DR243/1: Baptismal register, folio 7 recto
Reproduced by permission of Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.
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The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust has graciously contributed images under a Creative Commons Attribution NonCommerical ShareAlike 4.0 International license. Visitors may download, link to and cite the images for personal research only. Any further use, including, but not limited to, unauthorized downloading or distribution of the images, commercial or third party use, is strictly prohibited. Visitors must contact the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust to request additional use, at: images.scla@shakespeare.org.uk
Document-specific information
Creator: Holy Trinity Church, Stratford-upon-Avon
Title: Parish Register, Holy Trinity Church, Stratford-upon-Avon
Date: October 13, 1566
Repository: The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, Stratford-upon-Avon, UK
Call number and opening: DR243/: Baptismal register, fol. 7r
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DR243/1: Baptismal register, folio 7 recto, entry detail
Reproduced by permission of Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.
Terms of use
The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust has graciously contributed images under a Creative Commons Attribution NonCommerical ShareAlike 4.0 International license. Visitors may download, link to and cite the images for personal research only. Any further use, including, but not limited to, unauthorized downloading or distribution of the images, commercial or third party use, is strictly prohibited. Visitors must contact the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust to request additional use, at: images.scla@shakespeare.org.uk
Document-specific information
Creator: Holy Trinity Church, Stratford-upon-Avon
Title: Parish Register, Holy Trinity Church, Stratford-upon-Avon
Date: October 13, 1566
Repository: The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, Stratford-upon-Avon, UK
Call number and opening: DR243/: Baptismal register, fol. 7r
View online bibliographic record
Reproduced by permission of Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.
Terms of use
The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust has graciously contributed images under a Creative Commons Attribution NonCommerical ShareAlike 4.0 International license. Visitors may download, link to and cite the images for personal research only. Any further use, including, but not limited to, unauthorized downloading or distribution of the images, commercial or third party use, is strictly prohibited. Visitors must contact the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust to request additional use, at: images.scla@shakespeare.org.uk
Document-specific information
Creator: Holy Trinity Church, Stratford-upon-Avon
Title: Parish Register, Holy Trinity Church, Stratford-upon-Avon
Date: October 13, 1566
Repository: The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, Stratford-upon-Avon, UK
Call number and opening: DR243/: Baptismal register, fol. 7r
View online bibliographic record
Robert Bearman, "Parish register entry recording Gilbert Shakespeare’s baptism," Shakespeare Documented, https://doi.org/10.37078/460.
Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, DR243/1: Baptismal register, folio 7 recto. See Shakespeare Documented, https://doi.org/10.37078/460.
Gilbert, John and Mary’s fourth child, was baptized on October 13, 1566, according to the Holy Trinity Church parish register. Next to the entry, an “X” added by a later hand highlights its significance. Gilbert, the Shakespeares’ second son, was born two and a half years after their eldest son William, a typical interval in cases where the elder sibling survived.
Gilbert was not a common baptismal name: although two Stratford babies were named Gilbert in 1565, the name was not used again until 1695. This suggests that a man with that name may have stood as godfather at his baptism. Gilbert Bradley is a likely candidate. Not only was he a neighbor on Henley Street (in the house that is now the Public Library), but he was also a glover like John Shakespeare, and was elected as a capital burgess on the same day John was chosen as alderman.
Written by Robert Bearman
Last updated July 11, 2020
