Download The Anglo-Saxon Period

The Anglo-Saxon Period (449-1066)—Lecture Notes
During the 4th century B.C., Greek travelers discovered England was settled by tall
blond warriors known as Celts. Some were called Brythons or Britons. This is where we
get the name Britain.
Their religion was a form of animism, Latin for spirit.
-The Celts saw spirits everywhere (in rivers, trees, stones, and the woods).
-The spirits controlled all aspects of existence, and they had to be satisfied. This
was done by ritual dances and human sacrifices.
-Priests were called Druids, and they acted as intermediaries between the gods
and the people.
Celtic stories are dominated by strong women. They deal with magic and strong
imagination. In the stories, one will find fantastic animals, passionate love affairs, and
great adventures.
The Romans
The Romans invaded England in 55 B.C. under the leadership of Julius Caesar.
They were very organized; they built roads, some of which still exist today, a 70-mile
wall (Hadrian’s Wall—on page 7 of the text), and a solid central government.
Christianity began to dominate the Celtic religion as a result of Roman rule.
In 409 A.D., the Romans left England because of troubles back in Rome. They left
everything behind. Because of no central government, England was now weak and
prone to invasion. The result was a series of successful invasions by non-Christian
peoples from the Germanic regions.
The Anglo Saxons
The Angles and Saxons from Germany and the Jutes from Denmark invaded England in
449 A.D. The Anglo-Saxon language became the dominant language, and the country
was named “Engla Land.”
To the Anglo Saxons, creating poetry was as important as fighting, hunting, farming,
and loving. They performed their poetry with music from a harp. The scops were skilled
storytellers who sang of gods and heroes. Most of the Anglo-Saxon poetry is elegiac, or
poetry that mourns the death of a person or laments something lost.
The Celts fought hard to keep their land, but they were eventually pushed off to presentday Wales. Traces of their culture and language are still found there.
The Danes invaded England next and fought against the Anglo Saxons. As the battles
between these groups occurred, William, Duke of Normandy invaded England in 1066
and defeated both the Anglo Saxons and the Danes.