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410
The Romans left the United Kingdom
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450
Anglo Saxons Arrived in Great Britain
Arrived after the Romans and brought simpler words such as; Loaf, Wolf, Woman, Home -
Jul 5, 1000
Beowulf
This is the longest epic poem from Old English spoken in Anglo-Saxon England before the Northern Conquest. Poems of this sort were often used for the accompaniment of a harp and may have been wrote by story tellers as early as the 700s. -
Jun 9, 1031
The Book of Life
The purpose of a 'Book of Life' (or Liber Vitae), was to record the names of members and friends of monasteries or convents: the belief was that these names would also appear in the heavenly book opened on the Day of Judgement. -
Feb 4, 1066
Battle of Hastings - Norman Invasion
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Jul 1, 1150
First text in Middle English
Most sermons (or homilies) in this collection are copies of earlier ones in Old English. But this one is different. It is an English translation of a Latin sermon in which we can see many of the changes that signal the end of Old English. -
Mar 7, 1215
King John seals Magna Carta
Magna Carta – Latin for 'Great Charter' – is one of the most celebrated documents in western history. It was the first written material to set limits on the power of an English monarch, and was intended to prevent King John from exploiting his people. The charter established that, despite his royal status, John was obliged to abide by the law. -
Jun 9, 1449
The Legend of King Arthur
This manuscript tells the famous legend of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, centring around their quest for the mystical Holy Grail. It was written by Thomas Malory in 1469 while he was imprisoned for a series of violent crimes. -
Aug 27, 1453
England deafeats Frnace
116 year battle finally comes to an end with the result of English becoming the dominate language. -
May 31, 1470
Fist Englsih Cookery Manuscript
This is the oldest known cookery manuscript in the English language. It is entitled The Forme of Cury (meaning 'Form of Cookery' in Middle English). It was written by the master-cooks of King Richard II, and is in the form of a scroll made of vellum - a kind of fine calfskin parchment. This section shows a recipe for 'chastletes', which were small pastry castles. The pastries were filled with pork or almonds and coloured with saffron or sandalwood. The word 'coffin' referred to the pastry case, -
Aug 12, 1526
The First English Printed Bible
William Tyndale's Bible was the first English language Bible to appear in print. During the 1500s, the very idea of an English language Bible was shocking and subversive. This is because, for centuries, the English Church had been governed from Rome, and church services were by law conducted in Latin -
Sep 8, 1564
The Birth of William Shakespeare
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The British Empire
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Britons Land in America
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The King James Bible
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The Globe Theatre
This period is often described as a 'golden age' of theatre, in which many of our best loved plays were written. The map of London shown here was produced in 1616, and includes an illustration of the Globe Theatre, where Shakespeare performed many of his plays. The view of London, from the South Bank of the River Thames, looks across old London Bridge to the Tower of London, the spires of the City, and St Paul's Cathedral. -
The Discovery of Acid
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Isaac Newton Discovers Gravity
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The Discovery of Electricity
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The Discovery of Prndulum
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Johnsons Dictionary
Samuel Johnson's Dictionary of the English Language is one of the most famous dictionaries in history. First published in 1755, the dictionary took just over 8 years to compile and listed 40,000 words. Johnson required only 6 helpers. Each word was defined in detail; the definitions illustrated with quotations covering every branch of learning. It was a huge scholarly achievement, more extensive and complex than any of it's predecessors - and the comparable French Dictionnarre had taken 55 years -
Lowths Grammar
Several grammar books were published during the 18th century. They fulfilled the demand among a growing middle class for guidance on how to use ‘polite’ or ‘correct’ English. Robert Lowth, an academic and Anglican bishop, compiled this extremely successful work that was re-issued around 45 times between 1762 and 1800.
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Charles Dickens - Oliver Twist
Oliver Twist is Charles Dickens's second novel, about an orphan boy whose good heart and healthy appetite helps him escape the terrible underworld of pickpockets and poverty in 1830s London. It has proven to be one of the best loved novels in the history of literature. This is Dickens's handwritten preface to the 'cheap edition' of the book. In it he explains his belief that reforms were desperately needed to improve the living conditions of the poor. -
Wilfred Owen: Poetry WW1
Wilfred Owen is among the most famous poets of the First World War. This is the original manuscript of the poem 'Dulce et Decorum Est', written in Owen's own hand while he served as a soldier in the appalling conditions of the trenches. Composed between 1917 and 1918 (the year of his death), the poem gives a chilling account of the senselessness of war. -
The First Email was sent
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The Internet became what is Today
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Period: to
History of English Langiage
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Christian Missionaries Arrive in Britain
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Viking invasion of Britain
