| Milton Paradise Lost Historical Context |
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| John Milton was a significant
figure in the English Revolution. He wrote in defense of
Parliament's decision to execute King Charles I in 1649, and he also
took the position of Latin Secretary (a sort of Secretary of State)
under Oliver Cromwell. Though his blindness caused him to give up
his official position with the government, Milton was still strongly
associated with the revolutionary cause--so much so that after the
Restoration of Charles II, there was a reward posted for Milton's
capture.
You may know less about the English Revolution (also known as the English Civil War) than you know about the French or American revolutions--yet the English revolution preceded those two great revolutions by more than a hundred years. However, the English Revolution failed in its attempt to reject monarchy and institute a new form of government. Though King Charles I was executed in 1649, Charles II was recalled to the throne eleven years later. When Charles II was restored to the throne in 1660, John Milton was 52 years old, blind, and on the run. Though friends (including Andrew Marvell) intervened to have him pardoned, he was nonetheless devastated by the destruction of his political and religious cause and weighed down by financial worries, illness, and the other calamities of the time (including the plague and the Great Fire). Yet it is during the 1660s that he completes and publishes his great epic poem, Paradise Lost. For a good, concise summary of the English Civil War, go to the Encarta article on the subject, located at::http://encarta.msn.com/index/conciseindex/2D/02DB2000.htm?z=1&pg=2&br=1
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