The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle (ASC) is the name commonly given to the group of texts containing annals which record the history of Anglo-Saxon England. Its seven manuscripts – referred to in scholarship by the letters A-G (quoted below behind the annal number) – include a number of poems that commemorate important moments in Anglo-Saxon history. That these Chronicle poems have generally received little scholarly attention is due to their allegedly marginal status within the overwhelmingly prose content of the ASC. Like most Anglo-Saxon poetry, they are transmitted anonymously, although three poems (annals 959-DEF, 1011-CDEF, 975-DE) have been attributed to Wulfstan, archbishop of York (1002-23).
The number of Chronicle poems is a question of debate. W. J. Sedgefield (1904) and later E. v. K. Dobbie (1942) identified six poems, which seem to have achieved canonical status....
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Citation: Kries, Susanne. "The Poems of The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 21 February 2003 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=11653, accessed 05 December 2025.]
