England
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John Dryden
Aldwincle, England
Archival Overview
Foremost English poet, dramatist, and literary critic of the Restoration, appointed England's first official Poet Laureate in 1668.
Biographical Record
John Dryden (1631–1700) was an English poet, dramatist, translator, and critic who dominated literary life in Restoration England so completely that the era is frequently termed the 'Age of Dryden'. Educated at Westminster School and Trinity College, Cambridge, he established heroic verse and the heroic couplet as the standard forms of English poetic drama and satire.
Appointed England's first official Poet Laureate by King Charles II in 1668 and later Historiographer Royal, Dryden produced brilliant political verse satires such as Absalom and Achitophel and Mac Flecknoe. His blank verse tragedy All for Love adapted Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra with neoclassical rigor, while his critical essay Of Dramatick Poesie founded modern English literary criticism.
Key Life Milestones
First English Poet Laureate
Appointed the first official Poet Laureate of England by King Charles II, establishing the enduring national literary office.
Absalom and Achitophel
Published Absalom and Achitophel, defending the crown during the Exclusion Crisis with peerless heroic couplets.
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Final Resting Place
Perpetual MemorialLondon, United Kingdom