&quot;King Lear&quot; is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare. set in the court of an ageing British monarch and based on the mythological <i>Leir of Britain</i>. Shakespeare probably wrote it in around 1604, sandwiched between two other great tragedies, &quot;Othello&quot; and &quot;Macbeth.&quot; The first known performance of any version of Shakespeare&#39;s play was on St. Stephen&#39;s Day in 1606<br /><br />Having reached the age of 80, the widowed King Lear calls his nobles together to announce his intention to pass on the cares and responsibility of monarchy to his three daughters, with whom he means to live on a rota basis. His eldest, Goneril, is married to the Duke of Albany and his middle child, Regan, is married to the Duke of Cornwall. At the court are the Duke of Burgundy and the King of France, both hoping to marry Lear&#39;s youngest (and favourite) daughter Cordelia...