Important things to learn:
- Don't need to know the exact dates, only the order of events
ELH LESSON 1
Need to know:
Names groups
When why arrived/left
key influences on society, culture and language.
literary works
Exact dates are not important, just the order
Timeline
- Celts/Picts
- Romans
- Anglo-Saxons
- Vikings
- Norman Conquest
- Renaissance
- Restauration period
Celts/ Picts → the same but different names.
800-600 BC.
Britons → largest island, Celtic people living here called Britons (England) and Picts (Scotland).
Gaels: second largest island→ Celtic people living there called Gaels (Ireland) and Scots (Northern
Ireland)
Social structure:
- Hunters/farmers
- No political unity
- Being loyal was the highest goal
- Clans with chieftains (leader)
Religion:
- Animism and polytheistic → all things have a ‘spirit” (religion) poly=veel
- Druids (a member of the high-ranking priestly class) responsible for communication with
the spirits→ recited poetry and stories (orally)
- Time period had little impact on the English language
, Romans
- 50 B.C. Romans began to invade
- 55 B.C. to 410 AD → Brittania (new province of the Roman empire)
- Societal and religious changes
- Built infrastructure: roads, cities
- Laws: central government, unity
- gold, silver, iron and lead were sent back to Rome
- Hadrian’s Wall built 121 A.D → protected
Brittania from invasion and attacks from the
north.
- 410 A.D. Romans left to help solve problems
back home → Celts suddenly had to fend for
themselves
- influence on language:
- Over 200 loan words
Anglo saxons:
- 449 A.D Anglo-Saxon invasions by Anglo-Saxons (N. Germany) Jutes (Denmark) and
Frisians (Friesland).
- Displacement → carefully ordered Roman world fell into decay → small kingdoms led by
warlords.
- Dark Ages: little written evidence of this period
- Celts couldn’t prevent invasion from Anglo Saxons tribes, but pushed them north (Cumbria),
west (Cornwall) and to Wales
- A-S tribes even invited to help in conflict
- Legend of Vortigern (warlord/king of Britons) inviting Hengest and Horsa (leaders
invading tribes → 449 AD in an Anglo-Saxon Chronicle)
Anglo-Saxon society
- Tribal units, ruled by a king
- Witan (council of elders) chose the king
- four classes within a Tribal unit:
- Earls (hereditary, ruling warlords)
- freeman (could own land, engage in commerce; included Thanes: early barons
granted status for military services);
- Churls (serfs → bonded servants who worked land in return for military
protections
- Thralls (slaves, usually military prisoners, people being punished)
- warriors and farmers → savage warriors, drinkers, tribal
- Ruled by consensus, discussion
- Leaders (thanes) and followers (comitatus) → armed escort for a war and tied to a leader
by an oath of fealty)
- Heptarchy (=7 AS kingdoms) → 7 different kings, so 7 different tribal units
- several years of peace and prosperity
- Don't need to know the exact dates, only the order of events
ELH LESSON 1
Need to know:
Names groups
When why arrived/left
key influences on society, culture and language.
literary works
Exact dates are not important, just the order
Timeline
- Celts/Picts
- Romans
- Anglo-Saxons
- Vikings
- Norman Conquest
- Renaissance
- Restauration period
Celts/ Picts → the same but different names.
800-600 BC.
Britons → largest island, Celtic people living here called Britons (England) and Picts (Scotland).
Gaels: second largest island→ Celtic people living there called Gaels (Ireland) and Scots (Northern
Ireland)
Social structure:
- Hunters/farmers
- No political unity
- Being loyal was the highest goal
- Clans with chieftains (leader)
Religion:
- Animism and polytheistic → all things have a ‘spirit” (religion) poly=veel
- Druids (a member of the high-ranking priestly class) responsible for communication with
the spirits→ recited poetry and stories (orally)
- Time period had little impact on the English language
, Romans
- 50 B.C. Romans began to invade
- 55 B.C. to 410 AD → Brittania (new province of the Roman empire)
- Societal and religious changes
- Built infrastructure: roads, cities
- Laws: central government, unity
- gold, silver, iron and lead were sent back to Rome
- Hadrian’s Wall built 121 A.D → protected
Brittania from invasion and attacks from the
north.
- 410 A.D. Romans left to help solve problems
back home → Celts suddenly had to fend for
themselves
- influence on language:
- Over 200 loan words
Anglo saxons:
- 449 A.D Anglo-Saxon invasions by Anglo-Saxons (N. Germany) Jutes (Denmark) and
Frisians (Friesland).
- Displacement → carefully ordered Roman world fell into decay → small kingdoms led by
warlords.
- Dark Ages: little written evidence of this period
- Celts couldn’t prevent invasion from Anglo Saxons tribes, but pushed them north (Cumbria),
west (Cornwall) and to Wales
- A-S tribes even invited to help in conflict
- Legend of Vortigern (warlord/king of Britons) inviting Hengest and Horsa (leaders
invading tribes → 449 AD in an Anglo-Saxon Chronicle)
Anglo-Saxon society
- Tribal units, ruled by a king
- Witan (council of elders) chose the king
- four classes within a Tribal unit:
- Earls (hereditary, ruling warlords)
- freeman (could own land, engage in commerce; included Thanes: early barons
granted status for military services);
- Churls (serfs → bonded servants who worked land in return for military
protections
- Thralls (slaves, usually military prisoners, people being punished)
- warriors and farmers → savage warriors, drinkers, tribal
- Ruled by consensus, discussion
- Leaders (thanes) and followers (comitatus) → armed escort for a war and tied to a leader
by an oath of fealty)
- Heptarchy (=7 AS kingdoms) → 7 different kings, so 7 different tribal units
- several years of peace and prosperity
