As Shakespeare’s plays oozed with grace and expertise, it has bred envious scrutiny as a number of people throughout history claimed that the Bard was simply a stooge who allowed his name to be used by someone greater, who refused the prestigious credit of becoming one of the world’s greatest playwrights. The number of books on exposing Shakespeare as a fraud is estimated to be well over five thousand and media vultures fueled the fray. So who says that you can’t have bashers, trolls, and haters at a time when social media was just a figment of the imagination? Here is a roll-call of the seven favorite claimants to the legacy of which the Bard is thought to be undeserving.

Francis Bacon

Although they are not related, Delia Bacon summoned Francis Bacon from the silence of his grave as she was convinced that Francis was the true author of Shakespeare’s works. At that time questions about the Bard’s authorship were nothing new, and she arrived at the idea independently.

She traveled to England on a crusade to expose Shakespeare as a fraud, with a demented charm that won the assistance of some influential people (who came to regret it later). Her research methods were not comprehensive, spending ten months in St. Albans, Francis Bacon’s hometown, but claimed not to have spoken to anyone during her stay. She never dropped by a museum nor visited archives, and to top that, declined Thomas Carlyle’s offer to introduce her to leading scholars.

The result of this was her unreadable tome The Philosophy of the Plays of Shakespeare Unfolded. In its 675 pages, not once did it mention Francis Bacon. Readers had to deduce she was claiming Francis as the author of Shakespeare’s works. Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote the preface of this book but later admitted that he hadn’t read it. Delia might as well have written her autobiography and not included herself. Doubters didn’t find it difficult to see the discrepancies, so Shakespeare’s trolls and bashers had to find another claimant.

Edward de Vere, Earl of Oxford

J. Thomas Looney, a schoolmaster from Gateshead, in north-east England, wrote Shakespeare Identified. Here he claims and proved with relish, that the man behind Shakespeare’s work was the Earl of Oxford, Edward de Vere. Looney’s argument centered on the thesis that the Bard lacked the sophistication to come up with words that are so arresting to compel and take people’s breaths away. That such work can only come from the elegant pen of someone with broader learning and aristocratic lineage. The Earl of Oxford was then Toomey’s ideal candidate. De Vere was clever and enjoyed a standing as a poet and playwright. Sadly, none of his plays survives and while his poetry demonstrated greatness, it was not on par with Shakespeare’s style.

What Toomey failed to see was that the Earl of Oxford had shortcomings that negate the sublime and compassionate voice in Shakespeare’s works. The Earl was arrogant, spoiled, a wastrel, and sexually abhorrent. He was widely notorious for his propensity for making trouble. At seventeen, he murdered a household servant out of rage but escaped punishment after a corrupt jury ruled that the servant had run into the Earl’s sword. What are the odds of that?

The biggest question in Looney’s claim is why a man, famous for his vanity and narcissism, would seek to hide his identity? Why would he give the world memorable plays that would give him a taste of immortality but prefer anonymity? To that, Looney was quoted as saying: “That, however, is his business, not ours.”