document_title: England at the FIFA World Cup

question_text: when did england last get to a final world cup

question_tokens: when did england last get to a final world cup

text: England at the FIFA World Cup

text: History[edit]

text: Brazil 1950[edit]

text: England's first qualifying campaign for the FIFA World Cup doubled as the 1950 British Home Championship. The series kicked off for England on 15 October 1949 at Ninian Park, Cardiff, against Wales. Stan Mortensen gave England the lead after twenty two minutes, and just seven minutes later, Jackie Milburn doubled the lead. This was the first goal of Milburn's hat trick, which left England 4–0 up with 20 minutes to play. Mal Griffiths scored a consolation goal for Wales ten minutes from time, but England held on for a comfortable victory.

text: A month later, England welcomed Ireland to Maine Road, and it began well for the home side as Jack Rowley scored inside six minutes. England were already 6–0 up, thanks to Jack Froggatt, two for Stan Pearson, Stan Mortensen and a second from Rowley, by the time Ireland struck back through Samuel Smyth after 55 minutes. Rowley added a third and a fourth to his tally in the three minutes following Smyth's goal, however, leaving the score at 8–1 at the hour mark. The frantic scoring rate calmed down after that, with only one apeice before the final whistle, with Stan Pearson completing his brace for England's ninth, and Bobby Brennan scoring for Ireland.

text: It was not until May 1950 that England travelled to Hampden Park to face Scotland, who were also undefeated after their games against Ireland and Wales. With the top two from the group qualifying, both teams were guaranteed progression to the finals, and the game was solely for the honour of winning the British Home Championship, and the seeding advantage to be enjoyed upon reaching Brazil. A solitary goal from Roy Bentley gave England the victory, the title and the top spot in the group.

text: 1950 Finals[edit]

text: England were seeded in pot one for the finals, which meant they were the favourites to progress from Group 2, which also contained Spain, Chile and the United States. England's campaign kicked off against Chile in Rio de Janeiro, and, as was expected, England cruised to a 2–0 victory, courtesy of goals from Stan Mortensen and Wilf Mannion.[citation needed]

text: Their troubles began four days later when they faced the Americans in Belo Horizonte in what has become one of the most famous matches of all time. Joe Gaetjens scored the only goal of the match to give the United States an unlikely victory, which has gone down as one of the World Cup's greatest upsets. A myth arose that the English newspapers were so confident of an English victory that when the result was telegrammed back, they assumed a misprint and printed the score as 10–1 in England's favour. However, this has proven to be untrue.[5]

text: This left England in a sticky situation prior to their final match, against Spain in Rio. They needed to win, and for Chile to beat the United States to stand any chance of going through, and even then they would need the goal averages to fall in their favour. As it turned out, no such calculations were necessary, despite Chile's victory, as Spain's Zarra scored the only goal of the game, eliminating England from the competition.

text: Switzerland 1954[edit]

text: This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (July 2018) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

text: As with their first World Cup, England's qualifying for the 1954 edition also constituted the 1953–54 British Home Championship. They played Wales at Ninian Park as their first match once again, and the 4–1 result was the same. However, unlike four years earlier, it was the home side that went into the lead, after twenty two minutes through Ivor Allchurch. Despite being 1–0 down at half time, England scored four within eight minutes of the restart; two each for Dennis Wilshaw and Nat Lofthouse.

text: Goodison Park was the venue for England's home clash against Ireland, who were newly renamed Northern Ireland. Harold Hassall got England off to a good start with a goal after just ten minutes. Eddie McMorran put the Irish back on terms just before the hour mark, but Hassall completed his brace six minutes later. Lofthouse completed a comfortable 3–1 win for England.

text: With the top two in the group qualifying for the finals, the final game between England and Scotland, at Hampden Park, settled nothing except the placings within the group, despite Scotland having dropped a point with a 3–3 draw at home to Wales. Allan Brown put the home side ahead after just seven minutes, but it was all square again thanks to Ivor Broadis just four minutes later. Johnny Nicholls gave England the lead for the first time just after half time, and they began to extend a lead after Ronnie Allen's 68th-minute goal. Jimmy Mullen made the game all but certain seven minutes from time, and although Willie Ormond scored a consolation for Scotland with just 1 minute to play, England topped the competition for the second time in a row.

text: 1954 Finals[edit]

text: England were drawn in Group 4 for the finals, with hosts Switzerland, Italy and Belgium. In an odd twist, unique to the 1954 tournament, England and Italy, as the two seeded teams in the group, did not have to play each other.

text: Equally, Switzerland and Belgium did not have to play each other. England's first game in Switzerland was against Belgium in Basel, and they suffered a shock as Léopold Anoul put the Belgians into the lead after just five minutes. Ivor Broadis put the favourites back on terms just over twenty minutes later, and although Nat Lofthouse gave England the lead 10 minutes later, it was proving to be tougher than they had expected against the Belgians.

text: Broadis scored his second just after the hour, but Henri Coppens hit back four minutes later to keep Belgium in the game at only 3–2 down. Anoul completed his brace another four minutes after that to level the scores again. In another oddity peculiar to this World Cup, drawn matches in the group stage would go to extra time, and as such the teams played on with the score at 3–3.

text: Just one minute into the added period, Lofthouse added a fourth for England and they seemed to have won it, but Jimmy Dickinson scored an own goal three minutes later to put the score back at 4–4. It stayed this way until the extra period was up, and as penalty shoot-outs were yet to be invented and replays were not used in the group, the match was recorded as a draw.

text: England's second and final group game was against the hosts in Bern. This proved to be an easier game for the Three Lions, and they scored one goal in each half (from Jimmy Mullen and Dennis Wilshaw respectively) to give them a comfortable win of 2–0. As Switzerland (against England), Italy (against Switzerland) and Belgium (against Italy) had all lost one game, England progressed as group winners, along with Switzerland, who won a play-off against Italy.

text: England faced the winners of group three and defending champions Uruguay in the quarter-finals. Carlos Borges gave the South Americans the lead inside 5 minutes, but Lofthouse put England back on terms ten minutes later. England were clearly struggling, but held on until just before half time, when Obdulio Varela gave the lead back Uruguay.

text: Juan Alberto Schiaffino doubled the lead just after the break, but Tom Finney kept England's foot in the door with his sixty seventh-minute goal. However, it was all over after Javier Ambrois restored the two goal lead with twelve minutes to play. The score remained at 4–2, and England were eliminated from the cup.

text: Sweden 1958[edit]

text: For the first time, England had to play against countries other than the Home Nations to reach the Finals in Sweden. They were drawn against the Republic of Ireland and Denmark. In the qualifying round, England won three out of the four games and drew the other. Four months before the World Cup, Roger Byrne, Duncan Edwards, David Pegg and Tommy Taylor all lost their lives in the Munich air disaster while playing for Manchester United. At the finals, which is the only tournament to have seen all Home Nations take part, the Home Nations were all drawn in different groups.

text: England were drawn against the Soviet Union (2–2), Brazil (0–0) and Austria (2–2), who finished third in the 1954 World Cup. At the end of the group stage, Soviet Union and England each had three points, and had scored four goals and conceded four goals. This meant there was a play-off to decide the second-placed team in the group, the winner to qualify. England lost the play-off 1–0 and were thus knocked out. The only consolation for England was that they were the only team to play the eventual winners Brazil and not lose.

text: Chile 1962[edit]

text: The third World Cup which took place in South America, saw England qualify by successfully qualifying from the group, which contained Portugal and Luxembourg, defeating Luxembourg on both occasions, and defeating Portugal at home, and drawing in Lisbon.

text: At the finals, England were drawn in a group with Hungary, Argentina and Bulgaria. England defeated Argentina 3-1, thanks to goals from Ron Flowers, Bobby Charlton and Jimmy Greaves,[6] before playing out a goalless draw with Bulgaria, and a 2–1 defeat to Hungary.[7]

text: England finished in second place behind Hungary and played the winners of group 3, defending champions Brazil, in the quarter-finals. Brazil scored first through Garrincha, before an equaliser for Gerry Hitchens before half time. However, second-half goals from Garrincha and Vavá meant Brazil won the game 3–1, and eliminated England from the competition.[8] This defeat was manager Walter Winterbottom's last game in charge. Winterbottom had led England to four World Cup Finals. From May 1963, Alf Ramsey became the manager of England.

