The AngloSaxons and the Celts

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The Anglo-Saxons and the Celts
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The Anglo-Saxons and the Celts

• As the Franks settled into France, warriors from
  the area Germany (Angles, Saxons and Jutes)
  moved in, driving out the Celtic peoples
• The Celts used to inhabit much of Europe, from
  Spain all the way to southern Russia. Now, they
  were pushed all the way to Ireland
• The Celts used to be a powerful people, however
  now the Celtic language and culture were
  disappearing
• The Anglo-Saxons (the English) had arrived in its
  place

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Anglo-Saxon England

• The Anglo-Saxons were farmers
• They lived in small villages and men and women
  shared the work
• They were very talented metal workers and story
  tellers
• Beginning in the ninth century, Anglo-Saxon
  England suffered from Viking attacks
• Alfred the Great, an early ruler of the
  Anglo-Saxons lost many battles before discovering
  how to beat the Vikings
• He left western and northern England united at
  his death, however many years of weak king and
  Viking invasions would be disastrous to England
  until the time of William the Conqueror

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The Irish

• The Celts had practiced a form of nature worship
  called Druidism for many centuries
• They fought bloody battles, kept slaves and made
  human sacrifice until the fifth century
• It all changed when St. Patrick, who became the
  patron saint of Ireland, brought Christianity and
  a respect for learning to the Irish
• Large monasteries sprang up in the countryside
  and coastal regions
• These regions were not only learning centers for
  Irish monks but also for scholars from the rest
  of Europe, fleeing from Germanic invasions

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Ireland-contd.

• Until Charlemagne, Ireland was the greatest
  centre of learning in Europe
• Irish monks spread Christianity throughout Europe
• They carried books on their belts, much like
  their warrior ancestors had once carried the
  heads of enemies
• The Irish monks also played a pivotal role in
  preserving the cultural legacy of ancient
  Ireland, Greece and Rome.
• Monasteries became like a book factory.
• Before the printing press, every book was written
  by hand on parchment
• The Monks copied many Latin, Greek and Celtic
  classics that may have otherwise been lost forever