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Anglo-Saxons. Presentation by Rebecca Patrick and Tara MacTaggart. Who were the Anglo-Saxons?. Ruled for six centuries: approximately 450 to 1066. Little is known about the first settlers.
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Anglo-Saxons Presentation by Rebecca Patrick and Tara MacTaggart
Who were the Anglo-Saxons? • Ruled for six centuries: approximately 450 to 1066. • Little is known about the first settlers. • People from different areas (the Angles, the Saxons, and the Jutes) most likely thought of themselves as different, but just sharing a language and having similar customs. • Different areas were divided into “shires”. Though they were all administered differently, they all had specific people in charge of justice and tax collection. • The order of social classes were the King, upper class thanes, lower class ceorls, and slaves at the bottom.
The Rise of their Empire • Britain had been ruled by the Romans for approximately 400 years, but problems in Rome caused the Romans to go back to modern Italy. • This gave the Anglo-Saxons the ability to go to modern day England and take over, as the British had relied on the Romans for military. • It is not known why the Anglo-Saxons went to Britain, but it is thought to be because there was lots of natural resources and good soil in England at the time.
Farming and Food • Many people in the countryside were farmers. Ceorls worked together on farms and shared the end product. Ceorls worked the land for money. • Common crops grown were wheat, oats, and lentils. • The only available sweetener at the time was honey, there was no sugar. • Oxen and horses were used for heavy labour on farms as well as for transportation.
Leisure • Travelling was used for trade and also for fun. However, if you weren’t recognized you were thought to be an outsider and could be killed. • Games they enjoyed included chess and various games with dice. Riddles were also popular, along with horse racing. • Entertainers were jugglers, who juggles knives or balls, and musicians, who played the harp.
Anglo-Saxon Riddle Ic on wincle gefrægn weaxan nathwætþindan ond þunian þecene hebbanon þæt banlease bryd grapodehygewlonc hondum hrægle theahteþrindende þing þeodnes dohtor. ------Translation------I have learned that something grows in the corner,swells and expands, has a covering;on that boneless thing a woman graspsaround with hands, with a garmentthe lord's daughter covered the swollen thing.
Clothing • Men wore tunics or robes and shoes. • Women wore dresses or long robes and shoes. • Coloured material was more expensive, so most clothes were not coloured.
Women and Slavery • Women were not considered to be equal to men. • They were expected to do everything that their husbands wanted them to. • Rich women wore lots of jewellery. • Slaves were buried with their masters or mistresses. A tomb of an Anglo-Saxon woman was found with her brutally killed slave’s body on top of her coffin, to serve her in the afterlife. • You could become a slave by being a prisoner of war, not having enough money to pay a fine, being sold into slavery by your family, or being born a slave. • To no longer be a slave you had to be given freedom by your owner or pay of a debt if it was the reason you had become a slave.
Religion • Were Pagans at first.- Three of their gods and one of their goddesses became the days of the week… Tiw (Tuesday), Woden (Wednesday), Thor (Thursday), and Frig (Friday).- Could tell by things such as place names… for example, Wednesbury and Wednesfield were after the god Woden.- The survival of place-names can give us two kinds of information; they identify the gods that were worshipped, and they indicate former shrines or holy-places. • Became Christians around 597.- Pope Gregory was “appalled at the idea of going to a barbarous, fierce, and pagan nation…”.- He didn’t want the shrines to be destroyed, but changed to Christian places of worship. • The change from Paganism to Christianity was relatively quick.- Took 84 years for the change.
Discovery of Burial http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7kY4qWI_7zE Only the religious were buried.
Battles and War • Becoming king wasn’t hereditary, it depended on the ability to conquer and win battles so the best people in battle became king. • The typical weapon was a spear made of ash wood and iron. • Only nobility used swords, which were about 2½ feet long. • Shields were made of wood covered with leather and some iron. • Vikings had chain mail, swords, and helmets that made them more prepared for battle.
The Fall of the Anglo-Saxon Empire • The Vikings came to England around the end of the eighth century, where they were able to completely occupy a part of East England by 870. • The Vikings, who had a stronger military, were able to raid Britain. Once there they burned churches, stole animals and precious things, and massacred people. • In 1066, the Duke of Normandy beat the Earl of Wessex in the Battle of Hastings. This marked the end of the Anglo-Saxon period and the start of the Norman period in England.
Sources • Life in Anglo-Saxon England by R.I Page • http://www.englishheathenism.homestead.com/pagangods.html • http://www.britainexpress.com/History/dark_ages_index.htm • http://www.great-britain.co.uk/history/ang-sax.htm • http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/anglosaxons/
