Anglo-saxon society

While England was under the Anglo-saxon

influence it was divided into several small
kingdoms:
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Northumbria
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Mercia
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Kent
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Wessex
just to mention a few...
 Anglo-saxon society
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In addition, these little kingdoms were often at
war with one another.
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The Anglo- Saxons were not grouped into
bigger confederations
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They believed in independence
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It was more a rural society rather than a urban
one.
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They introduced new farming methods and built
many self-sufficient villages.
 Anglo-Saxon society
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At that time (early Middle Ages) London was not
a big town yet. It had no great importance from
a cultural, political or economic point of view.
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In medieval England provincial culture was
strong.
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By contrast, the most significant towns were
Canterbury and Winchester.
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Canterbury (Kent) was the place from which
Christianity spread (6th century). It therefore
became a place of pilgrimage and also an
important commercial town.
 Anglo-Saxon society
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Winchester (Wessex) became a prominent
literary and artistic centre. It was here where
the Normans would have later held their court.
 The Christian influence
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In 597 Pope Gregory I “The Great”sent a
mission from Rome to England.
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This mission was led by St Augustine of
Canterbury.
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As a consequence, England became mainly a
Christian country.
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This increased and improved English cultural
life: lots of churches and monasteries were built
which were soon enriched by beautiful
paintings and sculptures.
 The Christian influence
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One of the most relevant consequences of the
spread of Christianity was that it brought the
idea of written literature to England.
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The first literary works were written in Latin
because it was the common language of
educated people at that time.
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One of the most famous writer of this period
was the Venerable Bede. He was a monk, a
scholar and a poet from Northumbria and was
the first who talked about Englishness and
wrote a history of Britain.
 The Viking invasion
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The Vikings were people from Scandinavia.
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They started to invade Britain in c. 800. (9th
century)
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They came from the north on long, fast and
strong ships.
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They were great sailors as well as excellent
traders, fishermen and farmers.
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It is believed that the cause of the Viking
invasion was overcrowding--> there was not
enough land for everyone.
 The Viking invasion
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Since in a Viking family only the eldest son
could inherit the family farm, younger brothers
had to look for other land elsewhere and earn
their living.
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Britain was definitely a good place to raid
because there was a lot to steal in terms of
treasures and artworks.
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It was the king of Wessex King Alfred the
Great who tried to fight Vikings. They fought to
a draw so England was divided between the
Vikings and Alfred the Great.
 The Viking invasion
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The Vikings were given the North and the
Midlands. This area was named “Danelaw”
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Around 150 years later (1017) Canute, a
Danish king, became king of the whole
England.
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The Viking presence in Britain can also be
traced in the names of some towns endings in
-by (Selby, Whitby) and -thorpe (Scunthorpe)