Realised by: Tiziano Guglielmi, Luigi Campolieti & Nicola D’Ambra

T he Anglo-Saxon used to fight against other people in small armies made by a few hundred warriors. The fighters weren't knights, but they usually went to battle on foot. They wore protections on their bodies like helmets to protect their heads or iron armors to protect their bodies. The warriors usually brought to war different types of weapons made of iron or sometimes of precious metals, like gold or silver, which got the opponent armies frightened.

We can distinguish two different kinds of arms: ATTACK: They usually attacked the opponents with axes, spears and swords. They were very able to made sharp blades and to insert them in their swords and axes. They used the axes to attack the enemies. The swords were the most precious weapons. DEFENSE: They used to defend themselves and the other soldiers with shields. Some shields were so precious and had some gold decorations.

A sword belonged to a rich family An axe-hammer used in the battles

Some pieces of the Anglo-Saxon armor: an iron armor, an helmet and a spear The most used defense arm: a wood shield

There weren't soldiers who fought for profession: they were farmers and they had to take care of their animals or of their crops. The king could order some officials called "ealdormen" to reap in some men to join the army. All the freemen could join the army. There were some different types of warriors: there were some bodyguards who could die to protect the king and the others who had only the duty of combat.

In 410 AD the tribes of the Angles, the Saxons and Jutes came in the island of Britain from northern regions of Scandinavia or Germany and invaded Britain. A video from YouTube about the Anglo-Saxon art and war

In the 700s AD some Viking tribes invaded Britain. They came into the island with their longships and started conquering it. In the 800s the Vikings roamed the Britain and they killed the king Edmund of East Anglia in 869. The king Alfred "the Great" of Wessex fought the Vikings and after that, he made peace with them, who went on into the 1000s.

Reconstruction of a scene of battle against the Vikings A Viking longship

The epic poem “The Battle of Maldon”, written in 991, describes the battle against the Vikings Another epic poem is "Beowulf", that describes the exploits of a brave warrior who fought a big monster called Grendel. The Battle of Maldon Beowulf (film of R. Zemeckis – 2007)

A video from YouTube about Beowulf

Paragraphs: T. Guglielmi – L. Campolieti Image research: T. Guglielmi – L. Campolieti – N. D’Ambra Video research: T. Guglielmi – L. Campolieti Video download and integration: T.Guglielmi Graphics: T.Guglielmi