Author: Marc Morris
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 164313535X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 452
Book Description
A sweeping and original history of the Anglo-Saxons by national bestselling author Marc Morris. Sixteen hundred years ago Britain left the Roman Empire and swiftly fell into ruin. Grand cities and luxurious villas were deserted and left to crumble, and civil society collapsed into chaos. Into this violent and unstable world came foreign invaders from across the sea, and established themselves as its new masters. The Anglo-Saxons traces the turbulent history of these people across the next six centuries. It explains how their earliest rulers fought relentlessly against each other for glory and supremacy, and then were almost destroyed by the onslaught of the vikings. It explores how they abandoned their old gods for Christianity, established hundreds of churches and created dazzlingly intricate works of art. It charts the revival of towns and trade, and the origins of a familiar landscape of shires, boroughs and bishoprics. It is a tale of famous figures like King Offa, Alfred the Great and Edward the Confessor, but also features a host of lesser known characters - ambitious queens, revolutionary saints, intolerant monks and grasping nobles. Through their remarkable careers we see how a new society, a new culture and a single unified nation came into being. Drawing on a vast range of original evidence - chronicles, letters, archaeology and artefacts - renowned historian Marc Morris illuminates a period of history that is only dimly understood, separates the truth from the legend, and tells the extraordinary story of how the foundations of England were laid.
Kings and Kingdoms of Early Anglo-Saxon England
Author: Barbara Yorke
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1134707258
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 233
Book Description
Kings and Kingdoms of Early Anglo-Saxon England provides a unique survey of the six major Anglo-Saxon kingdoms and their royal families, examining the most recent research in this field.
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1134707258
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 233
Book Description
Kings and Kingdoms of Early Anglo-Saxon England provides a unique survey of the six major Anglo-Saxon kingdoms and their royal families, examining the most recent research in this field.
Anglo-Saxon England
Author: Sally Crawford
Publisher: Shire Publications
ISBN: 9780747808367
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 0
Book Description
Early Anglo-Saxon England saw some of the most important elements in the creation of modern England: the Germanic migrations after the departure of the Romans and the introduction of Christianity in the 7th century. While traditionally the early centuries of Anglo-Saxon England have been disregarded as"'lost centuries," archaeological evidence, paired with the later written sources, can reveal a complex and often sophisticated society. This period saw the beginnings of urbanization, with the establishment of market-places enabling the trade of local and exotic goods, and the first schools were introduced in the 7th century. Sally Crawford looks at how the Anglo-Saxons lived, from the composition of an Anglo-Saxon family and how status was defined by an individual's occupation, to the complexities of feasting and drinking and how adults and children found entertainment.
Publisher: Shire Publications
ISBN: 9780747808367
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 0
Book Description
Early Anglo-Saxon England saw some of the most important elements in the creation of modern England: the Germanic migrations after the departure of the Romans and the introduction of Christianity in the 7th century. While traditionally the early centuries of Anglo-Saxon England have been disregarded as"'lost centuries," archaeological evidence, paired with the later written sources, can reveal a complex and often sophisticated society. This period saw the beginnings of urbanization, with the establishment of market-places enabling the trade of local and exotic goods, and the first schools were introduced in the 7th century. Sally Crawford looks at how the Anglo-Saxons lived, from the composition of an Anglo-Saxon family and how status was defined by an individual's occupation, to the complexities of feasting and drinking and how adults and children found entertainment.
Building Anglo-Saxon England
Author: John Blair
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 1400889901
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 497
Book Description
A radical rethinking of the Anglo-Saxon world that draws on the latest archaeological discoveries This beautifully illustrated book draws on the latest archaeological discoveries to present a radical reappraisal of the Anglo-Saxon built environment and its inhabitants. John Blair, one of the world's leading experts on this transformative era in England's early history, explains the origins of towns, manor houses, and castles in a completely new way, and sheds new light on the important functions of buildings and settlements in shaping people's lives during the age of the Venerable Bede and King Alfred. Building Anglo-Saxon England demonstrates how hundreds of recent excavations enable us to grasp for the first time how regionally diverse the built environment of the Anglo-Saxons truly was. Blair identifies a zone of eastern England with access to the North Sea whose economy, prosperity, and timber buildings had more in common with the Low Countries and Scandinavia than the rest of England. The origins of villages and their field systems emerge with a new clarity, as does the royal administrative organization of the kingdom of Mercia, which dominated central England for two centuries. Featuring a wealth of color illustrations throughout, Building Anglo-Saxon England explores how the natural landscape was modified to accommodate human activity, and how many settlements--secular and religious—were laid out with geometrical precision by specialist surveyors. The book also shows how the Anglo-Saxon love of elegant and intricate decoration is reflected in the construction of the living environment, which in some ways was more sophisticated than it would become after the Norman Conquest.
