Anne Hathaway (wife of Shakespeare) fallen into financial ruin, while Hathaway, from a family in good standing both socially and financially, would have been considered a catch. Furthermore, a "handfast" or probationary marriage and pregnancy were frequent precursors to legal marriage at the time. Examining the surviving records of Stratford-upon-Avon and nearby villages in the 1580s, Greer argues that two facts stand out quite prominently: first, that a large number of brides went to the altar already pregnant; and second, that autumn, not spring, was the most common time to get married. Shakespeare was bound to marry Hathaway, who had become pregnant by him, but
Horatio Hathaway Horatio Hathaway Horatio Hathaway (May 19, 1831 – March 25, 1898) was a New England industrialist, politician, and philanthropist and namesake of Berkshire Hathaway. Hathaway was born on May 19, 1831 to Nathaniel Hathaway and Anna (Shoemaker) Hathaway in New Bedford. Hathaway attended Phillips Andover Academy, and graduated from Harvard University in 1850. He then travelled to China on a merchant ship, spending two years away from America, participating in the China Trade. In 1859 Hathaway married Ellen Rodman and they had five children. Hathaway's father, Nathaniel, and Hathaway's uncles, Thomas S. Hathaway and Francis S. Hathaway, operated a tea