Chapter 1 The foundation Stones
The Island
Britain is an Island and its history has been closely connected to the sea. The seas saved
Britain from danger. Strong national sense have been developed by the sea.
Britain’s prehistory
Britain has not always been an island. The ice age wasn’t one cold period. Our first
evidence of human life is a few stone tools, dating from 250.000 BC.
Britain was hardly habitable until another milder period around 50.000 BC. During this
period, a new type of human seemed to have arrived. They look similar to normal people,
but they were smaller and had a life span of only thirty years.
Around 10.000 BC Britain was peopled by groups of hunters, gatherers and fishers.
Around 5.000 BC, Britain has become an island.
There were several invaders:
· The first people to invade were people from either spain or north-africa. They were small
and dark and knew how to make pottery.
· After 2400 BC new groups of people arrived in Britain, they were round-headed and
strongly built. They became leaders of British society.
· Around 700 BC They Celts arrived in Britain, They came from central Europe and they
were technically advanced. They could make weapons from Iron. These are the ancestors
of many of the people in Scotland, Wales, Ireland and Cornwall. Last Celtic arrivals were
the belgian Tribes.
· The Romans arrived in 55 BC. They brought the skills of reading and writing to Britain.
The Romans could not conquer Scotland.
· The Anglo-Saxons Invaded in the fifth century AD.
· The Vikings in 865 AD
Roman Life
The Romans had a good influence on British life, The people learned how to speak Latin/
Greek and learned how to write. The Romans came to Britain because they could use the
British food for their army with the Gauls.
Most obvious characteristic were the towns, They were the bases of Roman civilisation.
There were three different kind of towns in Roman Britain.
· Coloniae: Towns settled by Roman settlers
· Municipia: Large cities in which all inhabitants were given Roman citizenship.
· Civitas: Included the old Celtic tribal Capitals
London was twice the size of Paris and the most important trading centre of Northern
, Europe, because Britain produced so much corn for export.
The biggest change during the Roman occupation was the growth of large farms called
‘villas’. Roman life seemed civilised, but it was also hard if you were poor. The life
expectancy was only 20 years.
Chapter 2 The Saxon Invasion
The Invaders
The invaders came from powerful Germanic tribes.
· The Saxons Settled in the rest of England.
· The Angles Settled in the East
· The Jutes Settled in mainly Kent and along the south coast
They gave the England of modern times her name. It was the part they had settled in
Britain.
The Anglo-Saxon left little of Celtic culture in England. There are only two cities: London
and Leeds and some rivers: Thames.
Government and society
The Saxons created institutions which made the English state strong for the next 5oo
years.
One of them was the King’s council, the Witan. It issued laws and orders. Nowadays the
king still has a privy council, based on the Witan.
The Saxons divided the land into counties (Shire is the Saxon word for county). They also
changed the agriculture in Britain. They introduced a new plough which was far more
better than the Celtic one.
The farmers had to work together, because they had to share land and instruments with
each other. This made a new form of settlements. To make this work they had several laws
and regulations.
· Each district had a ‘manor’, The villagers paid their taxes here and men met here to join
the ‘fyrd’, The Anglo-Saxon army.
· The Aldermen were the local officials, but they changed to warlords. The name was
changed to Earl. A Danish name. They are both still used in the army.
Christianity
In the Celtic areas, Christianity began to spread, because it was forbidden in the Anglo-
Saxon part.
Not Augustine, but the Celtic church brought Christianity to the normal people. Bishops
went from village to village to tell about their religion. They were also accepted in Anglo-
The Island
Britain is an Island and its history has been closely connected to the sea. The seas saved
Britain from danger. Strong national sense have been developed by the sea.
Britain’s prehistory
Britain has not always been an island. The ice age wasn’t one cold period. Our first
evidence of human life is a few stone tools, dating from 250.000 BC.
Britain was hardly habitable until another milder period around 50.000 BC. During this
period, a new type of human seemed to have arrived. They look similar to normal people,
but they were smaller and had a life span of only thirty years.
Around 10.000 BC Britain was peopled by groups of hunters, gatherers and fishers.
Around 5.000 BC, Britain has become an island.
There were several invaders:
· The first people to invade were people from either spain or north-africa. They were small
and dark and knew how to make pottery.
· After 2400 BC new groups of people arrived in Britain, they were round-headed and
strongly built. They became leaders of British society.
· Around 700 BC They Celts arrived in Britain, They came from central Europe and they
were technically advanced. They could make weapons from Iron. These are the ancestors
of many of the people in Scotland, Wales, Ireland and Cornwall. Last Celtic arrivals were
the belgian Tribes.
· The Romans arrived in 55 BC. They brought the skills of reading and writing to Britain.
The Romans could not conquer Scotland.
· The Anglo-Saxons Invaded in the fifth century AD.
· The Vikings in 865 AD
Roman Life
The Romans had a good influence on British life, The people learned how to speak Latin/
Greek and learned how to write. The Romans came to Britain because they could use the
British food for their army with the Gauls.
Most obvious characteristic were the towns, They were the bases of Roman civilisation.
There were three different kind of towns in Roman Britain.
· Coloniae: Towns settled by Roman settlers
· Municipia: Large cities in which all inhabitants were given Roman citizenship.
· Civitas: Included the old Celtic tribal Capitals
London was twice the size of Paris and the most important trading centre of Northern
, Europe, because Britain produced so much corn for export.
The biggest change during the Roman occupation was the growth of large farms called
‘villas’. Roman life seemed civilised, but it was also hard if you were poor. The life
expectancy was only 20 years.
Chapter 2 The Saxon Invasion
The Invaders
The invaders came from powerful Germanic tribes.
· The Saxons Settled in the rest of England.
· The Angles Settled in the East
· The Jutes Settled in mainly Kent and along the south coast
They gave the England of modern times her name. It was the part they had settled in
Britain.
The Anglo-Saxon left little of Celtic culture in England. There are only two cities: London
and Leeds and some rivers: Thames.
Government and society
The Saxons created institutions which made the English state strong for the next 5oo
years.
One of them was the King’s council, the Witan. It issued laws and orders. Nowadays the
king still has a privy council, based on the Witan.
The Saxons divided the land into counties (Shire is the Saxon word for county). They also
changed the agriculture in Britain. They introduced a new plough which was far more
better than the Celtic one.
The farmers had to work together, because they had to share land and instruments with
each other. This made a new form of settlements. To make this work they had several laws
and regulations.
· Each district had a ‘manor’, The villagers paid their taxes here and men met here to join
the ‘fyrd’, The Anglo-Saxon army.
· The Aldermen were the local officials, but they changed to warlords. The name was
changed to Earl. A Danish name. They are both still used in the army.
Christianity
In the Celtic areas, Christianity began to spread, because it was forbidden in the Anglo-
Saxon part.
Not Augustine, but the Celtic church brought Christianity to the normal people. Bishops
went from village to village to tell about their religion. They were also accepted in Anglo-
