Before William Shakespeare wrote world-famous plays on the themes of power and political turmoil, the Shakespeare family of Stratford-upon-Avon and their neighbors and friends were plagued by false accusations and feuds with the government--conflicts that shaped Shakespeare's sceptical understanding of the realities of power.

Glyn Parry was an undergraduate at St John's College, Cambridge, where he subsequently wrote his PhD under the supervision of Professor Sir Geoffrey Elton. He has held academic posts in Britain, Australia, and New Zealand, where he taught for many years at Victoria University of Wellington, and has held several fellowships at the Huntington Library, San Marino, California. He has been Professor of Early Modern History at the University of Roehampton, London, since 2013.
Cathryn Enis is an Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Birmingham. Her research links local and national narratives, looking for connections between past and current identities, particularly in the county of Warwickshire, where William Shakespeare grew up. She is particularly interested in the interaction between politics and culture, and works across a broad historical timeframe to understand how regional identities and stories are created and shared.

• Preface: William Shakespeare, Warwickshire, and Politics


• Introduction


• 1: The Dudleys


• 2: The Ardens


• 3: The Shakespeares


• 4: The Trial of John Somerville and Edward Arden


• 5: The Aftermath


• Conclusion: The Name of Arden