John Shakespeare
Encyclopedia
John Shakespeare was the father of William Shakespeare
. He was the son of Richard Shakespeare
of Snitterfield
, a farmer
. He moved to Stratford-upon-Avon
and married Mary Arden, with whom he had eight children, five of whom survived into adulthood. By trade he was a glover
and whittawer (leather
worker), a dealer in hides and wool, and was elected to several municipal offices, serving as an alderman
and culminating in a term as bailiff
, the chief magistrate of the town council, before he fell on hard times for reasons unknown to historians. His fortunes later revived after the success of his son, and he was granted a coat of arms
five years before his death, probably at the instigation and expense of his playwright son, entitling him to use the honorific "gentleman", conventionally designated by the title "Master" or its abbreviations "Mr." or "M." prefixed to his surname.
, which is traditionally referred to as the birthplace of William (now called Shakespeare's Birthplace
). In 1556 John was elected borough ale taster, the first of several key municipal positions he was to hold in Stratford. In that position he was responsible for ensuring that weights and measures and prices were observed by innkeepers and publicans within the borough, and also by butcher
s, baker
s and town traders. In 1558 he was appointed borough Constable
— a position similar to an early police constable.
, a local gentry
family and reportedly a niece of John Shakespeare's father Richard Shakespeare. It is not known when they married, but a date around 1557 is assumed as there is a baptismal record for a "Joan Shakespeare, daughter to John Shakespeare" dated 15 September 1558. The Shakespeares had eight children: Joan (1558), Margaret (1562–63), William
(1564–1616), Gilbert (1566–1612), Joan
(1569–1646), Anne (1571–79), Richard (1574–1613), and Edmund (1580–1607).
. He would have been known as a 'Goodman', a title that recognised his growing social status within Stratford. By 1564, John was an alderman
, a member of the Common Hall of Stratford, and it was in this year William was born. In 1568 John was appointed High Bailiff
, the present-day equivalent of mayor
.
In 1569 John had applied for a coat of arms
, which after a long period of dormancy was granted on 20 October 1596. Most historians believe that his son, William, re-opened the application following his literary and financial success in London.
. Records suggest that he was also prosecuted (or threatened with prosecution at least) in the 1570s for illegal dealing in wool
and for usury
or lending money with interest. Such illicit trade would have been profitable to his glove business by avoiding the middleman. In 1570 he was accused of making loans worth £220 (equivalent to over £50,000 in 2007), including interest, to a Walter Mussum. Mussum was not a good risk; at his death his whole estate was worth £114, or barely half what John Shakespeare had seen fit to lend him. The financial risk was just one side of his potentially problematic business activity. The law described usury as "a vice most odious and detestable" and levied severe penalties for those caught in such practices, even in a small way. The law stated that anyone caught lending money with interest illegally would forfeit all the money lent, plus forfeiture of any interest due, face a fine on top and also possible imprisonment. John was also engaged in trading wool illegally in 1571, when he acquired 300 tods (or 8,400 pounds) of wool, a large consignment.
In 1576 John decided to, or was made to, withdraw from public life in Stratford. He had been excused levies that he was supposed to pay by supportive townsmen and business associates and they kept his name on the rolls for a decade, perhaps hoping that in that time he would be able to return to public life and recover his financial situation. But he never did so. He is mentioned in the local records once more in 1597 when he sold some property to George Badger, a draper
.
John Shakespeare was buried on 8 September 1601.
In the 18th century a tract signed by John Shakespeare, in which he promised to remain a Catholic
in his heart, was found in the rafters of the house on Henley Street. It was seen and described by the scholar Edmond Malone
. Although it was subsequently lost, a very similar copy of the formulaic text came to light in the 20th century that showed the original to be very likely genuine. The only non-genuine portion was the first leaf of the document; it had been forged by John Jordan, a man who had acquired the manuscript and attempted to have it published.
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
. He was the son of Richard Shakespeare
Richard Shakespeare
Richard Shakespeare was a husbandman of Snitterfield, Warwickshire, north-northeast of Stratford-upon-Avon, and the father of John Shakespeare and thus the grandfather of William Shakespeare....
of Snitterfield
Snitterfield
Snitterfield is a village and civil parish in the Stratford on Avon district of Warwickshire, England, less than a mile to the north of the A46 road, 4 ½ miles from Stratford upon Avon, 6 ½ miles from Warwick and from Coventry.-History:...
