C ynewulf and C yneheard

Abstract

Normally considered to be the earliest heroic narrative in English prose, the Cynewulf and Cyneheard episode is narrated in the Anglo‐Saxon Chronicle's unusually long annal for the year 755 (recorded for 757). This narrative exemplifies in many respects the heroic code seen in Old English secular poetry. It also offers an apparently historical example of bloodfeud and vengeance among the Anglo‐Saxon nobility.