The Anglo-Saxon Period

(410-1066 CE)

Who Were the Anglo-Saxons?

• Early 400s: Britain occupied by Celts, under attack from Scots and Irish

• Sought help from Angles, Saxons, & Jukes (from what is now Germany)

• Roman armies left “worthless” Britain; were needed in Rome to defend the crumbling Empire.

• Anglo-Saxons arrived in England in 410 AD, after the fall of the Roman Empire.

• Instead of helping Celts, drove them into mountains and claimed their land

Formation of Kingdoms

• Settled into small tribes in the southeastern part of the island, called it “Angle-land.”

• Formed kingdoms and sub-kingdoms:

-Northumbria

-Mercia

-East Anglia

-Wessex

-Kent

Kings

• Each village ruled by a “cyning” or “king” who led a small army

• Kings fought each other for proof of strength & title of “bretwalda,” or the king of all Britain.

• Offa: king of Mercia (strongest kingdom; he was strongest king.)

Laws

• No prisons; criminals either executed or fined• Criminals who ran: considered outlaws &

anyone could hunt them down, unless they hid in a church.

• Punishments:

-Breaking into a home: 5 pence, paid to homeowner.– Petty crimes: nose or hand cut off

-Murder: murderer paid $ to victim’s relatives

Villages

• Anglo-Saxons “were their own masters in a new land (bbc.com).”

• Replaced Roman stone buildings with wooden ones.

• Villages: small family homes surrounding a larger hall (“Mead Hall”).

• Homes: one-room, all members of a family living there.

• FUN FACT 1: It took about 18 trees to make 1 house.• FUN FACT 2: Door keys were made of deer antler.

Slaves vs. Free People

• Freemen: owned land and slaves. Richest and most powerful were Thanes who helped the king rule.

• Slaves: owned nothing. May have been prisoner of war or born into slavery. Treated badly; could not leave owner unless sold or set free.

Growing Up Girl

• Belief : girls and boys were of equal importance.

• Girls’ work: centered around home; learned housekeeping skills like weaving, cooking, making cheese, and brewing beer.

• Age 10: Girls were considered grown-up.• Most girls married, but not to someone above

their rank. They were able to choose who they wanted to marry.

Growing Up Boy

• Learned the skills of their dads: cutting down trees, chopping wood, how to plough, how to use a sword.

• Rowed boats, collected birds’ eggs (eat), netted wild duck, hunted deer & wild boar with men (hunters used trained hawks).

• Most children (male or female) didn’t learn to read or write.

Their Jobs (Men)

• Most were farmers, & all members of family worked the farm

• Some had special skills:- “Smiths:” iron tools, knives, swords- “Woodworkers:” wooden bowls, furniture, carts, wheels- “Potters:” pottery from clay

- “Shoemakers:” leather shoes- “Jewelers:” metal brooches, beads, gold

ornaments for rich people• FUN FACT 3: Bottles were made of leather. Glass was only for

the rich.(From BBC-Primary History-Anglo-Saxons (www.bbc.co.uk)

Leisure

• Feasts: The leader (“Lord”) of a village entertained their followers with feasts held in the Lord’s Hall (“Mead” (liquor) Hall”). They ate meat, drank ale, and listened to stories and poems.

• NO ONE COULD READ OR WRITE• Riddles & Runes: amused themselves by telling

riddles and reading runes (letters of their alphabet, thought to have magical powers).

An Anglo-Saxon Riddle

• “My nose points downwards. I along digging into the ground.”

• Answer: a plough

FUN FACT 4: Our word “game” comes from the Old English (Anglo-Saxon) word “gamen.”

Leisure

• Storytelling: stories and poems about heroic warriors. Beowulf was a favorite. Storytellers played the lyre (small, harp-like instrument)

• Games & Sports: preferences were rough sports (wrestling, weight-lifting (rocks), horse racing, swimming). Ball games (early forms of hockey, baseball, & cricket) & gambling.

• FUN FACT: the Anglo-Saxon word for “sports ground” was “plegstrow”

Paganism

• Anglo-Saxons religion: Paganism (the worship of different gods)

• 2 most important gods:

-Woden: the head god

-Thunor (Thor): god of thunder• Religion based upon prayer to different gods to

protect various material things (crops, houses) & provide good weather, health, luck, etc.

• Sacrifices of inanimate objects.

Days of the Week

• Four Anglo-Saxon gods gave their names to days of the week:

Tiw-Tuesday

Woden- Wednesday

Thunor- Thursday

Frige- FridayFUN FACT 5: “Eostre:” goddess of spring.

Christians took over her name for “Easter.”

Superstition

• Were extremely superstitious

• Believed in lucky charms (magical object or words, to protect from harm)

• Magic rhymes, potions, stones, or jewels used for protection against evil spirits or illness

Conversion to Christianity

• In 597, St. Augustine arrived & converted most to Christianity.

• By huge contrast, Christianity focused on only 1 god, who dealt mainly with spiritual, not material, matters.

• By 650: almost all England was Christian (but many still held to pagan beliefs)

• “They are, admittedly, two vastly different belief systems. If you are schooled from an early age to pray to Thor, asking him to bless your axe and sword and shield and helmet, then you might be a little dumbfounded when presented with the Christian God, who, through his messenger Jesus, asks you to "turn the other cheek." You might also be confused to learn that Christianity has no goddess of the harvest. To such a question as, "Who will look after my crops?" a Christian monk might very well have said, "Why, you will, of course." Somehow, it wasn't quite the same.”

• (From “A Clash of Beliefs: Religion in Anglo-Saxon England.” www.suite101.com)