Anglo-Saxon Timeline

Note: Main timeline is only for aesthetic purposes, please refer to dates instead.

Anglo-Saxon Timeline

by Milana T

Work Cited

Books:

- Bilar, John. The Anglo-Saxon Age. Unknown: Oxford, N.D. Print.

- Webster, Leslie. Anglo-Saxon Art. London: The Britisch Press, 2012. Print.

Websites:

- Medival Chronicles Anglo-Saxon Timeline, 2014. http://www.medievalchronicles.com/medieval-history/medieval-history-periods/anglo-saxons/ Accessed Oct 13th, 2018.

- English Monarchs The Anglo-Saxon Kingdoms - The Helptarchy, 2004. http://www.englishmonarchs.co.uk/saxon_25.html Accessed Oct 10th, 2018.

- Historic UK Kings and Queens of England and Britian, N.D. https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/KingsQueensofBritain/ Accessed Oct 16th, 2018.

- The English Companions Maps of Anglo-Saxon England, N.D. http://www.tha-engliscan-gesithas.org.uk/education/maps-of-anglo-saxon-england Accessed Oct 27th, 2018.

11. Wessex is supreme.

7. The war with the Vikings.

17. Harold II (Harold Godwin)

13. A deal and a half.

5. The attempts to unite.

3. 7th century changes.

19. The Battle of Hastings.

1. Britain asks the Saxons for help.

15. King Edward and Westminster Abbey.

9. From Angles and Saxons to the Anglo-Saxons.

Time: 1016ish

Time: 838-1042ish

Time: 613-731ish

Time: 1066

Time: 937ish

Time: 400ish

Time: 1066

Time: Start of the 7th century

Time: 1042-1066ish

Time: Start of the 10th century.

At the start of the 10th century, the Saxon kings (from Wessex) started marrying the Anglian nobility (the Angles), which is the origin of the name "Anglo-Saxons" (Angles and Saxons).

This is important because it shows how the name "Anglo-Saxons" came to be.

King Edward died childless, meaning a power struggle in England. The king's council elected Harold Godwin, who helped participate in ruling the country years before with his father, Earl Godwin.

This is an important event because it shows how the last Anglo-Saxon king was elected, despite having no royal blood.

Britain is under attack! The Roman forces are starting to withdraw, so Britain needs protection from all the invaders starting to attack. The Saxons (a german tribe) are invited to help.

This is an important event because it marks the start of Anglo-Saxons in England.

Shortly after King Egbert became King, the Anglo-Saxons were attacked by the Danish Vikings, hoping to control the land and wealth. They were defeated over and over again, moving from generation to generation.

This is an important event because it makes up the bulk of Anglo-Saxon history, meaning it also shaped the civilization of the Anglo-Saxons.

Now that there are 7 proper kingdoms, all of them want more land. To accomplish this goal, many of the try to force all the other kingdoms under their rule, thus creating a single kingdom. 3 different attempt are made by Northumbria, Mercia, and Wessex (except a bit later on), but only one succeeded.

This is an important event because it helps rally the Anglo-Saxons together against future attacks, making them stronger.

The Battle of Hastings was the last Anglo-Saxon battle, against the Normans, with hopes of defeating William. However, this was not to be the case. Harold II, the last Anglo-Saxon king, was killed in battle Oct 14th, 1006, marking the end of Anglo-Saxon reign.

This is an important event because it marks the end of the Anglo-Saxon civilization.

In 937, King Aethelstan fought in the Battle of Brunanburh, which is said to be one of the bloodiest battles to ever happen on British soil. As a result of this battle, the Anglo-Saxon boundaries were extended, meaning that the house of Wessex ruled all of England. They then established more laws, formalized their rule, and continued establishing their monarchy.

This is an important event because it influenced and helped shape Britain.

Fortunately for the Anglo-Saxons, King Edmund II managed to organize a resistance and fight back. Edmund was chosen as king by the people of England, but the Witan (King's council) wants a Danish King. In the end, they agree to split the kingdom in half, but Edmund is assassinated and the kingdom goes back to the Danes.

This is an important event because it is yet another failure of the Anglo-Saxons, weakening them further.

As you know, after the death of Harthacanute in 1042, Anglo-Saxon rule was restored, and King Edmund came to the throne. He was a very religious man, and (for some reason) specifically focused on Westminster Abbey. However, he died childless, meaning England now faced a power struggle.

