English dramatist, poet, and translator Christopher Marlowe (1564–1593) worked throughout the Elizabethan era. The most famous Elizabethan playwright of his time, Marlowe was a member of the 'University Wits', a group of literary professionals with college degrees.

Early career:

Christopher Marlowe enrolled as a student at the King's School in Canterbury on January 14, 1579. He attended Corpus Christi College in Cambridge the following year. Marlowe graduated from Cambridge with both a bachelor's degree (1584) and a master's degree (1587). He may have also worked for Elizabeth I's secret agency around this period.

He was one of the greatest tragedians of the Elizabethan era. He had a significant impact on William Shakespeare, who was born the same year as Marlowe and emerged as the foremost playwright of the Elizabethan era in the wake of Marlowe's enigmatic early demise. 

Well-known Works:

His plays Tamburlaine, Doctor Faustus, Jew of Malta, and Edward II are well known.

The significance of Marlowe's tragedy can be attributed to its novelty, Renaissance influence, Machiavellian morals, strong and passionate sentiments, tragic inner conflict element, overbearing characters, popular literary technique, high seriousness, powerful vocabulary, and blank verse.

Death:

On Sunday, May 20, 1593, the persistent rumors about Marlowe's atheism eventually caught up with him, and he was taken into custody for just that "crime." Burning at the stake was the punishment for atheism, also known as heresy. Despite the seriousness of the crime, he wasn't imprisoned or subjected to torture instead he was freed on the condition that he report to a court official every day.

But on May 30, Ingram Frizer murdered Marlowe. Frizer was with Nicholas Skeres and Robert Poley, and all three men had a connection to one or more of the Walsinghams—either Sir Francis Walsingham (who, it appears, personally recruited Marlowe into the secret service on behalf of the queen) or a relative who was also involved in the espionage industry.

Marlowe and Frizer allegedly got into a disagreement over the bill after spending the day together at a lodging house. Marlowe was fatally stabbed in the forehead as a result.