, a farmer
Farmer
A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, who raises living organisms for food or raw materials, generally including livestock husbandry and growing crops, such as produce and grain...
. He moved to Stratford-upon-Avon
Stratford-upon-Avon
Stratford-upon-Avon is a market town and civil parish in south Warwickshire, England. It lies on the River Avon, south east of Birmingham and south west of Warwick. It is the largest and most populous town of the District of Stratford-on-Avon, which uses the term "on" to indicate that it covers...
and married Mary Arden, with whom he had eight children, five of whom survived into adulthood. By trade he was a glover
Glover
Glover can have several meanings:*A "glover" is a maker of gloves.Placenames:*Glover, Vermont, in the United States*Glover, Missouri, in the United States; ZIP code 63646*Glover Bluff crater, an impact crater in the U.S...
and whittawer (leather
Leather
Leather is a durable and flexible material created via the tanning of putrescible animal rawhide and skin, primarily cattlehide. It can be produced through different manufacturing processes, ranging from cottage industry to heavy industry.-Forms:...
worker), a dealer in hides and wool, and was elected to several municipal offices, serving as an alderman
Alderman
An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members themselves rather than by popular vote, or a council...
and culminating in a term as bailiff
Bailiff
A bailiff is a governor or custodian ; a legal officer to whom some degree of authority, care or jurisdiction is committed...
, the chief magistrate of the town council, before he fell on hard times for reasons unknown to historians. His fortunes later revived after the success of his son, and he was granted a coat of arms
Coat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
five years before his death, probably at the instigation and expense of his playwright son, entitling him to use the honorific "gentleman", conventionally designated by the title "Master" or its abbreviations "Mr." or "M." prefixed to his surname.
Early career
John Shakespeare moved to Stratford-upon-Avon in 1551, where he became a successful tradesman making and selling leather goods such as purses, belts, and gloves. On 2 October 1556, he purchased a large house in Henley Street, Stratford-upon-AvonStratford-upon-Avon
Stratford-upon-Avon is a market town and civil parish in south Warwickshire, England. It lies on the River Avon, south east of Birmingham and south west of Warwick. It is the largest and most populous town of the District of Stratford-on-Avon, which uses the term "on" to indicate that it covers...
, which is traditionally referred to as the birthplace of William (now called Shakespeare's Birthplace
Shakespeare's Birthplace
Shakespeare's Birthplace is a carefully restored 16th century half-timbered house situated in Henley Street, Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England, where it is believed that William Shakespeare was born in 1564 and spent his childhood years. It is now a small museum open to the public and is a...
). In 1556 John was elected borough ale taster, the first of several key municipal positions he was to hold in Stratford. In that position he was responsible for ensuring that weights and measures and prices were observed by innkeepers and publicans within the borough, and also by butcher
Butcher
A butcher is a person who may slaughter animals, dress their flesh, sell their meat or any combination of these three tasks. They may prepare standard cuts of meat, poultry, fish and shellfish for sale in retail or wholesale food establishments...
s, baker
Baker
A baker is someone who bakes and sells bread, Cakes and similar foods may also be produced, as the traditional boundaries between what is produced by a baker as opposed to a pastry chef have blurred in recent decades...
s and town traders. In 1558 he was appointed borough Constable
Constable
A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions.-Etymology:...
— a position similar to an early police constable.
Marriage into the local gentry
He married Mary Arden, one of the Ardens of WarwickshireWarwickshire
Warwickshire is a landlocked non-metropolitan county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, although the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare...
, a local gentry
Gentry
Gentry denotes "well-born and well-bred people" of high social class, especially in the past....
family and reportedly a niece of John Shakespeare's father Richard Shakespeare. It is not known when they married, but a date around 1557 is assumed as there is a baptismal record for a "Joan Shakespeare, daughter to John Shakespeare" dated 15 September 1558. The Shakespeares had eight children: Joan (1558), Margaret (1562–63), William
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
(1564–1616), Gilbert (1566–1612), Joan
Joan Shakespeare
Joan Shakespeare was the sister of William Shakespeare.Joan was Shakespeare's younger sister, named after her parents' deceased first-born child...
