(John), the most illustrious of the English poets, was defended of a genteel family, seated at a place of their own name, viz. Milton, in Oxfordshire. He was born December 9, 1608, and received his first rudiments of education under the care of his parents, assisted by a private tutor. He afterwards passed some time at St Paul's School, London; in which city his father had settled, being engaged in the business of a scrivener. At the age of 17, he was sent to Christ's College, Cambridge; where he made a great progress in all parts of academical learning; but his chief delight was in poetry. In 1628, he proceeded bachelor of arts, having performed his exercise for it with great applause. His father designed him for the church; but the young gentleman's attachment to the muses was so strong, that it became impossible to engage him in any other pursuits. In 1632, he took the degree of master of arts; and having now spent as much time in the university as became a person who determined not to engage in any of the three professions, he left the college, greatly regretted by his acquaintance, but highly displeased with the usual method of training up youth there for the study of divinity; and being much out of humour with the public administration of ecclesiastical affairs, he grew dissatisfied with the established form of church-government, and disliked the whole plan of education practised in the university.

His parents, who now dwelt at Horton, near Colnbrook, in Buckinghamshire, received him with unabated affection, notwithstanding he had thwarted their views of providing for him in the church, and they amply indulged him in his love of retirement; wherein he enriched his mind with the choicest stores of Grecian and Roman literature: and his poems of Comus, L'Allegro, Il Penseroso, and Lycidas, all wrote at this time, would have been sufficient, had he never produced anything more considerable, to have transmitted his fame to latest posterity. However, he was not so absorbed in his studies as not to make frequent excursions to London; neither did so much excellence pass unnoticed among his neighbours in the country, with the most distinguished of whom he sometimes chose to relax his mind, and improve his acquaintance with the world as well as with books.

After five years spent in this manner, he obtained his father's permission to travel for farther improvement.—At Paris he became acquainted with the celebrated Hugo Grotius; and from thence travelling into Italy, he was everywhere cared for by persons of the most eminent quality and learning.

Upon his return home, he set up a genteel academy in Aldergate-street.—In 1641, he began to draw his pen in defence of the Presbyterian party; and the next year he married the daughter of Richard Powell, Esq., of Forest-Hill in Oxfordshire. This lady, however, whether from a difference on account of party, her father being a zealous royalist, or some other cause, soon thought proper to return to her relations; which so incensed her husband, that he resolved never to take her again, and wrote and published several tracts in defence of the doctrine and discipline of divorce. He even made his addresses to another lady; but this incident proved the means of a reconciliation with Mrs Milton.

In 1644, he wrote his Tract upon Education; and the restraint on the liberty of the press being continued by act of parliament, he wrote boldly and nobly against that restraint.

In 1645, he published his juvenile poems; and about two years after, on the death of his father, he took a smaller house in High Holborn, the back of which opened into Lincoln's-Inn Fields.—Here he quietly prosecuted his studies, till the fatal catastrophe and death of Charles I.; on which occasion he published his Tenure of Kings and Magistrates, in justification of the fact. He was now taken into the service of the commonwealth, and made Latin secretary to the council of state, who resolved neither to write to others abroad, nor to receive any answers, except in the Latin tongue, which was common to them all. The famous Exon Basilica coming out about the same time, our author, by command, wrote and published his Iconoclastics the same year. It was also by order of his masters, backed by the reward of 1000l. that, in 1651, he published his celebrated piece, entitled Pro Populo Anglicano Defensio, "A Defence of the People of England, in answer to Salmagius's Defence of the King;" which performance spread his fame over all Europe.—He now dwelt in a pleasant house, with a garden, in Petty France, Westminster, opening into St James's Park. In 1652, he buried his wife, who died not long after the delivery of her fourth child; and about the same time he also lost his eye-sight, by a gutta serena, which had been growing upon him many years.

Cromwell took the reins of government into his own hands in the year 1653; but Milton still held his office. His leisure-hours he employed in prosecuting his studies, wherein he was so far from being discouraged by the loss of his sight, that he even conceived hopes this misfortune would add new vigour to his genius; which, in fact, seems to have been the case.—Thus animated, he again ventured upon matrimony: his second lady was the daughter of Captain Woodcock of Hackney: she died in childbirth about a year after.

On the deposition of the protector, Richard Cromwell, and on the return of the long parliament, Milton being still continued secretary, he appeared again in print; pleading for a farther reformation of the laws relating to religion; and, during the anarchy that ensued, he drew up several schemes for re-establishing the commonwealth, exerting all his faculties to prevent the return of Charles II. England's destiny, however, and Charles's good fortune, prevailing, our author chose to consult his safety, and retired to a friend's house in Bartholomew-Closet. A particular prosecution was intended against him; but the just esteem to which his admirable genius and extraordinary accomplishments entitled him, had raised him to many friends, even among those of the opposite party, that he was included in the general amnesty.

This storm over, he married a third wife Elizabeth, daughter of Mr Minshall a Cheshire gentleman; and not long after he took a house in the Artillery Walk, leading to Bunhill-Fields.—This was his last stage: here he sat down for a longer continuance than he had been able to do anywhere; and though he had lost his fortune, (for every thing belonging to him went to wreck wreck at the Restoration), he did not lose his taste for literature, but continued his studies with almost as much ardour as ever; and applied himself particularly to the finishing of his grand work, the *Paradise Lost*; one of the noblest poems that ever was produced by human genius.—It was published in 1667, and his *Paradise Regained* came out in 1670.—This latter work fell short of the excellence of the former production; although, were it not for the transcendent merit of the *Paradise Lost*, the second composition would doubtless have stood foremost in the rank of English epic poems.—After this he published many pieces in prose; for which we refer our readers to the edition of his Historical, Poetical, and Miscellaneous Works, printed by Millar, in 2 vols. 4to., in 1753.

In 1674, this great man paid the last debt to nature, at his house in Bunhill-Fields, in the 66th year of his age; and was interred on the 12th of November, in the chancel of St Giles's, Cripplegate.—A decent monument was erected to his memory, in 1737, in Westminster Abbey, by Mr Benfon, one of the auditors of the imprest.—As to his person, it was remarkably handsome; but his constitution was tender, and by no means equal to his incessant application to his studies.—Though greatly reduced in his circumstances, yet he died worth 1500l. in money, beside his household goods.—He had no son; but left behind him three daughters, whom he had by his first wife.