1. Anglo-Saxon Period

2. Britain Before the Anglo-Saxons
No recordings to document earliest British Isle Inhabitants. Some were Iberians (Spain and Portugal ), others the Celts from Southern Europe.
Brythons (“Britons”) settled the largest island.
Farmers & hunters organized into loyal clans headed by a chieftain.
Priests called Druids recited long heroic poems from memory about famed and mythical leaders of the past.

3. The Roman Conquest
55 B.C. and again a year later, Julius Caesar invades, but barely penetrated the island.
Caesar declares the island “conquered,” and leaves.
Roman rule lasts over 300 years, and towns fall into ruin.

4. The Anglo-Saxon Conquest
Angles & Saxons (+ small number of Jutes)
“war-smiths,” pirates
Small raids turned into full-scale invasion
Shallow boats rowed up river into the British heartland
Camps built
Angle-Saxons waged war
Anglo-Saxon arrival marks the beginning of the English (“Angle-ish”) language.

5. Early Anglo-Saxon Life
Invading groups set up small kingdoms
Frequent fighting
Over time, tribes intermarried, forming larger tribes
Intermingling produced a new language (called Old English to distinguish it from our contemporary style).
A-S had grim view of life due to constant dangers of accident or warfare
Believed their lives were in the hands of fate
Worshipped multiple gods
Frightened Britons retreated to northern part of the island (Wales, Scotland)/ spoke Celtic language

7. The Coming of Christianity
4th C, Romans introduce Christianity to Britain
Christianity has profound effect on A-S civilization.
??? Why? How? ???
Christianity does not allow for the “excuse” of FATE.
Promise of the afterlife, based on behavior on Earth kept people better behaved.
Church brought about peace and unified the English people.

8. Christianity and Literature
Church brought:
Education
Schools opened in Canterbury and York.
Literature
Monks worked as scribes, recording manuscripts, or books written by hand.
Venerable Bede: “Father of English History” wrote A History of the English Church and People.

9. The First Danish Invasion
Alfred The Great
Between 9C and 12C invaders came from Scandinavia.
“Vikings” burned and pillaged villages & burned manuscripts.
Most British territory falls, only Wessex survives.
King of Wessex
Preseved remants of pre- Danish civilization
Encouraged rebirth of learning and education
Oversaw translation of Bede’s history from Latin into A-S

10. Anglo-Saxon Literature
Druids served as storytellers, reciting poems about Celtic leaders, warriors and heroes from memory.
Scops- professional minstrels, assisted by gleemen. Performed at ceremonial occasions (ex: battle victory).
caesura- mid-line pause
alliteration- repetition of vowel sounds
hyperbole- a figure of speech that exaggerates
kenning- a metaphorical phrase used to replace a concrete noun
??? Why Poems ???
A-S literature began with spoken verse!

11. The Beowulf Legend Types of Anglo- Saxon Verse Epic- long heroic poem
Honors cultural values such as courage, strength, dignity
Unknown author
Why???
Types of Anglo- Saxon Verse
pagan-non Christian belief
in wyrd- fate
riddles- short, puzzle- like poems in which reader is invited to identify an object, animal, natural phenomenon or process
elegiac poetry- mourns the death of loved ones and the loss of the past

12. Common Themes Winter Sea winters were tough (???Why???)
time is often counted in “winters” (ex. “10 winters have passed = 10 years)
Sea
They were sea people- often compared their lives to the state of the sea
Fits with the “dark and stormy” soberness found in their works

13. Unit Essential Questions
Has the definition of a hero changed over time?
How does the earliest literature and an understanding of its chronology and themes contribute to how we as a people came to be who we are today?