The Celts
The Celts lived in Britain during the Iron Age. The Iron Age
ended in AD43 (43 years after Jesus was born) when the
Romans invaded Britain. The name 'Iron Age' comes from the
discovery of a new metal called iron. We can find out a lot about
the Celts through looking at objects made of iron. The Celts lived
across most of Europe during this time.
The early Celts didn't leave books behind because they didn't read and write word of mouth and memory were the Celts' way of recording events. But luckily, the
Greeks and Romans did write about the Iron Age Celts. They tell us that the Celts
lived in tribes, they wore gold and loved to fight and drink wine. They also wrote
about the power of the Celts' priests, who were called druids.
The druids knew how to keep their gods happy - they
sacrificed food, precious objects, and even people to their gods and
goddesses. The Snowdon bowl in the picture was probably a gift to a
god or goddess, as it was a valuable, important treasure. The design
on the handle of the bronze bowl looks like an animal's head. Iron
Age Celts lived in houses - but they were very different to the houses we live in today!
Large families lived in a roundhouse. The walls were made of daub (straw, mud and
tail) and the roof of straw.
The Celts would light a fire in the middle of the
roundhouse for cooking and heating. This is a reconstructed
Iron Age roundhouse. Iron Age people would have chosen
where they lived for different reasons. The chieftain and his
family, soldiers and craftsmen, lived in a hill fort because
they were easy to defend. There are over 1000 Iron Age hill
forts in Wales. Steep slopes, a high wall and deep ditch
helped keep the Celts safe in their homes. Farmers lived on
the land they farmed. Sometimes farms would be built in spots with a good source of
water, or fertile ground of good pasture for the animals. The Celts grew corn and kept
cows, pigs, horses, goats and sheep.
Their skill as metal workers was important when they were
defending themselves from their enemies. They needed sharp objects
like spears, as well as shields, to defend themselves from enemy attack.
The Iron Age Celts' clothes might have looked like the tartan you see in
Scotland and Ireland today, with checks and stripes. The Celts used
berries and plants to dye the wool different colors. Not only did the Celts
like brightly colored clothes - the Romans tell us that some of them
painted patterns all over their bodies with blue woad made of a special
plant. The Celts' clothes showed their status and importance within the
tribe. Men would wear a tunic with a belt, a cloak and trousers. Women
wore dresses fastened with brooches. And if you were an important member of the
tribe, you would wear a neck torc of gold, silver or iron, decorated with patterns.
Roman historians say that Celtic soldiers had white spiky
hair. They used lime l ike we use hair mousse today, and
sometimes they tied their hair up in a ponytail. Around
their necks they wore gold torcs like big necklaces. The
most famous soldiers wore fancy bronze helmets on their
head to show how important they were. Often there were
model birds, animals or horns on the helmets which
made them even more special. They carried huge shields
decorated with signs or patterns. The Romans say that
the Celts lost their tempers and quarreled often - but we
don't know that. After all, they couldn't have been fighting all the time - they'd be too
tired to do any farming! The farmers had to be ready to fight whenever the head of
the tribe called on them. The Celts often fought naked - and it's believed that women
would fight as well. Their main weapons were the sword and spear, like the iron sword
in the picture above, and they sometimes fought in horse-drawn war chariots.
The Druids were very important in Iron Age society but we know very little about
them. They were the Celts' priests, responsible for all sorts of religious ceremonies.
They were educated and powerful members of the tribe and were well respected by
the other Celts. The Romans tried to limit the powers of the druids because they were
so important in Iron Age society.
The Celts traveled to Ireland
from Gaul and Britain. The
Celtic missionaries were
travelers who journeyed far and
wide, leaping into their tiny
coracles and setting sail on the
sea, often without oars or sails,
and often without a specific
destination, content to let God
take them where God would.
The coracle is a small,
lightweight boat. Coracles are
smallish vessels used for fishing
or transportation. St. Patrick was one of greatest missionary. He was born in 387 C.E.,
and was a Briton who was captured by Irish pirates at sixteen and enslaved for six
years. He eventually escaped, and later went back to Britain. He helped to spread
Christianity in Ireland.
The Anglo-Saxons
The last Roman soldiers left Britain in AD
410, and then new people came in ships across
the North Sea. Historians call them Anglo-Saxons.
The new settlers were a mixture of people from
north Germany, Denmark and northern Holland.
