author
Thomas Ellwood
1639–1713
A Quaker writer whose life crossed paths with John Milton, he is still remembered for the personal memoirs and religious writings that kept his voice alive long after the 17th century. His story brings together faith, controversy, imprisonment, and an unusually close glimpse of Milton’s world.
1 Audiobook
The History of Thomas Ellwood Written By Himself
by Thomas Ellwood
About the author
Born in October 1639 at Crowell in Oxfordshire, Thomas Ellwood became an English religious writer and an important early Quaker voice. Reliable reference sources describe him as especially notable for his connection with John Milton, and for writings that have remained of lasting interest.
Ellwood joined the Quaker movement as a young man and was imprisoned more than once because of his beliefs. He later became closely associated with leading Friends including William Penn, and he is often remembered as the Quaker who read to the blind Milton and whose remark about Paradise Lost is linked to the origin story of Paradise Regained.
His best-known work is the autobiographical The History of the Life of Thomas Ellwood, valued not only as a record of his spiritual life but also for the vivid picture it gives of the period. Some sources list his death as 1713, while others give 1 March 1714, reflecting the old-style/new-style dating used at the time, so both dates appear in reference works.