when was hamlet written
Shakespeare evidently named his son after his recusant neighbor and friend Hamnet Sadler, who was still alive in March 1616 when Shakespeare drew up his will and left 26 shillings, 8 pence to âHamlett Sadlerâ¦to buy him a ringe.â. Writing a play about Hamlet, in or around 1600, may not have been Shakespeareâs own idea.