Born in 1608, esteemed poet and intellectual John Milton is best known for Paradise Lost, a ten-thousand line piece now considered the greatest English epic poem of all time. At the time of writing, John Milton was completely blind, requiring the help of an aide to take dictation. Every morning, he would wake with verses already prepared in his head and if the aide was late, Milton would complain, saying “I want to be milked!”

His mind was evidently overflowing with creativity, as John Milton introduced 630 new words to the English language - for reference, that’s nearly 400 more than Bill Shakespeare, who introduced 229. Through his prose, Milton advocated for the abolition of the Church of England and the execution of Charles I, a controversial opinion that placed him firmly among the radicals.