1. The Anglo-Saxon and Medieval Periods
The Middle Ages
British Literature
Taken from The Longman Anthology of British Literature and *The Language of Literature

2. The Celts
Geological signs indicate that Paleolithic man arrived some 50,000 years before the ice cap severed Britain from the continent
Approx. 400 BC - The first British people were Celtic people (inhabitors of the British Isles and northern France, also called Brittany)

3. The Celts
The Celts that settled in Ireland formed a distinct culture and eventually colonized in parts of Scotland
the Picts, a pre-Celtic people, also lived there

4. The Invasions
Approx. 1st through 5th centuries – Romans occupied Briton (Constantine’s conversion to Christianity in the 4th century brought Christianity to Briton)
The Picts and Scots were never “Romanized”

5. The Romans*
Introduced cities, fine paved roads, written scholarship, and eventually Christianity.
The “Romanized” Britons became dependent on the Roman military for protection.

6. The Invasions
Early fifth century: Roman armies abandoned Britain to defend the city of Rome, and Britain became the target of invasion.
The Picts and the Scots began to harass the “Briton” Celts

7. The Invasions
Approx 6th and 7th centuries - the Britons invited German allies, the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes from Europe, to come to their aid
The Angles, Saxons, and Jutes eventually also become oppressors
The Britons resisted (possibly under the leader that later became known as Arthur)

8. Anglo-Saxons Many of the Briton Celts retreated westward (Wales)
In southern and central Britain, Celtic culture all but disappeared.
Angles and Saxons intermarried and became the Anglo-Saxons

9. Anglo-Saxons*
Anglo-Saxons eventually began calling themselves the British (after the Britons they originally displaced) and even took on the Celtic hero Arthur as their own.
The Angles were dominant in the early history of the Heptarch; therefore, the area of Germanic settlement became known as Angle-land , or England, and the people became known as the English.

10. Anglo-Saxons*
Scholars use the term Anglo-Saxon to refer to this time period in British History.

11. Growth of Christianity*
Despite the collapse of Roman power, Christianity never completely died out in British Isles.
In 597, A Roman Missionary, Augustine, established a monastery at Canterbury.
By 690 most of Britain was Christian.

12. The Vikings
Late 9th century – the Vikings invade (Danish)

13. The Norman Conquest
1066, William the Conqueror of Normandy (France) invades when the Anglo-Saxon king Edward dies and his successor, King Harold, is disputed
Normans (North Men) were originally Vikings that settled in France that eventually accepted French ways
William’s introduction of French practices started the Medieval (middle) period in England

14. The Normans: feudalism
The Normans established the feudal system:
The king kept a fourth of the land, gave a fourth to the church, and parceled the rest out to his barons*
A nobleman (fief) held land from the king and owed the king military and judicial services (including providing knights)
The knights held land from the fief (their lord) and owed him military service and other duties
Serfs (Anglo-Saxons) lived on the land belonging to the knight, took care of it, and owed him agricultural produce and rent (some of which the knight then in turn owed this fief); they were bound to the land on which they were born

15. The Normans: culture The cultural impact of the Normans was great
The with the Norman conquest also came a strong influence of the intellectual current and the arts of Europe along with frequent travel back and forth
Aristocratic women were educated (at convents), became the focus of much literature, and were central to social rituals like courtly love

16. Celtic
Roman
Danish
German
French

17. Henry II & Becket
The Normans also believe that the church and its law should be separate from secular power, causing conflicts between monarchs that wanted to control the clergy
Becket was Henry II best friend and fellow rabble-rouser
Henry II decided to name Becket as Archbishop of Canterbury so than he could have influence over the church
Becket took his new position very seriously and strove to follow God’s will (causing many great conflicts with Henry)
Henry II had Becket killed in 1170 at the altar of Canterbury Cathedral
Becket was quickly canonized (made a saint) and Canterbury became the destination of a regular religious pilgrimage

18. William’s Descendants*
Eleanor of Aquitaine, former French Queen and wife of Henry II, brought ideals of chivalry, code of honor, knightly behavior, and encouraged holy quests
Henry II’s 2 sons:
Richard I (the lionhearted) fought the Crusades in France, where English possessions were threatened.
John—the villain in many Robin Hood legends– plotted against Richard I.

19. John becomes King*
In 1215 John I was forced to sign the Magna Carta (Great Charter) which limited royal authority by granting more power to the barons.
Under Edward I, the House of Commons (commoners) were included in parliament.

20. Return of English
The Normans and Anglo-Saxons began to intermarry, and by the 13th century, English was the official language of discourse

21. The Hundred Year’s War*
War between England and France continued off and on for more than a century…
during which England experienced many domestic crises
Black Death
Peasant’s Revolt
Richard II forced to abdicate

22. The Hundred Year’s War*
These things led to the conflict between the house of York (white rose) and the house of Lancaster (red rose) for the claim of the throne: War of the Roses.
In 1485 Lancaster’s Henry Tudor killed York’s king Richard III, ending the war…
becoming King Henry VII, marking the end of the Middle Ages in England.

23. The Plague
Between 1348 and 1375, the Black Death (plague) struck 4 times and killed nearly half of the population