Shakespeare's First Folio Published

Setting the scene

William Shakespeare died in 1616, leaving behind 36 plays, but only half had been published in unreliable quarto editions, often based on actors' memories or stolen scripts. Without a collected edition, 18 plays including Macbeth, The Tempest, and Twelfth Night risked being lost forever. Shakespeare's fellow actors in the King's Men, John Heminges and Henry Condell, recognized the danger and spent seven years gathering manuscripts, prompting copies, and negotiating with publishers to preserve their friend's work.

What happened

The First Folio, titled Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies, was published in 1623 by Isaac Jaggard and Edward Blount. It was a massive undertaking—900 pages, printed in folio format (large, expensive), costing £1 (about $250 today). Heminges and Condell wrote a preface urging readers to buy it, and Ben Jonson contributed a poem calling Shakespeare 'not of an age, but for all time.' The book was printed in about 750 copies, of which 235 survive today.

Why it still matters

The First Folio preserved 18 plays that would otherwise be lost, fundamentally shaping English literature and language. It standardized Shakespeare's texts and established his canon. Without it, we would have no Macbeth, no Julius Caesar, no As You Like It. The Folio's publication marked the beginning of Shakespeare's transformation from popular playwright to literary immortal. A copy sold for $9.97 million in 2020, making it one of the most valuable books in the world. It remains the most important book ever published in English.

Background

Without it, several major plays might have been lost. Even centuries later, this episode remains a reference point for how empires rise, fracture, and transform.