The Bard of Avon

William Shakespeare
The Chandos portrait (artist and authenticity unconfirmed), in the National Portrait Gallery, London
Born	Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England
Baptised	26 April 1564
Died	23 April 1616 (aged 52) Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England
Resting place	Church of the Holy Trinity, Stratford-upon-Avon
Occupation	Playwright Poet Actor
Era	Elizabethan era Jacobean era
Movement	English Renaissance
Spouse(s)	Anne Hathaway (m. 1582)
Children	Susanna Hall Hamnet Shakespeare Judith Quiney
Parent(s)	John Shakespeare Mary Arden
Signature

William Shakespeare (/ˈʃeɪkspɪər/; 26 April 1564 (baptised) – 23 April 1616) was an English poet, playwright and actor, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon". His extant works, including collaborations, consist of approximately 39 plays,154 sonnets, two long narrative poems and a few other verses, some of uncertain authorship. His plays have been translated into every major living language and are performed more often than those of any other playwright.

Shakespeare was born and brought up in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire. At the age of 18, he married Anne Hathaway, with whom he had three children: Susanna and twins Hamnet and Judith. Some time between 1585 and 1592, he began a successful career in London as an actor, writer, and part-owner of a playing company called the Lord Chamberlain's Men, later known as the King's Men. At age 49 around 1613, he appears to have retired to Stratford, where he died three years later. Few records of Shakespeare's private life survive, which has stimulated considerable speculation about such matters as his physical appearance, sexuality, religious beliefs and whether the works attributed to him were written by others. These speculations are often criticized for failing to point out the fact that few records survive of most commoners of his period.