Medieval Poetry

Medieval Poetry
When we talk about Medieval Literature, we re not dealing with the famed British Empire. In fact, Britain didn t even have an Empire at this time, but was instead the victim of many waves of attack and invasion. First came the Romans (relatively civilized people) and then the barbarian invasions of the Germanic tribes. Next were the Vikings. Finally, in 1066, we get to the Normans. England was occupied by France ,The French invasion changed Britain s formerly Anglo-Saxon culture and language to one that was much more like mainland Europe. And this invasion shaped the English language forever; the new French pushed Old English down the path toward Middle English, a variety nearer to what people speak today.
Poems during the medieval era were religious in nature and written by clerics. They were used mostly in church and other religious events. Medieval poems were mainly read by minstrels. According to scholars, literature in the Middle Ages was international rather than local. Medieval poetry was divided by lines of class and audience rather than language although, Latin was the language of the church and education. Medieval poetry in itself was very diverse.
Chaucer s "The General Prologue to The Canterbury Tales" has long been recognized as one of the greatest masterpieces of English literature, certainly the finest and most influential work of fiction from the Middle Ages. For most literary historians, English literature begins well before Chaucer s greatest poem, but this particular work marks the start of the tradition which is still readily accessible in the original language to the diligent reader, even though Chaucer s Middle English requires the constant help of a glossary.