Name: _______________________________
Date: ________________________________
Block: _______________________________
Anglo Saxon History and Culture:
An Introduction to Beowulf
Anglo Saxon People:
Who Are They?
The term _________________________has come to mean anyone who is English or of
English descent.
But the Anglo-Saxons were actually a people who lived long ago. They settled in Britain
around ___________ and stayed until_______________.
These newcomers were fair-haired, tall, and very courageous.
They were a mixture of people from northern Germany, Denmark and northern Holland.
Most were ___________________, _________________, and________________.
Invasions
First, we have the _________, who had old religions involving many _________, sacred
___________________, and ancient ____________.
In 55 B.C. ___________ invaded the Celts, bringing ___________________and
________________________ with them.
Early in the fifth century, Roman armies ___________________ Britain to defend their
own city.
Having grown dependent on Roman protection, this made Britain an easy target for
invasion.
Anglo Saxons from Germany and Jutes from Denmark ______________________ and
drove the Celts out and to the north.
Anglo Saxon Kingdoms
After the Anglo-Saxons defeated the Celts, they divided Britain into _____ kingdoms.
(Northumbria, Mercia, East Anglia, Essex, Kent, Wessex, and Sussex)
Each kingdom was inhabited by a different tribe and ruled by a king (cyning).
The Jutes (from Denmark) settled mainly in Kent.
The Angles settled in East Anglia.
The Saxons settled in areas of Essex (East Saxons), Sussex (South Saxons), and Wessex
(West Saxons).
For hundreds of years the seven tribes fought in great wars against each other to gain
power of the entire British Isles.
The Anglo-Saxon tribes were savage, ruthless people who lived life by a strict
___________________________.
They were also known for their courage and nobility in war and everyday life.
Anglo Saxon Religion:
The Anglo-Saxons were ___________________ when they came to Britain, but as time
passed they gradually converted to ________________________________.
Early Anglo-Saxon invaders brought their belief in __________, or __________, and
their admiration for heroic warriors whose wyrd it was to prevail in battle.
Pagans worshiped lots of ________________________________.
Each pagan god controlled a particular part of everyday life.
Balder: God of Immortality
Thunor:
God of Thunder
Eostre: Goddess of Birth
Tiw:
God of War
Hel:
Goddess of Death
Wade:
God of the Sea
Loki:
God of Cunning
Wayland: God of Metalworki ng
Saxnot: God of the Family
Woden:
Chief God
Our Days of the Week
Tuesday: ________________ day (the god of war)
Wednesday: _________________ day (chief god)
Thursday: ________________day (god of thunder)
Friday: ______________day (the goddess of home)
_____________________________ still lingered from when Romans occupied
Britain despite newly introduced ___________________beliefs.
In 597, the Pope sent a missionary monk called _____________________ to England.
The purpose was to __________________Anglo-Saxons into Christians.
Christianity spread to other parts of Britain. Pagan temples were converted to Christian
churches and new Christian ________________________________________.
Christian Churches
Christian Churches served as centers for _________________________.
Individuals belonging to the church may have been the only ______________ people.
They were the keepers of ___________________________________.
Anglo Saxon Culture:
Ethics and Values
Anglo Saxons valued _________________, ________________,
____________________, and ___________________________.
The king, or cyning, was the central part of every kingdom and tribe, and loyalty to one’s
king was a _________________________________.
Women were _____________________________. They were able to hold high status
and be wealthy.
____________, or story-tellers (also known as _____________), were considered equal
to warriors. They were valued as story-tellers, history-keepers, and entertainers.
Activities
The Anglo-Saxons loved ____________________ and would often have feasts in the
___________________. The food was cooked over the fire in the middle of the hall;
meat was roasted and eaten with bread.
They drank ale and mead - a kind of beer made sweet with honey - from great goblets and
drinking horns.
After the feast a scop (a bard or poet) would play a harp and sing songs of
_________________________.
Warrior Beliefs
The Anglo-Saxon warrior's attitude toward battle was always _________________ and
_______________________.
They believed if they fought as hard as they could in life (wars), they would die a
_________________________ on the battlefield and could
__________________________________.
Warriors confronted life as embracing death. They did not look at obstacles or warfare as
a bad thing. They not only accepted their ______ (fate) but rejoiced in dying on the
battlefield because they would achieve glory in death.
In the mead hall or on the battlefield, a warrior needed to ______________ about his
past and future accomplishments to create a _______________________________.
However, the warrior would need to follow through on his bragging. If he didn't, he was
considered a ______________________. A warrior needed both words and actions.
The Anglo-Saxons relied on _______________________ to pass on their war stories,
traditions, and literature.
Oral Traditions
Scops (shapers of tales) traveled across the country reciting historic or fictional tales of
___________________, _________________, and ______________________.
Their purpose was to pass stories through generations so they would not be forgotten.
Scops were both _______________________ and ________________________.
Anglo Saxon Literature:
In many pieces of literature (including Beowulf) there is a sudden jump from a
_______________________ to a _________________.
For example, warriors could be feasting and rejoicing in a mead hall and then a monster
kills people. Then everyone is happy again.
This symbolizes their outlook on life: ___________________________, but one must
________________ and ____________one's ________ to become a better person.
Epic- long ______________ poem about _________________________, typically
passed through generations ___________________ by scops and bards
Examples: ___________________________________________________
Alliteration- the repetition of ____________________________ at the
___________________of words
Examples: _________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
Stock Epithets- __________________________________ that point out
____________________________________ of particular people or things
Examples: ________________________________________________________
Kennings- poetic synonyms; ___________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
Examples: ________________________________________________________
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