Shakspere Chronology - 1609 to 1612

Allusion = E. K. Chambers, ed., The Shakspere Allusion-Book, 2 volumes (Oxford University Press, London: 1932 reprint)
EP = R[obert] A[llot], ed., Englands Parnassus (1600, reprint, Da Capo Press, New York:1970)
EKC = E. K. Chambers, William Shakespeare: A Study of the Facts and Problems, 2 volumes (Clarendon Press, Oxford: 1930)
Furnivall = F. J. Furnivall, "Sir John Harington's Shakspeare Quartos," Notes and Queries, 7th Series, IX, May 17, 1890, p. 382.
Helicon = Hyder Edward Rollins, ed., England's Helicon, 2 volumes, 1600, 1614 (1935)
HP = J. O. Halliwell-Phillips, Outlines of the Life of Shakespeare, 7th edition,
2 volumes (Longmans, Green, and Co., London: 1887)
Poems = F.T. Prince, ed., The Arden Shakespeare: The Poems (1960)
SS = Samuel Schoenbaum, William Shakespeare: A Documentary Life (Oxford University Press, New York:1975)
SS2 = Samuel Schoenbaum, William Shakespeare: Records and Images (1981)
Wallace = Charles William Wallace, "New Light on Shakespeare" (Part 2), The Times (London), May 1, 1914, p. 4.
Warner = George Frederic Warner, Catalogue of the Manuscripts and Muniments of Alleyn's College of God's Gift at Dulwich (1881)

[Forms of the name "William Shakspere" or "William Shakespeare" always appear in bold. Only authorship-related items are numbered. Items in brackets refer the reader to the date the document was actually created. Documents that refer back to earlier documents no longer extant give the earlier date in parentheses. When the date is uncertain but spans a number of years, the item is listed under the earliest date. Dating issues are discussed with each item. In many cases, purely legal Latin texts and mundane business transactions are not quoted in full. Only the first issuance of a Quarto is noted. For a complete list, see Quartos.]

***1609 Title page, Q of Troilus and Cressida "William Shakespeare" (printed by G. Eld for R. Bonian and H. Walley) (EKC I, 438)

***1609 Title page, Q1 of Pericles "William Shakespeare" (printed by William White for Henry Gosson) (EKC I, 518)

***1609 Stationer's Register entry for the Sonnets "Shakespeare" (handwritten) (EKC I, 556)

***1609 Q of Shake-speares Sonnets "Shake-speares" (printed by G. Eld for Thomas Thorpe) (EKC I, 556)

***1609 From a list of play quartos by Sir John Harington "K. Leir of Shakspear" (handwritten; Sir John Harington) (Furnivall)

***1609 List of jurors in Shakespeare v. Addenbrooke "Willielmum Shackspere" (handwritten) (HP II, 78; facs. SS, 183)

***1609 Feb 15 Precept to bind jurors to appear in court "Willielmum Shackspeare" (handwritten) (HP II, 78)

***1609 Mar 15 Precept to arrest Addenbrooke, related to suit by Shakespeare "Willielmo Shackspere" (handwritten) (EKC II, 115)

***1609 Jun 7 (Shakespeare v. Addenbrooke, Stratford Court of Record) "Willielmus Shackspeare" "Willielmo Shackspeare" (handwritten) (EKC II, 115)

***1609 Jun 19 From a note of purchases by Edward Alleyn; "Shaksper sonetts, 5 d." (handwritten; Edward Alleyn) (Warner, 72)

1610 Court of Common Pleas fine: It served to confirm Shakspere's title to 107 acres of land and 20 acres of pasture he bought from William Combe in 1602. (Public Record Office, Court of Common Pleas, Feet of Fines, C.P. 25(2)/365; C.P. 24(2)/7). (handwritten) (EKC II, 109)

1610 Oct 8 From The Scourge of Folly by John Davies of Hereford registered "Mr. Will: Shake-speare" (printed) (EKC II, 214)

