Christopher Marlowe was born in Canterbury and educated at King's School. During his short life, he was more successful than William Shakespeare, his contemporary. However, at the age of 28, he was arrested as an atheist, an accusation for which he was to be burnt at the stake. This didn’t happen, though. He was killed mysteriously just before being “questionned”. Some say it was a mercy killing decided in high circles. Others say Marlowe who knew many secrets concerning important people could have revealed them when being tortured and was spared torment for that reason. ~~ Chistopher Marlowe naquit à Canterbury et étudia au King’s Collège de la ville. Pendant sa courte vie, il fut plus célèbre que son contemporain, William Shakespeare. A l’âge de 28 ans, il fut arrêté comme athée, un délit puni de la peine de mort sur le bûcher. Marlowe fut tué mystérieusement juste avant d’être soumis à la question, un acte de charité pour lui éviter la torture ou pour préserver les notables dont il aurait pu révéler les secrets.