Shakespeare, Hamlet
Shakespeare, Othello
Letter about Guy Fawkes
Newsbook
Shakespeare, King Lear
English arrives in North America
Shakespeare's Sonnets
King James Bible
Webster, The Duchess of Malfi
First English dictionary
The Globe Theatre
Shakespeare's First Folio
John Donne, Poetry
Jonson, The English Grammar
Areopagitica by John Milton
Confessions of Charles I's executioner
Advert for a quack doctor
Marvell, 'An Horatian Ode'
Early A - Z of London
Samuel Pepys' Diary
Theatrical figures
Coffee houses
A cure for the Plague
The Fire of London
John Milton's Paradise Lost
Criminal slang
Aphra Behn, The Rover
Bunyan, Pilgrim’s Progress
Habeas Corpus Act
Advert for a Rhinoceros
Account of a shipwreck
State control of printing was introduced by Henry VIII and continued into Elizabeth's reign, with further controls issued in 1586 and 1637 over the growing number of printing presses. In April 1638, political agitator John Lilburne was arrested for importing subversive books. He was fined £500 for contempt, and flogged for the two miles between Fleet Prison and the pillory. This controversial pamphlet, entitled Areopagitica, was written by the writer and poet John Milton as a protest against Lilburne's treatment. It was the first great impassioned plea for free speech. In fact, it had little impact. It was not until 1695 that the laws on printing were relaxed, allowing for a blossoming of newspapers and provincial presses.
Shelfmark: Ashley 1176.