William Shakespeare (1564-1616), poet, playwright. Born in Stratford-upon-Avon, presumably educated at the local grammar school, the first printed allusion to Shakespeare in 1592 indicates that he was already established upon the London literary scene, first as an actor, then as a playwright, with only half of his plays printed in his lifetime. The supremacy of Shakespeare's abilities was widely recognised in 19th-century Europe and by Victorian society, with Arnold ranking his work with the Bible, and Carlyle (1795-1881) describing him as 'a Prophet' and 'a Priest of Mankind,' and 'a blessed heaven-sent Bringer of Light' ( Taylor, Reinventing Shakespeare, p. 167).
Ruskin often quoted Shakespeare and ranked him in the first or 'creative' order of poets (see Ruskin and Shakespeare).