Anglo-Saxon England

1
Anglo-Saxon England

• Anglo-Saxon England was born in warfare, remained
  a military society, and came to an end in 1066
  because the Normans were militarily superior.

2
Invasions of EnglandThis era of British history
encompasses the following cultures

• Celts (800-600 B.C.)
• Romans(55 B.C.)
• Angles, Saxons, Jutes(A.D. 449)
• Vikings(A.D. 700)

3
Celtic tribes

• Settled in 5th Century B.C. from Southern Europe
• People were mad keen on war, full of spirit and
  quick to begin a fight
• Familiar Celt? King Arthur was a Celtic king who
  fought the Saxons

4
Celtic Religion

• Believed that gods and spirits were everywhere
• Druids made sacrifices (sometimes human) to the
  gods for the people.
• Shady oak trees were favorite places for
  religious ceremonies

5
Responsibilities of Druid Priests

• Held religious ceremonies
• Made sacrifices
• Tried people for crimes in court
• Passed on knowledge to the younger generation
• Called the whole tribe together in an assembly
  each year.

6
Celtic Festivals

• Samain Night of Oct. 31st to Nov. 1st when all
  the spirits of the Other world were set loose on
  the human world. A time of great danger. The
  beginning of the Celtic year.

7
Celtic Festivals

• Beltane 1st of May when feasting, sacrificing
  and celebration took place to thank the gods for
  getting the people safely through the winter. It
  was also to help with fertility of crops and
  animals. A giant man of straw was burnt.

8
Celtic Festivals

• Lughnasa 15 days before the 1st of August and
  15 days after was a festival to celebrate the
  harvesting of the crops.

9
Romans J. Caesar invaded in 55 B.C.

• To the Romans, Britain was a remote wilderness
  only known from traders reports
• Commodities Corn, cattle, gold, silver, iron,
  hides, slaves, and clever hunting dogs
• Emp. Claudius fully dominated Britain in A.D. 43
• Scotland, Ireland continued Celtic traditions
  Celtic Fringe
• Results? Urban civilization, education for sons,
  walled towns, Christianity, warfare, roads

10
Anglo-Saxon invasionA.D. 449

• Romans withdrew in 407 because of European tribes
  invading Italy
• Angles, Saxons, Jutes Germanic tribes who
  destroyed Roman civilization
• Culture
• Ruled by a king chosen by witan (council of
  elders)
• Lived by strict codes of conduct loyalty to
  leader and tribe were necessary for the survival
  of all.

11
Anglo-Saxon way of life

• Ruler was generous with food, gold, drink, and
  weapons to those who were loyal
• All people were aware of the shortness of life
  and the passing away of all things
• Everything was determined by fate
• The only thing that lasted was fame, so all
  competed for it

12
Anglo-Saxon Justice

• Emphasis on revenge
• If someone killed a member of your family, if you
  could, kill the slayer, or the next best thing
  a member of his family
• When a man committed the unpardonable offense of
  a crime against an actual kinsman, vengeance
  could be averted by payment of blood money
  WERGILD

13
Christianity

• By the year 300, a significant amount of Britons
  were Christians
• Romans pulled out, Christianity fell
• 597 St. Augustine arrived on an order from Pope
  Gregory
• He est. a monastery in Canterbury
• Became the first Archbishop of Canterbury
• The church enjoyed a revival
• Christianity had to compete with Pagan rituals.

14
Absorption of pagan ideas into Christianity

• Remember pagan means one who is not Christian,
  Jewish, or Muslim (monotheistic)
• Easter Eostre was the Anglo-Saxon goddess of
  dawn
• Rabbits and colored eggs were symbols of new life

15
Christmas

• Originally set in December to compete with Pagan
  winter festivals held at the same time
• Gift giving a pagan ritual
• Pre-Christian winter festivals used greenery,
  lights, and fires to symbolize life and warmth in
  the midst of cold and darkness
• Teutonics and Scandinavians associated with tree
  worship

16
Influences of Christianity to the Anglo-Saxon
Culture

• Monasteries were important centers of social,
  intellectual, artistic, and literary life
• Monks copied books imported from other European
  countries
• Bede a Northumbrian monk who is considered the
  father of English history
• Earliest historian of England
• Earliest important prose writer
• Venerable in recognition of his reputation for
  wisdom, humility, and scholarship
• Wrote History of the English Church and People

17
Vikinginvasion700-1100

• From Scandinavia
• Norse Norway
• Danes Denmark
• Didnt overthrow all Anglo-Saxonssimply settled
  in the east and north (Danelaw)

18
Alfred the Great(King Alfred of Wessex)871-899

• He united his people
• Forced the Danes to the Northeast part of England
• He promoted the use of written English rather
  than the Latin the monks copied
• Encouraged original works
• Wrote The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle the first
  historical record kept in English
• Created a code of law
• Founded first English public schools

19
Anglo-Saxon Literature

• There is little humor found in the literature
  because life was so difficult
• Most of the stories and poems deal with
  circumstances where only the strong survive
• Oral tradition
• Poems were not written but sung accompanied by a
  harp
• Kings and nobles would entertain large groups of
  people in enormous halls, often to celebrate
  victory in battle

20
Pagan traditions

• Fate
• Rewards from the leader in the form of treasure
  (booty)
• Fame others will hear about your deeds
• Dead bodies were burned
• Code of honor Defend your lord with your life
• Belief in omens
• Mead Hall safety, fellowship, home

21
Oral Tradition

• Scops they recited poems or retold stories
  about legendary heroes and adventures (all by
  memory)
• Gleeman assistant to the scop
• Purposes were to entertain, pass along religious
  beliefs, rituals, and customs, and to glorify the
  heroes (remember only fame lasts!)

22
Types of Poetry

• Heroic epic a long, narrative poem whose
  central character is a hero
• The hero is a noble figure with great courage and
  superhuman abilities
• Most epic heroes are important figures in a
  nations legends or history
• Elegiac Lyric
• A single speaker expresses thoughts and feelings
• Recalls the glories of the past
• Solemn subjects such as death
• Riddles
• Composed in verse and challenged the listeners to
  guess their subject

23
Normans!

• 1066
• Invaders from France
• Fall of Anglo-Saxon rule