(1554–86)
an English poet and soldier who is considered one of the greatest Englishmen of the Elizabethan period. His best-known works are Arcadia (1590) and Astrophel and Stella (1591). He was made a knight in 1583 and died of wounds received while fighting the Spanish in the Netherlands. There is a popular story that as he lay dying he refused a drink of water and passed it to another wounded soldier who he said needed it more.