Hello Shakespeare!
William Shakespeare is one of the world's greatest and most famous writers (BBC 2013). Throughout his lifetime and career Shakespeare wrote plays for the theatre as well as poetry with his works totaling 37 plays and 154 sonnets (Shakespeare FAQ 2013).
Shakespeare's actual date of birth is not known, however, we do know that Shakespeare was baptized on April 26, 1564 in Stratford-Upon-Avon, England (BBC 2013). Shakespeare's father was John Shakespeare, a glove-maker and his mother Mary was the daughter of a farmer named Robert Arden (BBC 2013). Shakespeare's father was an important figure in Stratford-Upon-Avon which allowed the young Shakespeare to attend schooling up through grammar school (estimated to be the equivalent of today's high school) where Shakespeare had lessons in Latin, Greek, and History (BBC 2013).
Shakespeare left school by the age of 16 years old and married Anne Hathaway, who was eight years older than him, in 1582 at age 18 (BBC 2013). Shakespeare and his wife had three children, the eldest being Susanna, and the youngest being a set of twins born in 1585, Judith and Hamnet (BBC 2013).
William Shakespeare (b)1564 - (d) 1616
Sometime before the year 1590 Shakespeare left Stratford-Upon-Avon behind along with his family to make his way towards London (BBC 2013). By the year 1592 Shakespeare was already being talked about as an up-and-coming playwright and actor in the London theatre community (BBC 2013).
In 1593, the plague hit London and the theatres were closed. At this time Shakespeare turned to writing poetry as an alternative mode of expression while the theatre was inaccessible (BBC 2013). Shakespeare returned to dramatic mode and joined the Lord Chamberlain's Men when theatres reopened in 1594 (BBC 2013).
By 1598, Shakespeare was a famous and wealthy individual owning houses in both Stratford-Upon-Avon and in London near the playhouses (BBC 2013). In 1603, when King James I took the throne, he also took over association with Shakespeare's Company renaming them The King's Men (BBC 2013).
In 1613, the theatre that Shakespeare is most often associated with, The Globe, burned down but Shakespeare had already quietly retired to Stratford-Upon-Avon (BBC 2013).
William Shakespeare died of unknown causes in April 23, 1616 in Stratfor-Upon-Avon (BBC 2013).
Interactive Timeline of Shakespeare's Life
Courtesy of (BBC 2013)
Another Timeline of Shakespeare's life that is printable:
Courtesy of Kids Love Shakespeare 2013
http://kidsloveshakespeare.com/wp-content/uploads/shakespearetimeline.pdf
Image Courtesy of Google Images 2013.