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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Eric Williams

Shakespeare may not have abandoned wife, previously ‘ignored’ letter reveals

William Shakespeare’s birthplace in Henley Street, Stratford-upon-Avon (Alamy/PA) -

William Shakespeare may not have abandoned his wife, a previously “ignored” 17th century letter has revealed, undermining a centuries-old consensus among scholars.

For more than 200 years, it has been assumed that the playwright had an unhappy relationship with his wife, Anne Hathaway, and that he left her in Stratford-upon-Avon to pursue a writing career in London.

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