Romeo and Juliet is the story of two star-crossed lovers, a secret marriage, potions to fake death, and a tragic ending that is the subject of writers for centuries. Claims of a basic plot can be found as early as the third century (Dill 4), however, more detailed versions did not appear until the 15th century. The legend of Romeo and Juliet slowly grew through the efforts of Luigi da Porto, Matteo Bandello and Arthur Brooke. However, it was "only in Shakespeare's hands that the love story itself became the lyrical celebration of youthful passion that we all associate today with the names Romeo and Juliet" (Mack 71). I intend to tell the story of the development of Romeo and Juliet that led to Shakespeare's success and its impact on the city of Verona, Italy. Luigi da Porto published his version of Romeo and Juliet in 1530. The people of Verona credit him as "the first to tell the story of the two unhappy lovers" (Masterpieces of Verona 48). They can recognize his story with such acceptance since he claimed that Pellegrimo of Verona owned the early 14th century chronicles of Bartolomes Della Scala showing the two unfortunate lovers as a true story. Porto's pretension of a factual account may actually have inspired future writers to use Verona as the setting for Romeo and Juliet. Matteo Bandello, an Italian writer, included the story in his short story published in 1559. This popular prose was translated into French and Arthur Brooke used it as the basis for his 1562 poem, The Tragicall Historye of Romeo and Juliet. It has been noted that Shakespeare relied entirely on Arthur Brooke's poem to bring Romeo and Juliet to life. Shakespeare's talents are recognized for the changes he made...... middle of article......BibliographyBaugh, Albert C. ed. A Literary History of England. New York: Appleton-Century-Crafts, Inc., 1948. Bettiol, Gabriella. The story of Romeo and Juliet. Verona: Randazzo Edizioni Taristiche, Date not available. Gill, Roma, ed. Romeo and Juliet. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1982. “Juliet’s Tomb.” Masterpieces of Verona. No edition, 1987.Mack, Maynard. Everyone is Shakespeare. Nebraska: University of Nebraska Press, 1993. Pallot, James, ed. The cinema guide. New York: Berkley Publishing Group, 1995. Shakespeare, William. Romeo and Juliet. ed. J. A. Bryant, Jr. New York: Penguin Group, 1990. Shakespeare, William. Romeo and Juliet. ed. Jane Backman. Lincolnwood: NTC Publishing Group, 1994. Shakespeare, William. Romeo and Juliet. ed. John E. Hankins. New York: Penguin Books, 1960. “Verona.” Baedeker. 3rd ed.. 1996.