The Poetics of Milton

Part 15 - On Joining the Fight

On January 30^th 1649, the English world would be forever changed, when on that fateful day, Charles I was executed, after having been found guilty ‘of all the treasons, murders, rapines, burnings, spoils, desolations, damages and mischiefs to this nation’ that were committed during the wars against Parliament, and he was judged ‘tyrant, traitor, murderer, and public enemy to the good people of the nation, to be put to death’.

A short fourteen days later, an anonymous pamphlet appeared, titled:

‘The Tenure of Kings and Magistrates: Proving, That it is Lawfull, and hath been held so through all Ages, for any, who have the Power, to call to account a Tyrant, or wicked King, and after due conviction, to depose, and put him to death; if the ordinary Magistrate have neglected, or deny’d to doe it. And that they, who of late so much blame Deposing, are the Men that did it themselves. The Author, J.M.’

a portrait of Milton (from the British Museum)

Milton, the author, later tells us of his reason for writing this unsolicited pamphlet, in defence of the actions of Parliament.

“Civil liberty, which was the last variety, I had not touched upon, for I saw that it was being adequately dealt with by the magistrates, nor did I write anything about the right of kings, until the king, having been declared an enemy by Parliament and vanquished in the field, was pleading his cause as a prisoner before the judges and was condemned to death. Then at last, when certain Presbyterian ministers, formerly bitter enemies of Charles, but now resentful that the Independent parties were preferred to theirs and carried more weight in Parliament, persisted in attacking the decree which Parliament had passed concerning the king (wroth, not because of the fact, but because their own faction had not performed it) and caused as much tumult as they could, even daring to assert that the doctrines of Protestants and all reformed churches shrank from such an outrageous sentence against kings, I concluded that I must openly oppose so open a lie.”

[from ‘Second Defence of the English People’, (translated by Helen North) pgs. 92 – 93]

In this pamphlet, Milton begins with an appeal to reason:

“If men within themselves would be govern’d by reason, and not generally give up their understanding to a double tyrannie, of Custom from without, and blind affections within, they would discerne better, what it is to favour and uphold the Tyrant of a Nation.”

[from ‘The Tenure of Kings and Magistrates’, pg. 1]

Milton then attacks the Presbyterian ministers for their sudden reversal, to now support the king –

“to the entire advantages of thir own Faction … contesting for privileges, customs, forms, and that old entanglement of Iniquity, thir gibrish Lawes [i.e. Norman], though the badge of thir ancient slavery.” [ibid, pgs. 2 & 3]

Milton then gives his idea of the natural beginnings and reason for a government, and the source of authority of that government:

“No man who knows ought, can be so stupid to deny that all men naturally were borne free, being the image and resemblance of God himself, and were by privilege above all the creatures, born to command and not to obey: and that they liv’d so. Til from the root of Adams transgression, falling among themselves to doe wrong and violence, and foreseeing that such courses must needs tend to the destruction of them all, they agreed by common league to bind each other from mutual injury, and joyntly to defend themselves against any that gave disturbance or opposition to such agreement. Hence came Citties, Townes and Common-wealths. And because no faith in all was found sufficiently binding, they saw it needfull to ordaine som authoritie, that might restrain by force and punishment what was violated against peace and common right. This authoritie and power of selfe-defence and preservation being originally and naturally in every one of them, and unitedly in them all, for ease, for order, and least each man should be his own partial Judge, they communicated and deriv’d either to one, whom for the eminence of his wisdom and integritie they chose above the rest, or to more then one whom they thought of equal deserving: the first was call’d a King; the other Magistrates. Not to be thir Lords and Maisters … but, to be thir Deputies and Commissioners, to execute, by virtue of thir intrusted power, that justice which else every man by the bond of nature and of Cov’nant must have executed for himself, and for one another. And to him that shall consider well why among free Persons, one man by civil right should beare authority and jurisdiction over another, no other end or reason can be imaginable.” [ibid, pgs. 8-9]

“It being thus manifest that the power of Kings and Magistrates is nothing else, but what is only derivative, transferr’d and committed to them in trust from the People, to the Common good of them all, in whom the power yet remains fundamentally, and cannot be tak’n from them, without a violation of thir natural birthright.” [ibid, pg. 11]

“since the King or Magistrate holds his autoritie of the people, both originally and naturally for their good in the first place, and not his own, then may the people as oft as they shall judge it for the best, either choose him or reject him, retaine him or depose him though no Tyrant, meerly by the liberty and right of free born Men, to be govern’d as seems to them best.” [ibid, pgs. 14-15]

One month after the printing of this 60-page pamphlet, the Council of State voted to offer the author, John Milton, the post of ‘Secretary of the Foreign Tongues to the Council’.

