1. 449-1066 English 12 Honors Mr. Raber
The Anglo-Saxons
English 12 Honors
Mr. Raber

2. Geography #1: GREAT BRITIAN, or simply Britain,
is an island comprising
England
Scotland
Wales.

3. Geography #2: The modern nation known as the UNITED KINGDOM includes:
(The entire light brown region)
includes:
Great Britain
Northern Ireland,
Several smaller islands.

4. Geography #3: Collectively, this group of large and small islands is
also known as the
BRITISH ISLES.

5. Invaders/Settlers: The island of Great Britain has been invaded
and settled by numerous groups of people:
Iberians Celts Romans Angles, Saxons, and Jutes
(Anglo-Saxons)
Danes/Vikings Normans

6. The Iberians
The earliest settlers in Britain were called IBERIANS because it is thought they originally came from the Iberian Peninsula.
*this is the peninsula
of present-day
Portugal
and
Spain

7. The Celts (K)
Among the Celts was a group called the BRYTHONS…sometimes called Britons.
Brython
flag
Their name was later adopted for the land name as BRITAIN.

8. The Celts The religion of the Celts was a form of ANIMISM
ANIMISM = the Latin word for “Spirit”
ANIMISM = belief in the existence of spirits
separable from bodies

9. The Celts
The Celts saw SPIRITS everywhere, and these spirits, or gods, controlled all aspects of existence.

10. The Celts
The Celts believed these spirits/gods had to be constantly satisfied…
sometimes this even made human sacrifice necessary :(

11. The Celts
Priests, called DRUIDS, acted as intermediaries between the gods and the people.
Some think Stonehenge was
used by the Druids for certain
religious functions

12. Celtic Myths
The Celtic myths influenced many British and Irish writers such as
Sir Thomas Malory and William Butler Yeats.
These myths were unlike later Anglo-Saxon stories in various ways.
- For example, unlike the male-dominated Anglo-Saxon stories, the Celtic legends are full of strong women.

13. The Romans
Beginning in 55 B.C., under the leadership of Julius Caesar, the Romans began to invade.
Julius
Caesar

14. The Romans
Nearly 100 years later, under Emperor Claudius, the Celts were finally conquered.
Emperor
Claudius

15. The Romans
The Romans provided the armies and organization that prevented further serious invasions of Britain for several hundred years.
The Romans
were strong
and SMART!

16. Thus…
Mr. Raber must be a Roman

17. The Romans They built a network of roads (some still used today)
** They also built a defensive wall 73 miles long

18. The Romans
During Roman rule, CHRISTIANITY took hold under the leadership of European missionaries.
Christianity later became a UNIFYING force among the people.
The old Celtic religion began to vanish.

19. Romans The Roman Downfall
Despite the strong leadership and government of the Romans, due to ‘troubles at home,’ they evacuated all of their troupes out of Britain by A.D. 409.
Romans

20. The Separated Britain
Without Roman control, Britain was a country full of separate clans.
Unity was gone

21. The Weak Britain
The resulting weakness made the island prime for a series of SUCCESSFUL INVASIONS by non-Christian peoples from the Germanic regions of continental Europe.
WEAK

22. THE INVADERS
The ANGLES and SAXONS from Germany and JUTES from Denmark invaded across the North Sea.
They drove out the old Britons and settled the greater part of Britain.

23. CHANGE The LANGUAGE of the Anglo-Saxons became the dominant language
The Angles also changed the name of the land from Britain to….
Engla land… and eventually ENGLAND

24. Anglo-Saxon England
Was not any more unified than Celtic Britain had been until King Alfred of Wessex, ALFRED THE GREAT, led the Anglo-Saxons against the invading DANES, one of the Viking invaders from the cold North.
Alfred
the
Great
Viking
Invaders

25. The Danes
Eventually, the Danes, plundering and destroying anything in their path…
Took over and settled in parts of northeast and central England

26. Christianity = Unity
It is possible even King Alfred would not have been able to unify the Anglo-Saxons without the
REEMERGENCE OF
CHRISTIANITY

27. and PROPER CONDUCT. Christianity Christianity provided:
a COMMON FAITH
2) COMMON SYSTEM OF MORALITY
and PROPER CONDUCT.

28. Christianity Christianity also LINKED England to Europe.
“Under Christianity and Alfred, the Anglo-Saxons fought to protect their people, their culture, and their church from the ravages of the Danes.”

