Redcrosse
Nearly every character in the Faerie Queene can be considered an allegory of some larger concept or virtue, and often these allegories are multi-faceted. In Book One, for example, the Redcrosse Knight is an unlikely hero; instead of deploying the larger-than-life, fully-capable heroism that protagonists of epic poems often have at the outset, Redcrosse has to grow into the hero he will eventually become. In many ways, Redcrosse is portrayed as completely fallible (he even has a run-in with the allegorical Error, emphasizing his ability to make mistakes). Book One therefore centralizes what many would describe as an "average" person as its hero, interrupting audience's expectations for an epic poem.
However, Redcrosse eventually earns his heroic title when he slays the fearsome dragon and saves Una and her family. His complex character – as a fallible human and a near-divine hero – is precisely what earns him an important allegorical role in the text. Redcrosse, in both name and characterization, is an allegory for Jesus Christ and the holiness espoused by the Biblical son of God. His name is a direct reference to the crucifixion, and his feat in slaying the dragon makes him a savior to those spared. Christians believe that Jesus Christ is both fully human and fully divine, and Redcrosse embodies this combination in his character trajectory from an uncertain fighter to a saintly savior. He even experiences his own "resurrection" of sorts during his battle with the dragon, in which the magical fountains erase his wounds altogether and render him a "new-borne" knight (1.11).
Lady Una
Lady Una appears in stark contrast to Redcrosse, who can often be observed wavering in his convictions, unable to make a decision. Una, instead, is solid and reliable from the very beginning of the poem. This static characterization is a reflection of her name (names in The Faerie Queene always provide insight into a character's major personality traits), which literally translates to "oneness." Throughout Book One, Una acts with certainty and confidence, emphasizing her strong sense of self. Unlike the often-waffling Redcrosse, Una is "one" because the reader can always expect her to speak, act, and think the same way.
Related to this concept of oneness is the deeper allegory that Una represents: truth, goodness, and the one true church. During Spenser's time, the unity of truth and the church – in this case, the Protestant Church – was essential to Christian belief, especially after King Henry VIII cut ties with the Catholic Church. Truth was meant to be one singular thing, one final answer, and Spenser uses the "oneness" of Una to emphasize this primacy of Protestantism during a particularly tumultuous time for religion in England. Una is the embodiment of Protestant virtue, even down to her apparel: she dresses in simple clothing (black for most of the text, and white at the end), is pure and virginal, and exudes humility at every turn. One of the major Protestant criticisms of Catholicism was that it was too ornamental and flashy. Therefore, Una's simplicity coupled with her constancy render her an allegory for the unity of truth and Protestant virtue.
Britomart
Britomart is the central character of Book Three, the Book of Chastity, and as such serves as an allegory for the virtue of chastity throughout her adventures. While chastity was both a celebrated Christian and early modern virtue for women, Britomart's status as a knight provides readers with a fresh look at what chastity means and what it can accomplish. While chastity – which, generally speaking, denotes virginity and purity of heart – was often perceived as a passive virtue (women simply had to avoid sexual intercourse in order to be chaste), Spenser lends chastity a figurative resonance by making it an active and, indeed, fierce character trait. Britomart is a warrior, and is far from the passive female character one might envision when they think of the term "chastity." Instead, Britomart's chastity is what lends her her strength, cunning, and mythical sense of heroism.
Related to her embodiment of chastity, then, is Britomart's connection to Queen Elizabeth I. Known colloquially as the Virgin Queen, Elizabeth I never married. Often arguing that she was "married to England," Elizabeth I marketed her virginity as a sign of her strength as a leader. Spenser does the same for Britomart in Book Three, allowing her to challenge some of the traditional conceptions of women and power both in the text and in early modern society under the reign of the Virgin Queen.
The Faerie Queene
The Faerie Queene, or Gloriana, is of course the central figure of Spenser's epic poem. Surprisingly, however, readers never actually meet this character: she is shrouded in mystery throughout the text but is nonetheless respected and adored by everyone who mentions her name. This makes the Faerie Queene the most straightforward representation of Queen Elizabeth I in the poem.
While there are numerous symbolic portrayals of Elizabeth I in The Faerie Queene (Britomart and Belphoebe are primary examples), these characters often represent a single aspect of Elizabeth I rather than her overall, unchallenged power. Britomart and Belphoebe are both physical incarnations of chastity, which was an important trait of Elizabeth's for which she was often celebrated. The character of the Faerie Queene, however, encapsulates not just Elizabeth I's various virtues but also her absolute sovereignty. That she never actually appears in the text and still maintains such a powerful presence is evidence of Elizabeth I's sovereign reputation. In many ways, the Faerie Queene receives a mythical portrait throughout the poem, underscoring the notion that Elizabeth I was a near-divine ruler.
Virtues and Vices
Along with a multitude of allegorical characters, The Faerie Queene is replete with allegories of different virtues and vices throughout, including the six virtues Holiness, Temperance, Chastity, Friendship, Justice, and Courtesy. Vices include the seven deadly sins, most clearly represented in the House of Pride from Book One. Rather than complex characters like Redcrosse or Britomart, who espouse some of these virtues in their behavior, these allegorical characters simply are the idea they represent. The literary precedent fort his form of allegory was the Medieval morality play, in which a character would be visited by entities of both virtue and vice and challenged to follow the Christian path.
In The Faerie Queene, these allegorical figures work in much the same way, interacting with characters and testing their moral strength throughout. Redcrosse, for example, appears in the House of Pride when he is struggling with his code of chivalry. He is tempted and seduced by the various allegorical vices that exist there in service of Lucifera (himself an allegorical enemy of the Faerie Queene). Thought Redcrosse is eventually redeemed, he is temporarily led astray by these entities, emphasizing how dangerous such temptation is for Christian believers.
