The “Venerable” Bede (Chapter VII) wrote that “Cædmon the poet (600 A.D.) never could compose any trivial or vain songs, but only such as belonged to a serious and sacred vein of thought ... he was not practised in the art of verse. So, oft, in an entertainment, where for the sake of merriment it had been agreed that each in turn should sing and harp, as the dreaded instrument was seen approaching, he arose in shame from the supper table and went home to his house.” However, we learn that Cædmon who was a serving man, had a vision in which an angel asked him to “sing the beginning of creatures,” and when the vision had passed, he remembered the heavenly song, and thus Cædmon ceased to be shy, became the first great poet of England and was permitted to be a monk. As the gleemen and harpers were not fighting men, they had many privileges not granted to the warriors. They passed, unchallenged, through the fighting camps, and we have any number of stories of kings and warriors disguising themselves as harpers in order to get information about their enemies. A secret service system of the Middle Ages! In 878, Alfred the Great had been robbed of power and authority by the Danes, so disguised as a gleeman and armed only with a harp, he went into the Danish encampment. The royal minstrel was received cordially, and while the Danish king was listening to the songs, the harper (Alfred) was getting the information he needed, and soon made a surprise attack with his troops and was victorious. This is spying with musical accompaniment! The Battle of Hastings (1066) caused great changes not only in learning, customs, language, music, other arts and politics, but in life itself. The French who, under William of Normandy conquered Britain, were leaders in composing poetry and song, and they brought over to Britain all their talents. Now romance began and with it the art of glorifying in song and verse, deeds of valor and the charms of lovely ladies. And here the troubadours and trouvères make their entrance into our story. France had had songs of deeds and action called _Chansons de Geste_, which were tales of the brave Charlemagne, celebrating his victory over the invading Moors from Spain. One of the greatest of these was the _Chanson de Roland_. Other songs or ballads on religious, historical, chivalric, or political subjects took the place of our modern newspapers and were powerful at the courts and among the people in the towns. When a man in court circles did anything that some one objected to, one of the minstrel-poets was hired to make up a song about it, which was sung everywhere until the news was well circulated, and the person punished, often undeservedly. However it made the men of those days think twice before doing things against the rights of others, for they were really afraid of these songs that were spread among their friends and enemies.