text: England 1966[edit]

text: This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (July 2018)

text: In the 1966 World Cup Finals, England used their home advantage and, under Ramsey, won their first, and only, World Cup title. England played all their games at Wembley Stadium in London, which became the last time that the hosts were granted this privilege. After drawing 0–0 in the opening game against former champions Uruguay, which started a run of four games all ending goalless. England then beat both France and Mexico 2–0 and qualified for the quarter-finals.[citation needed]

text: The quarter-finals saw England play Argentina, which ended in a 1–0 win to England. This match saw the start of the rivalry between England and Argentina, when Argentinian Antonio Rattín was dismissed by German referee Rudolf Kreitlein in a very fierce game. A 2–1 win against Portugal in the semi-final then followed. Portugal were the first team to score against England in the tournament. The final saw England play West Germany, with the result finishing in a 4–2 win for England, after extra time.[citation needed]

text: Mexico 1970[edit]

text: 1970 saw the first World Cup finals take place in North America and England qualified automatically for the tournament by winning the 1966 FIFA World Cup. England were drawn in a group with Romania, former world champions Brazil and Czechoslovakia. Each of the matches only saw one goal, with England defeating Romania and Czechoslovakia, and losing to Brazil. The quarter-final saw a repeat of the 1966 final, with England playing West Germany. England were hampered by the fact that first-choice goalkeeper Gordon Banks was ill, and Peter Bonetti played instead. England led 2–0 with goals by Alan Mullery and Martin Peters, but in the 70th minute, Franz Beckenbauer pulled one goal back for West Germany.

text: After Beckenbauer's goal, Ramsey substituted Bobby Charlton, who overtook Billy Wright as England's most capped player ever, with caps totalling 106. Uwe Seeler equalised for the Germans in the eighty first minute, thereby taking the game into extra time. During extra time, Gerd Müller scored the winning goal for West Germany which saw the German side win 3–2. This turned out to be Charlton's last game for England.[9]

text: West Germany 1974[edit]

text: For the first time, England did not qualify for a World Cup. In a group with Olympic champions Poland and Wales, England could not overtake Poland. After only drawing at home to Wales 1–1 and losing the first leg 2–0 to Poland, meant that England had to beat Poland at home, whilst Poland only needed to draw. Poland managed to withstand England's attacks in the first half, who had Martin Peters playing for them. Poland took the lead in the 57th minute with a goal from Jan Domarski.

text: England equalised six minutes later, with a penalty converted by Allan Clarke. England were unable to score any more goals with goalkeeper Jan Tomaszewski keeping England at bay. Brian Clough had previously called Tomaszewski a "clown".[10] The commentator of the game then said "it's all over".[11] Poland took this good form to the finals and ended in third place. After failing to qualify, Alf Ramsey resigned from his post and after a time, where Ramsey and his predecessor had lasted a total of 29 years, no manager was able to last in the job for longer than eight years. This ended when Bobby Robson became England manager.[12]

text: Argentina 1978[edit]

text: England also did not qualify for the fourth World Cup which took place in South America. This time, England were denied by Italy, who had scored three more goals than England after both teams finished on the same points. Goals scored dictated who qualified after the head-to-head record between the two sides finished the same, following a 2–0 home win for each team. The lower-ranked teams in the group were Finland and Luxembourg, but the size of the wins against them proved to be decisive. Nevertheless, Ron Greenwood was given a second chance in charge of England, after taking the role in 1977.

text: Spain 1982[edit]

text: 1982 saw the first time where the European Qualifying Rounds were divided into groups of five teams, where the top two teams qualify for the World Cup. Greenwood used his second chance and took England to Spain by finishing second behind Hungary and above Romania, Switzerland and Norway.

text: At the finals, England won all three group games, defeating France 3-1, with a brace from Bryan Robson,[13] before beating Czechoslovakia 2–0, with a Jozef Barmos own goal, [14] and World Cup newcomers Kuwait 1–0, thanks to a Trevor Francis goal.[15]

text: The next round saw a second group stage consisting of three teams, a first time event at the World Cup. England drew with West Germany 0–0 and after the Germans beat Spain 2–1, England then had to beat Spain with a two-goal difference to progress to the next round. England, however, only managed a 0–0 draw against the Spanish. England remained unbeaten at the end of the tournament. After the World Cup, Ron Greenwood's time as England manager ended, and he was replaced by Bobby Robson.

text: Mexico 1986[edit]

text: 1986 saw the second World Cup to take place in Mexico. England qualified for Mexico 1986 by winning four games and drawing four times against Northern Ireland, who qualified in second place, Romania, Finland and Turkey. In Mexico, England lost their opening game to Portugal 1–0 and could only manage a goalless draw against Morocco. The final group game, however, saw England beat Poland 3–0, which is one of the three highest scores for England at the World Cup, with Gary Lineker scoring a hat-trick.

text: This result took England to second place and finished behind Morocco. England then also beat Paraguay 3–0 in the Round of 16. In the quarter-finals, England renewed their rivalry with Argentina in a game that has become notorious for the Argentina goals, both scored by Diego Maradona. Maradona's first goal, known as the Hand of God, was illegal and should not have counted, as he used his hand to punch the ball into the net. However, the referee missed this infringement, and ruled that the goal should stand. Maradona then made the score 2-0, famously dribbling from inside Argentina's half and around several English players before scoring. Gary Lineker pulled back the score to 2-1, but England ran out of time to equalise, and were eliminated. Nevertheless, Lineker finished with the Golden Boot by scoring six goals and thereby becoming England's first Golden Boot winner.

text: Italy 1990[edit]

text: By winning three and drawing three, England qualified for Italia '90, the second World Cup to be held in Italy, scoring ten goals and conceding none. England were unbeaten through qualification, winning three games, and drawing the remaining three, but still finished second to Sweden, whom they drew with twice.[16] England profited from Romania's 3–1 win over Denmark, who, had they won, would have qualified as the third-best second-placed team. West Germany and England were able to qualify for Italia '90 as the best second-placed teams in the groups with four teams.

text: Because a few years previously saw English hooligans at European competition matches, England were forced to play their group games on Sardinia and Sicily. In group F, was the European champions Netherlands, the Republic of Ireland and Egypt and England. After opening the tournament with a 1–1 draw against Ireland and a 0–0 draw against the Dutch, England then beat Egypt 1–0. This was Egypt's first appearance since the 1934 World Cup.[citation needed] England won the group with four points.[17]

text: In the next round, England had to play Belgium. The game went to extra time, and in the hundredth and nineteenth minute, David Platt scored the winning goal.[18] England also had to play extra time against Cameroon in the quarter-finals. Cameroon were the first African team to have reached the quarter-finals. England opened the scoring through David Platt, but Cameroon quickly turned around the game to lead 2-1. Lineker subsequently won and scored a penalty in the 83rd minute to ensure the game went to extra time. He then scored a second penalty, to see England reach the semi-finals.[19]

text: In the semi-finals, England met West Germany. There was no separating the two teams after 90 minutes, which made England the first team to have played extra time in three successive World Cup games. There was also no separating the two teams after extra time, thereby taking the game to penalties.[20]

text: Although English goalkeeper Peter Shilton dived the right way for every penalty, he was unable to save any. German goalkeeper Bodo Illgner, having failed to save any of England's first three penalties, saved England's fourth penalty, taken by Stuart Pearce. Olaf Thon then scored for Germany, meaning that England's Chris Waddle would have to score his fifth penalty and hope that Shilton saved the Germans' fifth penalty. However, Waddle's penalty missed completely, going high over the crossbar, thereby resulting in England's being knocked out of the competition.[20] The third-place playoff between England and Italy saw England lose their only game of the tournament in normal time. Even though this was England's best finish since the 1966 World Cup, Bobby Robson's time as England manager had come to an end.[21][22]

text: United States 1994[edit]

text: For the 1994 World Cup in the United States, under the leadership of new manager Graham Taylor, England surprisingly did not qualify for the tournament. In a group with six teams, England lost to Norway and the Netherlands, finishing third above Poland, Turkey and San Marino.

text: England went into their final game with San Marino knowing they would need a seven-goal victory and for Poland to beat the Netherlands in the other match in order to qualify.[23] In the game against San Marino, Davide Gualtieri scored against England after nine seconds, taking the lead for the outsiders. England went on to win 7–1, which was too small a goal margin. Additionally, despite the half-time score between the Poles and the Dutch being 1-1, the Dutch went on to win 3-1, meaning that however many goals England scored, they could still not qualify. Taylor's tenure in charge ended and he was replaced by Terry Venables, who was dismissed after England lost the semi-final of Euro 1996, hosted in England.[12]

text: France 1998[edit]

text: After missing out on the World Cup in 1994, England, managed by Glenn Hoddle, qualified for the World Cup in France. England were drawn in Group 2 of UEFA qualifying with Italy, Poland, Georgia and Moldova. England beat Poland, Georgia and Moldova both home and away, but a home defeat to Italy in their fourth match meant they went into the final qualifier at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome just a point ahead of the Azzurri and only needing a draw to qualify automatically; defeat would see them have to navigate a play-off to secure qualification. The match finished as a goalless draw and England finished top of the group.

