Before The Anglo-Saxon invasion

Here we have a map showing Britain before being invaded by the Germanic tribes.

The New Invaders

According to the Ecclesiastical History of

the English

People written by an English monk named

Bede, the invaders came from three Germanic tribes:

Angles Saxons Jutes

Who lived in Britain before the AngloSaxons arrived?

There were already people living in Britain before the Anglo-Saxons arrived. These people were the native Britons who remained after the Romans left.
The Anglo-Saxons were invited by the British to settle in England in return for protecting the Britons from raids and pirates. The British were raided by people from the north, the Picts. However more Anglo-Saxons soon arrived and settled throughout the country.

THENThe new period of Britain starts

Where did they come from?

As we can see they come from territories which today are parts of Denmark, Germany and Netherland.

Anglo-Saxon times

Routes taken across the North Sea

Settlements
As we can see on the map the different tribes settled in different places: Jutes: Kent and along the south coast. Angles: east and in the north Midlands. Saxons: between the Jutes and the Angles: from the Thames Estuary westwards.

Anglo-Saxon Kingdoms
East Anglia (East Angles) Essex (East Saxons) Sussex (South Saxons) Wessex (West Saxons) The three largest and most powerful kingdoms: Northumbria Mercia Wessex

Finally the British land ended this way

Anglo-Saxon Soldier

Anglo-Saxon Sword

Other Weapons

Anglo- Saxon Helmet

Example of a Battle

Kings

King Offa of Mercia (757-896)

This king was the most powerful king of Anglo-Saxons kings. He claimed kingship of the English but did not control all of England.

King Offas Dyke

Offa's Dyke is a linear earthwork which roughly follows the Welsh and English boundary. It consists of a ditch and appears to have been carefully aligned to present an open view into Wales from along its length. As originally constructed, it must have been about 27 metres wide and 8 metres from the ditch bottom to the bank top.

Pennys in Offas times

King Offa introduced the English penny, which was the precursor of modern coins. Most of the coins carried the Kings portrait and some carried the portrait of his wife, Cynethryth. The coins were probably minted at Canterbury.

Curiosity
There are some theories claiming that King Offa could have been a Muslim. The evidence presented in support of Offa's supposed conversion is a coin, it is a copy of a gold dinar by the Abbasid Caliph AlMansur, the original of which is dated AD 774. Along with the Islamic Arabic inscriptions ("There is no god but Allah and there is no associate unto Him"), there is on one side the Latin inscription "Offa Rex". It has been suggested that this is proof that Offa wanted to declare publically his Islam by making coins with the Muslim creed on them. He postulates that Offa may have learnt about Islam by visting Spain.

The Witan
The Witan was the Kings Council, it grew out of informal groups of senior warriors to whom King Offa had turned for advice ond difficult matters. The Witans authority was based on its right to choose kings, without its support the Kings authority was in danger.

Anglo-Saxon Plough

The Anglo-Saxons introduced a heavy plough which was able to plough in long straight lines across the field, it was useful for cultivating heavier soils, but it required six or eight oxen to pull it and it was difficult to turn.

Anglo-Saxon Manor
The Manor was a simple building where local villagers came to pay taxes, where justice was administrated and where men met together to join the army, called fyrd.

King Alfred of Wessex (849-899)

He was the king who made most use of the church. Apart from being king of Wessex he was also recognised as king in the whole country as his kingdom was the only kingdom which held out against Vikings. During his struggle against the Danes, he built walled settlement to keep the Vikings out. He started the AngloSaxon chronicle together with Bedes Ecclesiastical

History of the English People for understanding

the period and to educate the people.

The
AngloSaxon
King Alfred planning the battle against the Vikings

Chronicle

CULTURE

AND SOCIETY

Anlgo-SaxonSociety
The Aristocracy - The territory was divided into seven separate kingdoms, Each kingdom was ruled by a king The Middle Class - Itwas divided into three main classes of freemen. They had the right and duty to serve in the fyrd, which was the Anglo-Saxon military. The lower class - At the lowest end was the slave. Slaves were allowed to own property and could earn money in their spare time which allowed them to buy their freedom.

King and Queens Clothing

Anglo-Saxon kings wore tunics with trim and tight fitting pants. They wore silk or wool cloaks that were fastened with pins. The queens clothing consisted of a linen under dress, and an overdress made of silk, wool or heavy linen. They also wore a wimple and veil.

Mens Clothing
Men wore a short cloak or cape, made of skin or fur.They also wore trousers beneath a tunic. Most men also wore a tunic, girdled at the waist and usually with long sleeves. Belts were worn both to hold up the trousers and to girdle the tunic.

Womens Clothing
The basic item of clothing was a dress clasped at the shoulders by a pair of brooches, leaving the arms uncovered in cold weather. Many women also wore cloaks, capes or shawls. A cloak or shawl could easily be drawn up over the head.

