Anglo-Saxon Background (449-1066)

1. Prehistory
   1. Iberians
   2. Celts
2. History
   1. Romans arrived in England in 43. and withdraw in the early 5th Century.
   2. Anglo-Saxons arrived in 449.
3. The Anglo-Saxons
   1. Consisted of three tribes: the Angles, the Saxons, and the Jutes.
   2. Were a nomadic people, i.e., they wandered in search of food and good weather.
   3. Respected hunting skill, intelligence, physical strength, leadership ability, integrity, trustworthiness, loyalty, courage.
   4. Sought leaders who possessed those qualities that were required for success in nomadic life.
4. The structure of Anglo-Saxon society:
   1. The heroic ideal was that individual who best embodied those qualities necessary for survival in nomadic life. He is also referred to as the tribal leader, the lord, or the king.
   2. The witenagemot consisted of the elders, or wise men, of the tribe. As the most experienced warriors, the provided advise and counsel to the tribal leader.
   3. The thanes were members of the warrior class.
   4. The comitatus was a relationship of mutual respect and loyalty that existed between a lord and his thanes.
   5. Last, but by no means least is the scop. The scop was the tribal poet in addition to being a thane. His was a central role in Anglo-Saxon society. The epics and stories which he sang identified and illustrated the virtues and values of the tribe. His performances also passed those virtues and values on to the new generation.
5. The religion of the Anglo-Saxons was fatalism. Fatalism is the belief that events are inevitable and irreversible. Fatalism was a logical reflection of the lives that the Anglo-Saxons lived. Their  lives were filled with challenges and hardships. Nature was harsh and unforgiving. They concluded that that the gods who would create this world were harsh and unforgiving too.
6. The Influence of Christianity:
   1. Religious. Monks arrived in 597. when Pope Gregory the Great sent them to convert the Angles to Christianity. The first settlement was at Canterbury; that city remains the center of the Church of England today. The Anglo-Saxons quickly adapted to and accepted Christianity. It offered two advantages that pagan fatalism did not: mercy and self determination coming from a kind and loving God.
   2. Literary. The preservation of Anglo-Saxon literature was encouraged by Pope Gregory's dictum: "Do not destroy the pagan temples."  The literacy of the monks provided an additional, though not completely religious value: it preserved the oral literature of the Anglo-Saxons which would otherwise have disappeared.
7. The Anglo-Saxon Period ends in 1066 when William of Normandy, William the Conqueror, defeats Harold and the Saxon troops at the Battle of Hastings.