William Shakespeare (baptised 26 April 1564; died 23 April 1616)[nb 1] was an
English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the
English language and the world s pre-eminent dramatist.
[1] He is often called
England s national poet...
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William Shakespeare (baptised 26 April 1564; died 23 April 1616)[nb 1] was an
English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the
English language and the world s pre-eminent dramatist.
[1] He is often called
England s national poet and the "Bard of Avon".
[2][nb 2] His surviving works,
including some collaborations, consist of about 38 plays,[nb 3] 154 sonnets, two
long narrative poems, and several other poems.
His plays have been translated
into every major living language and are performed more often than those of any
other playwright.
[3]
Shakespeare was born and raised in Stratford-upon-Avon.
At the age of 18, he
married Anne Hathaway, with whom he had three children: Susanna, and twins
Hamnet and Judith.
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.
He appears to have retired to
Stratford around 1613, where he died t
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