Notes on the Anglo-Saxons, pg. 5-17, textbook
The Anglo-Saxon Period and the Middle Ages, 449-1485
Historical and Cultural Forces
Anglo-Saxons = Angles, Saxons, and Jutes – Germanic Tribes that began invading Britain’s
Eastern Shores
878, Alfred the Great leads his army to victory over the Vikings in the Battle of Edington.
1066, William, duke of Normandy, defeats the Anglo-Saxons in the Battle of Hastings. William
becomes the first Norman King of England, and ends the Anglo-Saxon era.
Feudalism = social, economic, and political system under which land was divided among noble
overlords
 Introduced by the Normans.
1215, Magna Carta, or “Great Charter” = agreement between the barons and King John to
curtail the king’s power.
 King John could not raise taxes without agreement from the barons.
1337, Hundred Years’ War between Britain and France.
1348, The Black Death = disease that killed 1/3 of Britain’s population, and eroded the system of
feudalism.
The Epic Warrior
Epic Warrior = courage, loyalty, wisdom, physical strength.
 Warrior achieved immortality through courageous acts.
comitatus = a close-knit group formed by each warlord and his followers.
Anglo-Saxon storytellers created heroic songs describing warriors’ great deeds and celebrating
qualities such as strength, courage, and loyalty. These songs entertained the general
population and gave warriors’ something to emulate.
Scops = minstrels (singers) who performed heroic songs in mead halls.
Germanic Mythology = dark, heroic tales with no afterlife
Wyrd = fate.
 Anglo-Saxons believed everyone’s fate was death.
The Power of Faith
1080-1170, Canterbury Cathedral built
650, Britain becomes mostly Christian (Roman Catholic)
 Christianity brought the glimmerings of education and culture.
In monastery’s, monks built libraries and schools, where they emphasized the importance of the
written word, especially that of the Bible.
Alfred, the Great encouraged widespread use of Old English!
 Monks used Latin, which the regular people did not speak
 Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, Old English history in prose and poetry.
British peasants took pilgrimages to Canterbury Cathedral
1170, Archbishop Thomas á Becket killed, viewed as martyr.
As most of the population was illiterate, the church used stained-glass windows, sermons, and
plays to spread message.
Mystery Plays = plays performed by trade guilds (bakers, masons, etc.)
Morality Plays = Plays featuring allegorical figures representing good or evil, these plays
presented moral lessons.
The World of Romance
Knights, heavily armored warriors who pledged allegiance to a lord in return for land.
 When not fighting, participated in tournaments for entertainment.
Chivalry = ideal of civilized behavior of nobility in Britain.
Courtly Love = idealized picture of relationship between a knight and a courtly lady, who was
married to someone else.
 Marriage in that time was often a financial transaction between families.
Romance = popular literary genre that described the adventures of knights and celebrated
chivalry and courtly love.
 Example = King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table.