Who Printed Milton's Tetrachordon (1645)?

Abstract

This article examines the evidence regarding the printing of John Milton's Tetrachordon (1645), the third in the author's series of divorce tracts. This work appeared without a printer's name, thus contravening the 1643 Licensing Order. While it has long been understood that Tetrachordon was printed collaboratively, this article questions the common attribution to the printers Samuel Simmons and Thomas Paine, who had printed The Doctrine and Discipline of Divorce (1643), and introduces the possibility that Francis Neile had a hand in the work, and that printing likely involved a network of printers working together. Exploring the forensic evidence of type, the complex printing contexts of Milton's divorce writings, and examining the unstable political identities of printers also brings to light Milton's long association with news-men. Further, the reappearance of Tetrachordon in John Starkey's book catalogues from the 1670s is addressed.