Edmund Spenser was born in 1552 and died in 1599. He was an English poet who grew up in London. He is probably best known for his work The Faerie Queen. This poem is an allegory of the Tudor monarchy, and it glorifies Queen Elizabeth I. Spenser received his formal education at Merchant Taylor School. He was a prolific writer who published his first volume of poems in 1579. He wrote the Amoretti sonnets to woo his future wife, Elizabeth, and there is some question as to exactly how many Amoretti sonnets he wrote. It is safe to say, however, that he wrote between 89 and 100.