Imagine you are a Roman citizen living in Britain in the 5th century. Your once happy life would now be full of worry and fear. The Roman army, the strongest, most technologically advanced military in the world has just packed up and left Britain to defend Rome against the invading barbarian, Atilla the Hun. That is good for Rome but bad for Britain. Who will protect you from barbarian invaders?
The Roman Britons are in big trouble. Remember the Picts?
They were those aggressive tribes who lived in Scotland. They had caused so many problems for the Roman army that the Emperor Hadrian in 120AD decided to build a huge wall across the northern half of Britain to keep them out.
Now, in the 5th century, the Roman soldiers manning the border wall have gone. The Picts are crossing the border and heading south as fast as they can, looking for revenge! They will rape, rob, burn, and plunder anything and everything they can find. In the north, you can see the smoke from burning border villages. Groups of refugees are streaming southwards with terrible tales of Pictish raids. Most likely your village will soon suffer the same fate. What will you do?
Well, the Romano-Britons decided to seek help from mercenaries. A mercenary is a soldier who will fight anybody for money. The Roman army had used large numbers of Saxon mercenaries when they ruled Britain.
Now in the 5th century, the descendants of these mercenaries are living in Britain and they and their Saxon cousins from Germany are ready to help you with your Pictish problem - if you have a lot of money.
Well, the Romano-British had plenty of money but no army. So, they decided to ask the Saxons to help them against the Picts. The Saxon army came over to Britain, chased the Picts back across the border and made everybody happy....for a very short time. The Saxons soon realized that Britain was a much better place than their home in Germany. They also knew that Britain was undefended and that they could basically do whatever they wanted. The Saxons turned against the Britons and drove them out of their homes and into the western half of England. The Saxons took over. Roman Britain was now a part of history.
Saxon Britain
For the next 300 hundred years, the Saxons and their distant cousins, the Angles and the Jutes, settled in Britain. They divided up Romano-Britain and established new kingdoms which were constantly fighting each other for power. There was no peace which is just how the Saxons liked things. They enjoyed fighting and a Saxon king was not a real king unless he was constantly attacking his neighbors or even his own family. Fighting was just a part of their culture just like sushi and manga are parts of Japanese culture. Some people fight to live - the Saxons lived to fight!
Londinium had been abandoned by the Britons and the Saxons decided to not occupy the city.
This may seem strange since the city was mostly intact but for some unknown reasons the Saxons decided not to settle within the ancient Roman walls. Instead, they built their own settlement outside the Roman wall and to the west near what is now Covent Garden and the National Gallery. This new settlement was known as Londonwic in the Saxon language. It was a major port just as it was in Roman times with ships from all over Europe stopping their to buy and sell almost anything. Londonwic was an important and rich port for the Saxons and several Saxon kingdoms fought for control of it. However, archaeologist have found no evidence that the Saxons lived within the walls of the old Roman city. It lay a deserted ruin to the east of the Saxon port.
The Saxons grew rich and happy in their new kingdom for three centuries. However, all good things must come to an end! Just as they happily kicked out the Britons they were soon to be nearly kicked out themselves. The new threat came not from their tough old enemy the Picts but from a group that was even tougher! This new enemy had attacked the Picts and had given them a good beating. Obviously, these new guys were tough! But, who were they?
Well, the Saxons soon found out. Their first contact with these tough guys came in 787 when several strange ships arrived outside a Saxon port in western Britiain.
The local Saxons thought the strangers had come to trade and the king sent his taxman out to the ship to collect a tax for trading in a Saxon port. The strangers, however, sent the taxman back to the Saxons minus his head! Imagine that! On Tuesday you are a fat, rich, and successful Saxon tax collector and on Wednesday you are a headless, dead tax collector! Strangers cut off your head with a very large axe and sent your body back to the King! Why? Perhaps the strange men wanted to send a message to the Saxons and not being able to speak the same language they decided to send a physical message that could be understood by even the dumbest Saxon. What do you think the strangers were trying to communicate to the Saxons??? Was it a message of friendship??? Was it a message of brotherly love and cultural understanding??? I don't think so!
All over the Saxon kingdom, Saxon kings became nervous. Who were these strange, long-haired, heavily-bearded men in their long narrow ships? Reports of other sightings followed from all around Britain. Every report was the same. Long, narrow ships full of heavily armed, long-haired, bearded men probing the coastal areas of Britain.
