Virtual Journey: In

Shakespeare's

Footsteps

From Stratford-upon-Avon to

London and Back

"All the world's a stage" —

William Shakespeare

Classical school 7

Student: Vildanov Arthur

Class: 9A

Teacher: Lihacheva Irina Nikolaevna

Route Map

Our Journey: 3 Key Stops

Henley Street,

Stratford-

upon-Avon

(1564)

•

William Shakespeare was born here in April 1564

•

His father, John Shakespeare, was a glovemaker and wool dealer

•

John later became the town's mayor (bailiff)

•

His mother, Mary Arden, came from a wealthy Catholic family

•

William was the third of eight children

•

The house had three floors, wooden beams, and small glass

windows

•

Here young William first heard folk songs, fairy tales, and ghost

stories

King Edward VI

Grammar School

•

Classes started at 6 AM

(summer) or 7 AM (winter)

•

School day lasted until 5–6 PM

•

Only Latin was allowed –

speaking English was punished

•

Students read Roman authors:

Ovid, Virgil, Cicero, Plautus,

Seneca

•

Plautus taught him comedy;

Seneca taught him revenge and

ghosts

•

The classroom windows face

Holy Trinity Church

•

Shakespeare was buried in that

church 52 years later

The Lost Years

(1585–1592)

•

1582: Shakespeare married Anne

Hathaway (she was 26, he was 18)

•

Anne was 8 years older than William

•

Three children: Susanna (1583),

twins Hamnet and Judith (1585)

•

Then… from 1585 to 1592 – NO

documents about Shakespeare

•

Historians call this "The Lost Years"

The Globe Theatre

(built 1599)

•

Located on the south bank of the

Thames, in Southwark

•

Round shape – "Globe" means the

world

•

Held up to 3,000 spectators

•

No roof over the stage – rain and sun

were part of the play

•

Ticket prices:

•

1 penny – standing in the yard

(groundlings)

•

2–3 pennies – sitting in the galleries

The Tower of London

•

Founded by William the Conqueror in 1066

•

Used as: royal palace, prison, armory, treasury, zoo,

and execution site

•

Famous prisoners: Anne Boleyn, Sir Thomas More,

Lady Jane Grey

•

The Princes in the Tower (1483): 12-year-old Edward V

and his 10-year-old brother were murdered here –

likely by their uncle, the future Richard III

•

Connection to Shakespeare's plays:

•

Shakespeare wrote Richard III (c. 1592)

•

The ghosts of the murdered princes appear to Richard

before his death

•

"Let thy soul haunt thy bosom"

•

Shakespeare walked past the Traitor's Gate – he knew

these stones

New Place, Stratford (1613–1616)

•

1613: Shakespeare returned to Stratford for good

•

He bought New Place – the largest house in the town

•

Two gardens, a barn, a stable, and ten fireplaces

•

He was now a wealthy gentleman with his own coat of arms

•

Shakespeare's Last Will and Testament (March 1616):

•

"I give unto my wife my second-best bed"

•

Why the "second-best bed"?

•

For centuries, people thought this was an insult

•

But historians now say: the best bed was for guests

•

The second-best bed was the marriage bed – where children

were born

•

This may have been a sign of love, not disrespect

Holy Trinity Church, Stratford

•

23 April 1616 – William Shakespeare died

•

He died on his 52nd birthday

•

Buried in the chancel (the most honorable part) of

Holy Trinity Church

•

The church he had seen from his school window

•

The Curse on His Grave:

•

"Good friend, for Jesus' sake forbear,

To dig the dust enclosed here.

Blest be the man that spares these stones,

And curst be he that moves my bones."

•

The curse worked:

•

18th century: wanted to move his bones to

Westminster Abbey – afraid

•

19th century: wanted to open the grave for research

– still afraid

•

400 years later – no one has ever opened

Shakespeare's grave

What Have We Learned

from Our Virtual Journey?

•

1. Places give meaning to the plays

•

The Tower of London explains the ghosts in Richard III

•

The forests of Warwickshire explain the magic in A

Midsummer Night's Dream

•

2. The Globe shaped Shakespeare's language

•

He wrote for 3,000 people standing in the open air

•

That's why his speeches are powerful, loud, and emotional

•

3. Shakespeare was a real man, not a portrait

•

He ran away from home

•

He became rich and returned a gentleman

•

He was afraid of curses

•

He loved his wife (even with that "second-best bed")