William Congreve was an English playwright and poet in the Restoration Period, which began in 1660 when the English, Scottish, and Irish monarchies were all restored under Charles II after the Wars of the Three Kingdoms and, in terms of literature, ended around 1710.
William Congreve wrote some of the most popular English plays of the Restoration period, publishing five major plays by the age of 30—four comedies and one tragedy. However, after his last play, The Way of the World, in 1700, English audiences generally turned away from the comedy of manners style he favored, and Congreve withdrew from theatre and writing, putting out only the occasional poem.
Congreve never married, and...
