Part 12 (2/2)
+901+ 5. +King Alfred+ translated several Latin works into English, among others, Bede's 'Ecclesiastical History of the English Nation'
(+851+)
+1000+ 6. +Aelfric+, Archbishop of York, turned into English most of the historical books of the Old Testament
+1066+ 7. +The Norman Conquest+, which introduced Norman French words
+1160+ 8. +Anglo-Saxon Chronicle+, said to have been begun by King Alfred, and brought to a close in [1160]
+1200+ 9. +Orm+ or +Orrmin's Ormulum+, a poem written in the East Midland dialect, about [1200]
+1204+ 10. +Normandy+ lost under King John. Norman-English now have their only home in England, and use our English speech more and more
+1205+ 11. +Layamon+ translates the 'Brut' from the French of Robert Wace.
This is the first English book (written in _Southern English_) after the stoppage of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle
+1220+ 12. +The Ancren Riwle+ (”Rules for Anchorites”) written in the Dorsets.h.i.+re dialect. ”It is the forerunner of a wondrous change in our speech.” ”It swarms with French words”
+1258+ 13. +First Royal Proclamation in English+, issued by Henry III.
+1300+ 14. +Robert of Gloucester's+ Chronicle (swarms with foreign terms)
+1303+ 15. +Robert Manning+, ”Robert of Brunn,” compiles the 'Handlyng Synne.' ”It contains a most copious proportion of French words”
+1340+ 16. +Ayenbite of Inwit+ (= ”Remorse of Conscience”)
+1349+ 17. +The Great Plague+. After this it becomes less and less the fas.h.i.+on to speak French
+1356+ 18. +Sir John Mandeville+, first writer of the newer English Prose-- in his 'Travels,' which contained a large admixture of French words.
”His English is the speech spoken at Court in the latter days of King Edward III.”
+1362+ 19. +English+ becomes the language of the Law Courts
+1380+ 20. +Wickliffe's+ Bible
+1400+ 21. +Geoffrey Chaucer+, the first great English poet, author of the 'Canterbury Tales'; born in 1340, died [1400]
+1471+ 22. +William Caxton+, the first English printer, brings out (in the Low Countries) the first English book ever printed, the 'Recuyell of the Historyes of Troye,'-- ”not written with pen and ink, as other books are, to the end that every man may have them at once”
+1474+ 23. +First English Book+ printed in England (by Caxton) the 'Game and Playe of the Chesse'
+1523+ 24. +Lord Berners'+ translation of Froissart's Chronicle
+1526-30+ 25. +William Tyndale+, by his translation of the Bible ”fixed our tongue once for all.” ”His New Testament has become the standard of our tongue: the first ten verses of the Fourth Gospel are a good sample of his manly Teutonic pith”
+1590+ 26. +Edmund Spenser+ publishes his 'Faerie Queene.' ”Now began the golden age of England's literature; and this age was to last for about fourscore years”
+1611+ 27. +Our English Bible+, based chiefly on Tyndale's translation.
”Those who revised the English Bible in 1611 were bidden to keep as near as they could to the old versions, such as Tyndale's”
+1616+ 28. +William Shakespeare+ carried the use of the English language to the greatest height of which it was capable. He employed 15,000 words. ”The last act of 'Oth.e.l.lo' is a rare specimen of Shakespeare's diction: of every five nouns, verbs, and adverbs, four are Teutonic” (+Born 1564+)
+1667+ 29. +John Milton+, ”the most learned of English poets,” publishes his 'Paradise Lost,'-- ”a poem in which Latin words are introduced with great skill”
+1661+ 30. +The Prayer-Book+ revised and issued in its final form. ”_Are_ was subst.i.tuted for _be_ in forty-three places. This was a great victory of the North over the South”
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