This volume draws on the expertise of both historians and literary critics to examine the classical sources of Milton's republicanism, the genesis of that republicanism in the 1640s, its disappointment in the 1650s and its presence in his work (particularly in Paradise Lost) after the Restoration. Milton's prose works and his poetry are given equal coverage, making this the first collaborative volume to attempt a comprehensive thematic assessment of his political and literary career.

This volume draws on the expertise of both historians and literary critics to examine the classical sources of Milton's republicanism, the genesis of that republicanism in the 1640s, its disappointment in the 1650s and its presence in his work (particularly in Paradise Lost) after the Restoration. Milton's prose works and his poetry are given equal coverage, making this the first collaborative volume to attempt a comprehensive thematic assessment of his political and literary career.