Today is the 401st anniversary of the English poet, historian, civil servant and defender of freedom of the press, John Milton's, day of birth.

Born on December 9, 1608 on Bread Street in Cheapside, London, England, Milton is considered one of the greatest poets of the English language.  He was the author of the great verse epics Paradise Lost (1667) and Paradise Regained (1671).

He is also well-known for his treatise condemning censorship, Areopagitica. It is among history's most influential defenses of the principle of a right to free expression.

Milton died from gout on November 8, 1674 in London, England.