author
Mr. (John) Oldmixon
1673–1742
A sharp-tongued Whig writer from the early 1700s, known for turning politics and history into lively, argumentative prose. He wrote poems, plays, pamphlets, and ambitious historical works, including books on England and Britain’s American colonies.
2 Audiobooks
Reflections on Dr. Swift's Letter to Harley (1712) and The British Academy (1712)
by Mr. (John) Oldmixon, Arthur Maynwaring
An Essay on Criticism
by Mr. (John) Oldmixon
About the author
Born in Somerset in 1673, John Oldmixon grew up with connections to the family of Admiral Robert Blake and later became involved in trade through Bristol. He went on to build a busy literary career in London as a historian, pamphleteer, poet, and critic, writing across a wide range of genres.
His early work included poetry and drama, but he became best known for strongly partisan historical writing. A committed Whig, he wrote works such as The British Empire in America and The Critical History of England, and he was known in his own time for attacking Tory writers and defending Whig interpretations of English history.
Oldmixon died on July 9, 1742. Though often remembered as a controversial and combative figure, he remains an important voice for readers interested in the political energy, literary quarrels, and historical debate of early eighteenth-century Britain.