Giles Fletcher

Born around 1548, he was an English poet, diplomat, and public official often known as Giles Fletcher the Elder. He studied at Cambridge, entered public life, and served as a member of Parliament and later as treasurer of St. Paul's.

He is especially noted for his embassy to Russia in 1588. After that mission, he wrote Of the Russe Common Wealth (published in 1591), an account that became one of the best-known English descriptions of Russia from the period.

He also wrote poetry, and his sonnet sequence Licia appeared in 1593. He died in 1611, leaving a reputation shaped by both his literary work and his career in government and diplomacy.