Middle English (History)
This page forms part of an etymology course that gives an outline of the development of English. It is written in a sequence that you may want to follow. The best place to start, if you want to follow the whole course, is Etymology course, or, if you are only interested in English, Development of English. You may also arrive at any of these articles from other links. For more information about the history of English, you should of course read a good history of the language, such as Baugh (1993), Strang (1970), or Crystal (2005)
After the phase of Old English, the second phase of the history of English is conveniently signposted by the Norman Conquest, which began with the battle of Hastings in 1066. This heralded the arrival of a governing class in England whose language was a form of French. During the next two centuries, the new overlords mingled with the native inhabitants, and the language evolved from Old English to Middle English. (For a description of the language, click Middle English (characteristics).) For the first part of this time, the rulers spoke only French; it was not until the end of the fourteenth century that a king of England spoke English as his first language, and it is said that it was in the reign of Henry V (1399-1422) that English became the main language of the court.
The end of Middle English is conveniently signposted by the Battle of Bosworth in 1485, which brought the Tudor dynasty to the throne. During the 400 years since the Conquest, there had been a continuation and strengthening of the process of unification which had been started under Alfred the Great, but the different areas of the country still kept distinct varieties of English. It was during the Middle English period that the language of the area bounded by the triangle of London, Oxford (the university was founded at the end of the eleventh century) and Cambridge (1209) began the influence that ended with its becoming the foundation of Standard English, and its accent the start of Received Pronunciation. It was in this triangle that Chaucer wrote his poetry in easy colloquial English using French verse forms and becoming the first widely accepted writer in English in court circles - thus his sobriquet of "the father of English verse". He was not, of course; but contemporary writers such as William Langland (Piers Ploughman) and the anonymous Gawain poet wrote in less central dialects, and in the older English tradition of alliterative verse, and do not enjoy as high a reputation. The process of printing as a means of standardisation grew from the first printing press in England, in 1476 (Caxton).
For a thumbnail account of the main features of Middle English, see Middle English (characteristics).
