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Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books Middle English Literature Geoffrey Chaucer (c. 1343 - 1400) Geoffrey Chaucer (c. 1343 - 1400) - is considered the greatest poet of the Middle English period. He's well-known for "The Canterbury Tales." He has been called "the father of English poetry. With his knowledge of Latin, French and Italian literature, he transformed the world of literature.
Chaucer's greatest work was his "Canterbury Tales," a collection of stories told by pilgrims on their way to Canterbury Birthplace: London, England Chaucer (the name is French and seems to have meant originally 'shoemaker') came into the world probably in 1338, the first important author who was born and lived in London, which with him becomes the centre of English literature.
About his life, as about those of many of our earlier writers, there remains only very fragmentary information, which in his case is largely pieced together from scattering entries of various kinds in such documents as court account books and public records of state matters and of lawsuits.
His father, a wine merchant, may have helped supply the cellars of the king (Edward III) and so have been able to bring his son to royal notice; at any rate, while still in his teens Geoffrey became a page in the service of one of the king's daughters-in-law. In this position his duty would be partly to perform various humble work in the household, partly also to help amuse the leisure of the inmates, and it is easy to suppose that he soon won favour as a fluent story-teller.
He early became acquainted with the seamy as well as the brilliant side of courtly life; for in 1359 he was in the campaign in France and was taken prisoner. That he was already valued appears from the king's subscription of the equivalent of a thousand dollars of present-day money toward his ransom; and after his release he was transferred to the king's own service, where about 1368 he was promoted to the rank of esquire. He was probably already married to one of the queen's ladies-in-waiting.
Chaucer was now thirty years of age, and his practical sagacity and knowledge of men had been recognized; for from this time on he held important public positions.