Sir Walter Raleigh (1552–1618) led an astonishingly full and varied life as a soldier, explorer, courtier, philosopher, colonist, poet, student of science, and historian. His accomplishments included establishing the Roanoke colony in Virginia, importing the potato to Ireland, and introducing the poet Edmund Spenser to the English court. Raleigh was a favorite of Queen Elizabeth, and he was known at court for his flamboyant dress, his enthusiasm for life, and his quick temper. Among his literary works is "The Ocean to Cynthia," a five-hundred-line poem that exists only in fragments.

Raleigh did not find favor with Elizabeth's successor, King James, who sent him to the Tower of London, where he was imprisoned until his execution for treason in 1618. While incarcerated, Sir Raleigh wrote his long, unfinished History of the World, which begins with the creation of the world and breaks off at 168 bc.