The Saxon kings, however, didn't let these strange men stop their near constant fighting. They carried on as always, fighting each other and scheming for power. Soon they would have to fight not just for their kingdoms but also for their very lives!
Viking Invasion!
Yes, it was the Vikings who had cut off the head of the Saxon taxman and it was the Vikings who had pounded the Picts in Scotland. But who were the Vikings? The word "Viking" is a Scandinavian word which means "one who comes from a fjord". It is a very broad name which has been given to Danish and Norwegian pirates who left their homes in Denmark, Norway and Sweden to rob, murder, pillage and plunder coastal towns and ports all over Europe. Their objective was the same as all pirates throughout history: treasure!
The Viking strategy was to load their fast sailing ships with lots of heavily-armed, treasure-hungry men and then sail quickly into an unsuspecting coastal town.
Next, the Vikings would swarm into town, kill anyone who offered resistance, steal everything of value that could be moved, take any survivors, (especially women and children), to sell as slaves, and then burn the whole town. Most Viking raids lasted only a few hours and then they were gone before any resistance could be organized.
They left only smoking ruins and the badly mutilated bodies of those who were foolish enough to offer resistance.
At first, the Vikings operated in small groups. In 793, they attacked the holy island of Lindisfarne in the north of England. It was a christian religious site with a monastery but that didn't stop the Vikings! They attacked the monastery, killed many monks, stole everything and then took the survivors to sell as slaves. All of Europe was shocked at this bloody event. Religious sites and monasteries were considered sacred and should not be attacked. The Vikings didn't care!
Eventually the lure of treasure and slaves further inland encouraged the individual groups to band together and head inland to conquer even bigger cities including London and York. The Saxons were fighting with each other and were unable to unite to resist the numerically smaller Viking army. After many years of fighting the Saxons and Vikings decided in 878 to divide the country into 2 halves in a line from the northeast to the southeast. The part controlled by the Vikings became known as the Danelaw. The Saxon king, Alfred, become known as Alfred the Great for his role in ending the long war with the Vikings.
London was the scene of much fighting between the Saxons and the Vikings and after the establishment of the Danelaw by Alfred the Great he decided that it was safer inside the walls of the ancient Roman city than outside. Londinium was reoccupied and was renamed Lundenburh.
Peace with the Vikings was not easy. Over the next 200 years the Vikings and Saxons would fight for territory and for control of Lundenburh which had become the center of Saxon political and economic power. It is a bloody history full of intrigue and violence. Eventually, the Saxon king, Edmund Ironside, and the Viking king, Canute agreed to share power. After Edmund died in 1016, Canute became the sole king of England. Finally, the Vikings were the masters of England!
The Norman Invasion: 1066
Viking control of England was not to last more than a few generations. The Vikings intermarried with the Saxon royal family producing many different heirs to the throne of England. In France, the descendants of other Viking invasions were also related to both the Saxon and Viking royal families. It was a complicated mess!
After several Viking kings the Saxon royal family was able to claim the throne and the new king, Edward the Confessor took power in 1042. He had been sent to France when the Vikings took power and had been waiting patiently for his chance to claim the throne. He was a religious person who had married but had no male children. Having no sons to take over as king created a big problem. After his death in 1066, three very powerful men both claimed that they were the rightful king. The first was Harold Godwinson, a very rich man whose sister was Edward's wife. He claimed that Edward's last wish was that he should take over as king. The second claimant was Duke Wiliam of Normandy.
His family had taken care of Edward when he was in France during the Viking invasions. He claimed that Edward had agreed that he should be king after his death. The third claimant was Harold Hardrada, a Viking from Norway who was related to the former Viking king, Canute. He claimed the throne and planned with the help of Harold Godwinson's brother, Tostig, to invade England from the north and claim the throne for himself.
Harold Godwinson gathered an army together and quickly marched north and caught Harold Hardrada's army unprepared. He quickly defeated them, killing Harold Hardrada in the process and slaughtering most of his men. The Viking army had travelled to England in 300 ships but after the battle only 24 ships were needed to take the few survivors back to Denmark!
While this was happening, Duke William of Normandy had invaded in the south near a place called Hastings. Harold Godwinson's army had no time to celebrate their victory. They had to march 250 miles south to confront William and his Norman army. After a nine day march Harold and his tired army met William on a hill near Hastings.
