Publication of King Lear

King Lear is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, probably written around 1605 and 1606 and first printed in a quarto edition in 1608. It tells how the aging King Lear of Britain decides to divide his kingdom among his three daughters according to how well they express their love for him. He disowns Cordelia, the youngest, who refuses to flatter him, and gives power to Goneril and Regan, who then mistreat him. A parallel story follows the Earl of Gloucester and his sons. The play moves through betrayal and madness to the death of Lear and Cordelia. For over a century and a half, audiences saw a revised version by Nahum Tate with a happy ending, and the original tragic ending was restored in the nineteenth century. Shakespeare drew on earlier chronicles and an older play about King Leir.

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