On the quiet banks of the Avon, in Warwickshire, the town of Stratford would doubtless have remained a peaceful market town had it not seen born, in 1564, the greatest writer of the English language: William Shakespeare. The town keeps, almost intact, the places of his life — from his cradle to his grave.
A glover's town
In the sixteenth century Stratford is a small, prosperous market town, living off wool, leather and its fairs. It was here that John Shakespeare, a glover and dealer who became bailiff (mayor) of the town, raised his children. His son William was born in 1564 in the family house on Henley Street — the Birthplace (Shakespeare's Birthplace), today the most famous literary relic in England. Nothing, in this provincial setting, foretold a genius; and that is the whole strength of Stratford: to show where the man came from who would give the world Hamlet, Macbeth and King Lear.
From New Place to Holy Trinity
Grown rich and famous in London, Shakespeare came back to Stratford: he bought New Place, the largest house in the town (now vanished, but its site and garden can be visited), where he spent his last years and died in 1616. He was buried in the church of Holy Trinity, by the Avon, where his grave and funerary monument can still be seen, adorned with a bust made soon after his death — one of only two portraits held to be reliable. On the edge of the town, Anne Hathaway's Cottage, the farm where his wife grew up, completes this intimate landscape. Together, these places make Stratford a literary pilgrimage unique in the world.
What to see
- The Birthplace (Shakespeare's Birthplace), on Henley Street.
- The site and garden of New Place, his last home.
- The church of Holy Trinity, his grave and funerary bust.
- Anne Hathaway's Cottage, his wife's timber-framed farmhouse.
Did you know?
On the slab of his grave, at Holy Trinity, Shakespeare is said to have had a threatening epitaph carved himself: 'Good friend, for Jesus' sake forbear / To dig the dust enclosèd here. / Blest be the man that spares these stones, / And cursed be he that moves my bones.' The curse worked: no one ever dared open his grave or move his remains — and the greatest English poet still lies, intact, where he chose to be buried.
Practical information
Stratford-upon-Avon lies in Warwickshire, in the centre of England. The main sites (Birthplace, New Place, Anne Hathaway's Cottage) are in the care of the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust; the church of Holy Trinity is a place of worship open to visitors. Opening hours, prices and days are liable to change; it is best to check them against the official sources before visiting.
Quiz
- In which year was Shakespeare born at Stratford?
- 1564
- 1485
- 1616
- What was the trade of John Shakespeare, the poet's father?
- A glover and dealer
- A blacksmith
- A sailor
- In which church is Shakespeare buried?
- Holy Trinity, at Stratford
- Westminster Abbey
- St Paul's Cathedral