Most were Saxons, Angles and Jutes. Most AngloSaxons were farmers. They lived in family groups
in villages, not cities. Since they lived close to the
sea and big rivers, many Anglo-Saxons were
sailors too. They built wooden ships with oars and
sails, for trade and to settle in new lands. Some Saxons built wooden houses inside
the walls of Roman towns. Others cleared spaces in the forest to build villages and
make new fields. Settlements were very small, with just two or three families.
In an Anglo-Saxon family, everyone from babies to old people shared a home.
Anglo-Saxon houses were built of wood and had thatched roofs. Each family house
had one room, with a hearth with a fire for cooking, heating and light. A metal cooking
pot hung from a chain above the fire. People wore clothes made from woollen cloth or
animal skins. Men wore tunics, with tight trousers or leggings, wrapped around with
strips of cloth or leather. Women wore long dresses. Women spun the wool from
sheep and goats to make thread. They used a loom to weave the thread into cloth.
Men, women and children helped on the farm. Men
cut down trees to clear land for ploughing and
sowing crops. Farmers used oxen to pull ploughs up
and down long strip-fields. Children with dogs
herded cattle and sheep. They kept a lookout for
wolves - which still lived in Britain at this time.
Some people had special skills. The smith made iron
tools, knives and swords. Woodworkers made
wooden bowls, furniture, carts and wheels. Potters
made pottery from clay. The shoemaker made
leather shoes. Jewellers made metal brooches,
beads and gold ornaments for rich people.
Most people in Anglo-Saxon society were either freemen or slaves. A freeman owned
land and slaves. A slave owned nothing. A slave might be a prisoner captured in war,
or someone born into slavery. The richest and most powerful freemen were the thanes
who helped the king rule the land. While kings and thanes lived in large halls (big
wooden houses), free peasants or ceorls (churls) lived in small huts. Poor slaves were
glad for a cowshed or barn to sleep in at night. Many slaves were badly treated. They
could not leave their owner unless they were sold or set free.
The most famous ruler of the Anglo-Saxons was Alfred, the only king in British history
to be called 'Great'. Alfred was born in AD849 and died in AD899. His father was king
of Wessex, but Alfred became king of all England. He fought the Vikings, and then
made peace so that English and Vikings settled down to live together. He encouraged
people to learn and he tried to govern well and fairly. King Alfred was advised by a
council of nobles and Church leaders. The council was called
the witan. The witan could also choose the next king. Alfred
made good laws. He had books translated from Latin into
English, and translated some himself. He told monks to begin
writing the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. Alfred built warships to
guard the coast from Viking raiders. He built forts and walled
towns known as burghs. He split the fyrd (the part-time
army) into two parts. While half the men were at home on
their farms, the rest were ready to fight Vikings.
Viking attacks on Anglo-Saxon England started at the end of the
AD700s. The Vikings came by sea in their longships. They attacked
monasteries and churches to steal gold and other treasures. By the
800s, great armies of Vikings roamed England. After King Alfred of
Wessex fought the Vikings, he made peace with them allowing them
to live in the northeastern part of Britain called Danelaw. During this
time he built ships, strengthened his army and walled towns to
defend his kingdom against Viking attacks. He never became strong
enough to drive the Vikings completely out of Britain.
After the Romans left Britain, Christianity continued in places where Anglo-Saxons did
not settle. Christian monks, such as St Patrick (who went to Ireland in the 400s) and
St. Columba (who went to Scotland from Ireland around 563AD) taught the 'Celtic'
form of the Christian religion. The Pope in Rome wanted the Anglo-Saxons in southern
Britain to hear about Christianity. So he sent a monk called
Augustine to Britain, to persuade the king to become a
Christian. Over the next 100 years, many Anglo-Saxons turned
to Christianity. New churches and monasteries were built.
Monasteries were centers of learning, where monks and nuns
spent their time in prayer, study and worked in fields and
workshops. Monasteries were the only schools in Anglo-Saxon
England. In the monasteries, monks copied out books by hand
and decorated the pages in beautiful colours. Bede lived in the
monastery at Jarrow in Northumbria. He went to live with
monks in 680AD when he was just 7 years old. When he grew up, he became a
historian. He wrote a book about the history of the Anglo-Saxons, called 'A History of
the English Church and People'.
Stowa: An
Anglo-Saxon
Village