Middle English 1150 – 1500 French for nobility and royal court Latin for church, business, scholarship English for communication between commoners Over half of modern English vocabulary comes from French and Latin

Timeline of Early British History 43 A.D. CELTS conquered by the Romans 409 A.D. Romans leave Britain leaving the people defenseless to be conquered by Germanic tribes 449 Roman Empire falls 700-800 Viking Invasion – Anglo Saxons 1066 Norman Conquest – 10,000 new French words introduced to the language - The English language is a “borrowed” language with an extensive vocabulary of nearly 500,000 words

French Influence The French introduced continental (European) social, economic, and political system of Feudalism In Feudalism, wealth is divided among the wealthy nobles and knights who pledged their service to the nobility. Poor peasants were bound to the land and worked for the overlords with no hope of leaving their impoverished existence. 1215 – Magna Carta - the first tax protest prevented the king from raising taxes on nobility without consent of the barons.

GREAT BRITAIN Isolated Often invaded Early political and legal system emerged by the Middle Ages