text: At the finals in France, England played in Group G. England defeated Tunisia 2–0 in the first game, with goals from Alan Shearer and Paul Scholes.[24] Their second match saw England lose 2–1 to Romania; despite an 81st-minute equaliser from Michael Owen, Dan Petrescu scored a winner shortly before injury time. In their final group game, England defeated Colombia 2–0 in the decisive match, thanks to goals from midfielders Darren Anderton and David Beckham.[25] England finished second in Group G, which saw them qualify for the last 16 phase, and play the winner of 1998 FIFA World Cup Group H, Argentina.

text: In a fiery game containing six yellow cards and two penalties, David Beckham was controversially sent off in the 47th minute for what many felt was at most a yellow card offence, knocking over Diego Simeone.[26][27] Gabriel Batistuta opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the fifth minute of the game, before an equaliser also from the spot by Alan Shearer four minutes later. England took the lead through Owen, in the 16th minute. Argentina drew level through Javier Zanetti in injury time of the first half.

text: The game finished 2-2, and, as neither team were able to find a winner in extra time, penalties were needed to decide the team that qualified to the next round. While David Seaman did save one penalty, Argentine goalkeeper Carlos Roa managed to save two, including the vital one from David Batty, thereby knocking England out of the World Cup. Beckham subsequently received death threats and was sent bullets in the post.[28][29]

text: South Korea/Japan 2002[edit]

text: In 2002 the World Cup took place in Asia for the first time. England, under its first ever foreign manager in Swedish Sven-Göran Eriksson, were able to qualify for the tournament. England were drawn in Group 9, alongside Germany, Finland, Greece and Albania. In the last ever game in the original Wembley Stadium, (which closed after the match) England played Germany, losing 1–0, the only goal scored by Dietmar Hamann. The match was the last under the management of Kevin Keegan, who resigned at the end of the match, and was replaced by Eriksson.[30] By beating Germany 5–1 in Munich, England's qualifying campaign was revitalised, and they qualified automatically, by drawing 2–2 with Greece. Germany, who could only draw 0–0 with Finland, had to play a play-off game against Ukraine, with England qualifying ahead winning the group.

text: In Japan, England had to play against Eriksson's homeland, Sweden, and both settled out for a 1–1 draw. England and Beckham gained a measure of revenge for their previous 1998 defeat in defeating Argentina 1-0, thanks to a Beckham penalty. However, England could only manage a disappointing 0-0 draw against Nigeria, meaning that although they were able to qualify for the second round, where they played Denmark, they qualified as runners up, which meant that they would meet favourites Brazil in the quarter-finals if they qualified.

text: England played Denmark in the round of 16 defeating Denmark 3–0, thanks to goals from Micheal Owen, Rio Ferdinand, and Emile Heskey.[31] England played four-time World Cup winners and 1998 runners-up Brazil in the quarter-finals. Despite leading through a Michael Owen goal, a mistake by David Seaman saw England lose 2–1, and Brazil won their fourth World Cup match against England, and went on to win the tournament.[32]

text: Germany 2006[edit]

text: England were drawn into Group 6 of European qualifying for the 2006 World Cup. The group featured other home nations in Wales, and Northern Ireland, as well as Poland (who had eliminated England the last time the World Cup took place in Germany), Azerbaijan and Austria. England won eight of the 10 games, and qualified as group winners, in front of Portugal, despite drawing to Austria in Vienna, and losing to Northern Ireland in Belfast.[33]

text: In Germany, however, England were less convincing. England played in Group B, alongside Paraguay, Trinidad and Tobago, and Sweden. England started with a 1–0 win against Paraguay; which was won due to a 3rd minute own goal.[34] The second game against first time qualifiers Trinidad and Tobago saw England have to wait until the 83rd minute for England to take the lead, with Peter Crouch opened the scoring with a goal many felt was illegal, and the second goal of the game coming in added time from Steven Gerrard.[35][36] The last group game saw England play against Sweden, where an eventual 2-2 draw saw them qualify for the next round as group winners, thereby avoiding playing hosts Germany.[37]

text: In the last 16 stage, a free kick from David Beckham saw England win 1–0 against Ecuador and reach the quarter-finals, where they faced Portugal.[38] The game finished goalless, and England once again were knocked out on penalties and Portuguese goalkeeper Ricardo became the first goalkeeper to save three penalties in a penalty shoot-out. Ricardo saved from Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard, and Jamie Carragher; the only England player who successfully converted his penalty was Owen Hargreaves. Portugal won the shoot-out 3-1, despite misses from Petit and Hugo Viana. This game was also Erickson's final match as England manager.[39]

text: South Africa 2010[edit]

text: Qualification for the first African World Cup went successfully for new England manager Fabio Capello, after previous manager Steve McClaren was unable to secure qualification to the Euro 2008. By winning nine times and only losing to Ukraine, England qualified ahead of Croatia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Andorra. England's group was seen as a favourable one, containing comparatively much weaker teams.[40] However, England opened up their campaign with a 1–1 draw against the United States, thanks to a major error by goalkeeper Robert Green. They then drew 0–0 against Algeria and were booed off the field by their own fans, drawing the ire of striker Wayne Rooney.[41] England eventually qualified for the next round by beating Slovenia 1–0, but only qualified as runners up to the United States, thereby meaning they would draw favourites Germany.

text: In the second round match, Germany took the lead after 20 minutes after goalkeeper Manuel Neuer played the ball down the pitch to Miroslav Klose, who opened the scoring. The score became 2–0 to Germany after 32 minutes. Shortly after, England defender Matthew Upson scored a header. Later, Frank Lampard had a shot at goal which was disallowed despite crossing the line; which was confirmed on replays. German goalkeeper Manuel Neuer admitted subsequently he knew the ball had crossed the line, but decided to deceive the referee.[42] The German media reported it was "revenge for Wembley", while the English media criticised FIFA's refusal to implement goal-line technology. Ironically, despite his earlier opposition to goal-line technology, Sepp Blatter said that it should be introduced after a Ukrainian goal against England at Euro 2012 was ruled out.[43][42][44] As England tried to equalise, Germany used this to their advantage and scored two more goals. This became Germany's biggest win against England in a World Cup, winning 4-1.[45]

text: Brazil 2014[edit]

text: Under Roy Hodgson, who replaced Fabio Capello after Euro 2012 after a disagreement between Capello and The FA, England qualified for the second World Cup to be held in Brazil. Ukraine were again one of the opponents in the qualifying rounds. The other opponents included Montenegro, Poland, Moldova and San Marino. After winning six games and drawing four, England qualified unbeaten.[46]

text: The draw for the finals saw England have to play against Italy and Uruguay, both former world champions, which meant that it was the first ever time three World Champions were drawn in the same group, along with Costa Rica. England lost to Italy and Uruguay, and were thus knocked out after two games. The final match against Costa Rica finished as a goalless draw. This performance was statistically their worst ever performance at a World Cup, ending up with just one point after two losses to Uruguay and Italy and a goalless draw with Costa Rica in the dead rubber match, their lowest points total in the group stage of a world cup.[46]

text: Russia 2018[edit]

text: England played in UEFA Group F in qualification for the 2018 World Cup, in a group of six with Slovakia, Slovenia, Scotland, Lithuania and Malta, with only the winner of the group guaranteed qualification. England went into the qualification process under manager Sam Allardyce, only for Allardyce to leave the post after just one game due to controversy regarding discussing breaking FIFA rules.[47]

text: Under Allardyce's replacement, Gareth Southgate, England went undefeated throughout qualification, winning eight matches out of 10, drawing with Slovenia 0–0 in Ljubljana, and drawing 2–2 with Scotland in Glasgow thanks to a 90th-minute equaliser from Harry Kane.[48] This was the third successive major tournament that England were undefeated, having been undefeated in 2014 World Cup, and Euro 2016 qualifying.

