Sir John Harrington (
1561-
November 20, 1612) was an interesting minor figure in
British history. A
courtier in the service of
Queen Elizabeth I, his
godmother, he fell out of favor because of a bit of
poetry he circulated at
court. The
poem in question was a section of
Ludovico Ariosto's
epic poem Orlando Furioso Harrington had translated from
Italian into
English. Unfortunately for Harrington, the selection he had chosen (and dedicated to the
queen) was considered quite racy - and perhaps sexist by Queen Elizabeth. So the queen told Harrington not to come back until he had finished translating the whole thing; since Ariosto's poem is quite lengthy, it was an effective means of
banishment. Harrington persevered, however, and completed his translation, one that is still read to this day.
To get back in the queen's favor, Harrington presented her with a device he had ingeniously invented: the first modern
flush toilet. Unfortunately, Harrington pressed his luck again by writing a book entitled
The Metamorphosis of Ajax about her
toilet. (
Ajax is a
pun on
jake -
slang for
chamber pot or
privy.) Banished again, Harrington's invention was the object of ridicule and fell into disuse, despite its sophisticated design.
In 1599, he won his
knighthood via an expedition in
Ireland. His barbed
epigrams and writings prevented him from gaining much favor in either the eyes of the queen or her successor, King
James I.