A BATTLE OF WILLS: WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE, THOMAS NASH, AND THE FIGHT FOR NEW PLACE, STRATFORD

Guest Speaker: Dr Daniel Gosling

In his 1642 will, Thomas Nash – the husband of Elizabeth, William Shakespeare’s granddaughter – left New Place in Stratford-upon-Avon to his cousin Edward Nash. There was only one problem. New Place, the former Shakespeare family home, where William Shakespeare had died in 1616, wasn’t Thomas Nash’s to bequeath. Shakespeare had left New Place to his daughter Susanna Hall, who was still living at the time of Thomas Nash’s death in 1647.

What followed was a property dispute for New Place in the Court of Chancery between Edward Nash, who had been promised the property by his cousin Thomas, and Elizabeth Nash, Thomas’ executrix and the rightful owner of the property along with her mother Susanna.

This talk by Dr Daniel Gosling examines this property dispute in detail, utilising the many original records detailing the dispute that are now held at The National Archives. A key component of the dispute was the wills of Thomas Nash and William Shakespeare, and Dr Gosling will look at both these records to explain where they fit into this fight for New Place. In particular, this talk highlights the new discovery of Thomas Nash’s 1642 will in an unlisted box of Chancery deeds at The National Archives.