Portsea Island "northern end" of Kingston. Old Portsmouth lies on the south west corner of Portsea Island and forms the eastern side of the narrow entrance to Portsmouth Harbour at the ports mouth. Old Portsmouth contains most of the traditional High Street and heritage of the original old town of Portsmouth, including Portsmouth Point (also known as "Spice Island") and the Camber Dock. Portsea is a parish and narrower, informal area of the city of Portsmouth, occupying much of its south-west. Engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel was born in Britain Street in 1806; writer Charles Dickens was born nearby at Landport on 7
Old English literature Conquest, died as old men. The most widely known secular author of Old English was King Alfred the Great (849–899), who translated several books, many of them religious, from Latin into Old English. Alfred, wanting to restore English culture, lamented the poor state of Latin education: Alfred proposed that students be educated in Old English, and those who excelled should go on to learn Latin. Alfred's cultural program produced the following translations: Gregory the Great's "The Pastoral Care", a manual for priests on how to conduct their duties; "The Consolation of Philosophy" by Boethius; and "The Soliloquies" of Saint Augustine.