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The Anglo-Saxons: 449–1066. Introduction to the Literary Period. The Anglo-Saxons: 449–1066. Choose a link on the time line to go to a milestone. A.D. 1066 Norman Invasion. 300s B.C. Celts in Britain. A.D. 449 Anglo-Saxon Invasion. 55 B.C–A.D.409 Roman Occupation. A.D.878 - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
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The Anglo-Saxons: 449–
1066Introduction to the
Literary Period
The Anglo-Saxons: 449–1066
300s B.C.Celts in Britain
55 B.C–A.D.409Roman Occupation
A.D. 449Anglo-Saxon Invasion
A.D. 400–699Spread of Christianity
A.D. 1066Norman Invasion
A.D.878King Alfred against the Danes
Choose a link on the time line to go to a milestone.
A.D.600
A.D.300
A.D. 1
300 B.C.
A.D.900
A.D. 1200
• Celtic religion a form of animism
Before and during the 4th century B.C.
Stonehenge• Druids were Celtic priests
• Britain named for one Celtic tribe—the Brythons
• Britain home to several Celtic tribes
The Roman Occupation
55 B.C. Hadrian’s Wall
Romans evacuate their troops
• Central government breaks down
Julius Caesar invades Britain
Celts defeated by ClaudiusA.D. 43
• Romans build walls, villas, baths, roads
Roman ruins
• Britain left vulnerable to attack
A.D. 409
Effects of Roman Invasion
Latin heavily influenced the English language
Relative Peace Christianity begins to take hold in England
(but does not fully displace Paganism for several hundred years)
The Anglo-Saxon Invasion
A.D. 449 The Anglo-Saxons push the Celts into the far west of the country.
AnglesSaxons
Jutes
Celts
The Anglo-Saxon Invasion
Anglo-Saxon Society• kinship groups led by
strong warrior chief• people farmed,
established local governments, produced fine craftwork
• English emerged as a written language
Page from Anglo-Saxon Chronicle
The Anglo-Saxon Invasion
Old English
The Anglo-Saxon religion• offered no hope of an afterlife• valued earthly virtues of bravery, loyalty,
generosity, and friendship• similar to what we call Norse mythology
ThunorThorWodenOdin
Day of weekAnglo-Saxon godNorse godWednesdayThursday
The Anglo-Saxon Invasion
• Anglo-Saxons did not believe in afterlife
• warriors gained immortality through songs
Why were the scops important?
The Anglo-Saxon bards• called scops
Anglo-Saxon harp
• strummed harp as they sang• sang of heroic deeds• were often warriors
The Anglo-Saxon Invasion
8th–9th centuries Vikings called Danes invade Britain
King Alfred against the Danes
878 King Alfred unifies Anglo-Saxons against the Danes.
871 Alfred of Wessex is king of England.
England becomes a nation.
King Sweyn and his Danish troops arrive in England, from a
manuscript (c. 14th century)
• Christianity and Anglo-Saxon culture co-exist
The Spread of Christianity
• Christian monks settle in Britain
• British pagan religions replaced by Christianity
Around A.D. 400
By A.D. 699
• William of Normandy crosses the English Channel
The Norman Invasion
The Norman Invasion, Bayeux Tapestry
• French replaces English as the language of the ruling class
1066
• William defeats Harold and Anglo-Saxon army
Objectives To identify characteristics of Anglo-Saxon culture as
reflected in the writings of the period To analyze the relationship between literature and history To analyze the relationship between language and literature To analyze the relationship between Old English and Modern
English To identify the literary elements of Anglo-Saxon poetry To demonstrate an understanding of the Anglo-Saxon period
and literature by writing compositions of analysis and comparisons
On a clean sheet of paper
1. Why is the Anglo-Saxon period usually dated from 449?
2. Who is credited with the unification of England?
3. What function was performed by the scop?
4. What even brought the Anglo-Saxon period to a close?
