1) IBERIANS

- came from Spain

- dark haired shepherds and hunters.
- Skilled in agriculture too.

2) CELTIC TRIBES
- blond and tall.
- Skilled in ironwork
- Originally lived in West Germany then started moving in many directions across Europe: Italy,
France, Spain, the Balkans
- each tribal wave brought its own language which mixed with the language of the Iberians
- their society was bound together by ties of KINSHIP which were the moral basis of society.
- Their activities were agriculture, cattle breeding, hunting, fishing, metal work and carpentry and
trade with other Celts on the continent.
- Their religion was DRUIDIC: the druids were a cast of priest who had education and justice in their
hands. The Romans were very cruel to them to get their power.

SOCIAL ORGANIZATION

The Celts were fierce warriors, but they never founded an empire and they never built cities. In fact they lived
in small farming communities. The Celtic people lived in two groups: the fine and the clan.

The smallest group in Celtic society was the Fine. A fine is an extended family group that included
grandparents and parents and their kids, and could include aunts, uncles, cousins and their kids.

The next step up was the Clan. Each clan was made up of several fines. You were part of a clan for life and
beyond. Inside each clan, there were three major groups of people: the nobles, which included warrior
leaders and landowners. In the middle were the artisans and druids (priests and teachers). At the bottom
were the common people, the peasants. Whatever their position in society, all people lived well.

They spent time playing fighting games, games of chance, and board games. They hunted and swam
and fished. Regarding noble women, what a noble woman could and could not do was clearly spelled
out, although it varied from clan to clan. A noble woman could own property. She could choose her own
husband. The peasants were free to come and go. Unless they married out of their clan, or studied to become
an artisan, a druid priest, or a warrior, they had no reason to venture very far from their homestead.

RELIGION

The ancient Celts believed in an Otherworld. The Otherworld was the home of many gods and goddess. It was
a place of joy, where feasts were always happening. The Otherworld was NOT a heaven. It was NOT a reward for doing
something good on earth. The Celts believed that everyone entered the Otherworld when they died.

WOMEN
Although most women stayed home, looking after the crops and the children, when their men went off to war,
women could choose to train and fight as warriors if they wished. There were warrior schools. A couple of those
schools were run by women. But they were the exceptions. Most of the warriors were well trained men.
3) THE ROMANS.
BC is used for years before Christ
AD (Anno domini) or CE for years measured after Christ

- 55/54 BC JULIUS CAESAR tried to invade Britain, but he didn’t succeed.

- 47 AD : CLAUDIUS’ expedition was successful and he arrived up to river Severn and Trent and the
Romans took control of the Souh.
- the Roman society was not nomadic but URBAN, so many towns were founded by the new invaders
- What the Romans left:
o LONDINIUM (London)
o Roads
o Cities (-chester = castra)
o Baths
o Temples
o Theatres
o pottery
o 300 DC spread of Christianity

HADRIAN’S WALL
- it was built to limit Roman expansionism and to protect Britain from the attacks of the Picts and
Scots
- The Romans started building walls around the towns to protect them from the Anglosaxon
incursions from the outside (around 180’s)
- It was very difficult to control the country which was so far away from Rome, and more and more
difficult to protect it against invasions.
- The Romans started losing control when the landed class lost confidence in the Roman system and
refused to pay taxes.
- 410 the Romans left the country
A significant portion of Hadrian’s Wall still exists, particularly the mid-section, and for much of its
length the Wall can be followed on foot. Near the Wall there are many attractions such as art
galleries, theatres, music centres, indoor and outdoor sports, many historic houses, gardens, nature
reserve.
- Hadrian’s Wall has been inscribing since 1987 to the World Heritage Sites, places of universal
importance to humankind, both cultural and natural, because it is a outstanding testimony of past
civilisation and it is an example of a building and technology which illustrates a stage of human
history.

LANGUAGE
- Latin didn’t replace the Celtic languages: only the upper classes and the inhabitants of the towns
spoke it.
- Only a few words survive into Old English, especially place names.

4) THE ANGLOSAXONS (449 – 835)

- it was a succession of settlements which changed England completely

- in the 430 Jutes, Angles and Saxons took control of the country: they settled on the lands of the Celts
and after much fighting the Celts sought refuge in Wales and Cornwall.
- They also destroyed the Roman civilization, burned and abandoned the Roman towns and built log
houses grouped around the log hall of the lord.
- non urban populations: their institutions were based on Kinship, religion (Tiw, Woden, Thor) was
similar to the one of pre-Roman Celtic tribes.

- Britain was divided into 7 kingdoms: HEPTARCHY.

 1. KENT first to be Christianized by St Augustine sent by Pope Gregory the Great (VII
century) Foundation of the Monastery of Canterbury.
2. SUSSEX
3. WESSEX got supremacy with Egbert (802/839) and then ALFRED
4. EAST ANGLIA
5. ESSEX – when it was converted St Paul’s Cathedral was built in London
6. MERCIA
7. NORTHUMBRIA supremacy in the VII century

- in certain regions there were both pagan and Christian traditions.

- Development or a more civilized conception of kinship: the role of the king is now connected with
administration and justice, not only with battles.
- First towns were built around the hall and the church: Canterbury, York, Winchester, Worchester.
- London became a commercial centre.
-
WHAT THE ANGLO-SAXONS LEFT: Sutton Hoo
Sutton Hoo is near Woodbridge in the Suffolk country and it's an archeological site. In the grave fields a lot of artefacts
were found too that date back to 6th century B.C.

5) THE VIKINGS

- the Viking raids started in the North and in Kent (835)

- NORWEGIANS went to Scotland, Ireland, Wales, Cornwall
- DANES went to the south and east English coasts. They invaded Northumbria and Eat Anglia.

ALFRED THE GREAT, king of WESSEX

Alfred the Great (848/49 – 26 October 899) was king of the West Saxons and king of the Anglo-Saxons from 886 o
899. After ascending the throne, Alfred spent several years fighting Viking invasions. He won a decisive victory in 878
and made an agreement with the Vikings, creating what was known as the Danelaw in the North of England, a frontier
which went from London to Chester: the north east area went to the Danes, the south west to Alfred. (880). Alfred
also oversaw the conversion of Viking leader Guthrum to Christianity. He defended his kingdom against the Viking
attempt at conquest.

- other reasons why Alfred was “great” were his diplomatic skills and his culture: he learnt Latin and
translated works into English for his people’s education. Beginning of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle.
(about the history of Britain)
- He created a fleet, an army system, founded many churches and monasteries.
- He was also a very good administrator.

- What the Danes left:

o Their towns: Lincoln, Stamford, Leicester, Derby, Nottingham, which were military
garrisons and trading centres.
o The word “law” is Danish
o Place names ending in – by or – thorp

EDWARD THE CONFESSOR (1003 – 1066) was one of the last kings of England. He ruled from 1042 to 1066.
When Edward died in 1066, he was succeeded by ,Harold Godwinson who was defeated and killed in the same year by
the Normans under William the Conqueror at the Battle of Hastings which marked the End of Anglosaxon monarchy.

7) THE NORMANS
https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/normans/
After the Battle of Hastings, William built Battle Abbey on the site of the battle to mark his great victory and atone for
the bloodshed. On Christmas day 1066 he was crowned King of England in Westminster Abbey. The overthrow of the
Saxon kingdom of England by William the Conqueror and his Norman knights was to transform the country they had
conquered, from how it was organised and governed to its language and customs – and perhaps most visibly today, its
architecture.
They introduced the feudal system in Britain and with their invasion the Middle Ages started.

LORD

THEGNS devoted their life to

PLOUGHMEN
Needed protection from