(baptized Feb. 26, 1564, Canterbury, Kent, Eng.
died May 30, 1593, Deptford, near London) British poet and playwright.
The son of a Canterbury shoemaker, he earned a degree from Cambridge University. From 1587 he wrote plays for London theatres, starting with Tamburlaine the Great (published 1590), in which he established dramatic blank verse . Tamburlaine was followed by Dido, Queen of Carthage (published 1594), cowritten with The Massacre at Paris (с 1594); and Edward II (1594). His most famous play is The Tragicall History of Doctor Faustus (published 1604), which uses the dramatic framework of a morality play in its presentation of a story of temptation, fall, and damnation. The Jew of Malta (published 1633) may have been his final work. His poetry includes the unfinished long poem Hero and Leander . Known for leading a disreputable life, he died a violent death at age 29 in a tavern brawl; he may have been assassinated because of his service as a government spy. His brilliant, though short, career makes him {{link=Shakespeare, William">William Shakespeare 's most important contemporary in English drama.