What is John Bunyan?
[[File:John Bunyan.jpg|thumb|John Bunyan.]] '''John Bunyan''' ('''Harrowden''', near [[Bedford (England)|Bedford]], 28 November 1628 – [[London]], 31 August 1688) was an [[England|English]] [[smith (metalwork)|tinker]], [[preacher]] and [[writer]]. He wrote a book called ''[[The Pilgrim's Progress]]'' which has been translated into more languages than any other book except the [[Bible]]. The book is a story about a man who is trying to lead a good life as a [[Christianity|Christian]]. It is [[allegory]]. The characters in the story represent good things or bad things. Bunyan lived at a time when there was no [[religion|religious]] [[freedom]]: everybody had to believe what the [[Church of England]] told them. Bunyan did not agree with some of the things the Church of England said. He started to [[preach]] about his ideas. He was arrested and put into [[prison]] because of his beliefs. He wrote ''The Pilgrim's Progress'' while he was in gaol (prison). == Life == === Early years === Bunyan’s father was a tinker: a metal worker who mends pots and pans. The Bunyan family had been living in Bedfordshire at least since the 12th century. They had gradually lost more and more of their land and had become quite poor. John Bunyan’s father had inherited a small [[cottage]] and 9 [[acre]]s of land. He could not read or write. John Bunyan only went to school for two, three or four years. He learned how to be a tinker from his father. === Youth: religious conversion === There was a lot of fighting in [[England]] at the time Bunyan was a child. Many people were against [[Charles I of England|King Charles I]] so there was a [[English Civil War|Civil War]] and the king was [[execution|executed]]. For several years England was a [[republic]], ruled by [[Oliver Cromwell]]. When Bunyan was 16 years old, he served in the parliamentary army at [[Newport Pagnell]] (1644 - 1647). After that, he started to work as a tinker, and in 1649, he married. His wife had two books, both of which were religious books. Bunyan started to be in