A modern replica (copy) of the lyre found at the Sutton Hoo ship-burial. A lyre is a musical instrument played with the fingers, like a harp.

A pot used in an AngloSaxon burial. The burned remains and bones of a dead person were put in the pot, which was then buried.

Bone Combs
The Anglo-Saxons made combs out of bone and antler. The bone came from animals such as horses, cattle, sheep and pigs. The antler came from deer.

Combs are quite commonly found on Anglo-Saxon sites, which suggests the Anglo-Saxons were concerned about their appearance. Regular use of combs would also help reduce fleas and head lice.

A set of 'gaming pieces. The pieces were used in board and gambling games

ANGLO-SAXON JEWELLS

BUILDINGS
VILLAGE
Ordinary Anglo-Saxons usually lived in small villages. These would be made up of about four or five farms; they usually kept their animals near the house and they would grew crops nearby.
Most Anglo-Saxon buildings were constructed of wood with wattle and daub walls. Most buildings were square or rectangular, although some round houses have been found. There were hearths inside where the people could make a fire to cook on and to keep them warm.

HALL

OLD ENGLISH
Old English was spoken between the 5th and 11th centuries. Old English began to appear in writing during the early 8th century. Most texts were written in West Saxon, one of the four main dialects. The other dialects were Mercian, Northumbrian and Kentish. The Anglo-Saxons adopted the styles of script used by Irish missionaries, such as Insular half-uncial, which was used for books in Latin.

OLD ENGLISH WRITTEN IN RUNIC ALPHABET

Old English was sometimes written with a version of the Runic alphabet, brought to Britain by the AngloSaxons until about the 11th century.

LITERATURE BEOWULF ANGLO-SAXON CHRONICLES

These chronicles are a collection of seven manuscripts written in Old English by monks in the form of a diary, tell the story of England, and cover a period of over a thousand years. In some cases the entries were made several years after the events took place.

One of the earliest European epics written in native language. The story is set in Scandinavia, before the migration. Though it is a traditional the poem as we have it is thought to be the work of a single poet. It was composed in England.

The Venerable Bede

(673-735)

Bede was a Christian monk who is considered "Father of English History." He wrote the "Ecclesiastical History of the English People with king Alfred; this work records events in Britain from the raids by Julius Caesar in 55-54 BC to the arrival of the first missionary from Rome, Saint Augustine in 597.

The first page of Bede's History of the English Church and People

This is a page from an Old English manuscript. It shows Noah's Ark, from the Bible. Many Anglo-Saxon books were religious

Cdmon
Cdmon, in the seventh century, was the author of several Anglo-Saxon poems based upon biblical narratives. Our sole source of information for his life is an account by the Venerable Bede

Days of the week

Religion
POPE GREGORY THE GREAT (590 - 604)

AUGUSTINE
He became the first Archbishop of Canterbury in 601. He was sent by Pope Gregory to convert the "English" to Christianity.

Gregory was a roman monk who became Pope. In 597 he sent a monk, Augustine, to re-establish Christianity in England.

Synod of Whitby (663)

The Synod of Whitby marked a turning point in the teachings of Christianity in Britain. At this council, religious leaders and King Oswy of Northumbria decided to follow Roman, not Celtic, teachings.

Augustine found that the missionaries from Ireland observed Easter at a different time from that which had been appointed by the Roman church. After years of controversy it was agreed that a synod should be held in order to settle the problem. The synod was held in Streoneshalh now called Whitby.

Roman Church increased its power by building monasteries

CONCLUSION
Historical sources mention incomers from regions called Angeln and Saxony, so we call these newcomers Anglo-Saxons. Their way of life can indeed be paralleled in northern Germany and Denmark, but also in northern France, the Netherlands and Scandinavia and there would have been an element of the original Romano-British population. At the same time Christianity became established, the first towns formed from trading centres and the Anglo-Saxons started minting their own coinage. With time, the kingdoms were united, notably under Alfred the Great in the ninth century, when the Anglo-Saxons faced major opposition from Viking settlers in the east and north of England. By the 950s, one unified kingdom emerged.

Additional information

Kings of Wessex
In the eighth century England consisted of seven Anglo-Saxon sub-kingdoms. Cerdic of Wessex (519-534), the founder of the Wessex line, claimed a mythical descent from the great Wodin himself. According to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, Cerdic was a Saxon Ealdorman who landed in Hampshire in 495 with his son Cynric and fought with the Britons becoming the first King of Wessex. The dynasty he founded was to rule England for over two hundred years.

KING EGBERT 802-839

KING AETHELWULF 839-856

KING AETHELRED 866-871

KING THELDARD 856-860

KING THELBERT 860-866

Trabajo realizado por:

Elhammachi, Nihad Y
Perry Rodrguez, Lorraine