text: 2018 Finals[edit]

text: Under Gareth Southgate, the England team began their tournament in group G against Tunisia. The game started well for England with a goal from Harry Kane in the 11th minute. Tunisia equalised through Sassi from the penalty spot in the 35th minute following a foul by Kyle Walker. Some controversy followed as various potential offences against Harry Kane, inside the penalty area were ignored by the referee and no VAR checks were carried out. England persevered and scored a second goal in the 91st minute, again by Harry Kane, resulting in a 2–1 victory.[49]

text: In the second group stage match, England surpassed their record for goals scored in a World Cup match by beating Panama 6-1. Jesse Lingard scored the third goal, John Stones scored the first and fourth goals and Harry Kane scored a hat-trick with the second, fifth and sixth goals.[50]

text: In the final group stage match, England narrowly lost 1-0 to Belgium. Adnan Januzaj scored the sole goal of the game; but with both teams having fielded reserve teams, with England specificially making 9 changes. Before the game media outlets stating that a loss could potentially become beneficial, as the winner would be in the half of the draw with four of the top seven sides in the world.[c][51][52] The result that meant Belgium topped the group and England finished second, setting up a last 16 clash with Group H winners Colombia.[53][54]

text: England played their last 16 match in the Otkritie Arena, Moscow, with the same team as against Tunisia. Harry Kane scored his sixth goal of the tournament, and the third penalty, after once again being fouled in the box from a corner, similarly as against Panama.[55] The score remained at 1-0, until stoppage time, where a header from Yerry Mina beat Jordan Pickford in goal to bring the game to extra time. Neither team managed to score in extra time, and the match went to penalties, which England won 4-3.[56] As well as being the first knockout match England had won at a major tournament since 2006 (last defeating Ecuador in the last 16); it was the first time England won a World Cup penalty shoot-out.[d][58] The match was notable for the heated atmosphere the game was played in, with a total of eight yellow cards being shown in the match.[e][59]

text: England played against Sweden in their quarter-final at Cosmos Arena, Samara on 7 July 2018.[57] They won the match 2–0, with defender Harry Maguire scoring his first England goal, a header scored from a corner, and Dele Alli a second header from close range. This would send them through to their third World Cup semi-final and their first since 1990, and third overall.[60] The team played Croatia in the semi-final, resulting in a 2–1 loss after extra time.[61] England would later finish fourth in the competition, the best result since 1990. England would lose again to Belgium in the 3rd place playoff, thanks to goals from Thomas Meunier and Eden Hazard, despite a Eric Dier shot being cleared off the line by Toby Alderweireld.[62]

text: The tournament would see England score nine goals from set-pieces – the most by a team in a single World Cup tournament since 1966.[63]

text: Records[edit]

text:
Year
Round
Position
GP
W
D*
L
GF
GA
GD

 1930
Not a FIFA member

 1934

 1938

 1950
Group stage
8th
3
1
0
2
2
2
0

 1954
Quarter-finals
7th
3
1
1
1
8
8
0

 1958
Group stage
11th
4
0
3
1
4
5
-1

 1962
Quarter-finals
8th
4
1
1
2
5
6
-1

 1966
Champions
1st
6
5
1
0
11
3
8

 1970
Quarter-finals
8th
4
2
0
2
4
4
0

 1974
Did not qualify

 1978

 1982
Second group stage
6th
5
3
2
0
6
1
5

 1986
Quarter-finals
8th
5
2
1
2
7
3
4

 1990
Semi finals
4th
7
3
3
1
8
6
2

 1994
Did not qualify

 1998
Round of 16
9th
4
2
1
1
7
4
3

  2002
Quarter-finals
6th
5
2
2
1
6
3
3

 2006
Quarter-finals
7th
5
3
2
0
6
2
4

 2010
Round of 16
13th
4
1
2
1
3
5
-2

 2014
Group stage
26th
3
0
1
2
2
4
-2

 2018
Semi-finals
4th
7
3
1
3
12
8
4

 2022
TBD

   2026

Total
15/21
1 title
69
29
21
19
91
64
27

text: By match[edit]

text:
Year

Round

Against

Score

Scorers

 1950
Group 2
 Chile
2–0
Mortensen, Mannion

 United States
0–1

 Spain
0–1

 1954
Group 4
 Belgium
4–4 (aet)
Broadis (2), Lofthouse (2)

  Switzerland
2–0
Mullen, Wilshaw

Quarter-final
 Uruguay
2–4
Lofthouse, Finney

 1958
Group 4
 Soviet Union
2–2
Kevan, Finney

 Brazil
0–0

 Austria
2–2
Haynes, Kevan

Play-off
 Soviet Union
0–1

 1962
Group 4
 Hungary
1–2
Flowers

 Argentina
3–1
Flowers, Charlton, Greaves

 Bulgaria
0–0

Quarter-final
 Brazil
1–3
Hitchens

 1966
Group 1
 Uruguay
0–0

 Mexico
2–0
Charlton, Hunt

 France
2–0
Hunt (2)

Quarter-final
 Argentina
1–0
Hurst

Semi-final
 Portugal
2–1
Charlton (2)

Final
 West Germany
4–2 (aet)
Hurst (3), Peters

 1970
Group 3
 Romania
1–0
Hurst

 Brazil
0–1

 Czechoslovakia
1–0
Clarke

Quarter-final
 West Germany
2–3 (aet)
Mullery, Peters

 1982
Group 4
 France
3–1
Robson (2), Mariner

 Czechoslovakia
2–0
Francis, Barmoš (o.g.)

 Kuwait
1–0
Francis

Group B Round 2
 West Germany
0–0

 Spain
0–0

 1986
Group F
 Portugal
0–1

 Morocco
0–0

 Poland
3–0
Lineker (3)

Round of 16
 Paraguay
3–0
Lineker (2), Beardsley

Quarter-final
 Argentina
1–2
Lineker

 1990
Group F
 Republic of Ireland
1–1
Lineker

 Netherlands
0–0

 Egypt
1–0
Wright

Round of 16
 Belgium
1–0 (aet)
Platt

Quarter-final
 Cameroon
3–2 (aet)
Platt, Lineker (2)

Semi-final
 West Germany
1–1 (aet)[f]
Lineker

Third-place play-off
 Italy
1–2
Platt

 1998
Group G
 Tunisia
2–0
Shearer, Scholes

 Romania
1–2
Owen

 Colombia
2–0
Anderton, Beckham

Round of 16
 Argentina
2–2 (aet)[f]
Shearer, Owen

  2002
Group F
 Sweden
1–1
Campbell

 Argentina
1–0
Beckham

 Nigeria
0–0

Round of 16
 Denmark
3–0
Ferdinand, Owen, Heskey

Quarter-final
 Brazil
1–2
Owen

 2006
Group B
 Paraguay
1–0
Gamarra (o.g.)

 Trinidad and Tobago
2–0
Crouch, Gerrard

 Sweden
2–2
Cole, Gerrard

Round of 16
 Ecuador
1–0
Beckham

Quarter-final
 Portugal
0–0 (aet)[f]

 2010
Group C
 United States
1–1
Gerrard

 Algeria
0–0

 Slovenia
1–0
Defoe

Round of 16
 Germany
1–4
Upson

 2014
Group D
 Italy
1–2
Sturridge

 Uruguay
1–2
Rooney

 Costa Rica
0–0

 2018
Group G
 Tunisia
2–1
Kane (2)

 Panama
6–1
Stones (2), Kane (3), Lingard

 Belgium
0–1

Round of 16
 Colombia
1–1 (aet)[g]
Kane

Quarter-final
 Sweden
2–0
Maguire, Alli

Semi-final
 Croatia
1–2 (aet)
Trippier

Third-place play-off
 Belgium
0–2

text: By opponent[edit]

text:
Country

Played

Won

Drawn

Lost

GF

GA

GD

 Argentina
5
3
1
1
8
5
+3

 Germany
5
1
2
2
8
10
-2

 Brazil
4
0
1
3
2
6
-4

 Sweden
3
1
2
0
5
3
+2

 Belgium
4
1
1
2
5
7
-2

 Portugal
3
1
1
1
2
2
0

 Uruguay
3
0
1
2
3
6
-3

 France
2
2
0
0
5
1
+4

 Paraguay
2
2
0
0
4
0
+4

 Tunisia
2
2
0
0
4
1
+3

 Czechoslovakia
2
2
0
0
3
0
+3

 Colombia
2
1
1
0
3
1
+2

 Romania
2
1
0
1
2
2
0

 Soviet Union
2
0
1
1
2
3
-1

 United States
2
0
1
1
1
2
-1

 Spain
2
0
1
1
0
1
-1

 Italy
2
0
0
2
2
4
-2

 Panama
1
1
0
0
6
1
+5

 Poland
1
1
0
0
3
0
+3

 Denmark
1
1
0
0
3
0
+3

 Chile
1
1
0
0
2
0
+2

  Switzerland
1
1
0
0
2
0
+2

 Mexico
1
1
0
0
2
0
+2

 Trinidad and Tobago
1
1
0
0
2
0
+2

 Cameroon
1
1
0
0
3
2
+1

 Kuwait
1
1
0
0
1
0
+1

 Egypt
1
1
0
0
1
0
+1

 Ecuador
1
1
0
0
1
0
+1

 Slovenia
1
1
0
0
0
0
+1

 Austria
1
0
1
0
2
2
0

 Republic of Ireland
1
0
1
0
1
1
0

 Bulgaria
1
0
1
0
0
0
0

 Morocco
1
0
1
0
0
0
0

 Netherlands
1
0
1
0
0
0
0

 Nigeria
1
0
1
0
0
0
0

 Algeria
1
0
1
0
0
0
0

 Costa Rica
1
0
1
0
0
0
0

 Hungary
1
0
0
1
1
2
-1

 Croatia
1
0
0
1
1
2
-1

text: Last update: 14 July 2018

text: Players' honours[edit]

text: List of England players with the most appearances at World Cups[edit]

text:
No.

