Anglo-Saxons Lavelle/Popp

Historical Events o 55 B.C. Julius Caesar invades Britain o 313 A.D. Christianity is proclaimed a lawful religion o 449 Angles, Saxons, and Jutes invade Britain o 597 Saint Augustine converts British King Ethelbert to Christianity o 793 Vikings invade Britain o 1066 Normans defeat Saxons; William the Conqueror becomes King o Between A.D. Beowulf is written down in England for the first time in Old English Question: 1. What are some of the trends you see on this timeline?

Invasions: There were many invasions throughout the Anglo- Saxon time period. During Roman Britain, Romans built roads, walls, and a government to keep invaders out. However, once the Romans left, England was left to its own devices. Question: What effect can multiple invasions each couple hundred years have on a culture?

What was day-to-day life like for the Anglo-Saxons? o rain-drenched o foggy/dreary o constant invasions/battles o paganism/Christianity o separate clans ruled (no central government) o spoke Old English (Germanic language) o agricultural based society o were experts at metal work o oral tradition o wilderness o communal hall/mead hall (center of society- companionship) o stories

What type of writing did the Anglo-Saxons use? -Anglo-Saxons rarely wrote down any written literature or history. Instead, they had oral traditions, meaning stories were memorized. - Bards were the members of society that memorized stories and recited them in the communal hall. -Bards had equal positions in society as warriors because of the influence of their poetry. -Poems were so important because of their link to the Anglo-Saxon religion

What was the main purpose of writing? -to create a legend of a hero to be passed down from generation to generation -to remember history and culture -religious study -to create a legend of a hero to be passed down from generation to generation -to remember history and culture -religious study

Beowulf Legend o Beowulf is Scandinavian (Geats=southern Sweden) o (Danes=Denmark) o There is only ONE manuscript surviving o Seamus Heaney translated the poem from Old English to modern English in 1999

How did writing characterize the people? -responsibility to family, clan, leader, warriors, etc. -fame and success -loyalty was an exchange between warrior and leader (warrior gave service in war and leader gave gifts of gold, metal, etc.) -warriors sought out heroic deeds

Religion- Paganism -Paganism is a polytheistic religion, meaning they worshipped more than one god. -Woden (Wednesday) God of Death, Poetry and Magic -valued heroes/ earthly heroism rather than hope for an afterlife in Heaven -valued ethics such as bravery, loyalty, generosity, and friendship -offered no hope of an afterlife (like Heaven)

Christianity -Christianity is a monotheistic religion, meaning they worship one god: God -Promised an afterlife in Heaven or Hell based on faith to God & good deeds -Used Latin as its main language. -Wrote texts down. Eventually copied Anglo- Saxon legends down. This is how we have Beowulf today. -Christianity is a monotheistic religion, meaning they worship one god: God -Promised an afterlife in Heaven or Hell based on faith to God & good deeds -Used Latin as its main language. -Wrote texts down. Eventually copied Anglo- Saxon legends down. This is how we have Beowulf today.