Which one is considered as the first epic in the history of English Literature?

Beowulf:
- It is considered as the first epic in English literature.
- This poem chronicles the hero’s exploits, notably his slaying of the monster Grendel – actually only the first of three monsters Beowulf has to vanquish.
- It is also considered the highest achievement of Old English literature.
- It is called earliest European vernacular epic.
- It deals with events of the early 6th century CE and is believed to have been composed between 700 and 750.
- Beowulf takes place in early 6th-century Scandinavia, primarily in what is known today as Denmark and Sweden.
- The author of Beowulf is unknown. It is possible that the poem was composed by and transmitted between several different poets before it was preserved in a single manuscript that dates to about 1000.

The other three epics mentioned in the questions are written by___
- Paradise Lost= John Milton
- Faerie Queene= Edmund Spencer
- The Divine Comedy= Dante

Source: Britannica and British Library