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 1400889901
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 497
Book Description
A radical rethinking of the Anglo-Saxon world that draws on the latest archaeological discoveries This beautifully illustrated book draws on the latest archaeological discoveries to present a radical reappraisal of the Anglo-Saxon built environment and its inhabitants. John Blair, one of the world's leading experts on this transformative era in England's early history, explains the origins of towns, manor houses, and castles in a completely new way, and sheds new light on the important functions of buildings and settlements in shaping people's lives during the age of the Venerable Bede and King Alfred. Building Anglo-Saxon England demonstrates how hundreds of recent excavations enable us to grasp for the first time how regionally diverse the built environment of the Anglo-Saxons truly was. Blair identifies a zone of eastern England with access to the North Sea whose economy, prosperity, and timber buildings had more in common with the Low Countries and Scandinavia than the rest of England. The origins of villages and their field systems emerge with a new clarity, as does the royal administrative organization of the kingdom of Mercia, which dominated central England for two centuries. Featuring a wealth of color illustrations throughout, Building Anglo-Saxon England explores how the natural landscape was modified to accommodate human activity, and how many settlements--secular and religious—were laid out with geometrical precision by specialist surveyors. The book also shows how the Anglo-Saxon love of elegant and intricate decoration is reflected in the construction of the living environment, which in some ways was more sophisticated than it would become after the Norman Conquest.
The Anglo-Saxon World
Author: Nicholas J. Higham
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 0300125348
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 495
Book Description
Presents the Anglo-Saxon period of English history from the fifth century up to the late eleventh century, covering such events as the spread of Christianity, the invasions of the Vikings, the composition of Beowulf, and the Battle of Hastings.
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 0300125348
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 495
Book Description
Presents the Anglo-Saxon period of English history from the fifth century up to the late eleventh century, covering such events as the spread of Christianity, the invasions of the Vikings, the composition of Beowulf, and the Battle of Hastings.
Law and Order in Anglo-Saxon England
Author: Thomas Benedict Lambert
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 019878631X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 407
Book Description
Law and Order in Anglo-Saxon England explores English legal culture and practice across the Anglo-Saxon period, beginning with the essentially pre-Christian laws enshrined in writing by King AEthelberht of Kent in c. 600 and working forward to the Norman Conquest of 1066. It attempts to escape the traditional retrospective assumptions of legal history, focused on the late twelfth-century Common Law, and to establish a new interpretative framework for the subject, more sensitive to contemporary cultural assumptions and practical realities. The focus of the volume is on the maintenance of order: what constituted good order; what forms of wrongdoing were threatening to it; what roles kings, lords, communities, and individuals were expected to play in maintaining it; and how that worked in practice. Its core argument is that the Anglo-Saxons had a coherent, stable, and enduring legal order that lacks modern analogies: it was neither state-like nor stateless, and needs to be understood on its own terms rather than as a variant or hybrid of these models. Tom Lambert elucidates a distinctively early medieval understanding of the tension between the interests of individuals and communities, and a vision of how that tension ought to be managed that, strikingly, treats strongly libertarian and communitarian features as complementary. Potentially violent, honour-focused feuding was an integral aspect of legitimate legal practice throughout the period, but so too was fearsome punishment for forms of wrongdoing judged socially threatening. Law and Order in Anglo-Saxon England charts the development of kings' involvement in law, in terms both of their authority to legislate and their ability to influence local practice, presenting a picture of increasingly ambitious and effective royal legal innovation that relied more on the cooperation of local communal assemblies than kings' sparse and patchy network of administrative officials.
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 019878631X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 407
Book Description
Law and Order in Anglo-Saxon England explores English legal culture and practice across the Anglo-Saxon period, beginning with the essentially pre-Christian laws enshrined in writing by King AEthelberht of Kent in c. 600 and working forward to the Norman Conquest of 1066. It attempts to escape the traditional retrospective assumptions of legal history, focused on the late twelfth-century Common Law, and to establish a new interpretative framework for the subject, more sensitive to contemporary cultural assumptions and practical realities. The focus of the volume is on the maintenance of order: what constituted good order; what forms of wrongdoing were threatening to it; what roles kings, lords, communities, and individuals were expected to play in maintaining it; and how that worked in practice. Its core argument is that the Anglo-Saxons had a coherent, stable, and enduring legal order that lacks modern analogies: it was neither state-like nor stateless, and needs to be understood on its own terms rather than as a variant or hybrid of these models. Tom Lambert elucidates a distinctively early medieval understanding of the tension between the interests of individuals and communities, and a vision of how that tension ought to be managed that, strikingly, treats strongly libertarian and communitarian features as complementary. Potentially violent, honour-focused feuding was an integral aspect of legitimate legal practice throughout the period, but so too was fearsome punishment for forms of wrongdoing judged socially threatening. Law and Order in Anglo-Saxon England charts the development of kings' involvement in law, in terms both of their authority to legislate and their ability to influence local practice, presenting a picture of increasingly ambitious and effective royal legal innovation that relied more on the cooperation of local communal assemblies than kings' sparse and patchy network of administrative officials.
