Early Works of Scholarshipīeowulf, the most notable example of the earliest English poetry, is an odd blend of Christianity and paganism. This became the center of learning and scholarship of all Western Europe.

He established a Benedictine abbey at Canterbury as the seat of his diocese. In 597 Pope Gregory I sent Augustine to convert the British to Christianity. When this society became established, English literature began. By the middle of the 6th century the Britons had been pushed to the western borders of England, where they set up small tribal governments. If these invaders left any literature, none of it has survived. Then the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes came from the European continent. The Britons were forced to defend themselves alone against Picts and Scots from Scotland. After the Romans withdrew their troops from Britain in 410, there followed a long period of social unrest, war, and turbulence. The beginnings of English literature appeared in the 7th or 8th century ad. ( See also American literature Australian literature Canadian literature Irish literature.) Old English Literature The history of Irish literature is also closely linked with that of English literature. English-speaking people of other countries, including Canada, the United States, and Australia, are indebted to England for a literary heritage. The language in which English literature is written has evolved over hundreds of years and is still changing. The writers of the British Isles, including England, Scotland, and Wales, have produced a great wealth of literature. English Literature of the Victorian Age.The Metaphysical and the Cavalier Poets.

Tired of the Drama by Alan Godwin