Name

Matches

World Cups

1
Peter Shilton
17
1982, 1986, 1990

2

Terry Butcher
14
1982, 1986, 1990

Bobby Charlton
14
1958, 1962, 1966, 1970

Ashley Cole
14
2002, 2006, 2010

Bobby Moore
14
1962, 1966, 1970

6
David Beckham
13
1998, 2002, 2006

7

Steven Gerrard
12
2006, 2010, 2014

Gary Lineker
12
1986, 1990

Michael Owen
12
1998, 2002, 2006

10
Chris Waddle
11
1986, 1990

text: List of England top goalscorers at World Cups[edit]

text:
No.

Name

Goals

World Cups

1
Gary Lineker
10
1986 (6) and 1990 (4)

2
Harry Kane
6
2018

3
Geoff Hurst
5
1966 (4) and 1970 (1)

4

Bobby Charlton
4
1962 (1) and 1966 (3)

Michael Owen
4
1998 (2) and 2002 (2)

6

Nat Lofthouse
3
1954

Roger Hunt
3
1966

David Platt
3
1990

David Beckham
3
1998, 2002 and 2006

Steven Gerrard
3
2006 (2) and 2010

11
Nine players
2

text: Current as of 3 July 2018 after the match against Colombia

text: List of England goals by tournament[edit]

text:
World Cup

Goalscorer(s)

1950

Wilf Mannion, Stan Mortensen

1954

Nat Lofthouse (3), Ivor Broadis (2), Tom Finney, Jimmy Mullen, Dennis Wilshaw

1958

Derek Kevan (2), Tom Finney, Johnny Haynes

1962

Ron Flowers (2), Bobby Charlton, Jimmy Greaves, Gerry Hitchens

1966

Geoff Hurst (4), Roger Hunt (3), Bobby Charlton (3), Martin Peters

1970

Allan Clarke, Geoff Hurst, Alan Mullery, Martin Peters

1982

Trevor Francis (2), Bryan Robson (2), Paul Mariner, Own Goal

1986

Gary Lineker (6), Peter Beardsley

1990

Gary Lineker (4), David Platt (3), Mark Wright

1998

Michael Owen (2), Alan Shearer (2), Darren Anderton, David Beckham, Paul Scholes

2002

Michael Owen (2), David Beckham, Sol Campbell, Rio Ferdinand, Emile Heskey

2006

Steven Gerrard (2), David Beckham, Joe Cole, Peter Crouch, Own Goal

2010

Jermain Defoe, Steven Gerrard, Matthew Upson

2014

Wayne Rooney, Daniel Sturridge

2018

Harry Kane (6), John Stones (2), Jesse Lingard, Harry Maguire, Dele Alli, Kieran Trippier

text: List of England players playing abroad at a World Cup[edit]

text: Historically, very few English World Cup squad members were playing for a club in a foreign league at the time of their selection to the national squad.[64]

text:
Year

Number (Country)

Players (Apps)

1950–1958

0

1962

1 (Italy)

Gerry Hitchens (2)

1966–1970

0

1982

1 (West Germany)

Tony Woodcock (2)

1986

2 (Italy)

Mark Hateley (3), Ray Wilkins

1990

5 (4 in Scotland, 1 in France)

Terry Butcher (5), Trevor Steven (3), Gary Stevens (2), Chris Woods (0); Chris Waddle (7)

1998

0

2002

1 (Germany)

Owen Hargreaves (2)

2006

2 (1 Spain, 1 Germany)

David Beckham (5); Owen Hargreaves (4)

2010

0

2014

1 (Scotland)

Fraser Forster (0)

2018

0

text: Team awards and records[edit]

text: Team Awards

text:
World Champions 1966
FIFA Fair Play Trophy 1990
FIFA Fair Play Trophy 1998 (shared)

text: Individual Awards

text:
Golden Ball 1966: Bobby Charlton
Silver Ball 1966: Bobby Moore
Golden Boot 1986: Gary Lineker
Golden Boot 2018: Harry Kane
Bronze Boot 1966: Geoff Hurst
Golden Glove 1966: Gordon Banks
Best Young Player Award 1998: Michael Owen

text: Team Records

text:
Most penalty shoot-outs lost: 3 (shared with Italy and Spain)
Biggest World Cup victory: 6-1 vs Panama, 2018 Group Stage [65]

text: Individual Records

text:
Only hattrick in a final: Geoff Hurst (1966 v West Germany)
Oldest captain: Peter Shilton (age 40 years and 292 days, 1990 v Italy)
Most clean sheets: Peter Shilton (10, 1982-1990) (shared with Fabien Barthez)

text: Refereeing[edit]

text: Four FIFA World Cup finals were officiated by English referees, more than by any other football association. The first Englishman to officiate a final, George Reader, is also the oldest World Cup referee to date, as he was 53 years and 236 days old at the 1950 decisive match between Uruguay and Brazil. The other final referees are William Ling (1954), Jack Taylor (1974) and Howard Webb (2010).

text: Arthur Ellis, who was a linesman at the 1950 final, is part of an elite group of referees who has been called up for three consecutive World Cups (1950–1958).


document_title: List of The Andy Griffith Show characters

question_text: who was andy's girlfriend on the andy griffith show

question_tokens: who was andy 's girlfriend on the andy griffith show

root

text: The following is a list of characters of The Andy Griffith Show, an American sitcom television series, starring Andy Griffith. The series ran for eight seasons on CBS between October 3, 1960, and April 1, 1968.

tag: p

text: Main[edit]

text:
Character
Seasons
No. of
episodes
Actor
Brief description

Andy Taylor
1–8
249
Andy Griffith
Sheriff of Mayberry; father (widower) of Opie

Opie Taylor
1–8
209
Ronny Howard
Son of Andy Taylor

Barney Fife
1–8
141
Don Knotts
Deputy Sheriff of Mayberry

Aunt Bee
1–8
175
Frances Bavier
Andy's paternal aunt

tag: table

text: Sheriff Andrew Jackson "Andy" Taylor is Sheriff and Justice of the Peace of Mayberry. He is genial, good-natured and endears himself to the townsfolk with an air of good will, polite charm and keeps the peace by using common sense. He refuses to wear a gun or formalize his uniform with a tie, as he feels a relaxed image makes him more approachable. Andy is a widower with a young son, Opie, and tries to raise him with good sense and good values. Also in his home is his paternal Aunt Bee who arrives in the home shortly after the previous housekeeper, Rose, marries and moves away. Although a widower, Andy has a steady string of girlfriends, but his longest-lasting relationship is with Helen Crump, Opie's teacher, whom he eventually marries, moves out of Mayberry with, becomes a U.S. Postal Inspector, and moves back to Mayberry and runs for Sheriff.

text: Opie Taylor is the son of Andy Taylor and his late wife. A good-hearted, normal little boy (about six when the series began), most of Opie's lessons come from his close relationship with his father, and his Great Aunt Bee. He is not prone to get into trouble and that probably has to do with spending a great deal of time around the jail. At one point, Aunt Bee considers this to be a bad influence and when Opie runs away from home briefly, she relents and allows him to visit the jail after school on a conditional basis.

text: Deputy Bernard Milton "Barney" Fife is Deputy Sheriff of Mayberry. Thin, wiry and high-strung, Barney fancies himself an expert lawman even though—in reality—he is actually a bumbling goof. In episodes 001 and 002, Andy refers to him as "Cousin Barney". In episode 025, his middle name is said to be "Oliver"; in episode 082, his middle name according to his high school yearbook is "Milton", in episode 157 (season 5) his middle initial is repeated as "P". He considers his position to be essential to keeping Mayberry safe. Even though the town has very little crime, he dubs the town: "Mayberry, Gateway to Danger". Andy keeps Barney's crime-fighting shenanigans to a reasonable level, but tries to never step on his ego. For safety reasons, he only allows Barney to carry one bullet, which he keeps in his shirt pocket until needed. Often, when the bullet is employed, Barney accidentally shoots the bullet into the floor, narrowly missing his own foot. Like Andy, he has a steady stream of girlfriends, but his longest lasting relationship is with Thelma Lou. In episode 028, Barney has just met Thelma Lou at the "Junction Diner". In season five, he takes a job as a detective in Raleigh, leaving Mayberry, but returns in seasons six through eight for guest appearances.

