John Milton in London

At the side of St Mary-le-Bow church, in Bow Courtyard, is an interesting plaque with three separate inscriptions. The first is in gold cursive lettering and is John Dryden's 'Epigram on Milton', which appeared on the frontispiece of Tonson's fourth edition of Paradise Lost in 1688. The three poets referred to are Homer, Dante and Milton.

'Three Poets, in Three distant ages born
GREECE, ITALY, and ENGLAND did adorn.
The First in Loftiness of Thought surpassed;
The next in Majesty, – in both the Last.
The force of Nature could no farther go
To make a third – She join'd the former Two.

JOHN MILTON
was BORN in BREAD-STREET, on FRIDAY, THE 9th
day of DECEMBER, 1608, and was BAPTISED
in the PARISH-CHURCH of ALL-HALLOWS
BREAD-STREET on TUESDAY, the 20TH
day of DECEMBER, 1608.

THIS TABLET WAS PLACED ON THE CHURCH OF ALL HALLOWS, BREAD STREET EARLY IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY, AS A MEMORIAL OF THE EVENT THEREIN RECORDED AND WAS REMOVED IN THE YEAR 1876, WHEN THAT CHURCH WAS PULLED DOWN AND THE PARISH UNITED FOR ECCLESIASTICAL PURPOSES WITH THE PARISH OF ST. MARY- LE-BOW.'

And across Bow Courtyard is John Milton Passage.

Just round the corner, on Bread Street, is this plaque:

'THE POET AND
STATESMAN
JOHN MILTON
WAS BORN 1608
IN BREAD STREET'

St Giles without Cripplegate, where Milton was buried in 1674. Here, there is a statue of Milton, with busts of Daniel Defoe (who was baptized here), John Bunyan (who attended this church), and John Foxe, but unfortunately the church was closed at the time of my visit.

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John Milton's Cottage in Chalfont St Giles, Buckinghamshire