What was a patron in William Shakespeare's time?

Answer 1

Patrons are and were sponsors, people who gave financial support and sometimes moral support to people and enterprises. In the world of Elizabethan Theatre, patrons were particularly important, since companies of actors had to have a noble or royal patron or they were subject to prosecution as vagabonds. That is why all theatrical companies were called by the name of their patron, to prove that they were legal and to show who was their protector.