Shakespeare's Birthplace

Shakespeare's Birthplace
Shakespeare's Birthplace in 2012
General information
Type	House
Location	Henley Street, Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England
Coordinates	52°11′38″N 1°42′29″W / 52.1939°N 1.7080°W / 52.1939; -1.7080Coordinates: 52°11′38″N 1°42′29″W / 52.1939°N 1.7080°W / 52.1939; -1.7080
Completed	16th-century
Owner	Shakespeare Birthplace Trust
Technical details
Structural system	Half-timbered
Website
www.shakespeare.org.uk

Shakespeare's Birthplace is a restored 16th-century half-timbered house situated in Henley Street, Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England, where it is believed that William Shakespeare was born in 1564 and spent his childhood years. It is now a small museum open to the public and a popular visitor attraction, owned and managed by the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust. It has been referred to as "a Mecca for all lovers of literature".

The house itself is relatively simple, but for the late 16th century it would have been considered quite a substantial dwelling.John Shakespeare, William's father, was a glove maker and wool dealer, and the house was originally divided in two parts to allow him to carry out his business from the same premises.

The building is not outstanding architecturally, and typical of the times was constructed in wattle and daub around a wooden frame. Local oak from the Forest of Arden and blue-grey stone from Wilmcote were used in its construction, while the large fireplaces were made from an unusual combination of early brick and stone, and the ground-floor level has stone-flagged floors.

The plan of the building was originally a simple rectangle. From north-west to south-east, the ground-floor consisted of a parlour with fireplace, an adjoining hall with a large open hearth, a cross passage, and finally a room which probably served as John Shakespeare's workshop. This arrangement was mirrored on the first-floor by three chambers accessed by a staircase from the hall, probably where the present stairs are sited. Traditionally, the chamber over the parlour is the birthroom. A separate single-bay house, now known as Joan Hart's Cottage, was later built onto the north-west end of the house, and the present kitchen was added at the rear with a chamber above it.

There are differing views concerning the origin of the building, which possibly dates back to the 15th century, but more likely was built in the mid-16th century.

Records show that in 1552 John Shakespeare was fined for leaving a pile of muck outside his home in Henley Street, proving that he resided in a house there at the time. In Jephson's account of Shakespeare's time in Stratford he states that at the time of Shakepeare's birth his father was renting the property and that ten years later he was able to purchase two freehold houses in Henley Street. The house remained in the family until it was handed down for the final time to William Shakespeare’s daughter and, given that he was born in 1564, it is fairly certain that he was born and brought up there.