Bookable
An Apollonaut travel guide
Moments in a longer story.
Selected milestones in the history of Shakespeare’s Birthplace and New Place.
On this page
A house, a family and a trust
These dates describe the place you can learn about here. They are not a company timeline for Apollonaut.
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1564
A birth on Henley Street
William Shakespeare is believed to have been born in the house.
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1568
High bailiff
John Shakespeare becomes high bailiff of Stratford.
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1597
New Place
William Shakespeare buys New Place on Chapel Street.
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1616
Death at New Place
Shakespeare dies at New Place.
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1759
New Place demolished
The house at New Place is pulled down; its site later becomes a garden.
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1806
A new owner
The Hart family sells the Birthplace to Thomas Court, a butcher.
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1847
Bought for the nation
After a public campaign, the Shakespeare Committee buys the house for £3,000.
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1857–1864
Restoration
The outside of the house is restored to its 16th-century appearance.
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1891
The Trust
The committee becomes the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.
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1951
Grade I
The house is listed at Grade I.
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1964
The Shakespeare Centre
The Trust’s visitor centre opens beside the house.
Follow the stories behind the dates
A timeline is a beginning. The longer history introduces the people and places; the sources below provide further context.
Read at the source
Sources & further reading
- Shakespeare Birthplace Trust: Shakespeare’s Birthplace
- Wikipedia: Shakespeare’s Birthplace
- Wikipedia: New Place
Links lead to the original publishers.