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450
Old English Literature: 450 A.D. – 1066
Significant Historical Dates:
43-410: Roman Period
43-420: Roman invasion and occupation of Britain
410: Last Romans leave Britain, recalled to Rome by barbarian invasions
450-1066: Old English Period
Ca. 450: Anglo Saxons invade and conquer the Britons
597: St. Augustine arrives in Kent, beginning conversion of Anglo-Saxons to Christianity
871-899: Reign of King Alfred “the Great,” who quelled Viking invaders, established power over other kings in England, and promoted books and learning. -
1066
The Middle English Period (1066-1500)
This period started with the Norman Conquest in1066 and ended with the end of fifteenth century. There are two ages in this period. The span from 1066 to 1340 is called Anglos-Norman Period because the literature of that period was written mainly in Anglo-Norman, the French dialect spoken by the new ruling class of England. The period from 1340 to 1400 is called the Age of Chaucer because Chaucer, the great poet, dominated this period. -
1550
The Renaissance period: 1550–1660
In a tradition of literature remarkable for its exacting and brilliant achievements, the Elizabethan and early Stuart periods have been said to represent the most brilliant century of all. (The reign of Elizabeth I began in 1558 and ended with her death in 1603; she was succeeded by the Stuart king James VI of Scotland, who took the title James I of England as well. -
The Neoclassical Period (1600–1785)
The Neoclassical period is also subdivided into ages, including The Restoration (1660–1700), The Augustan Age (1700–1745), and The Age of Sensibility (1745–1785) in this period were underlined some people like: William Congreve and John Dryden. Satire, Alexander Pope and Jonathan Swift, Edmund Burke, Edward Gibbon, Hester Lynch Thrale, James Boswell, Samuel Johnson. -
The Romantic Period (1785–1832)
There are still some debates about the date of romantic period beginning, some autores keep 1785, immediately following the Age of Sensibility. Others say it began in 1789 with the start of the French Revolution, and still others believe that 1798, the publication year for William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s book Lyrical Ballads is its true beginning. -
The Victorian Period (1832–1901)
This period is named for the reign of Queen Victoria, who ascended to the throne in 1837, and it lasts until her death in 1901. It was a time of great social, religious, intellectual, and economic issues, heralded by the passage of the Reform Bill, which expanded voting rights. The period has often been divided into “Early” (1832–1848), “Mid” (1848–1870) and “Late” (1870–1901) periods or into two phases, that of the Pre-Raphaelites (1848–1860) and that of Aestheticism and Decadence (1880–1901). -
The Edwardian Period (1901–1914)
The Edwardian era (1901-1914) is the last period in British history to be named after the monarch who reigned over it. Although Edward VII reigned from 1901 to 1910 to be succeeded by George V, the Edwardian period is generally considered to have ended at the outbreak of the First World War in 1914. -
The Georgian Period (1910–1936)
Period commanded under the reign of George V (1910–1936) Georgian poetry today is typically considered to be the works of minor poets anthologized by Edward Marsh. The themes and subject matter tended to be rural or pastoral in nature, treated delicately and traditionally rather than with passion (like was found in the previous periods) or with experimentation (as would be seen in the upcoming modern period). -
The Modern Period (1914–?)
Modernism was an artistic movement that for the most part, represented the struggle that many had with the way that new ideas and discoveries challenged their previous lives during a time when tradition didn't seem so important anymore. -
The Postmodern Period (1945–?)
Modernism was an artistic movement that for the most part, represented the struggle that many had with the way that new ideas and discoveries challenged their previous lives during a time when tradition didn't seem so important anymore. Modernist books are characterized as The Jazz Age, Revolution, and Breaking Tradition.