Harold's army stood on the crest of the hill and stood very close together locking their shields together to make an impassable wall.
The Norman army couldn't break the Saxon shield wall so they decided to use a clever trick. They pretended to run away knowing that the Saxons would get excited and run down the hill to chase and in the process break their own shield wall. Then the Norman cavalry would cut them to pieces. Well, this is exactly what happened. The Saxon army
fell for the Norman trick and was defeated.
Poor Harold Godwinson died with a Norman arrow in his eye.
Remember students: One day you can be King of England, the next day you can be food for worms.
After his victory, William and his Norman army marched on London. After meeting strong resistance at the entrance to London Bridge, William decided march around London burning any town that offered resistance. Of course the people of London could see this. They didnt want the same thing to happen to their city so they finally agreed to make William their king. The people of London knew that it was better to have a Norman king than to lose everything! William was crowned king on Christmas Day, 1066.
Many Saxons resisted and they paid a heavy price. William was absolutely ruthless! He marched north burning the homes of innocent Saxons and Danes as well as those of determined rebels. Even his Norman friends were shocked at his cruelty but William was determined to have a united kingdom for his sons to inherit.
In a few years, William completely changed English society by virtually eliminating the English aristocracy and replacing it with his Norman friends. One of the first things he did was to reward his Norman friends with Saxon land taken from those who rebelled against his rule. The Norman supporters of William knew that if he was overthrown they would lose all of their new wealth so you can be sure they did anything necessary to keep power in William's hands. They build huge castles all over England and forced the Saxons to accept them as their local ruler. Anyone who rejected Norman rule became an outlaw.
William also wanted to make an inventory of everything in his new kingdom. He sent his agents to every part of his new kingdom to record information about property, buildings, animals, and people. This became known as the Domesday Book and it is great source of information for historians.
An important point to remember about William was that he was a Norman and thus he spoke French. The language of England became French while the Normans ruled. This is one of the reasons that there are so many French words in English!
Norman England: 1066 - 1154AD
William ruled his new kingdom of England as well as his lands in France. He spent most of his time in France where he continued fighting to expand his territories. He died in 1087 after falling from his horse while fighting the King of France. At this point he was so fat that he couldn't fit into his coffin! It's good to be the King!
William divided his kingdom into two parts. His eldest son Robert received Normandy and his second surviving son, William Rufus, received England as his inheritance becoming King William II. This division of the kingdoms was to be the cause of many wars over the next 500 years. This was because many future English kings could legally lay claim to lands in France as a descendant of William I.
Now I could tell you all about each and every Norman king which followed but that would take much space and a lot of time and it might be a little complicated to remember all of the details. However, it is fun to know some of the more interesting or even salacious details of the kings and even a queen (!) which ruled after William the Conqueror.
William II (1087 - 1100)
William's second surviving son became William II. However, William was not popular with his new English subjects. He argued with church leaders, ruthlessly suppressed several rebellions in northern England, and raised taxes to fight wars in France. He also argued with his older brother, Robert, at one point pouring a bucket of toilet water over his head! Needless to say, William II had many enemies! It is no wonder that he was found with an arrow through his body after a hunting trip with his younger brother, Henry. Was it murder? We will never know for sure but his brother Henry claimed the crown and the royal treasury even before his brother was buried!
Henry I (1100 - 1135)
Henry was the youngest son of William the Conqueror. He was very clever and was generally liked by the people of England especially after he married a member of the old Saxon ruling family. He united the two kingdoms of England and Normandy after defeating his brother, Robert, in battle in France. He had many mistresses which produced over 20 illegitimate children. His only legitimate son died in a tragic accident at sea leaving Henry with only a daughter, Matilda, to succeed him.
Stephen (1135 - 1154)
Stephen was the grandson of William I and the nephew of Henry I. He became king after Henry's death even though Matilda was next in line to succeed him. This was because the old Anglo-Norman elite did not want to be ruled by a women especially one who was married to a rival French family, Geoffrey of Anjou also known as Geoffrey Plantagenet. Stephen moved quickly to have himself crowned king after the death of Henry I. A war between Matilda and Stephen led to a temporary victory for Matilda. However, the people of London refused to allow her to enter the city for her coronation after she refused to lower their taxes! Meanwhile Stephen gathered another army and ousted Matilda who had never been formally crowned Queen of England. After much argument, an agreement was eventually reached that Matilda's son, Henry, would rule after Stephen.
