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Satan (Lucifer)

Once the greatest and most radiant of Heaven's angels, Satan led a rebellion against God out of pride and ambition, seeking to be equal to the Most High. Hurled into Hell with his host, he refuses to repent, declaring it 'Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven.' He is the primary antagonist, cunning and charismatic, scarred by thunder yet retaining a dark, terrible majesty. He volunteers alone to traverse the Abyss and corrupt mankind, the council's chosen target.

Beelzebub

Satan's closest lieutenant and second-in-command among the fallen angels, described as next to Satan in power and in crime. He is a pillar of statesmanship among the damned, carrying himself with deliberate gravity and Atlantean authority even in ruin. It is Beelzebub who proposes—at Satan's secret instigation—the plan to corrupt the newly created race of Man rather than assault Heaven directly.

Moloch

The fiercest and most warlike of the fallen angels, Moloch advocates for immediate open war against Heaven, preferring destruction or annihilation to continued torment. He is associated with the Ammonite idol who demanded child sacrifice. In the infernal council he argues for hurling 'hell flames and fury' against God's towers without delay.

Belial

A fallen angel of fair appearance but false and hollow character, Belial is eloquent and persuasive but fundamentally slothful and vicious. He argues against open war, counseling the demons to endure their punishment and wait, hoping Hell's torments will grow bearable over time. He is associated with licentiousness and corruption in temples and courts.

Mammon

The most materialistic of the fallen angels, Mammon was already downward-bent in Heaven, admiring its golden pavement more than divine vision. He leads the excavation of Hell's ore to build Pandaemonium and argues in the council for self-sufficiency—building a rival empire in Hell rather than warring against Heaven. He taught mankind to mine the earth for riches.

Azazel

A tall Cherub who serves as Satan's standard-bearer, Azazel unfurls the imperial ensign of the infernal host upon Satan's command, rallying the fallen legions on Hell's burning plain.

Mulciber (Hephaestus)

The architect of Pandaemonium and formerly the builder of towered structures in Heaven, known in classical myth as Mulciber or Hephaestus. He fell with the rebel host and applied his craft to Hell's construction; in one night his crews raised a palace surpassing Babylon or Cairo.

God (the Almighty)

The omnipotent Creator and sovereign ruler of Heaven, referred to as the Most High, the Eternal, the Omnipotent, and Heaven's King. He cast Satan and the rebel angels into Hell after their failed war, and his Providence shapes all events—even Satan's malice serves ultimately to manifest divine goodness and mercy toward Man.

Adam and Eve (Grand Parents of Mankind)

The first human beings, beloved of God and placed in the blissful seat of Eden. Though only referenced in Book I as the objects of Satan's future scheme and the agents of the First Disobedience, they are the central human figures whose fall from paradise the epic chronicles. Satan's entire mission is aimed at seducing them to transgress God's one restraint.

The Heavenly Muse (Urania / Holy Spirit)

Invoked by the poet at the opening as the divine inspiration who was present at Creation, brooding dove-like over the Abyss. She is identified with the Spirit that inspired Moses on Sinai and Oreb, and called upon to illuminate the poet's darkness and justify the ways of God to men.

Hell

A vast dungeon of darkness and fire where the fallen angels are imprisoned after their defeat. Described as a region of bottomless perdition, burning lakes of liquid fire, sulfurous hail, and darkness so thick it is 'darkness visible'—no light, only enough illumination to reveal sights of woe. It is as far from Heaven as the center of the earth is from the outermost pole. Satan claims it as his new kingdom, declaring the mind can make a Heaven of Hell.

Pandaemonium

The high capital of Satan and his peers, built in Hell in a single night by Mammon's excavation crews and Mulciber's architectural genius. It rises from sulfurous ore like an exhalation, with Doric columns overlaid in gold, fretted golden roofs, and starry lamps fed with naphtha. It surpasses Babylon and Cairo in magnificence. Here the infernal council convenes to debate their next move.

Heaven (The Empyrean)

The realm of God and the loyal angels, described as the 'happy Realms of Light' from which Satan and his host were expelled. It features crystal battlements, azure plains, golden pavement, and towered structures built by Mulciber. Its walls are impregnable and guarded by armed angels; its heights are the seat of divine sovereignty and eternal bliss.

Eden (Paradise)

The 'blissful Seat' and 'happy Fields' where Adam and Eve dwell, referenced as the paradise lost through the First Disobedience. It is the target of Satan's coming mission and the site of the Forbidden Tree whose fruit brought death into the world. Its recovery is the hope held out by the coming of 'one greater Man.'

Chaos and the Abyss

The dark, unbottomed infinite void lying between Hell and the created world, described as a realm of 'unessential Night' through which Satan must travel on his mission to find the new world of Man. It is a primordial region of formlessness, adjacent to Hell and terrifying even to immortal spirits. God's Spirit once brooded over this Abyss at the moment of Creation.

Mount Oreb / Sinai / Sion Hill

Sacred earthly locations associated with divine revelation, invoked in the poem's opening as places where the Heavenly Muse inspired prophets. Oreb and Sinai are where the shepherd Moses received divine teaching; Sion Hill and Siloa's Brook flow by the Oracle of God in Jerusalem. They serve as the poet's alternative points of connection to divine inspiration.

The Rebel Angels (Fallen Host)

Innumerable spirits who followed Satan in the War in Heaven and were cast down with him into Hell. They retain immortal essence and formidable martial power, organizing into squadrons and legions under demonic lords. Their names were later adopted as pagan idols across the ancient world—Moloch, Chemos, Baalim, Ashtaroth, Dagon, Rimmon, Osiris, Belial, and others. They convene at Pandaemonium to plot against Heaven and mankind.

The Host of Heaven

The loyal angels who serve God and dwell in Heaven, described as ministering powers who pursue the fallen host and guard Heaven's gates. They stand as sentinels against incursion and are led in martial affairs by archangels such as Michael. They represent the opposing divine order to Hell's rebel faction.

Satan's Shield and Spear

Satan's colossal weapons, emblems of his martial supremacy among the fallen host. His shield is of ethereal temper, massive and round, hanging on his shoulders like the moon seen through a telescope. His spear is so vast that the tallest pine hewn for a ship's mast would seem a wand beside it; he uses it as a walking staff across Hell's burning marl.

The Forbidden Tree (Tree of Knowledge)

The single tree in Eden whose fruit God forbade Adam and Eve to eat, described as the 'mortal-tasting' fruit whose consumption brought death into the world. It is the instrument of mankind's fall and Satan's chief target for his plan of corruption.

The Imperial Ensign of Hell

The standard of Satan's infernal host, unfurled by Azazel on a glittering staff. It shines like a meteor with gems and golden lustre, blazoned with seraphic arms and trophies, and its raising signals the rallying of the fallen legions on Hell's plain.

The War in Heaven

A cosmic rebellion launched by Satan, who aspired to equal or surpass God and rallied innumerable angels to his cause. The war was fought on the Plains of Heaven, where God ultimately deployed his full thunder and power, hurling the rebel host headlong from the ethereal sky. The fallen angels lay nine days in the burning gulf before Satan rose to lead them again. The war's outcome established God's absolute supremacy and revealed the true depth of his concealed power.

The First Disobedience and the Fall of Man

The central event the epic addresses: Adam and Eve, despite being lords of the world and favorites of Heaven, transgressed God's single restraint—eating the fruit of the Forbidden Tree—seduced by Satan in the guise of the infernal serpent. This act brought death and woe into the world and caused the loss of Eden. The poem holds out hope that 'one greater Man' will one day restore mankind and regain the blissful seat.

Fallen Angels as Pagan Idols

After their expulsion from Heaven, the fallen angels wandered the earth and, by God's sufferance as a trial for mankind, corrupted most of humanity into forsaking their Creator and worshipping demons under various names: Moloch, Chemos, Baalim, Ashtaroth, Astarte, Thammuz, Dagon, Rimmon, Osiris, Isis, Belial, and many more. These became the gods of the heathen nations, their cults spreading from the Euphrates to Egypt and across the Mediterranean world.

The Infernal Council's Debate

Convened at Pandaemonium, the great council of Hell debates four positions: Moloch's call for immediate open war; Belial's counsel of patient endurance; Mammon's proposal to build a rival empire in Hell; and Beelzebub's (Satan-devised) winning plan to seek out and corrupt the new race of Man. Satan volunteers alone for the perilous mission through the Abyss, forestalling rivals and cementing his leadership.

Angelic Nature and Abilities

Angels and fallen angels are immortal, empyrean beings of pure essence, not bound by joint or limb. They can assume any sex or form, expand or contract in size at will (as demonstrated when the fallen host shrinks to fit Pandaemonium), and feel pain and passion despite their immortality. They bear weapons—shields, spears, flaming swords—and fight in organized military formations. Their strength and spirit remain intact even in Hell.

Cosmological Sequence of Events

First, God creates Heaven and the angels; then Satan's rebellion and the War in Heaven occur; Satan and his host are cast into Hell for nine days before rising. God then creates the world and mankind (Eden). Satan hatches his plan to corrupt Man at the infernal council. The First Disobedience follows, bringing death and loss of paradise. The epic's frame of hope points toward a future redemption by 'one greater Man' (Christ).