“When these works had been completed and I thought that I could look forward to an abundance of leisure [i.e. his work on the History of Britain] … when the kingdom of Charles was transformed into a republic, and the so-called Council of State, which was then for the first time established by the authority of Parliament, summoned me, though I was expecting no such event, and desired to employ my services, especially in connection with foreign affairs.”

[from ‘Second Defence’ pg. 94]

Milton didn’t hesitate for a second, but poured his energy and remaining eyesight into the work of translating into English all of the correspondence received from foreign governments, and of translating into Latin all of the correspondence from the Council to be sent to foreign states. Although he was not a member of the ruling State Council, Milton was more than just a translator. He also provide his respect, advice, and influence, to answer the Council’s request for propaganda to defend the Commonwealth. Milton’s first assignment was ‘Observations on the Irish situation’.

Before Charles’ execution, the Irish Catholics were offered bribes of false promises of Irish independence and religious freedom, if they would join with the Irish Anglicans and Scottish Presbyterians in support of the king, and against the Commonwealth. The Presbyterians were also offered false promises that they would run the English Church, if they supported the king against the Commonwealth.

Milton would not only take aim at the hypocrisy of the Irish Catholics, but also take aim at the Presbyterians, who had wished to replace the corrupt state-run Episcopacy with a state-run Presbyterianism, and who now would ally with their former enemy, the Papists. But Milton would point out, that it was not presbyterianism, but it was Parliament that ‘… have brok’n their Temporall power, thrown down their public Superstitions, and confin’d them to the bare enjoyment of that which is not in our reach, their Consciences …”

“Neither is it unknown, or by wisest men unobserv’d, that the Church began then most apparently to degenerate, and goe to ruine, when shee borrow’d of the Civill power more then fair encouragement and protection; more then which Christ himself and his Apostles never requir’d.

To say therefore that We protect and invite all false Religions, with irreligion also with atheism, because wee lend not or rather missapply not the temporall power to help out, though in vaine, the sloth, the spleen, the insufficiency of Church-men, in the execution of spiritual discipline, over those within their Charge, or those without, is an imputation that may be layd as well upon the best regulated States and Governments through the World.

Who have been so prudent as never to imploy the Civill sword further then the edge of it could reach; that is, to Civill offences onely; proving always against objects that were spirituall a ridiculous weapon. Our protection therefore to men in Civill matters unoffensive we cannot deny; their Consciences we leave, as not within our Cognisance, to the proper cure of instruction, praying for them.

Nevertheless, if any be found among us declar’d atheists, malicious enemies of God, and of Christ; The Parliament, I think, professes not to tolerate such, but with all befitting endevours to suppresse them. Otherwaies to protect none that in a larger sense may be tax’d of irreligion or atheism, may perhaps be the ready way to exclude none sooner out of protection, then those themselves that most accuse it to be so generall to others. Lastly, that we invite such as these, or incourage them, is a meer slander without proof.” [pg. 51]

Milton had not argued in favor of a state-run religion (by any religion), but of an independent conscience for each member of the nation - both to limit the state’s power over spiritual affairs, and also to limit the church’s power over civil affairs. Milton had answered this ‘last masterpiece’ of the late king, with his idea of a separation of church and state.

Soon, on July 10^th 1649, Cromwell and his army left London for Ireland, to Belfast – the only remaining city still held by the English Commonwealth, to battle the Irish Royalists and their allied Catholic and Presbyterian armies.

But then, in May 1650, on seeing the coming defeat of the royalist alliance in Ireland, the scheming Charles II abandoned his alliance with the Irish Catholics, and agreed to a Presbyterian State Church for all of Great Britain, if the Scots would recognize him as King. Cromwell then left Ireland with part of his army, to deal with the Royalist forces in Scotland.

And while Cromwell would defend the Commonwealth with his sword, Milton would defend it with his pen.

[next week - part 16 - in Defence of the Commonwealth]