ENGLISH LITERATURE (CBSE/UGC NET)

Detailed explanation-1: -Three main languages were in use in England in the later medieval period – Middle English, Anglo-Norman (or French) and Latin.

Detailed explanation-2: -From the time of the Norman Conquest (1066) until the end of the 14th century, French was the language of the king and his court.

Detailed explanation-3: -Henry IV, after 1399, was perhaps the first king of England for whom English was the language of choice. Even so, by royal command from 1362, all pleas in the law courts – and from 1363, the majority of discussions in the parliamentary Commons – had to be conducted in English.

Detailed explanation-4: -After the Norman Conquest, French became a major language of administration, education, literature and law in England (and, to some extent, elsewhere in Britain). To get ahead in life post-1066, it was pretty important to “parler français”.