INTRODUCTION. To understand specific features of English literature we have to make a short excursion into English history

To understand specific features of English literature we have to make a short excursion into English history.

As far as history can be traced the first people found on British Isles were Picts and Scots. They lived the life of primitive communal system. Scotland was populated by the Picts, and the Scots were inhabitants of Ireland.

Most of the territory of Britain was covered with difficult forests and bushes and the land wasn't yet cultivated. The Picts and the Scots used the tools which they made first of wood and later on of stone. Their main occupations were hunting, fishing and picking berries.

In the 6-7 centuries BC Britain was populated by the Britons. There are various tribes belonging to the same stock as inhabitants of France, Spain and the Rhine valley. We are accustomed to think of England as an inviolate island, but the truth is that before Normans it was invaded many times. The earliest invasions were made by Belgae which inhabited north-eastern France and Belgium.

From the first century AD until the beginning of the fifth century AD Britain was a Rome province. The province of Britain soon showed the effects of Roman occupation, effects which are by no means obliterated to this day: roads were made, bridges built, towns planted, schools were established and finally the Christianity was introduced. The numerous towns which still have "Chester" in their names (Manchester, Colchester, etc.) recall the Roman occupation.

Irish literature is considered one of the most ancient in Europe. In the sixth century the writing appeared. Irish heroic epos appeared in the seventh century, but it was written down in the eighth century. The monuments to this epos are sagas. There were bards in old times, singers who explained legends. Bards were tellers of sagas. The most ancient is the world's cycle of sagas, the main hero of them was Kukhulin. [7] He has different superman merits. Irish sagas include a lot of features from the everyday life, women's fighting, collecting of cut-off enemies' tongues, ears and so on.

The bard Ossian sang and told about old times. Everybody was charmed by Ossian's songs, published by MacFerson. Napoleon, Pushkin, Byron and the others liked them very much. Then it turned out that there were no those songs, it was artificial imitation, but it was included in Irish sagas. Some time later the novels about the Knights of the round table appeared, where we can find the influence of the Irish sagas, too.