1. Anglo-Saxon Period
A.D. 449 – A.D. 1066

2. BRITAIN
Britain or Great Britain: the main island, or sometimes another name for the United Kingdom
The British Isles – Great Britain, Ireland, and thousands of smaller islands
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (the U.K.): England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland

3. THE MIDDLE AGES 449-1485 The Anglo-Saxon Period 449-1066
The Medieval Period

4. THE CELTS The Celts migrated to Britain around 400-600 B.C.
Three groups: Brythons (Britons) settled island of Britain, Gaels settled on Ireland, and Picts (tattooed people) settled in Scotland.
Organized into clans; loyal to chieftain
Their religion was animism; “The Celts saw spirits everywhere—in rivers, trees, stones, ponds, fire, and thunder” (6). These spirits were intermediaries between the gods and the people, and they controlled everything.

5. CELTIC LITERATURE Celtic literature was transmitted orally
Tales of magic, adventure, and quests created a Celtic mythology and inspired the King Arthur tales
King Arthur was actually a Celtic chieftain
Chieftains were known for displaying the HEROIC IDEAL (courage in war and boasting)

6. THE ROMANS
In 55 B.C. Julius Caesar invaded Britain, driving the Celts, whom the Romans called “Britons,” into Wales, Scotland, and Ireland.
Began to Christianize the Celts; Celtic religion vanished
Controlled world from Hadrian’s Wall to Arabia

7. ROMAN STABILITY
Roman towns connected by paved roads replaced the wooden villages of the Britons.
Hadrian’s Wall and other defensive barriers were put in place by the Romans
With the Romans, written British history begins.

8. BRITAIN OPEN TO INVASION
Roman forces withdrew in 410 A.D. to defend their homeland
Britain was no longer under the protection of a vast military
Angles, Saxons, Jutes, and Frisians from Scandinavia and northern Germany began invading

9. THE ANGLO-SAXONS
These warrior societies have come to be known collectively as Anglo-Saxons.
The Anglo-Saxons were warriors, farmers, and hunters.
They wore animal skins and carried spears.
Created “Angle-land”…which is where we get “England.”
Common language now known as Old English (similar to Dutch and German)
Religion – pagan – similar to Norse mythology

10. ANGLO-SAXON KINGDOMS Roman order was replaced by tribal kingdoms.
Britain was divided up into seven kingdoms.
Once again, Britain became an oral culture with no written history or literature.
Instead, tales were told orally and sung by people called scops (singing poets) or bards.
Because life was so difficult, the literature was very serious and reflected the struggles of life at the time.

11. THE MEAD HALL
Anglo-Saxons lived in wood-hut villages with a central mead-hall (great-hall), where the king lived.
The king and his thanes (warriors) celebrated their victories while drinking mead (fermented honey).
Throne room, barracks, banquet hall
Food, drink, and fellowship

12. THE ADVENT OF CHRISTIANITY
In 432 A.D. St. Patrick brought Christianity to Ireland.
By 800 A.D. most Anglo-Saxons were Christians.

13. BENEFITS OF CHRISTIANITY
Unified Anglo-Saxons
Christian value system adopted
Written records preserved culture

14. VENERABLE BEDE ( )
Catholic monk at the Northumbrian monastery of Saint Peter
Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum (The Ecclesiastical History of the English People)
“The Exeter Book” was a collection of manuscripts compiled by monks that blended Christian and pagan ideas about the after life.

15. THE VIKINGS
In 793 A.D., Vikings from Denmark, Norway, and Sweden invaded and eventually conquered much of Britain.

16. ALFRED THE GREAT ( A.D.)
Vikings destroyed monasteries and sacred objects and slaughtered everyone in settlements that couldn’t pay enough to them
Organized Anglo-Saxons to repel Vikings in Wessex, thereby becoming the first “English” king.
Initiated the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, a history of England written in Anglo-Saxon.

17. A DIVIDED BRITAIN
Alfred’s victory allotted Wessex to the Anglo-Saxons, who came to be known as Englishmen (Angle-land / Engla-land / England).
The Vikings ruled Mercia and Northumbria.

18. EDWARD THE CONFESSOR Deeply religious Married but had no children
Named his brother-in-law Harold, Earl of Wessex, as heir to the throne

19. HAROLD II Harold ascended to throne upon Edward’s death.
William, Duke of Normandy (region of France), claimed Edward had previously named him heir.
William invaded England.

20. WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR
William defeated Harold at the Battle of Hastings on 14 October 1066, becoming King William I of England.
Marks the end of the Anglo-Saxon period.
Middle English period begins (1100 – 1500 A.D.).
Brought in French-speaking Normans to positions of power
French words: pork for pig, beef for cow, etc.

21. INFLUENCE OF INVADERS Celts- culture involved literature.
Romans- enjoyed feasts and built walls to protect.
Anglo-Saxons- rigid and had gloomy outlook on the world.
Vikings- hostile and aggressive
Normans- established judicial system
ALL TOGETHER = ENGLISH CULTURE

22. Anglo-Saxon (Old English) Literature
Anglo-Saxon works include such genres as heroic poetry, religious writings, chronicles, riddles, and legal documents.

23. Old English Poetry
Most Old English poetry deals with the Germanic heroic past.
The most important is Beowulf, which tells the story of the legendary Geatish hero Beowulf.
Although the story is set in Sweden and Denmark, it is written in Old English, and literary historians have designated it as England’s national epic.

24. OLD ENGLISH Language of the Anglo-Saxons = Old English.
Completely different in appearance and sound than Modern English.
Sounded German because of the strong German influence on the Old English language.
Four languages make up Old English:
German
Norse
Latin
Celtic

25. OLD ENGLISH Sample sentences:
se bat seglode fif dagas ("the boat sailed for five days")
bates segl is lytel ("the boat's sail is small [little]")
fif batas seglodon ofer brim ("five boats sailed over the sea")
seglas bata sind lytele ("the sails of the boats are small")
Old English Beowulf Readings

26. HUBRIS Greek word that means “excessive pride”
Ordinarily the tragic flaw possessed by an epic hero
End result for failure to reject hubris is death

27. FATE/WYRD
Wyrd is an Anglo-Saxon concept meaning the principal, power, or agency by which events are predetermined; fate, destiny
ancestral to Modern English “weird”
Angle-Saxons believed in a pre-determined destiny