(1569–1646), Anne (1571–79), Richard (1574–1613), and Edmund (1580–1607).
Municipal responsibilities and social status
In 1559 John became an affeeror, an officer responsible for assessing fines for offenses carrying penalties not explicitly defined by existing statutes. This role led on to his becoming a burgess, then a chamberlainChamberlain (office)
A chamberlain is an officer in charge of managing a household. In many countries there are ceremonial posts associated with the household of the sovereign....
. He would have been known as a 'Goodman', a title that recognised his growing social status within Stratford. By 1564, John was an alderman
Alderman
An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members themselves rather than by popular vote, or a council...
, a member of the Common Hall of Stratford, and it was in this year William was born. In 1568 John was appointed High Bailiff
Bailiff
A bailiff is a governor or custodian ; a legal officer to whom some degree of authority, care or jurisdiction is committed...
, the present-day equivalent of mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
.
In 1569 John had applied for a coat of arms
Coat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
, which after a long period of dormancy was granted on 20 October 1596. Most historians believe that his son, William, re-opened the application following his literary and financial success in London.
Risk taking and financial problems
John later fell on hard times. He was recorded as among several local men who stayed away from Church services for fear of being arrested for debt. Because of this, he eventually lost his position as an aldermanAlderman
An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members themselves rather than by popular vote, or a council...
. Records suggest that he was also prosecuted (or threatened with prosecution at least) in the 1570s for illegal dealing in wool
Wool
Wool is the textile fiber obtained from sheep and certain other animals, including cashmere from goats, mohair from goats, qiviut from muskoxen, vicuña, alpaca, camel from animals in the camel family, and angora from rabbits....
and for usury
Usury
Usury Originally, when the charging of interest was still banned by Christian churches, usury simply meant the charging of interest at any rate . In countries where the charging of interest became acceptable, the term came to be used for interest above the rate allowed by law...
or lending money with interest. Such illicit trade would have been profitable to his glove business by avoiding the middleman. In 1570 he was accused of making loans worth £220 (equivalent to over £50,000 in 2007), including interest, to a Walter Mussum. Mussum was not a good risk; at his death his whole estate was worth £114, or barely half what John Shakespeare had seen fit to lend him. The financial risk was just one side of his potentially problematic business activity. The law described usury as "a vice most odious and detestable" and levied severe penalties for those caught in such practices, even in a small way. The law stated that anyone caught lending money with interest illegally would forfeit all the money lent, plus forfeiture of any interest due, face a fine on top and also possible imprisonment. John was also engaged in trading wool illegally in 1571, when he acquired 300 tods (or 8,400 pounds) of wool, a large consignment.
In 1576 John decided to, or was made to, withdraw from public life in Stratford. He had been excused levies that he was supposed to pay by supportive townsmen and business associates and they kept his name on the rolls for a decade, perhaps hoping that in that time he would be able to return to public life and recover his financial situation. But he never did so. He is mentioned in the local records once more in 1597 when he sold some property to George Badger, a draper
Draper
Draper is the now largely obsolete term for a wholesaler, or especially retailer, of cloth, mainly for clothing, or one who works in a draper's shop. A draper may additionally operate as a cloth merchant or a haberdasher. The drapers were an important trade guild...
.
John Shakespeare was buried on 8 September 1601.
In the 18th century a tract signed by John Shakespeare, in which he promised to remain a Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
in his heart, was found in the rafters of the house on Henley Street. It was seen and described by the scholar Edmond Malone
Edmond Malone
Edmond Malone was an Irish Shakespearean scholar and editor of the works of William Shakespeare.Assured of an income after the death of his father in 1774, Malone was able to give up his law practice for at first political and then more congenial literary pursuits. He went to London, where he...
. Although it was subsequently lost, a very similar copy of the formulaic text came to light in the 20th century that showed the original to be very likely genuine. The only non-genuine portion was the first leaf of the document; it had been forged by John Jordan, a man who had acquired the manuscript and attempted to have it published.