The History of Anglo-Saxon England covers the history of early medieval England from the end of Roman Britain and the establishment of Anglo-Saxon kingdoms in the 5th century until the Conquest by the Normans in 1066. The 5th and 6th centuries are known archaeologically as Sub-Roman Britain, or in popular history as the "Dark Ages"; from the 6th century larger distinctive kingdoms are developing, still known to some as the Heptarchy; the arrival of the Vikings at the end of the 8th century brought many changes to Britain, and relations with the continent were important right up to the 'end' of Anglo-Saxon England, traditionally held to be the Norman Conquest.

(Picture) Kingdoms and tribes in Britain, c.600 AD.

• history of anglo-saxon england - Sources
  • There is a wide range of source material that covers Anglo-Saxon England. The main narrative sources are Bede's Ecclesiastical History and the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. A range of laws are available back to the reign of Aethelbert of Kent, though they become far more numerous after the reign of Alfred the Great. Charters (usually land grants) provide us with a wide range of evidence across the period. Other written sources include hagiography, letters (often between churchmen, but sometimes between political leaders e.g. Charlemagne and Offa) and poetry.
• history of anglo-saxon england - Migration and the formation of kingdoms (400-600)
  • Picture of Britain in AD 500.
• history of anglo-saxon england - Heptarchy and Christianisation (600-800)
  • (Picture) The British isles in AD 802.
• history of anglo-saxon england - The Viking challenge and the rise of Wessex (9th century)
  • 793 is the date given by the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle for the first Viking attack in Britain, at Lindisfarne monastery. However, by then the Vikings were almost certainly well established in Orkney and Shetland, and it is probable that many other non-recorded raids occurred before this. Records do show the first Viking attack on Iona taking place in 794, The arrival of the Vikings, in particular their Great Heathen Army, was to seriously upset the political and social geography of Britain and Ireland. Alfred the Great's victory at Edington in 878 stemmed the Viking attack; however, by this time Northumbria had devolved into Bernicia and a Viking kingdom, Mercia had been split down the middle, and East Anglia ceased to exist as an Anglo-Saxon polity. The Vikings had similar effects on the various kingdoms of the Irish, Scots, Picts and (to a lesser extent) Welsh. Certainly in North Britain the Vikings were one reason behind the formation of the Kingdom of Alba, which eventually evolved into Scotland.
• history of anglo-saxon england - Formation of England (10th century)
  • Alfred of Wessex died in 899 and was succeeded by his son Edward the Elder. Edward, and his brother-in-law Æthelred of (what was left of) Mercia, began a programme of expansion, building forts and towns on an Alfredian model. On Æthelred's death his wife (Edward's sister) Æthelflæd ruled as 'Lady of the Mercians', and continued expansion. It seems Edward had his son Æthelstan brought up in the Mercian court, and on Edward's death Athelstan succeeded to the Mercian kingdom, and, after some uncertainty, Wessex.
• history of anglo-saxon england - England under the Danes and the Norman Conquest (978-1066)
  • The end of the 10th century saw renewed Scandinavian interest in England. Aethelred ruled a long reign, but ultimately lost his kingdom to Sweyn of Denmark, though he recovered it following the latter's death. However, Æthelred's son Edmund II Ironside died shortly afterwards, allowing Canute, Sweyn's son, to become king of England, one part of a mighty empire stretching across the North Sea. It was probably in this period that the Viking influence on English culture became engrained.
• history of anglo-saxon england - References
• history of anglo-saxon england - Further reading
• history of anglo-saxon england - See also
  • • Anglo-Saxons for Anglo-Saxon culture and society.
• history of anglo-saxon england - External links
  • • Medievalists.net - extensive resources on the medieval period.
• history of anglo-saxon england - Related topics