Henry II (1133 - 1189)
Son of Matilda and Geoffrey, Count of Anjou, Henry was the great-grandson of William I. He was also one of the more interesting kings of this period simply because his life was one of struggle, tragedy and betrayal.
Henry grew up as a witness to the struggle of his mother, Matilda, to win the throne of England which had been granted to her by her father Henry I. His early life would have been quite traumatic as he watched the rise and fall of his mother's power and influence in England through war, intrigue and betrayal. Imagine witnessing these events yourself. How would these dramatic events affect you? Well, Henry was deeply affected and throughout his life he worked feverishly to protect his rights as king by any means necessary.
He married Eleanor of Aquitaine, the former wife of King Louis VII of France, and the daughter of one of the most powerful families in France. She was 11 years older than Henry. Together they had eight children, some of whom would later become future kings of England as well as queens of Sicily and Castille in Spain. Eventually, Eleanor would betray Henry as would his four sons, Henry, Richard, Geoffrey and John.
The causes of these betrayals were jealousy and envy. When a great and powerful king has one son it is simple to recognize who will inherit what after the king's death. However, when you have four envious sons and a jealous wife who is also very powerful then the question of inheritance and power becomes more difficult. Henry assigned land and titles to his four sons but left them with very little actual power to rule these territories as their own. Naturally, this made them all insanely suspicious of their father and envious of each other. Eleanor had her own reasons to be angry with Henry II because of his very public affairs with other women. Add to this mix the fact that Henry II also had several illegitimate children by these women including two sons who were also eager to have a share of their father's vast wealth and you have all the ingredients you need for an epic drama.
Well, you can guess what happened. The eldest son Henry the Younger along with his brothers Richard and Geoffrey grew impatient waiting for their father to die so in 1173 they decided to speed matters along by attempting to seize the throne from Henry II before his natural death. They were encouraged in this rash act of rebellion by their mother Eleanor of Aquitaine and by the kings of France and Scotland who were only too happy to reduce the power of a rival king. Henry the Younger and his brothers almost succeeded but their father was too cunning and Henry was eventually forced to surrender after a bloody struggle.
Henry II forgave his sons and tried to placate them with money and titles but these measures only achieved a temporary peace. In 1083, Henry the Younger again quarrelled with his brothers and then rebelled against his father who had refused to grant him control of Normandy. Henry II again attempted to placate his avaricious son through negotiation and compromise. However, Henry the Younger tried to kill his father near the French city of Limoges and once again war between a father and his sons began. Eventually Henry the Younger fled Limoges with his father's army in hot pursuit. However, Henry the Younger died of dysentery before he could reconcile with his father.
In 1189, weakened after his son's death, Henry II attempted to regain the allegiance of his second son, Richard, with vague promises of his inheritance but Richard rejected his father's advances. Perhaps Richard could see that war and the death of his son had weakened his father and that he could gain everything by acting decisively to overthrow him. Richard allied himself with his father's greatest enemy, the king of France as well as his father's favourite son, Prince John. Together they invaded Henry II's territories in France defeating him decisively. The once proud Henry II was forced to sign a humiliating treaty in which he had to swallow his pride and pay homage to the French king, Phillip Augustus, who was eager to reduce Henry II's control of his vast French holdings. As the final treaty was signed, Henry whispered to his traitorous son, Richard, "God grant that I die not until I have revenged myself on thee".
However, it was the betrayal by John, his favorite son, that is said to have finally killed Henry II. John being very clever and not very brave had joined with his brothers only when it was clear that his father would lose. Broken-hearted at this final betrayal, Henry died in 1189 alone and unmourned except for his illegitimate sons. The once great king was a broken and humiliated man consumed by the jealousy and avariciousness of his own wife and sons. Even after his death, however, the degradation continued. His avaricious servants stripped the body of Henry II of all his valuables leaving his naked corpse sprawled on the filthy floor.
Henry II's story is a sad one. It illustrates the sometimes tragic effects wealth and power can have on a family. It is a dangerous combination that seldom leads to happiness. To be a king is said to be a great thing which many people covet but the reality is a lifetime of distrust, envy, and very often, betrayal and misery.
1 comment:
OMG, this is the best explanation of this time period I have ever read. Clear, concise and enjoyable to read. Thank you!
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