Old English literature There are five shorter poems: capture of the Five Boroughs (942); coronation of King Edgar (973); death of King Edgar (975); death of Alfred the son of King Æthelred (1036); and death of King Edward the Confessor (1065). The 325 line poem "The Battle of Maldon" celebrates Earl Byrhtnoth and his men who fell in battle against the Vikings in 991. It is considered one of the finest, but both the beginning and end are missing and the only manuscript was destroyed in a fire in 1731. A well-known speech is near the end of the poem: Old English heroic
Iste confessor of whom people celebrate worldwide 2 Who holy, prudent, humble, modest // sober, pure, was and peaceful 3 At his holy tomb, frequently // the limbs of the sick (were) presently cured 4 Whence now our choir, in honour // of him sing this hymn gladly 5 Health to Him, honour and virtue // who resides above in the peak of heaven </poem> Iste confessor Iste confessor is a Latin hymn used in the Divine Office at Lauds and Vespers on feasts of confessors. It exists in two forms. "Iste confessor Domini sacratus" is the original 8th Century hymn and