Literature Bookwork Pgs. 4-14

From Legend to History (A.D. 449-1485)

Historical Background:
-The Celts invaded the British Isles and settled into Britain (Brythons) and Ireland (Gaels)
-Julius Caesar and Rome invaded Britain years later, ruling for 300 years
-The Anglo-Saxons then took over from Germany, falling to barbarian tribes but allowing the Celtic Christian Church to remain
-Columba and some monks gained converts to Christianity, prior to the Danish invasion of the Vikings; Alfred the Great took the Wessex throne and became a national hero, keeping Danish civilization intact and preaching learning and education

-Edward the Confessor held the throne in England until he died in 1066 and the Saxon's chose Harold II to be king, even though William claimed he was promised the throne
-Harold was killed in the Battle of Hastings, causing William to gain the throne
-William began using the feudal system: King, barons, knights, peasants, serfs.
-Henry II took the throne and founded the house of Plantagenet in 1154, becoming one of England's ablest kings
-Henry II had a conflict with the church and appointed a friend, Thomas Becket, as archbishop, but he sided with the Pope to Henry's dismay
-Henry's knights killed Becket and Henry felt guilty, so he took a pilgrimage to Becket's grave, which became a regular mean of religious devotion
-Richard I caused a lot of debt which King John inherited; he tried to tax the barons which caused a civil war and ended in him sealing the Magna Carta, which limited taxes on barons
-House of Lancaster replaced the Plantagenets in 1399, with three King Henry's
-The Wars of the Roses caused controversy between York and Lancaster, which was eventually resolved through the two houses marrying each other (Henry VII to Tudor's niece)
-After the black death, peasant labor was more valuable, with a higher demand for them
-Free peasantry began to popularize and the feudal system began to fall apart

Literature of the Period:
-Anglo-Saxon lit began with spoken verse and incantations, often on ceremonial occasions
-Poetry was mostly heroic and elegiac, involving warrior lives and loved one's deaths (Beowulf)
-Prose was composed in Latin by monks, known as "vulgar tongue"
-Dramas and plays arose telling the accounts of medieval life, romances, loves and deeds, religious works, miracle/mystery plays (Bible stories), and morality plays
-Johann Gutenberg created a successful printing press which spread through Europe
-Geoffrey Chaucer grew up as a servant and apprentice, ultimately observing enough for his story The Canterbury Tales
-Knights were a popular topic in romances, specifically King Arthur
-Songs taking advantage of the lyre and lyric poems and ballads developed into folk songs that told stories