespeare was a bit of a rebel.

At the age of 18, he suddenly married 26-year-old Anne Hathaway. Six months later they became parents of their first daughter, Susanna. Later they had twins, Judith and Hamnet, but young Hamnet died at the age of 11. Most scholars feel their marriage might not have been very happy. In his will, written days before his death, Shakespeare only left his wife his "second-best bed". Whether his marriage was ideal, or not, his career as a playwright, director, producer, and actor of plays was auspicious.

By the age of 28, in 1592, Shakespeare had already advanced enough in his career to get billing at a London theater. Only two years later, in 1594, his plays were only performed by "Lord Chamberlain's Men", a troupe on the rise in London. Until her death in 1603 Queen Elizabeth I was his patron. She was a great fan of his work, and although she never visited his theater, he and his troupe gave private performances for her at the palace.

After her death, her heir King James I became his patron, and the troupe's name was then changed to "The King's Men". "Lord Chamberlain's Men" and later, "The King's Men" were very popular and successful. In 1599 they built the "Globe Theater" by the River Thames (which was destroyed by fire in 1613 and rebuilt in 1614) and in 1608 went on to take over the "Blackfriars Theater". Both theaters were closed in 1642 due to the start of the English Civil War.

Although some scholars question the complete authenticity of Shakespeare's plays, he is responsible for some of the greatest plays in history, including, but nowhere near limited to, "The Comedy of Errors", "Richard III", "The Taming of the Shrew", "As You Like It", "Romeo and Juliet", and "Julius Caesar" (rumored to be based on Plutarch's Parallel Lives, translated by Sir Thomas North in 1579).

As an actor, Shakespeare often took to the stage to perform in his plays. He is said to have played the ghost of Hamlet's father and the part of Adam in "As You Like It." In plays by Ben Johnson, he is also listed on the cast lists for "Every Man in His Humor" and "Sejanus His Fall," among others.

The theater was Shakespeare's life. He had a hand in every aspect of it, from designing the building to choosing props. Even during the years of frequent outbreaks of Bubonic Plague in London between 1603 and 1610, when the theaters were often closed, he kept writing and working. On the 23rd of April in 1603, purportedly after binge drinking, the world lost one of the greatest playwrights of all time. He was only 52 years old and had signed his will only a month prior.

He was survived by two married daughters and a wife. Most of his estate was left to his oldest daughter, Susanna, with the stipulation that it be given to the "first son of her body". She had three children who all died without marrying, and his daughter, Judith, one child who never had children, either. So, Shakespeare's (legitimate) line ended. But, not his legacy.

To this day, the plays of Shakespeare have been and are being performed all over the world. His plays are one of the most unifying forces throughout history.

Dictators, saints, scholars, and dunces can almost all recite at least one line from his plays. Admirers tour his grave sight in Holy Trinity Church to read his epitaph or curse, depending on how it's viewed, "Good Friend, For Jesus' sake Forbear/ To dig the dust enclosed here./ Blessed be the man that spares these stones,/ And cursed be he that moves my bones".

When the restoration of the church was performed in 2008, his grave was not touched.