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Samuel Butler

Type Figure Region England Time 1613–1680 Also known as Butler

Samuel Butler was a 17th-century English satirical poet best known for the mock-heroic poem Hudibras, whose first part appeared in 1663 and second in…

Timeline

  1. 1613–1660Worcestershire · WorcestershireButler was born into a gentry family, attended Worcester Grammar School, and served as secretary to a noble household during the Civil War, witnessing firsthand the conflict between Parliamentarians and Royalists. His long observation of Puritans and Cavaliers supplied material for his later satire; Hudibras circulated in literary circles even before the Restoration.
  2. 1660–1680London · LondonAfter the Restoration Butler lived in London, publishing the first part of Hudibras in 1663 and the second in 1664; between 1661 and 1670 it became one of the best-selling poetic works of the age. Its humorous verse mocked Puritan zeal and Cavalier absurdity, earning Charles II's admiration, though the poet himself received little reward and lived in straitened circumstances in his later years.

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