Cædmon was a 7th-century Benedictine monk and the first English poet whose identity is documented. Originally a cowherd at the double monastery of Streonæshalch, which is now known as Whitby Abbey in the Kingdom of Northumbria, he was famously unable to compose verse until a divine dream granted him the gift of song. According to the historian Bede, this miraculous inspiration allowed him to transform sacred scripture into beautiful Old English poetry. He is remembered as a significant figure in early Germanic literature and is honored as a saint in several Christian traditions.