Shakespeare and astronomy

Prof. Michael Rowan-Robinson 
Imperial College London

Shakespeare was the first to use the word ‘universe’ in the modern sense of the whole starry firmament.  He demonstrates an intimate knowledge of the night sky and uses astronomical images to highlight the emotions of his characters at moments of crisis.  And he hints strongly to us that he knew about the Copernican system and Thomas Digges’s extension of this to say that the stars extend to infinity.  How could the son of a glove-maker, with no university education, achieve this?

England in Shakespeare’s time was a hotbed of Copernicanism.  I explore some of the possible links between Shakespeare and the Copernicans.