Famous Writers and their contributions including Caedmon
There were five Writers and Poets who wrote much in the Anglo-Saxon era and contributed to the development of English Literature a lot:
Caedmon: He is the first Christian poet in the history of English literature. He has written hymns and is considered the Anglo-Saxon Milton, a great epic poet of Neoclassical period.
Cynewulf: He is another Christian poet and his famous poems are:
Elene: It is a poem of 1,321 lines and an account of the finding of the True Cross by St. Helena.
The Fates of the Apostles: It is a short poem comprising 122 lines. It is a verified martyrology describing the mission and death of each of the Twelve Apostles.
Christ II: It is a lyrical version of a homily on the Ascension written by Pope Gregory I the Great. This poem is part of a trilogy on Christ by different authors.
Juliana: It is a poem of 731 lines. It is a retelling of a Latin prose life of St. Juliana, a maiden who rejected the love proposal of Eleusius, a Roman perfect, because of her faith and consequently was made to suffer numerous torments.
St. Bede The Venerable: He is the famous prose writer of this period and because of his book we can learn in detail about Anglo-Saxon period. His famous book is “Ecclesiastical History of the English People”.
Alfred The Great: He was the ruler of Wessex kingdom from 871 to 899. During his reign, he protected England from the invasion of the Danes. He brought huge change and development in the field of education for all. Regarding education, his view is that illiteracy is a great sin and only through learning humans can acquire wisdom and can lead a life in accordance with God’s will. Compilation of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle got started during his reign in 890.
Aelfric: He is an Anglo-Saxon prose writer, considered the greatest of his time. He wrote to instruct the monks and to spread the learning of the 10th-century monastic revival.
