Richard FanshaweSir Richard Fanshawe, 1st Baronet PC (1608-1666) was an English poet and translator. He was a diplomat and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1661 to 1666. During the English Civil War he supported the Royalist cause and served King Chares II in battle and in exile, and spent some years under house arrest in England, where he completed his translation of The Lusiads. An accomplished linguist, he was Secretary to the Embassy at the Court of Spain in 1635, and rose to the position of Chargé d'Affaires there in 1638. After the Restoration Fanshawe was elected Member of Parliament for Cambridge University for the Cavalier Parliament and held the seat until his death. From 1662 to 1666, he was Ambassador to Portugal - during which period he negotiated the marriage of King Charles II and Catherine of Braganza - and from 1664 to 1666 was also ambassador to Spain. In 1666 Fanshawe was making preparations to return to England when he died suddenly at his house in Madrid at the age of 58. Read More Read Less