top of page
Top of Page

TIMELINE OF SHAKESPEARE'S PLAYS  (courtesy of the Royal Shakespeare Company)

​

1580 - 1590

  • The Taming of the Shrew -Considered to be one of Shakespeare's earliest works, the play is generally believed to have been written before 1592

 

1590 - 1600

  • Henry VI Part II -Believed to have been written in 1591 and Shakespeare's first play based on English history

  • Henry VI Part III -Written immediately after Part II, a short version of the play was published in Octavo form in 1595

  • The Two Gentlemen of Verona -Known to be written around the 1590s as it was mentioned by Francis Meres in his list of Shakespeare's plays in 1598, no firm evidence for a particular year

  • Titus Andronicus -Written in 1591/92, with its first performance possibly in January 1594

  • Henry VI Part I -Generally assumed to be the 'harey the vi' performed at the Rose Theatre in 1592

  • Richard III- Could have been written in 1592, shortly before the plague struck, or in 1594 when the theatres reopened post-plague

  • The Comedy of Errors -Was possibly written for Gray's Inn Christmas festivities for the legal profession in December 1594

  • Love's Labour's Lost -An edition of the play in 1598 refers to it being 'presented before her Highness [Queen Elizabeth] this last Christmas', and most scholars date it to 1595-96

  • A Midsummer Night's Dream -Often dated to 1595-96. Reference in Act 1 Scene 2 to courtiers being afraid of a strage lion may allude to an incident in Scotland in 1594

  • Romeo and Juliet- Astrological allusions and earthquake reference may suggest composition in 1595-96

  • Richard II -Typically dated 1595-96. Described in 1601 as 'old and long out of use'

  • King John -Written between 1595 and 1597; an anonymous two-part King John was published in 1591 but Shakespeare's version is stylistically close to later histories

  • The Merchant of Venice- Registered for publication in 1598, reference to a ship Andrew suggests late 1596 or early 1597 as a Spanish ship of the name was captured around that time

  • Henry IV Part I -Probably written and first performed 1596-97, registered for publication in 1598

  • Henry IV Part II- Written around 1597-98 and registered for publication in 1600, both parts are based on Holinshed's Chronicles

  • Much Ado About Nothing- Late 1598, not mentioned in Francis Meres's 1598 list of Shakespeare's plays but included the role Dogberry for Will Kemp, a comic actor who left the company in early 1599

  • Henry V - Written in 1599, mentions a 'general... from Ireland coming', could be referring to the Earl of Essex's Irish expedition in 1599

  • As You Like It- Typically dated late 1599. Not mentioned in Francis Meres's 1598 list of Shakespeare's plays, unless originally called Love's Labour's Won

  • Julius Caesar- 1599. Not mentioned in Meres's 1598 list of plays, seen at the Globe by Swiss visitor Thomas Platter in 1599

 

1600 - 1610

  • Hamlet- Dated around 1600, registered for publication in summer 1602. There are allusions to Julius Caesar, which was written in 1599

  • The Merry Wives of Windsor- Estimated 1597 - 1601, though an allusion to the Order of the Garter might indicate that it was performed at the Garter Feast in 1597

  • Twelfth Night- 1601. Not mentioned in Meres's 1598 list of plays and alludes to a map first published in 1599

  • Troilus and Cressida- Dated 1601-02, registered for publication early 1603 and alludes to the play Thomas Lord Cromwell, which was registered for publication in 1602

  • Othello- Dated 1604 though some argue for a slightly earlier date. It is recorded to have been performed in court in November 1604

  • Measure for Measure- Performed at court for Christmas 1604, probably written earlier the same year

  • All's Well That Ends Well- No strong evidence for date written or first performed, but it is usually dated 1603-06 on stylistic grounds

  • Timon of Athens- Estimated 1604-06 based on stylistic similarity to King Lear

  • King Lear- Dated 1605-06. Performed at court December 1606 and seems to refer to eclipses of September and October 1605

  • Macbeth- 1606. Certainly more Jacobean than Elizabethan based on the play's several compliments to King James

  • Antony and Cleopatra- Dated 1606-07, registered for publication in 1608 and perhaps performed at court in 1606 or 1607

  • Coriolanus- Perhaps written in 1608. Allusion to 'coal of fire upon ice' in Act 1 could refer to the great frost of winter in 1607/08

  • Pericles- 1608. Registered for publication in 1608; Wilkin's novel The Painful Adventures of Pericles, cashing in on the success of the play, was published in 1608

  • Cymbeline- 1610. A performance in 1611 is recorded. Theatres were reopened in spring 1610 after a long closure due to the plague

 

AFTER 1610

  • The Winter's Tale- 1611. Performed at the Globe May 1611; dance of satyrs apparently borrows from a court entertainment of January 1611

  • The Tempest- 1611. Performed at court in November 1611; uses source material not available before autumn 1610

  • Henry VIII- 1613. The first Globe theatre burnt down in a fire that started during a performance of the play on 29 June 1613

  • The Two Noble Kinsmen- 1613-14; 'our loss' in the Prologue probably refers to the Globe fire of 1613

Back to Top
bottom of page