Daily Life in Anglo-Saxon England
Author: Sally Crawford
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN: 1440859264
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 306
Book Description
Daily Life in Anglo-Saxon England examines and recreates many of the details of ordinary lives in early medieval England between the 5th and 11th centuries, exploring what we know as well as the surprising gaps in our knowledge. Daily Life in Anglo-Saxon England covers daily life in England from the 5th through the 11th centuries. These six centuries saw significant social, cultural, religious, and ethnic upheavals, including the introduction of Christianity, the creation of towns, the Viking invasions, the invention of "Englishness," and the Norman Conquest. In the last 10 years, there have been significant new archaeological discoveries, major advances in scientific archaeology, and new ways of thinking about the past, meaning it is now possible to say much more about everyday life during this time period than ever before. Drawing on a combination of archaeological and textual evidence, including the latest scientific findings from DNA and stable isotope analysis, this book looks at the life course of the early medieval English from the cradle to the grave, as well as how daily lives changed over these centuries. Topics covered include maintenance activities, education, play, commerce, trade, manufacturing, fashion, travel, migration, warfare, health, and medicine.
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN: 1440859264
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 306
Book Description
Daily Life in Anglo-Saxon England examines and recreates many of the details of ordinary lives in early medieval England between the 5th and 11th centuries, exploring what we know as well as the surprising gaps in our knowledge. Daily Life in Anglo-Saxon England covers daily life in England from the 5th through the 11th centuries. These six centuries saw significant social, cultural, religious, and ethnic upheavals, including the introduction of Christianity, the creation of towns, the Viking invasions, the invention of "Englishness," and the Norman Conquest. In the last 10 years, there have been significant new archaeological discoveries, major advances in scientific archaeology, and new ways of thinking about the past, meaning it is now possible to say much more about everyday life during this time period than ever before. Drawing on a combination of archaeological and textual evidence, including the latest scientific findings from DNA and stable isotope analysis, this book looks at the life course of the early medieval English from the cradle to the grave, as well as how daily lives changed over these centuries. Topics covered include maintenance activities, education, play, commerce, trade, manufacturing, fashion, travel, migration, warfare, health, and medicine.
An Introduction to Anglo-Saxon England
Author: Peter Hunter Blair
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521216500
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 379
Book Description
This is a lucid, authoritative and well-balanced account of Anglo-Saxon history. Peter Hunter Blair's book has achieved classic status, and is published now with a new, up-to-date bibliography prepared by Simon Keynes. Between the end of the Roman occupation and the coming of the Normans, England was settled by Germanic races; the kingdom as a political unit was created, heathenism yielded to a vigorous Christian Church, superb works of art were made, and the English language - spoken and written - took its form. These origins of the English heritage are Hunter Blair's subject. The first two chapters survey Anglo-Saxon England: its wars, its invaders, its peoples and its kings. The remaining chapters deal with specific aspects of its culture: its Church, government, economy and literary achievement. Throughout the author uses illustrations and a wide range of sources - documents, archaeological evidence and place names - to illuminate the period as a whole.
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521216500
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 379
Book Description
This is a lucid, authoritative and well-balanced account of Anglo-Saxon history. Peter Hunter Blair's book has achieved classic status, and is published now with a new, up-to-date bibliography prepared by Simon Keynes. Between the end of the Roman occupation and the coming of the Normans, England was settled by Germanic races; the kingdom as a political unit was created, heathenism yielded to a vigorous Christian Church, superb works of art were made, and the English language - spoken and written - took its form. These origins of the English heritage are Hunter Blair's subject. The first two chapters survey Anglo-Saxon England: its wars, its invaders, its peoples and its kings. The remaining chapters deal with specific aspects of its culture: its Church, government, economy and literary achievement. Throughout the author uses illustrations and a wide range of sources - documents, archaeological evidence and place names - to illuminate the period as a whole.