Shakespeare's London: The Temple, the Tavern, and the Tower (ep 52)

We know London was very important to Shakespeare and his
evolution from life in Stratford in the 1580s when he married and
had children to the early 1600s when his company became the
favored actors of the King and he dressed in the King’s livery.
Shakespeare’s London was a place where fortunes were made and
lost, where reputations were forged and destroyed, and where life
could expand to include appearances and applause at court but
could also be extinguished in a street fight or the executioners
axe.

London was where Shakespeare lived for 20 years (at least). We
know he was there by 1592 when disparaging comments were
published by Robert Greene in his A Groat’s Worth of Wit. He
wrote and acted in London; his plays were performed there. He
lived in Shoreditch and Southwark. He successfully petitioned for
the award of Shakespeare family coat of arms in his father’s
name. He became a shareholder in the Lord Chamberlain’s Men and
was involved in the building of the Globe Theatre. He purchased
property in London. His reputation grew as his company was
favored by James I. The company acquired Blackfriars Theatre,
allowing them to put on indoor plays to a more affluent audience.
Sometime around 1608 he returned to live in Stratford, although
he kept ties with London and his company and continued writing
plays. He retired around 1613, possibly related to the burning of
the Globe Theatre—an event which was said to have devastated him.
He died in 1616 in Stratford and was buried in the Holy Trinity
Church.

The 20 years in London shaped his life and work. His history
plays, some of his early successes, were based in London and told
the story of the city and the country. The theater allowed
Shakespeare to explore the questions of violence, religious
chaos, population growth, an influx of foreigners, and new
opportunities for economic and social success that were happening
around him. Let’s take a look at three of the places that were
especially important to Shakespeare and his plays: the Temple,
the tavern, and the Tower.

London was more than a home for Shakespeare: it was a library, a
laboratory, a playground. He lived and worked and watched and
listened. And the world of London, as the examples of the Temple,
the tavern, and the Tower demonstrate, shape the essence of his
plays.


History shows us what's possible.