That "William Shakespeare" was the author of Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet and many other much-loved plays is the greatest deception in literary history. Shakespeare Revolutionized tells the fascinating story of how the identity of the real author--Edward de Vere, the highest ranking earl in Queen Elizabeth's court--was discovered. It explains why it matters who the author really was: that knowing Shakespeare's real identity revolutionizes understandings of the plays, the conditions in which they were written and the Elizabethan era. It explains why the deception was perpetrated and why it lasted for more than 300 years. And it explains why many Shakespeare scholars today resist examining the evidence supporting the Oxfordian claim even as it has become the unacknowledged nucleus around which much of their work revolves. This book will revolutionize the understanding of all readers willing to approach the Shakespeare authorship question with an open mind.