text: Beatrice "Aunt Bee" Taylor is Andy's paternal aunt. Aunt Bee is a spinster in her late-50s who raised Andy. She was living alone in West Virginia when Andy invited her to come to live with him and Opie, after their housekeeper Rose got married and moved away. Aunt Bee is a motherly figure who takes the place of Opie's late mother and dotes over the boy, caring for his welfare and taking care of Andy as well. She is prominent in town, a respected lady who spends her time helping with social functions and church events. She is prone to spend time with her friends gossiping about the town's citizens.

text: Recurring[edit]

text:
Name
Seasons
No. of
episodes
Played by
Brief character summary

Goober Pyle
4–8
86
George Lindsey
Auto mechanic and cousin of Gomer Pyle (Called Goober Beasley in Season 5 Episode 23 "TV or Not TV")

Floyd Lawson
1–7
80
Howard McNear
The barber

Helen Crump
3–8
66
Aneta Corsaut
School teacher and Andy's girlfriend in later episodes

Howard Sprague
6–8
37
Jack Dodson
The milquetoast county clerk

Otis Campbell
1–7
32
Hal Smith
The town drunk who lets himself into the jail to sleep it off

Clara Edwards
1–8
31
Hope Summers
aka Clara Johnson, Bertha Edwards; a widow who is Aunt Bee's best friend

Thelma Lou
1–6
26
Betty Lynn
Barney’s girlfriend. Her last name was never revealed.

Gomer Pyle
3–4
23
Jim Nabors
Dim-witted mechanic at Wally's Filling Station; a deputy when needed; joins the United States Marine Corps

Emmett Clark
8
16
Paul Hartman
Fix-it shop owner/operator

Ellie Walker
1
12
Elinor Donahue
Andy's first girlfriend of the series; pharmacist at drug store

Johnny Paul Jason
3–6
11
Richard Keith
Opie's best friend

Deputy Warren Ferguson
6
11
Jack Burns
Floyd's nephew; replaces Barney

Mayor Pike
1–2
11
Dick Elliott
Mayor of Mayberry

Jud Fletcher
1–7
8
Burt Mustin
Elderly citizen of Mayberry

Mayor Roy Stoner
3
7
Parley Baer
Mayor of Mayberry

Briscoe Darling
3–7
6
Denver Pyle
Head of The Darlings

Charlene Darling
3–7
5
Maggie Peterson
Briscoe Darling's daughter. Had a crush on Andy.

Reverend Hobart M. Tucker
3–8
6
William Keene
Pastor of All Souls Church

The Darling Boys
3–7
6
The Dillards
Musical brothers played by real-life bluegrass band

Ben Weaver
1–8
6
Will Wright/Tol Avery
Miserly old landlord and department store owner

Emma Watson
1–2
6
Cheerio Meredith
aka Emma Brand

Ernest T. Bass
3–6
5
Howard Morris
A troublemaking mountain man

Asa Breeney
3–5
5
Charles P. Thompson
The elderly (always sleeping) Mayberry Bank guard

John Masters
2–5
5
Olan Soule
Choir director and hotel manager

Leon
2–4
5
Clint Howard
Toddler in a cowboy outfit

Peggy McMillan
3
4
Joanna Moore
Andy's girlfriend and nurse

Sam Jones
8
4
Ken Berry
Widowed farmer

Rafe Hollister
2–3
3
Jack Prince
Local farmer and moonshiner

Wally
3
4
6
7
5
Trevor Bardette
Norman Leavitt (2)
Cliff Norton
Blackie Hunt
Owner of the filling station where Gomer and later Goober work

Martha Clark
8
3
Mary Lansing
Emmett's wife

Trey Bowden
4
3
David Alan Bailey
Opie's friend

Daphne
3–5
3
Jean Carson
One of “The Fun Girls”

Skippy
3–5
3
Joyce Jameson
The other “Fun Girl”

Malcolm Merriweather
3–6
3
Bernard Fox
English valet

text:
[hide]

v
t
e

The Andy Griffith Show

Characters
Episodes
Guest stars
Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.
Mayberry R.F.D.
Return to Mayberry

text: Lists of actors by comedy television series

tag: ul


document_title: Paradise Lost

question_text: who said better to reign in hell than serve in heaven

text: Paradise Lost

text: Composition[edit]

text: In his introduction to the Penguin edition of Paradise Lost, the Milton scholar John Leonard notes, "John Milton was nearly sixty when he published Paradise Lost in 1667. [The biographer] John Aubrey (1626–97) tells us that the poem was begun in about 1658 and finished in about 1663. But parts were almost certainly written earlier, and its roots lie in Milton's earliest youth."[7] Leonard speculates that the English Civil War interrupted Milton's earliest attempts to start his "epic [poem] that would encompass all space and time."[7]

text: Leonard also notes that Milton "did not at first plan to write a biblical epic".[7] Since epics were typically written about heroic kings and queens (and with pagan gods), Milton originally envisioned his epic to be based on a legendary Saxon or British king like the legend of King Arthur.[8][9] In the 1667 version of Paradise Lost, the poem was divided into ten books. However, in the 1672 edition, Paradise Lost contained twelve books.[10]

text: Having gone totally blind in 1652, Milton wrote Paradise Lost entirely through dictation with the help of amanuenses and friends. He also wrote the epic poem while he was often ill, suffering from gout, and despite the fact that he was suffering emotionally after the early death of his second wife, Katherine Woodcock, in 1658, and the death of their infant daughter. Milton remarried five years later in 1663.[11]

text: Structure[edit]

text: The poem is divided into "books" (ten originally, twelve in Milton's revised edition of 1674). The Arguments (brief summaries) at the head of each book were added in subsequent imprints of the first edition.[12]

text: Synopsis[edit]

text: This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (March 2016) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

text: The poem follows the epic tradition of starting in medias res (Latin for in the midst of things), the background story being recounted later.

text: Milton's story has two narrative arcs, one about Satan (Lucifer) and the other following Adam and Eve. It begins after Satan and the other rebel angels have been defeated and banished to Hell, or, as it is also called in the poem, Tartarus. In Pandæmonium, the capital city of Hell, Satan employs his rhetorical skill to organize his followers; he is aided by Mammon and Beelzebub. Belial and Moloch are also present. At the end of the debate, Satan volunteers to corrupt the newly created Earth and God's new and most favoured creation, Mankind. He braves the dangers of the Abyss alone in a manner reminiscent of Odysseus or Aeneas. After an arduous traversal of the Chaos outside Hell, he enters God's new material World, and later the Garden of Eden.

text: At several points in the poem, an Angelic War over Heaven is recounted from different perspectives. Satan's rebellion follows the epic convention of large-scale warfare. The battles between the faithful angels and Satan's forces take place over three days. At the final battle, the Son of God single-handedly defeats the entire legion of angelic rebels and banishes them from Heaven. Following this purge, God creates the World, culminating in his creation of Adam and Eve. While God gave Adam and Eve total freedom and power to rule over all creation, he gave them one explicit command: not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil on penalty of death.

text: The story of Adam and Eve's temptation and fall is a fundamentally different, new kind of epic: a domestic one. Adam and Eve are presented as having a romantic and sexual relationship while still being without sin. They have passions and distinct personalities. Satan, disguised in the form of a serpent, successfully tempts Eve to eat from the Tree by preying on her vanity and tricking her with rhetoric. Adam, learning that Eve has sinned, knowingly commits the same sin. He declares to Eve that since she was made from his flesh, they are bound to one another – if she dies, he must also die. In this manner, Milton portrays Adam as a heroic figure, but also as a greater sinner than Eve, as he is aware that what he is doing is wrong.

text: After eating the fruit, Adam and Eve have lustful sex. At first, Adam is convinced that Eve was right in thinking that eating the fruit would be beneficial. However, they soon fall asleep and have terrible nightmares, and after they awake, they experience guilt and shame for the first time. Realizing that they have committed a terrible act against God, they engage in mutual recrimination.

text: Meanwhile, Satan returns triumphantly to Hell, amidst the praise of his fellow fallen angels. He tells them about how their scheme worked and Mankind has fallen, giving them complete dominion over Paradise. As he finishes his speech, however, the fallen angels around him become hideous snakes, and soon enough, Satan himself turned into a snake, deprived of limbs and unable to talk. Thus, they share the same punishment, as they shared the same guilt.

text: Eve appeals  to Adam for  reconciliation of their actions.   Her encouragement enables them to approach God,  and sue for grace, bowing on suppliant knee, to receive forgiveness.  In a vision shown to him by the angel Michael, Adam witnesses everything that will happen to Mankind until the Great Flood. Adam is very upset by this vision of the future, so Michael also tells him about Mankind's potential redemption from original sin through Jesus Christ (whom Michael calls "King Messiah").

