The exact location of William Shakespeare’s only known London property has been identified on a Blackfriars street following the discovery of an unknown historical floorplan, researchers have found.

Shakespeare expert Professor Lucy Munro from King’s College London determined the precise location and size of the property the playwright purchased in 1613, based on newly examined archival documents.

The finding challenges long-held assumptions that Shakespeare largely retired from his theatre career shortly after acquiring the house and returned to Stratford-upon-Avon. Instead, academics now suggest he may have spent more time in London than previously thought.

As reported in BBC, The discovery also means that a blue plaque on St Andrew’s Hill marking Shakespeare’s presence in the area is not merely “near” the site of his former home, but located where the property actually stood.

The Blackfriars property had previously been believed to form part of “the Great Gate” at the entrance to the Blackfriars precinct, a 13th-century Dominican friary complex.

Prof Munro identified three key documents—two from The London Archives and one from The National Archives—that helped clarify the house’s exact position.

One of these was a 1668 plan of part of the Blackfriars precinct, drawn up shortly after the Great Fire of London, which confirmed the house’s location and dimensions. The section of the property spanning the gate was not included in the post-fire plan because it had no foundation.

Munro said she was “astonished” to realize she had uncovered the floorplan of Shakespeare’s Blackfriars home, adding that research on the property had previously gone dormant due to a lack of evidence.

She said the findings help complete the historical record of Shakespeare’s life in London and clarify the scale of the residence.

The property was located close to the Blackfriars Theatre, where Shakespeare worked. Munro noted that he co-authored The Two Noble Kinsmen with John Fletcher later in 1613, and suggested it is possible parts of the work may have been written in the Blackfriars house.

Additional documents relating to the sale of the property by Shakespeare’s granddaughter in 1665 further helped confirm its boundaries.

The house is now believed to have covered areas corresponding to the eastern end of Ireland Yard, the bottom of Burgon Street, and parts of buildings at 5 Burgon Street and 5 St Andrew’s Hill.