William Shakespeare

Early years
William Shakespeare was

an English poet, playwright and actor. He was born in 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon. His father, John Shakespeare, was a successful artisan. William was the third child in the family. His parents had eight children in total. William Shakespeare went to Stratford grammar school.
In 1582 Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway, who was the daughter of the local landowner. At that time Shakespeare was 18 years old and Anne was 8 years older than him. In 1583 Anne gave birth to their daughter Susanna. In 1585 the couple had twins – son Hamnet and daughter Judith. Unfortunately, Hamnet, the only son of William Shakespeare, died at the age of 11.

Life in London
Later Shakespeare moved to London. He lived

and worked in this city for many years. During that time Shakespeare wrote most of his plays and became a successful playwright. His troupe was among the leading playing companies in London.
In 1599 a theatre was built on the south bank of the River Thames. It was named the Globe. This was the theatre where Shakespeare's company performed. Work at the theatre made Shakespeare a wealthy person. He was not only a playwright, he also took part in theatrical performances.

his death Shakespeare moved to Stratford. He died on 23 April

1616. Some research shows that at the end of his life he was in poor health.

are such masterpieces of the world literature as "Romeo and

Juliet", "A midsummer night's dream", "Othello", "King Lear", "Hamlet" and many others. Apart from that Shakespeare wrote 154 sonnets. 
William Shakespeare's influence extends from theatre and literature to present-day movies, Western philosophy, and the English language itself.

"Hamlet" "Othello" "Macbeth" and "King Lear". It is the summit

of Shakespeare's art. "Hamlet" is probably the most popular, the best-known of all Shakespeare's plays. It is a very philosophical play. Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, is a highly intelligent person.
Hamlet's soliloquy is very famous: "To be, or not to be; that is the question...

James VI of Scotland, son of Mary Stuart. James, who

became James I of England and Scotland, was a lover of the theatre.
Shakespeare wrote a tragedy "Macbeth" in which action passes in Scotland. In 1606 Shakespeare was a very mature and successful playwright. He had become a wealthy man.

the greatest of all Shakespeare's tragedies.
The story of an old

king of England and his three daughters was not invented by Shakespeare. Shakespeare hardly ever invented the plot of his plays.
Between 1608 and 1613, Shakespeare wrote five plays: "Pericles" "Cymbeline" "The Winter's Tale" "The Tempest" and "Henry VIII" In "The Tempest" Shakespeare says farewell to the theatre, to his friends.
On June 29, 1613, the Globe theatre was destroyed in a fire. For Shakespeare and his colleagues it must have been a terrible time. The Globe was the greatest theatre in England.
Shakespeare died on April 23, 1616.
He wrote 38 plays and many poems.