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Friday 19 May 2017

Wise to Salvation Was Good Mistris Hall

Witty above her sex, but that's not all,
Wise to Salvation was good Mistress Hall,
Something of Shakespeare was in that, but this
Wholly of him with whom she's now in blisse.
Then, passenger, hast nere a tear
To weep with her that wept with all
That wept, yet set herself to chere
Them up with comforts cordiall?
Her love shall live, her mercy spread
When thou hast nere a tear to shed.


This week sees the anniversary of the baptism of Susanna Hall, daughter of William Shakespeare and Anne (nee Hathaway), on 26th May 1583, which that year fell on Trinity Sunday. The baptism took place like that of her father before her, in Holy Trinity Church, Stratford-Upon-Avon. Two weeks ago I saw her grave in the same church, alongside her famous father, mother, husband and other family members.

Hall’s Croft, Susanna and John’s home

We also visited Shakespeare’s Birthplace, New Place, which he bought when he left the family home, and Hall’s Croft, the house Susanna shared with her respected physician husband, John Hall. I found the whole experience thoroughly enjoyable and educational. In Hall’s Croft are photographs of Susanna's and John’s epitaphs, which cannot be easily read in the church, as they are in front of the altar and sectioned off.

























She seems to have been a good and trusted daughter, although her life was not without incident, as can be found by researching on the web. Below is a brief look at Holy Trinity Church, where the family graves are. For further pictures of the homes connected with Shakespeare, here are the links to my Flickr albums.



Shakespeare’s Birthplace
Hall’s Croft
New Place 

This is a Sepia Saturday post, as you don't get much more sepia than Shakespeare.

6 comments:

  1. I last went to Stratford on Avon as a teenager. Predictably, I missed all of this :) Thanks too for the links.

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  2. I've never stopped in Stratford. May have to remedy that.

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  3. What a lovely home. I've been enjoying your photos on Facebook of your Shakespeare tour.

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  4. I knew nothing about Susannah and had never seen Hall's Croft on a visit to,Stratford many years ago. So thank you for enlightening me and showing the lovely photograph of her home.

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  5. A beautiful place to visit. I've never thought about it before, but the fashion of grave poetry must have produced a market for good poets who could craft suitable rhymes and meter. Or maybe it was the lass resort of bad poets?

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