29. Later…
Both the Anglo-Saxons and the Danes were DEFEATED in 1066 by William, duke of Normandy (The NORMANS).
Battle of
Hastings

30. Transition…
OK…so we know the succession of differing peoples/groups leading up to, and after, the Anglo-Saxons:
Iberians Celts Romans Angles, Saxons, and Jutes
(Anglo-Saxons)
Danes/Vikings Normans

31. Now… Let us focus our attention back on the
ANGLO-SAXONS since that is the time period we are studying, and the time period that Beowulf was often recited in.
Different
depictions
of Beowulf

32. Side Note:
The new Beowulf movie is not exactly the same as the epic we will be reading…
Sorry guys…no Angelina Jolie
Sorry girls…no bulging abs
Censor
Box
Censor
Box

33. Sutton Hoo & The Anglo-Saxons
In 1939 a treasure laden ship-grave was found in Sutton Hoo, Suffolk, England
This Sutton Hoo treasure ship is said to have been buried for 1300 yrs.
Helmet
Ship Dig

34. Thus…
The treasures of Sutton Hoo’s ship showed that the Anglo-Saxons were NOT barbarians
Sutton Hoo
Ship Treasures

35. Anglo-Saxon Life Even though the treasures proved them not barbarians…
The Anglo-Saxons did not lead a life of luxury
Nor were their lives dominated by learning or the arts

36. Anglo-Saxon Life Instead, WARFARE was the order of the day
As displayed in Beowulf, for the Anglo-Saxons, law and order were the responsibility of the leader of any given group
Groups: Family, Clan, Tribe, or Kingdom

37. Anglo-Saxon Life
Fame and success, even survival, were gained only through loyalty to the leader
Success was measured in gifts from the leader
This WILL be seen in Beowulf

38. Anglo-Saxon Life
This pattern of loyal dependency was basic to Anglo-Saxon life
Such loyalty grew out of a need to protect the group from the terrors of an enemy infested wilderness… (Grendel)
A wilderness that became particularly frightening during the long, bone-chilling nights of winter

39. Anglo-Saxon Life Anglo-Saxons tended to live…
close to their animals in single-family homesteads
these homesteads were wooden buildings that surrounded a communal court or warm, fire-lit chieftain’s hall.
This cluster of buildings was protected by a wooden stockade fence

40. Anglo-Saxon Life
Reconstructed Anglo-Saxon Buildings

41. Anglo-Saxon Life
This arrangement, which WILL be seen in Beowulf, contributed to a sense of security and to the close relationship between leader and followers
It also encouraged community discussion and rule by consensus

42. More on Religion #1
Despite the influence of Christianity, some of the old Anglo-Saxon religion, with its warrior gods, persisted
The Anglo-Saxon religion that remained was a dark, fatalistic religion, that had been brought from Germany and is believed to have much in common with Norse or Scandinavian mythology

43. More on Religion #2 Norse Gods:
Odin: the god of death, poetry, and magic
The Anglo-Saxon name for Odin was “Woden” (Woden’s day=Wednesday)
Odin/Woden

44. More on Religion #3 Norse Gods:
Thunor: the god of thunder and lightning
The Anglo-Saxon name for Thunor was “Thor” (Thor’s day=Thursday)
Thunor/Thor

45. Also…
Another significant figure in Anglo-Saxon mythology is the dragon
The dragon is the personification of “death and devourer”
The dragon is also the guardian of the grave mound in which a warrior’s ashes and treasure lay

46. Overall…
The Anglo-Saxon religion seems to have been more concerned with ethics than mysticism
More specifically, they were concerned with the earthly virtues of bravery, loyalty, generosity, and friendship

47. The Singing of Gods and Heroes
Not only did the Anglo-Saxon communal hall provide a place for shelter and council meetings…
But also, it provided spaces for storytellers and their audiences

48. The Singing of Gods and Heroes
These skilled storytellers/bards (such as the storytellers in Homeric Greece more than 1,000 years earlier) sang of gods and heroes
The Anglo-Saxons called these storytellers scops

49. The Singing of Gods and Heroes
These scops were held in the same superiority as warriors
The Anglo-Saxons felt creating poetry was as important as fighting, hunting, farming, or loving

50. Death & Poetry
For the non-Christian Anglo-Saxon, life is hard, ends only in death, and there is no hope of an afterlife
Thus, only fame, and its commemoration in poetry could provide a defense against death and a sense of lasting immortality.
Hence, why bards were considered so important

51. Also… Ireland was not overrun by Germanic invaders
Unlike England and the rest of Europe in the 5th century…
Ireland was not overrun by Germanic invaders
Then, in 432, the whole of Celtic Ireland was converted to Christianity

52. Ireland Continued…
From while England sank into constant warefare, confusion, and ignorance…
Ireland experienced a golden age
Winston Churchill stated that is was in Ireland that Christianity “burned and gleamed through the darkness”

53. Ireland Continued…
Christian Irish monks founded monasteries that became sanctuaries of learning for refugee scholars from Europe and England
These monasteries existed right alongside the older Anglo-Saxon religion
Remember, printing was still 800 yrs. away in England

54. The Link…
In fact, the Christian monks in the monasteries preserved not only the Latin and Greek classics but also some of the great Anglo-Saxon literature/ stories, such as Beowulf, that were being told by the scops

55. The Rise of the English Language
Latin alone remained the language of serious study in England until the time of King Alfred
Alfred instituted the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle

56. Anglo-Saxon Chronicle
This was a lengthy running history of England
Partly because of King Alfred’s efforts, English began to gain respect as a language of culture
Thus, the chronicle displayed some use of English/Old English (Old English: The language Beowulf was composed in)

57. Finally…
Any
Questions?