Portal:Anglo-Saxon England

Anglo-Saxon England Anglo-Saxon England or Early Medieval England, existing from the 5th to the 11th centuries from soon after the end of Roman Britain until the Norman Conquest in 1066, consisted of various Anglo-Saxon kingdoms until 927, when it was united as the Kingdom of England by King Æthelstan (r. 927–939). It became part of the short-lived North Sea Empire of Cnut, a personal union between England, Denmark and Norway in the 11th century. The Anglo-Saxons migrated to Britain (Pretanī, Prydain) from mainland northwestern Europe after the Roman Empire withdrawal from the isle at the beginning of the 5th century. Anglo-Saxon history thus begins during the period of sub-Roman Britain following the end of Roman control, and traces the establishment of Anglo-Saxon kingdoms in the 5th and 6th centuries (conventionally identified as seven main kingdoms: Northumbria, Mercia, East Anglia, Essex, Kent, Sussex, and Wessex); their Christianisation during the 7th century; the threat of Viking invasions and Danish settlers; the gradual unification of England under the Wessex hegemony during the 9th and 10th centuries; and ending with the Norman Conquest of England by William the Conqueror in 1066. The Normans persecuted the Anglo-Saxons and overthrew their ruling class to substitute their own leaders to oversee and rule England. However, Anglo-Saxon identity survived beyond the Norman Conquest, came to be known as Englishry under Norman rule, and through social and cultural integration with Romano-British Celts, Danes and Normans became the modern English people. (Full article...) Selected article The members of the Gregorian mission were Italian monks and priests sent by Pope Gregory the Great to Britain in the late 6th and early 7th centuries to convert and Christianize the Anglo-Saxons from their native Anglo-Saxon paganism. The first group consisted of about 40 monks and priests, some of whom had been monks in Gregory's own monastery in Rome. After a long trip, during which they almost gave up and returned to Rome, they arrived in the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Kent in 597. Gregory sent a second group of missionaries in 601 as reinforcements, along with books and relics for the newly founded churches. From Kent, the missionaries spread to the East Anglian kingdom and to the north of Britain, but after King Æthelberht of Kent's death, the mission was mostly confined to Kent. Another mission was sent to the kingdom of Northumbria when Æthelberht's daughter married King Edwin of Northumbria around 625. After Edwin's death in 633, a pagan backlash against Christianization occurred, and the mission was again confined to Kent; most of the missionaries fled Northumbria because they feared the pagans who returned to power after Edwin's death. (more...) Did you know? Did you know... ...that in Anglo-Saxon England, pregnant women were warned against eating food that was too salty or too sweet, or other fatty foods, and were also cautioned not to drink strong alcohol or travel on horseback? ... the impressive ship burial at Sutton Hoo is not the only example in Anglo-Saxon England; another ship burial, including an impressive glass beaker and gold ring, was found at Snape. ...that the name Taplow of the burial mound at Taplow, comes from Old English Tæppas hláw ('Tæppa's mound'), so that the name of the man buried in the mound would seem to have been Tæppa? ...that the Ordinance Concerning the Dunsaete, which gave procedures for dealing with disputes between the English and the Welsh of Archenfield, stated that the English should only cross into the Welsh side, and vice versa, in the presence of an appointed man who had to make sure that the foreigner was safely escorted back to the crossing point? Subcategories Category puzzle Select [►] to view subcategories Anglo-Saxon England 5th century in England 6th century in England 7th century in England 8th century in England 9th century in England 10th century in England Anglo-Saxon literature Anglo-Saxon archaeology Anglo-Saxon art Christianity in Anglo-Saxon England Conflict in Anglo-Saxon England 11th century in England People executed under the Anglo-Saxons Fiction set in Anglo-Saxon England Hen Ogledd Anglo-Saxon kingdoms Anglo-Norse England Old English Anglo-Saxon paganism Anglo-Saxon people Peoples of Anglo-Saxon England Anglo-Saxon studies scholars Anglo-Saxon settlements Anglo-Saxon society Selected image The Devil's Dyke The Devil's Dyke (also called Reach Dyke or Devil's Ditch, once known as St Edmund's Ditch) is an earthwork near the village of Reach that is generally assumed to be an Anglo-Saxon earthwork. It is one of the largest and best surviving examples of its kind in England. Selected biography John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, CBE (/ˈtɒlkiːn/; 3 January 1892 – 2 September 1973) was an English writer, poet, philologist, and university professor, best known as the author of the classic high fantasy works The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion. After his death, Tolkien's son Christopher published a series of works based on his father's extensive notes and unpublished manuscripts, including The Silmarillion. These, together with The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings form a connected body of tales, poems, fictional histories, invented languages, and literary essays about a fantasy world called Arda, and Middle-earth within it. Between 1951 and 1955, Tolkien applied the term legendarium to the larger part of these writings. (more...) Things you can do Requested articles: Battle of York (867). Complete list of requested history articles... Expansion needed: Battle of Tettenhall • Æthelwold's Revolt • Battle of the Holme • Edward the Elder • Edmund I • Eadred • Eadwig • Edgar the Peaceful • Edmund Ironside • St. Brice's Day massacre • Battle of Assandun • Battle of Fulford • Tostig Godwinson • Edwin, Earl of Mercia Cleanup and/or improvement needed: Councils of Clovesho • Escomb Church • Alfred Jewel • Anglo-Saxon warfare • Mercia • Kent • Featured articles and lists People Events, places, books and documents Kings and earls Ælle of Sussex Æthelbald of Mercia Æthelberht of Kent Æthelred of Mercia Æthelred, Lord of the Mercians Æthelstan Æthelwold ætheling Aldfrith of Northumbria Anna of East Anglia Beorhtwulf of Mercia Cædwalla of Wessex Ceawlin of Wessex Coenred of Mercia Coenwulf of Mercia Eadbald of Kent Eardwulf of Northumbria Egbert of Wessex Ine of Wessex Offa of Mercia Penda of Mercia Siward, Earl of Northumbria Wiglaf of Mercia Wihtred of Kent Wulfhere of Mercia List of monarchs of East Anglia Bishops and archbishops Ælfheah of Canterbury Augustine of Canterbury Ealdred (bishop) Hygeberht Justus Laurence of Canterbury Mellitus Paulinus of York Robert of Jumièges Stigand Wilfrid List of members of the Gregorian mission Authors and poets Asser Cædmon Israel the Grammarian J. R. R. Tolkien Events Gregorian mission Battle of Hastings Places Nico Ditch Books and documents Anglo-Saxon Chronicle Hemming's Cartulary Liber Eliensis Ormulum St Cuthbert Gospel Related portals WikiProjects  •  • Associated Wikimedia The following Wikimedia Foundation sister projects provide more on this subject: Commons Free media repository Wikibooks Free textbooks and manuals Wikidata Free knowledge base Wikinews Free-content news Wikiquote Collection of quotations Wikisource Free-content library Wikiversity Free learning tools Wiktionary Dictionary and thesaurus