When Shakespeare died in 1616, his will contained only one reference to his wife, Anne Hathaway:
In fact, we really know very little of their relationship beyond the fact that Anne was already pregnant with their first child when they married, that she was eight years her husband's senior and that they lived apart a great deal during his London years. On the other hand, they did live together after he retired from the theatre.
Whatever really happened, the legacy of the second-best bed has provided endless food for speculation among Shakespearean scholars.
"Item I give unto my wife my second-best bed with the furniture." This is not necessarily as heartless as it seems, as the best bed would normally have gone to the eldest child, and a widow would have the house and most of its contents given to her (for her lifetime) by law, even without a will. It has even been suggested that the bequest refers to a private joke between Shakespeare and his wife.
On the other hand, the will does not even mention her by name, let alone such endearments as "my beloved wife," which were common in wills of the period.
In fact, we really know very little of their relationship beyond the fact that Anne was already pregnant with their first child when they married, that she was eight years her husband's senior and that they lived apart a great deal during his London years. On the other hand, they did live together after he retired from the theatre.
Whatever really happened, the legacy of the second-best bed has provided endless food for speculation among Shakespearean scholars.
