Short answers, pulled from the story.
Nicholas Hilliard was born in 1547 and grew up in Exeter as the son of Richard Hilliard and Laurence Wall. He was the youngest of four boys in a family of goldsmiths before his family fled to Geneva during the reign of Queen Mary I.
Nicholas Hilliard was born to Richard Hilliard, a goldsmith and Sheriff of Exeter, and Laurence Wall, a goldsmith's daughter. His father and three of his four sons all followed the trade of goldsmithing.
In 1576, Nicholas Hilliard left England for France to increase his knowledge and earn money to support his return. He stayed with Sir Amyas Paulet and worked under the name Nicholas Belliart for François, Duke of Anjou, receiving a stipend of 200 livres.
Nicholas Hilliard argued in The Art of Limning that the best way to show oneself required no shadow, only open light. He used a fine pointed squirrel-hair brush to outline features and filled them with faint hatchings to create three-dimensionality.
Nicholas Hilliard created the Armada Jewel for Sir Thomas Heneage and the Drake Jewel for Sir Francis Drake. These pieces were designed to be worn around the neck as part of the cult of the Virgin Queen.
Nicholas Hilliard's son Laurence took over his shop in Gutter Lane in 1613 and continued the business for decades. Hilliard's other pupils included Rowland Lockey, who also carried on his legacy.