The Shakespeare Code

When William Shakespeare published his Sonnets in 1609 he did not present them in chronological order – rather there were in two heaps – poems for ‘him’ and poems for ‘her’ – with the poems for ‘him’ being the much larger pile.Each Sonnet will be accompanied by two numbers: the first will be their numbers in the new order, and the second their original number in the first publication.

STRATFORD-UPON-AVON 1564-78

William Shakespeare was born into a prosperous and successful family. His father John was a glover, wool-merchant and money dealer – and was made Bailiff of Stratford-upon-Avon. But the family were Roman Catholics – and the same year Shakespeare was born, Queen Elizabeth’s lover, Robert Dudley, later Earl of Earl of Leicester…….

…..was given a present by the queen of Kennilworth Castle…….

…..only twelve miles away from Shakespeare’s home.

Dudley used the castle as a love-nest for his many mistresses and a centre from which to harass Roman Catholics. He lived a dissipated and violent life – but he posed as a Puritan so he could claim Church lands. His agent was the sadistic Sir Thomas Lucy……

 …..who was to be given powers to enter and search the homes of Catholics.

LANCASHIRE 1578-82

John Shakespeare’s fortunes began to fail. He was forbidden to deal in wool and his money lending was curtailed. He had once lent money to Stratford but now he couldn’t even pay his own rates. He had to take William – a high-spirited boy who would make a great speech when he killed a calf – away from the Grammar School to help in the shop.

However, the underground Catholic network swung into action. The new schoolmaster – also a recusant Catholic – was a great friend of the old Hoghton family in Lancashire – so William was employed in the household to entertain the children and play games and music with them.

Hoghton Hall

BACK TO STRATFORD 1582-3

The Hoghton family itself – and their friends – came under the scrutiny of Elizabeth’s agents and arrests were made. William, now eighteen, was forced back to Stratford where he fell madly in love with a beautiful woman – and old family friend, Anne Hathaway.

She was eight years older than William, but that didn’t stop William for a second. Disparity in lovers’ ages was common in Elizabethan England.

But Anne didn’t want to know – so William wrote a ballad to seduce her. In this he casts himself as the hapless, love-sick swain. Anne to begin with has a positive antipathy to William: but she has a king nature and she takes pity on William.

So this, the first Sonnet in chronological sequence, isn’t a Sonnet at all. It was a ballad, and probably set to music for Will to sing to Anne.

1. (145)

Those lips that Love’s own hand did make,

Breath’d forth the sound that said ‘I hate’,

To me that languisht for her sake:

The ‘lips’ referred to are Anne Hathaway’s own – and Shakespeare is suggesting that they have been created by the hands of love itself. But although Shakespeare is languishing with love for Anne – she actually tells him she hates him.

But when she saw my woeful state,

Straight in her heart did mercy come,

Chiding that tongue that ever sweet,

Was us’d in giving gentle doom:

But because Shakespeare is in such a state of pain, when Anne looks at him, Mercy enters her heart. Mercy tells Anne’s tongue off for saying ‘I hate’. Her tongue is used to giving gentle judgements on things and people (‘doom’ is like ‘The Day of Doom.’)

And taught it thus anew to greet:

‘I hate’ she alter’d with an end,

That follow’d it as gentle day,

Doth follow night who like a fiend

From heaven to hell is flown away.

Mercy takes over the education of Anne’s tongue and forces it to give a new ending to the sentence that begins with ‘I hate’. This is like a gentle dawn that follows a hellish night – that flees from light as a demon flies from heaven and back to hell.

I hate’, from hate away she threw,

And sav’d my life saying ‘Not you’.

With a clever bit of wordplay, Shakespeare plays on Anne’s family ‘Hathaway’. ‘I hate from hate away she threw’ = ‘I hate from Hathaway she threw….So in the end Anne, through the power of Mercy, completely changes what she was about to say from ‘I hate you’ to ‘I hate NOT you.’ 

Click here for ‘Stratford and London and Touring and Titchfield. Part Two.