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The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust

The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust is the world’s leading charity in promoting the works, life and times of William Shakespeare. The Trust offers a unique Shakespeare centered experience with outstanding archive and library collections, inspiring educational and literary event programs and five wonderful houses all directly relating to Shakespeare. As an independent charity the Trust receives no public subsidy or direct government funding. The Trust depends entirely on income generated through their supporters: their visitors, volunteers, donors and Friends.

The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust’s History
The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust was formed in 1847 following the purchase of Shakespeare’s Birthplace as a national memorial.

The role of the Trust grew with the purchase in 1876 of Shakespeare’s New Place estate, comprising the site of Shakespeare’s grand final home and Nash’s House (the home of Thomas Nash and Shakespeare’s grand-daughter Elizabeth).

The Trust purchased Anne Hathaway’s Cottage, the girlhood home of Shakespeare’s wife, in 1892 and Mary Arden’s House was purchased in 1930.

The last house to be acquired was Hall’s Croft, the home of Shakespeare’s daughter Susanna and her husband, physician Dr John Hall, in 1949.

In 1964 to celebrate the four hundredth anniversary of Shakespeare’s birth the Trust threw open the doors of its new headquarters and study facility, the Shakespeare Centre.  This distinctive building provides a home for the Trust’s extensive Shakespeare Centre library and archive (including the RSC archive). The second part of this project, an extension including facilities for the Trust's educational and cultural work and a visitor centre for Shakespeare’s Birthplace, was added in 1981.

In addition to the Shakespeare Houses, the Trust cares for Harvard House on behalf of the Harvard House Memorial 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

Documents contributed by The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust

February 15, 1566
Chamberlain’s account for the year Michaelmas 1564 to Michaelmas 1565, made by John Shakespeare on behalf of William Tyler and William Smith
In the autumn of 1563, John Taylor and John Shakespeare completed their two-year term of office as chamberlains. William Tyler and William Smith, haberdasher, were appointed to take their place.
September 11, 1566
John Shakespeare, on threat of distraint of his goods, is ordered to appear at the next session of Stratford’s court of record, as surety for Richard Hathaway
In late August 1566, a local ironmonger named John Page brought a charge of detinue, or wrongful taking of goods, against Richard Hathaway, a husbandman (a term indicating a farmer of a modest landholding) from nearby Shottery. An undated precept (Minutes and Accounts, ii, p.
September 4, 1568
Meeting of the Stratford-upon-Avon Corporation at which John Shakespeare was elected bailiff
Under the terms of Stratford-upon-Avon’s 1553 charter of incorporation, every September the fourteen aldermen and fourteen capital burgesses elected one of their number to serve as bailiff for the coming year.
December 4, 1568
Precept issued by John Shakespeare, justice of the peace to arrest John Ball and bring him before the next sitting of the court of record to answer a plea of debt brought against him brought by Richard Dixon
Stratford-upon-Avon's 1553 charter of incorporation stipulated that the bailiff, acting as justice of the peace, would preside over a court of record held fortnightly (every two weeks), which would handle civil claims of up to £30.
December 9, 1568
Precept issued by John Shakespeare, justice of the peace, to arrest Richard Walker and bring him before the next sitting of the court of record to answer to a plea brought against him
This precept, issued by John Shakespeare in his capacity as justice of the peace, concerned William Shotteswell's suit against Richard Walker for a debt of £10. It should have been preceded by an initial hearing, but of this there is no surviving record.

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