text: Adam and Eve are cast out of Eden, and Michael says that Adam may find "a paradise within thee, happier far". Adam and Eve also now have a more distant relationship with God, who is omnipresent but invisible (unlike the tangible Father in the Garden of Eden).

text: Characters[edit]

text: Satan[edit]

text: Satan, formerly called Lucifer, is the first major character introduced in the poem. He was once the most beautiful of all angels, and is a tragic figure who famously declares: "Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven." Following his failed rebellion against God, he is cast out from Heaven and condemned to Hell. Satan's desire to rebel against his creator stems from his unwillingness to be subjugated by God and his Son, claiming that angels are "self-begot, self-raised,"[13] and thereby denying God's authority over them as their creator.

text: Satan is deeply arrogant, albeit powerful and charismatic.[citation needed] Satan's persuasive powers are evident throughout the book; not only is he cunning and deceptive, but he is also able to rally the fallen angels to continue in the rebellion after their agonizing defeat in the Angelic War. He argues that God rules as a tyrant and that all the angels ought to rule as gods.[14] Though commonly understood to be the antagonizing force in Paradise Lost, Satan may be best defined as a tragic or Hellenic hero. According to William McCollom, one quality of the classical tragic hero is that he is not perfectly good and that his defeat is caused by a tragic flaw, as Satan causes both the downfall of man and the eternal damnation of his fellow fallen angels despite his dedication to his comrades. In addition, Satan's Hellenic qualities, such as his immense courage and, perhaps, lack of completely defined morals compound his tragic nature.[15]

text: Satan's status as a protagonist in the epic poem is debated.  Milton characterizes him as such, but Satan lacks several key traits that would otherwise make him the definitive protagonist in the work. One deciding factor that insinuates his role as the protagonist in the story is that most often a protagonist is heavily characterized and far better described than the other characters, and the way the character is written is meant to make him seem more interesting or special to the reader. [16] For that matter, Satan is both well described and is depicted as being quite versatile in that he is shown as having the capacity to do evil whilst retaining his characteristic sympathetic qualities and thus it is this complex and relatable nature that makes him a likely candidate for the story's overarching protagonist.[16]

text: By some definitions a protagonist must be able to exist in and of himself or herself and that the secondary characters in the work exist only to further the plot for the protagonist.[17] Because Satan does not exist solely for himself, as without God he would not have a role to play in the story, he may not be viewed as the protagonist because of the continual shifts in perspective and relative importance of characters in each book of the work. Satan's existence in the story involves his rebellion against God and his determination to corrupt the beings he creates in order to perpetuate evil so that there can be a discernable balance and justice for both himself and his fallen angels. Therefore, it is more probable that he exists in order to combat God, making his status as the definitive protagonist of the work relative to each book. Following this logic, Satan may very well be considered as an antagonist in the poem, whereas God could be considered as the protagonist instead.

text: Satan's status as a traditional hero in the work is similarly up to debate as the term "hero" evokes different meanings depending on the time and the person giving the definition and is thus a matter of contention within the text. According to Aristotle, a hero is someone who is "superhuman, godlike, and divine" but is also human.[18] A hero would have to either be a human with God-like powers or the offspring of God. While Milton gives reason to believe that Satan is superhuman, as he was originally an angel, he is anything but human. Therefore, according to Aristotle's definition of a hero alone, Satan is not a hero. Torquato Tasso and Francesco Piccolomini expanded on Aristotle's definition and declared that for someone to be considered heroic one has to be perfectly or overly virtuous.[19] Satan repeatedly demonstrates a lack of virtue throughout the story as he intends to tempt God's creations with evil in order to destroy the good God is trying to create. Satan goes against God's law and therefore becomes corrupt and lacking of virtue and, as Piccolomini warned, "vice may be mistaken for heroic virtue".[18] Satan is very devoted to his cause, although that cause is evil but he strives to spin his sinister aspirations to appear as good ones. Satan achieves this end multiple times throughout the text as he riles up his band of fallen angels during his speech by deliberately telling them to do evil to explain God's hypocrisy and again during his entreaty to Eve. He makes his intentions seem pure and positive even when they are rooted in evil and, according to Steadman, this is the chief reason that readers often mistake Satan as a hero.[19]

text: Although Satan's army inevitably loses the war against God, Satan achieves a position of power and begins his reign in Hell with his band of loyal followers, composed of fallen angels, which is described to be a "third of heaven". Satan's characterization as the leader of a failing cause folds into this as well and is best exemplified through his own quote, "to be weak is to be miserable; Doing or Suffering", as through shared solidarity espoused by empowering rhetoric, Satan riles up his comrades in arms and keeps them focused towards their shared goal.[20]  Similar to Milton's republican sentiments of overthrowing the King of England for both better representation and parliamentary power, Satan argues that his shared rebellion with the fallen angels is an effort to "explain the hypocrisy of God", and in doing so, they will be treated with the respect and acknowledgement that they deserve. As scholar Wayne Rebhorn argues, "Satan insists that he and his fellow revolutionaries held their places by right and even leading him to claim that they were self-created and self-sustained" and thus Satan's position in the rebellion is much like that of his own real world creator.[21]

text: Adam[edit]

text: Adam is the first human being created by God. Finding himself alone, Adam complains and requests a mate from God, who grants his request and creates Eve to be Adam's conjugal companion and helpmate. God appraises Adam and Eve most of all his creations, and appoints them to rule over all the creatures of the world and to reside in the Garden of Eden. Adam is more gregarious than Eve, and yearns for her company. His complete infatuation with Eve, while pure of itself, eventually contributes to his deciding to join her in disobedience to God.

text: Unlike the biblical Adam, before Milton's Adam leaves Paradise he is given a glimpse of the future of mankind by the Archangel Michael—including a synopsis of stories from the Old and New Testaments.

text: Eve[edit]

text: Eve is the second human created by God, who takes one of Adam's ribs and shapes it into a female form of Adam. Not the traditional model of a good wife, Milton's Eve is often unwilling to be submissive towards Adam. She is the more intelligent of the two and more curious about external ideas than her husband. Though happy, she longs for knowledge, specifically for self-knowledge. (Her first act in existence is to turn away from Adam to look at and ponder her own reflection.) Eve is beautiful and though she loves Adam she may feel suffocated by his constant presence. In Book IX, she convinces Adam to separate for a time and work in different parts of the Garden. In her solitude, she is tempted by Satan to sin against God by eating of the Tree of Knowledge. Soon thereafter, Adam follows Eve in support of her act.

text: The Son of God[edit]

text: The Son of God is the spirit who will become incarnate as Jesus Christ, though he is never named explicitly because he has not yet entered human form. Milton believed in a subordinationist doctrine of Christology that regarded the Son as secondary to the Father and as God's "great Vice-regent" (5.609). Milton's God in Paradise Lost refers to the Son as "My word, my wisdom, and effectual might" (3.170). The poem is not explicitly anti-trinitarian, but it is consistent with Milton's convictions. The Son is the ultimate hero of the epic and is infinitely powerful—he single-handedly defeats Satan and his followers and drives them into Hell. After their fall, the Son of God tells Adam and Eve about God's judgment: He, the Son, volunteers to journey into the World and become a man himself; then he redeems the Fall of Man through his own sacrificial death and resurrection. In the final scene, a vision of Salvation through the Son of God is revealed to Adam by Michael. Still, the name Jesus of Nazareth, and the details of Jesus' story are not depicted in the poem,[22] though they are alluded to when Michael explains that "Joshua, whom the Gentiles Jesus call," prefigures the Son of God, "his name and office bearing" to "quell / The adversarie Serpent, and bring back [...] long wander[e]d man / Safe to eternal Paradise of rest."[23]

text: God the Father[edit]

text: God the Father is the creator of Heaven, Hell, the world, of everyone and everything there is, through the agency of His Son. Milton presents God as all-powerful and all-knowing, as an infinitely great being who cannot be overthrown by even the great army of angels Satan incites against him. Milton's stated purpose for the poem is to justify the ways of God to men, so he portrays God as often conversing about his plans and his motives for his actions with the Son of God. The poem shows God creating the world in the way Milton believed it was done, that is, God created Heaven, Earth, Hell, and all the creatures that inhabit these separate planes from part of Himself, not out of nothing.[24] Thus, according to Milton, the ultimate authority of God over all things that happen derives from his being the "author" of all creation. Satan tries to justify his rebellion by denying this aspect of God and claiming self-creation, but he admits to himself the truth otherwise, and that God "deserved no such return/ From me, whom He created what I was."[25][26]

text: Raphael[edit]

text: Raphael is the archangel whom God sends to warn Adam of Satan's infiltration of Eden and to warn that Satan will try to curse them (Adam and Eve). Raphael also discusses at length with the curious Adam some details about the creation and about events that transpired in Heaven.

