Globe Theatre

A round open-air theatre in London that is usually associated with William Shakespeare. Built in 1599, destroyed in 1613. Rebuilt, and finally torn down in 1644. Reconstructed as "Shakespeare's Globe" in 1997, though not at the original site.

The Globe was located on the south side of the river Thames. It was built in 1599 by the Lord Chamberlain's Men, the theatre company in which Shakespeare was a shareholder. After the first Globe was destroyed in 1613, it was rebuilt at the same place. Due to the Civil War (and the surge in Puritanism, it was closed down in 1642. In 1644, it was demolished, and flats were built where the Globe Theatre had once been. Some parts of its fundament that were left behind helped to identify the spot.