***1611 The Phoenix and the Turtle in a second edition of Chester's Loves Marytr, or Rosalins Complaint (Unchanged from 1601 version, printed for Matthew Lownes) (Poems, 331, 559)

***1611 From a manuscript list of books by William Drummond of Hawthornden, dated 1611 "Schaksp." (handwritten, William Drummond) (Allusion I, 164)

***1611 Court of Chancery Bill of Complaint: "The complainants, of whom Shakespeare was one, asked that the other tenants pay their portion of the mean rent of L26.13s.4d. reserved for John Barker, who held the original lease on the tithes" (@ Schoenbaum 193). (Richard Lane et al. versus Dominus Carewe et al. relates to Shakespeare's holdings of tithes, Shakespeare Birthplace Trust Records Office, Misc. Doc. II, 11.). (handwritten) (EKC II, 122; HP II, 25)

***1611 Sept 11 Contribution list for Highways Bill. The name "mr William shackspere" appears on a list of those supporting "the Charge of prosecutynge the Bill in parliament for the better Repayre of the highe waies and amendinge divers defectes in the Statues alredy made." This Bill would have made the national government responsible for repairs previously funded by local residents. (Shakespeare Birthplace Trust Records Office, Misc. Doc. I, 4.). (handwritten) (EKC II, 153; facs. SS, 229)

***1611 Oct 5 Inventory of goods of Robert Johnson, late of Stratford. "Mr. Shaxper" (handwritten; Alexander Aspinall) (EKC II, 32)

***1612 From "Epistle" to The White Devil by John Webster "M. Shake-speare" (printed) (EKC II, 218)

***1612 May 11 Bellott v. Mountjoy, deposition of Joan Johnson. "Mr. Shakespeare" (handwritten) (EKC II, 90 (relevant part); facs. SS2, 27)

***1612 May 11 Bellott v. Mountjoy, deposition of Daniell Nicholas. "Wm: Shakespeare" "Shakespere" "Shakespe" (handwritten) (EKC II, 90 (relevant part); facs. SS2, 28)

***1612 May 11 Bellott v. Mountjoy, deposition of William Shakespeare "William Shakespeare" (handwritten) (EKC II, 91; facs. SS, 212 and SS2, 30)

1612 May 11 Court Deposition: Shakspere was called into court and asked to resolve a dispute regarding the amount offered as dowry by him when he acted as "go-between" to negotiate a marriage in 1604.
"Only Shakespeare himself could resolve the question, and the two sides must have looked forward, with hope or apprehension, to his testimony. But Shakespeare's memory of the precise details of events long since past failed him. Why should he have recalled? He had no personal stake in the matter. Mountjoy had promised Belott a dowry of some sort, and there had been many conferences, but what the portion was, or when it was to be paid, Shakespeare could not say, nor could he vouch that 'the defendant promissed the plaintiff twoe hundered poundes with his daughter Marye at the tyme of his decease.' The witness likewise professed ignorance of 'what implementes and necessaries of houshold stuff' Mountjoy gave with Mary. [...]
"The proceedings, for all their mercenary or sordid overtones, reveal the poet dramatist of superhuman powers as a somewhat baffled mortal..." (@ Schoenbaum 213). Below is his "signature" found at the bottom of the deposition.

***1612 Jun 19 Note in margin of second set of interrogatories in Bellott-Mountjoy case. "William Shakespeare" (handwritten) (SS2, 39; facs. SS2, 31)

***1612 Jun 19 Bellott v. Mountjoy, deposition of Daniell Nicholas. "Mr. William Shakespeare" (handwritten) (EKC II, 93 (relevant part); facs. SS2, 34)

***1612 Jun 19 Bellott v. Mountjoy, deposition of Nowell Mountjoy "Mr. Shakespeare"
(handwritten) (EKC II, 93 (relevant part); facs. SS2, 37)

Mark's Commentary