Shakespeare's Birthday
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Posted by Cathy Smith Apr 23, 2007 |
It is unlikely that you will have a cake with more than four hundred candles at the ready to celebrate William’s birth but just in case you have, or you are planning something on a more modest scale, think again.
There are those who say he was born on April 22 (1564) and they put forward an argument to prove their case. It is suggested by more than one academic that there is no real evidence showing he was born on the 23rd and it is known that his family regarded the 22nd as a very special day, indicating that his birthday would be celebrated on this day.
However, April 23 is an important day in English history, celebrated since 1222 as the date when St. George slew the dragon. It is suggested that, as Shakespeare’s posthumous fame increased, there was a temptation to link the name of England’s greatest playwright with that of its patron saint.
Does it matter whether or not he was born a day earlier than the history books tell us? Probably not to anyone outside the academic world. In the meantime,we celebrate his birth, whatever date it was. Shakespeare himself wrote: “There was a star danced, and under that was I born.”(Much Ado About Nothing).
He was not, of course, referring to himself, but let us be thankful that he was born, whatever date it was. Related articles: