The Angles, Saxons and Jutes - known collectively as the Anglo-Saxons - were Germanic

tribes who arrived over the course of the 5th and 6th centuries. These invaders were warlike
and mostly illiterate. They only used the runic alphabet, which was composed of a series of
mysterious characters. They used it for carving inscriptions on stones or metals, not for
writing long records.

They were farmers and deep-sea fishermen who hunted seals and whales in the ocean.
They lived in wooden houses which they built near streams or rivers. They built great halls in
the centre of villages, which they decorated with carvings and paintings both inside and
outside. The Anglo-Saxons had a great sense of beauty, made fine ornaments and enjoyed
drinking and feasting. They were organised in family groups or clans. The most important
social bond was loyalty to the other members and to the king of the tribe. They exalted
physical courage and personal freedom.

The dialects spoken by the different tribes evolved over time and together became known as
Old English. This language provided the basis for Modern English, especially words relating
to everyday life and activities. The English language has its origins in the west-germanic
dialects spoken by the Angles, Saxons and other teutonic tribes who invaded and occupied
England in the 5th and 6th centuries. As a language, Anglo-Saxon, or Old English, was very
different from Modern English and it is difficult, if not impossible, for Modern English
speakers to understand it without studying it. The language dominated in England until the
Norman conquest, when French, through a time, became the language of the court and of
literature. Old English was thus left to everyday use. The oldest Old English inscriptions
were written using a runic system.

The influence of Anglo-Saxon culture is still evident today. The names of the days of the
week come from the names of the major gods: Tiw (Tuesday), Woden (Wednesday), Thunor
(Thursday). Friday commemorates Frige, the bride of Woden. It is also evident in place
names. The ending -ing meant ‘folk’ or ‘family’, so Reading is the name of the family of
‘Rada’. ‘Ham’ meant farm and -tom meant ‘settlement’, so Birmingham or Southampton are
place names that come from the Anglo-Saxon times.

At first, the Anglo-Saxons worshipped several gods. This is why the Chrsitianity introduced
by the Romans disappeared until the end of the 6th century. Then Pope Gregory the Great
(590-604) sent s monk, Augustinewent first to Canterbury and became the first Archbishop
of Canterbury. Christianity spread across the kingdoms. Several monasteries were built and
became important centres of communal life and culture. Much of what we know about the
Anglo-Saxons is based on The Ecclesiastical History of the English People, written by the
monk Venerable Bede (ca 673-735). He was the first to use the word “Angle-Land” (the root
name for England).

They divided the country into 7 kingdoms, the Heptarchy, of which Wessex was the most
important. Then in the 8th and 9th centuries, the Vikings attacked England. They came from
Norway, Sweden and Denmark. King Alfred the Great of Wessex united the Anglo-Saxons
against the Vikings. The last Anglo-Saxon king was Harold, who was killed at the battle of
Hastings in 1066. This battle was to defend Britain from the Norman invasion by William the
Conqueror, duke of Normandy. The Normans were Vikings who settled in northern France.
Their ruler, William, claimed that the English throne had been promised to him. His
successful invasion began the Norman dynasty. William the Conqueror was crowned king in
Westminster Abbey in 1066.