1695 in literature

The year 1695 in literature involved some significant events.

Events

• April - The Parliament of England decides not to renew the Licensing Order of 1643 thus effectively abolishing most press censorship.^[1]
• After twelve years of de facto theatrical monopoly in London, the senior actors of the mismanaged United Company break away to form a rival cooperative company led by Thomas Betterton, Elizabeth Barry and Anne Bracegirdle. The new company gets off to a brilliant start with the première on April 30 of William Congreve's comedy Love for Love opening the New Theatre, Lincoln's Inn Fields.^[2]
• Antoine Le Maistre and his brother Louis-Isaac Lemaistre de Sacy complete their translation of the Catholic Bible into the French language (the Bible de Port-Royal).
• Wren Library, Cambridge, the library of Trinity College, designed by Christopher Wren, is completed.

New books

• Mary Astell (anonymous) - A Serious Proposal to the Ladies, for the Advancement of Their True and Greatest Interest
• Charles Blount - Miscellaneous Works (ed. Charles Gildon)
• Gilbert Burnet - An Essay on the Memory of the Late Queen (see 1694 in literature, as many memorials were written to Mary II of England)
• Jeremy Collier - Miscellanies upon Moral Subjects: The second part
• William Congreve - The Mourning Muse of Alexas: A pastoral (on Mary II)
• John Dennis - The Court of Death
• John Dryden - De Arte Graphica (trans. of Charles Alphonse du Fresnoy)
• Laurence Echard - The Roman History (vol. I)
• "N.H." - The Ladies Dictionary, being a general entertainment of the fair-sex: a work never attempted before in English (published by John Dunton)
• Nikolaes Heinsius the Younger - The Delightful Adventures and Wonderful Life of Mirandor
• William Laud - The History of the Troubles and Tryal of William Laud
• John Locke
  • Further Considerations Concerning Raising the Value of Money
  • The Reasonableness of Christianity as Delivered in the Scriptures
  • A Vindication of the Reasonableness of Christianity (reply to John Edwards)
• John Norris - Letters Concerning the Love of God (letters to Mary Astell)
• Sir William Petty - Quantulumcunque Concerning Money (published posthumously)
• John Phillips - A Reflection on Our Modern Poetry
• Matthew Prior - An English Ballad: In answer to Mr Despreaux's Pindarique ode on the taking of Namure
• Robert South - Tritheism (vs. William Sherlock)
• Sir William Temple - An Introduction to the History of England
• Ned Ward - Female Policy Detected; or, The Arts of a Designing Woman Laid Open

New drama

• John Banks - Cyrus the Great, or The Tragedy of Love
• Catherine Trotter Cockburn - Agnes de Castro
• William Congreve - Love for Love
• Robert Gould - The Rival Sisters
• George Granville - The She-Gallants
• Charles Hopkins - Pyrrhus King of Epirus
• Peter Anthony Motteux - The Loves of Mars and Venus
• George Powell - Bonduca, or the British Heroine
• Edward Ravenscroft - The Canterbury Guests; or, A Bargain Broken
• Elkanah Settle - Philaster; or, Love Lies A-Bleeding (adapted from Fletcher's Philaster)
• Thomas Scott - The Mock Marriage
• Thomas Southerne – Oroonoko, or The Royal Slave: a tragedy (adapted from Aphra Behn's novel Oroonoko)
• "A Young Lady" - She Ventures and He Wins

Poetry

• Joseph Addison - A Poem to His Majesty
• Richard Blackmore - Prince Arthur
• Colley Cibber - A Poem on the Death of our Late Sovereign Lady, Queen Mary
• John Milton - The Poetical Works of Mr John Milton (ed. Patrick Hume)
• Richard Steele - The Procession: A poem on Her Majesties funeral
• See also 1695 in poetry

Births

• April 8 - Johann Christian Günther, German poet (died 1723)
• date unknown - Hedvig Catharina Lillie, Swedish salonist (died 1745)

Deaths

• February - Dorothy Osborne, Lady Temple, letter writer (born 1627)
• April 13 - Jean de la Fontaine, French poet (born 1621)
• April 28 - Henry Vaughan, poet (born 1622)
• June 11 - André Félibien, court historian to King Louis XIV of France (born 1619)
• August 12 - Huang Zongxi, political theorist (born 1610)
• November 28 - Anthony Wood, antiquarian (born 1632)
• date unknown - Sir William Killigrew, playwright (born 1606)

References