The Anglo-Saxon period.

From about AD 350, Germanic tribes began invading south-east England. The tribes came from what is now northern Germany, Holland and Denmark. The first to come were the Saxons, joined later by the Jutes and Angles. Britain had the protection of only a few Roman legions. The native people could not stop the new enemy, known as the Anglo-Saxons. The Celts fled north and west taking their ancient arts and languages with them. Celtic languages have disappeared from most of Europe, but are still spoken in parts of Wales, Ireland and Scotland.

The Angles gave England its name. New place names appeared on the map. Seven kingdoms were established: Northumbria, Mercia, Wessex, Sussex, Kent, Essex and East Anglia. The Anglo-Saxons divided the land into new administrative areas, based on shires. A “shire reeve”, the king’s local administrator, was appointed over each shire. In time the title became shortened to “sheriff”. The Anglo-Saxons lived in small villages; their houses were made of mud, wood and straw and were grouped around the house of their lord. The “thane” was the most important man in the village; he kept order and made his people obey the law. Punishment varied according to the crime. Criminals were mutilated, hanged, or compelled to pay a sum of money called “wergild’.

The Anglo-Saxons liked fighting, gambling and drinking. Their sense of hospitality was renowned. They also liked music and singing. The strength of Anglo-Saxon culture is obvious even today. For instance, days of the week were named after Germanic gods. Life expectancy was not very long; few people lived beyond the age of 45. Epidemics and famine contributed to the high rate of mortality.

The Anglo-Saxons in southern England were converted to Christianity following the arrival of Saint Augustine of Rome in AD 597. He established a Christian community n Canterbury and became the first Archbishop of Canterbury. As Christianity spread, churches and monasteries were built all over England. The greatest scholar of the time not only in England but in Europe was the VenerableBede (?673-735). His primary interest was in explaining the teachings of the Bible and relating them to the Christian life. His most famous book is the Ecclesiastical History of the English People, written in Latin and completed in 731. He is considered to be the first English historian.

Alfred the Great was the first ruler who deserved the title of King of England and the only king in England’s history ever to be honoured with the epithet “the Great”. In an age that knew little mercy, Alfred was merciful to his defeated foes and kind to his own people. Immortality of his name rests on the two main things — his defence of Wessex against the Danes and his attempts to enlighten his people.

Being very well educated for his time, he encouraged a rebirth of learning and education in his country. When only clerics knew how to read and write, he mastered Latin and personally translated and directed the translation of a number of Latin works into the Anglo-Saxon (Old English). He imported foreign scholars and craftsmen, established monasteries and schools, and gathered about him literate people of civil service, priests and scholars.

Alfred ordered that the learned men should begin to write a history of England. In several monasteries the learned monks collected together all that was known of the early history of the country and began to keep a record of the outstanding events of each year. Thus was written a history of England called the “Anglo-Saxons Chronicle” which was continued for 250 years after the death of Alfred.

The Vikings raided Northern Western Europe between the 8^th and the 9^th centuries, carrying anything of value they could find. The Vikings were excellent traders and navigators. They traded in silk and furs as far as Russia. About AD 790, the Vikings started to invade England. The Norsemen, who came from Norway, mainly settled in Scotland and Ireland. The north and east of England were settled by the Danes.

Alfred spent much of his reign saving Wessex from those terrible invaders. The Danes made several raids and even captured London. But Alfred the Great managed to raise an army and to stop the offensive of the Danes. He recaptured London and compelled the Danes to leave Wessex in peace.

Alfred was now the acknowledged leader of Englishmen outside Danish-held territory (Danelaw) and Welsh kings sought his alliance. During the period of peace he built a fleet of large ships (the first British Navy), several new fortified towns, organized the army so that renewed Danish attacks were not effective. In 878 King Alfred the Great signed a treaty leaving the Vikings in control of northern England while he maintained power in the south.

King Alfred also ordered that old customs and laws followed by the Anglo-Saxons before him in Wessex and Mercia should be collected. New Laws based on the Bible were added to the collection and a “Code of English Law” was drawn up. Everyone had to follow the laws of the kingdom.

Alfred’s intellectual curiosity and energy, his religious devotion and sense of duty preserved Wessex’s independence and helped in consolidating all the kingdoms into a unified country in the next century.

In 1016, England became part of the Scandinavian empire under King Cnut. Canute (Cnut) was a King of Denmark and Norway who defeated Wessex soon after Alfred the Great’s death. Canute was a strong monarch, cruel and ruthless, but a capable king, a legend in his lifetime and the most commanding figure in the northern world. He gave England peace for nearly twenty years. The Vikings eventually blended with the Anglo-Saxons and made important contributions to the English language: for example nouns like skirt and sky and pronouns like they and them are of Viking origin. With the death of Canute’s second son in 1042 the Danish rule was over. An English king, Edward the Confessor, came to the throne.

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Roman Britain.	\|	The medieval period in Britain (1066-1485).

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