Elizabethan Poetry - An Introduction. Queen Elizabeth the First reigned from 1558 until 1603 and this first Elizabethan age is seen as a golden age not only of commerce, ambitions of empire but also of culture. Of poetry, painting and drama. In this volume of poetry we have collected together some of the finest examples from its illustrious creators spanning this important time in British history. From Shakespeare and Marlowe to Donne, Jonson and Spenser our wordsmiths muse and clarify their thoughts into beautiful, evocative verse.