This ground-breaking history of the Anglo-Saxons draws on new genetic data to overturn prior assumptions about their ancestry. What do we really know of English ancestry? Combining results from cutting-edge DNA technology with new research from archaeology and linguistics, The Origins of the Anglo-Saxons reveals the adventurous journey undertaken by some of our ancestors long before a word of English was spoken. Starting with the deeper origins of the Germani and how they fit into the greater family of Indo-European speakers and ending with the language of Shakespeare, taken to the first British colony in America—with thoughts about how English became the lingua franca of the world—this chronicle takes a wider scope than previous histories. Jean Manco makes the latest genetic data—so far published only in scholarly papers—engaging and accessible to the general reader, data that have overturned the suppositions of population continuity that until recently were popular among geneticists and archaeologists. The result is an exciting new history of the English people, and an entertaining analysis of their development. Featuring illustrations and charts to explain the recent research, this is a must-have for anyone who is interested in the history of English ancestry and language.

A sweeping and original history of the Anglo-Saxons by national bestselling author Marc Morris. Sixteen hundred years ago Britain left the Roman Empire and swiftly fell into ruin. Grand cities and luxurious villas were deserted and left to crumble, and civil society collapsed into chaos. Into this violent and unstable world came foreign invaders from across the sea, and established themselves as its new masters. The Anglo-Saxons traces the turbulent history of these people across the next six centuries. It explains how their earliest rulers fought relentlessly against each other for glory and supremacy, and then were almost destroyed by the onslaught of the vikings. It explores how they abandoned their old gods for Christianity, established hundreds of churches and created dazzlingly intricate works of art. It charts the revival of towns and trade, and the origins of a familiar landscape of shires, boroughs and bishoprics. It is a tale of famous figures like King Offa, Alfred the Great and Edward the Confessor, but also features a host of lesser known characters - ambitious queens, revolutionary saints, intolerant monks and grasping nobles. Through their remarkable careers we see how a new society, a new culture and a single unified nation came into being. Drawing on a vast range of original evidence - chronicles, letters, archaeology and artefacts - renowned historian Marc Morris illuminates a period of history that is only dimly understood, separates the truth from the legend, and tells the extraordinary story of how the foundations of England were laid.

Starting AD 400 (around the time of their invasion of England) and running through to the 1100s (the 'Aftermath'), historian Geoffrey Hindley shows the Anglo-Saxons as formative in the history not only of England but also of Europe. The society inspired by the warrior world of the Old English poem Beowulf saw England become the world's first nation state and Europe's first country to conduct affairs in its own language, and Bede and Boniface of Wessex establish the dating convention we still use today. Including all the latest research, this is a fascinating assessment of a vital historical period.

A wealth of new information about lowland Britain in the Migration Period has been generated during the last 10 years, allowing a new examination to be made of the origins of Anglo-Saxon kingdoms. These essays throw new light on why and how Anglo-Saxon kingship originated and discuss processes of state formation. Distributed in the US by Columbia U. Press. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

Kings and Kingdoms of Early Anglo-Saxon England provides a unique survey of the six major Anglo-Saxon kingdoms and their royal families, examining the most recent research in this field.

The first major biography of a truly formidable king, whose reign was one of the most dramatic and important of the entire Middle Ages, leading to war and conquest on an unprecedented scale. Edward I is familiar to millions as "Longshanks," conqueror of Scotland and nemesis of Sir William Wallace (in "Braveheart"). Yet that story forms only the final chapter of the king's action-packed life. Earlier, Edward had defeated and killed Simon de Montfort in battle; traveled to the Holy Land; conquered Wales, extinguishing its native rulers and constructing a magnificent chain of castles. He raised the greatest armies of the Middle Ages and summoned the largest parliaments; notoriously, he expelled all the Jews from his kingdom. The longest-lived of England's medieval kings, Edward fathered fifteen children with his first wife, Eleanor of Castile and, after her death, erected the Eleanor Crosses—the grandest funeral monuments ever fashioned for an English monarch. In this book, Marc Morris examines afresh the forces that drove Edward throughout his relentless career: his character, his Christian faith, and his sense of England's destiny—a sense shaped largely by the tales of the legendary King Arthur. Morris also explores the competing reasons that led Edward's opponents (including Robert Bruce) to resist him. The result is a sweeping story, immaculately researched yet compellingly told, and a vivid picture of medieval Britain at the moment when its future was decided.

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. To ensure a quality reading experience, this work has been proofread and republished using a format that seamlessly blends the original graphical elements with text in an easy-to-read typeface. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

This Elibron Classics title is a reprint of the original edition published by H.G. Bohn in London, 1856.

How Anglo-Saxons in Britain Understood their World 1,500 Years Ago When Anglo-Saxon tribes first settled in Britain in the mid fifth century CE, their beliefs, though varied and developing over time, were essentially pagan and polytheistic. The history of the ways in which the early English understood their world is told here in terms of both the character of specific deities they followed, and the broader nature of their pre-Christian culture. Key themes include the ways in which Anglo-Saxon paganism differed from Scandinavian (Viking) spirituality, and how early English deities compared to those of other early polytheistic cultures, such as the Greek and Sumerian. In order to better comprehend the pagan Anglo-Saxon mind-set, basic Germanic materialist philosophy is contrasted with aspects of ancient Greek idealist philosophy, in particular neoplatonism, and related changing perceptions of the goddess Hecate. Loki's role as an agent of cultural dissent and gender diversity is analysed, and differing views of life after death reviewed. Particular attention is paid to what the Old English Beowulf poem might tell us about English tribal foundation myths, and chapters on the uses of runes and the place of trees in pagan culture are also included. The author seeks to make a case that the early English revered the divine feminine to a degree not found in either Scandinavian paganism or Roman Christianity. As part of this analysis eight north European myths are adapted, retold in short story formats, and evaluated in terms of what they can tell us about important features of early English pagan belief. Early Anglo-Saxon ways of looking at and understanding the world were complex, sophisticated, diverse and pluralistic, and very different from 21st century belief systems. This book seeks to help us comprehend the thought processes of the early English living in Britain one and a half thousand years ago.