text: Michael[edit]

text: Michael is a mighty archangel who fought for God in the Angelic War. In the first battle, he wounds Satan terribly with a powerful sword that God fashioned to cut through even the substance of angels. After Adam and Eve disobey God by eating from the Tree of Knowledge, God sends the angel Michael to visit them in the garden. Before he escorts them out of Paradise, Michael shows them visions of the future that disclose an outline of Bible stories from that of Cain and Abel in Genesis through the story of Jesus Christ in the New Testament.

text: Motifs[edit]

text: Marriage[edit]

text: Milton first presented Adam and Eve in Book IV with impartiality. The relationship between Adam and Eve is one of "mutual dependence, not a relation of domination or hierarchy." While the author placed Adam above Eve in his intellectual knowledge and, in turn, his relation to God, he granted Eve the benefit of knowledge through experience. Hermine Van Nuis clarifies, that although there is stringency specified for the roles of male and female, Adam and Eve unreservedly accept their designated roles.[27] Rather than viewing these roles as forced upon them, each uses their assignment as an asset in their  relationship with each other. These distinctions can be interpreted as Milton's view on the importance of mutuality between husband and wife.

text:
When examining the relationship between Adam and Eve, some critics apply either an Adam-centered or Eve-centered view of hierarchy and importance to God. David Mikics argues, by contrast, these positions "overstate the independence of the characters' stances, and therefore miss the way in which Adam and Eve are entwined with each other".[28] Milton's narrative depicts a relationship where the husband and wife (here, Adam and Eve) depend on each other and, through each other's differences, thrive.[28]
Still, there are several instances where Adam communicates directly with God while Eve must go through Adam to God; thus, some have described Adam as her guide.[29]

text: Although Milton does not directly mention divorce, critics posit theories on Milton's view of divorce based upon their inferences from the poem and from his tracts on divorce written earlier in his life. Other works by Milton suggest he viewed marriage as an entity separate from the church. Discussing Paradise Lost, Biberman entertains the idea that "marriage is a contract made by both the man and the woman".[30] These ideas imply Milton may have favored that both man and woman have equal access to marriage and to divorce.

text: Idolatry[edit]

text: Milton's 17th-century contemporaries by and large criticised his ideas and considered him as a radical, mostly because of his Protestant views on politics and religion. One of Milton's most controversial arguments centred on his concept of what is idolatrous, which subject is deeply embedded in Paradise Lost.

text: Milton's first criticism of idolatry focused on the constructing of temples and other buildings to serve as places of worship. In Book XI of Paradise Lost, Adam tries to atone for his sins by offering to build altars to worship God. In response, the angel Michael explains that Adam does not need to build physical objects to experience the presence of God.[31] Joseph Lyle points to this example, explaining "When Milton objects to architecture, it is not a quality inherent in buildings themselves he finds offensive, but rather their tendency to act as convenient loci to which idolatry, over time, will inevitably adhere."[32] Even if the idea is pure in nature, Milton thought it would unavoidably lead to idolatry simply because of the nature of humans. That is, instead of directing their thoughts towards God, humans will turn to erected objects and falsely invest their faith there. While Adam attempts to build an altar to God, critics note Eve is similarly guilty of idolatry, but in a different manner. Harding believes Eve's narcissism and obsession with herself constitutes idolatry.[33] Specifically, Harding claims that "... under the serpent's influence, Eve's idolatry and self-deification foreshadow the errors into which her 'Sons' will stray."[33] Much like Adam, Eve falsely places her faith in herself, the Tree of Knowledge, and to some extent the Serpent, all of which do not compare to the ideal nature of God.

text: Milton made his views on idolatry more explicit with the creation of Pandæmonium and his allusion to Solomon's temple. In the beginning of Paradise Lost and throughout the poem, there are several references to the rise and eventual fall of Solomon's temple. Critics elucidate that "Solomon's temple provides an explicit demonstration of how an artefact moves from its genesis in devotional practice to an idolatrous end."[34] This example, out of the many presented, distinctly conveys Milton's views on the dangers of idolatry. Even if one builds a structure in the name of God, the best of intentions can become immoral in idolatry. Further, critics have drawn parallels between both Pandemonium and Saint Peter's Basilica,[citation needed] and the Pantheon. The majority of these similarities revolve around a structural likeness, but as Lyle explains, they play a greater role. By linking Saint Peter's Basilica and the Pantheon to Pandemonium—an ideally false structure—the two famous buildings take on a false meaning.[35] This comparison best represents Milton's Protestant views, as it rejects both the purely Catholic perspective and the Pagan perspective.

text: In addition to rejecting Catholicism, Milton revolted against the idea of a monarch ruling by divine right. He saw the practice as idolatrous. Barbara Lewalski concludes that the theme of idolatry in Paradise Lost "is an exaggerated version of the idolatry Milton had long associated with the Stuart ideology of divine kingship".[36] In the opinion of Milton, any object, human or non human, that receives special attention befitting of God, is considered idolatrous.

text: Interpretation and critique[edit]

text: The writer and critic Samuel Johnson wrote that Paradise Lost shows off "[Milton's] peculiar power to astonish" and that "[Milton] seems to have been well acquainted with his own genius, and to know what it was that Nature had bestowed upon him more bountifully than upon others: the power of displaying the vast, illuminating the splendid, enforcing the awful, darkening the gloomy, and aggravating the dreadful."[37]

text: Milton scholar John Leonard interpreted the "impious war" between Heaven and Hell as civil war:[38][page needed]

text: Paradise Lost is, among other things, a poem about civil war. Satan raises 'impious war in Heav'n' (i 43) by leading a third of the angels in revolt against God. The term 'impious war' implies that civil war is impious. But Milton applauded the English people for having the courage to depose and execute King Charles I. In his poem, however, he takes the side of 'Heav'n's awful Monarch' (iv 960). Critics have long wrestled with the question of why an antimonarchist and defender of regicide should have chosen a subject that obliged him to defend monarchical authority.

text: The editors at the Poetry Foundation argue that Milton's criticism of the English monarchy was being directed specifically at the Stuart monarchy and not at the monarchy system in general.[39]

text: In a similar vein, critic and writer C.S. Lewis argued that there was no contradiction in Milton's position in the poem since "Milton believed that God was his 'natural superior' and that Charles Stuart was not." Lewis interpreted the poem as a genuine Christian morality tale.[40][page needed] Other critics, like William Empson, view it as a more ambiguous work, with Milton's complex characterization of Satan playing a large part in that perceived ambiguity.[40][page needed] Empson argued that "Milton deserves credit for making God wicked, since the God of Christianity is 'a wicked God.'" Leonard places Empson's interpretation "in the [Romantic interpretive] tradition of William Blake and Percy Bysshe Shelley."[38][page needed]

text: Blake famously wrote, "The reason Milton wrote in fetters when he wrote of Angels & God, and at liberty when of Devils & Hell, is because he was a true Poet and of the Devil's party without knowing it."[41] This quotation succinctly represents the way in which the 18th- and 19th-century English Romantic poets viewed Milton.

text: Empson's view is more complex. Leonard points out that "Empson never denies that Satan's plan is wicked. What he does deny is that God is innocent of its wickedness: 'Milton steadily drives home that the inmost counsel of God was the Fortunate Fall of man; however wicked Satan's plan may be, it is God's plan too [since God in Paradise Lost is depicted as being both omniscient and omnipotent].'"[38][page needed] Leonard calls Empson's view "a powerful argument", he notes that this interpretation was challenged by Dennis Danielson in his book Milton's Good God (1982).[38][page needed]

text: Iconography[edit]

text: The first illustrations to accompany the text of Paradise Lost were added to the fourth edition of 1688, with one engraving prefacing each book, of which up to eight of the twelve were by Sir John Baptist Medina, one by Bernard Lens II, and perhaps up to four (including Books I and XII, perhaps the most memorable) by another hand.[42] The engraver was Michael Burghers (not 'Burgesse' as given in the Christ's College website). By 1730 the same images had been re-engraved on a smaller scale by Paul Fourdrinier.

text: Some of the most notable illustrators of Paradise Lost included William Blake, Gustave Doré and Henry Fuseli. However, the epic's illustrators also include John Martin, Edward Francis Burney, Richard Westall, Francis Hayman, and many others.

text: Outside of book illustrations, the epic has also inspired other visual works by well-known painters like Salvador Dalí who executed a set of ten colour engravings in 1974.[43] Milton's achievement in writing Paradise Lost while blind (he dictated to helpers) inspired loosely biographical paintings by both Fuseli[44] and Eugène Delacroix.[45]