This is important because it meant that England will now have to elect a king, which means they may not be as strong due to lack of experience and knowledge.

At the beginning of the 7th century, there were some major changes happening. Christianity was accepted by the rulers (the previous religion was focused on Norse mythology), and Kings started building huge halls (made of timber), and getting buried in "coffins" with treasure.

This event is important because it explains many Kings leaving for religious purposes (such as pilgrimage) which otherwise would not have happened.

The Anglo-Saxons

The Anglo-Saxons were groups of German tribes who were invited to Britain to help defend Rome from its attackers. The Saxons defeated the attackers, but then rebelled, hoping to rule the land. They lost the first battle, but won the second. The Jutes, Angles and Saxons flooded in. By the beginning of the 7th century, there were 7 main kingdoms emerging: Kent, Sussex, Wessex, East Anglia, Essex, Mercia, and Northumbria. There were a few attempts to get all the kingdoms to yield to a single ruler, but the one that succeeded was in 827, under King Egbert (from Wessex). A large portion of the years after can be summed up as fighting with the Danish vikings. The Danes were defeated over and over again, but they did manage to take control once. Unfortunately for them, the Anglo-Saxons regained control around 30 years later. However, the final blow would come from the Normans, in 1066. They defeated the last Anglo-Saxon king (Harold II) during the Battle of Hastings (Oct 14th, 1066) marking the end of the Anglo-Saxon reign. A large amount of nobility escaped, but most of the population

remained Anglo-Saxon.

10. From Englisc to English.

16. Earl Godwin and his son.

4. The seven main kingdoms.

12. Aethelred the Unready/Aethelred II.

18. The disapproval.

14. Last Danish king (in England).

6. All hail King Egbert!

20. Norman rule.

8. Alfread the Great and the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles.

2. The Saxons defeat the attackers, but rebel and invade.

Time: 978-1016ish

Time: 802-858ish

Time: 1066

Time: 1067 and beyond...

Time: 613ish

Time: Start of the 10th Century

Time: 1042-1066ish

Time: 1042ish

Time: 877-899ish

Time: 449-600ish

After the death of the Harold II, most of the Anglo-Saxon nobility escaped before the Normans took over. However, the population still mostly Anglo-Saxon.

This event is important because it shows some of the lasting impact that the Anglo-Saxons created.

At the start of the 10th century, there was another name-related change: the use of the term "Englisc". Sounds familiar? That's because that's the origin of the name of the language "English", one that we speak today.

This is an important event because this is the origin of the name of a language spoken today.

Not everyone was happy with Harold II being king. The election was not approved by William, who was the Duke of Normandy. However, King Harold defeats an army and moves south to confront William in Sussex.

This is an important event because it shows how the Battle of Hastings came to be.

You may be wondering, if King Edward focused so much on rebuilding Westminster Abbey, who did the rest of the work? Well, that responsibility came to Earl Godwin and his son, Harold.

This is an important event because it is the reason that (spoiler alert) Harold is elected as king later on.

The Saxons do defeat the attackers, but unexpectedly rebel and flood in, along with the Angles and Jutes (more German tribes). At first, the British stop them (around 500), but the Saxons made a comeback.

This is an important event because it shows when and how the first Anglo-Saxons started settling down.

The majority of Anglo-Saxons have arrived, and 7 main kingdoms have formed from the many settlements (there are also many sub-kingdoms that also appear once or twice). Their names are Kent (Jutes), Mercia, East Anglia, Northumbria (Angles), Sussex and Wessex (Saxons).

This is an important event because it is important to the creation of the Anglo-Saxon civilization.

Alfread the Great was one of the Anglo-Saxon kings, and a descendant of King Egbert. He was a strong and wise leader, but this time, he is only mentioned because he started writing the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles.

This is an important event because this is one of the three main written sources for almost everything that is known about the Anglo-Saxons.

The last Danish king to rule England was named Harthacanute, who sailed to England along with 62 warships, and as you probably guessed, was immediately accepted as king. However, he had an early death (at age 24), and the Anglo-Saxons immediately restored their own rule afterward.

This is an important event because although they did not know it, this marks a big victory for the Anglo-Saxons, because they finally defeated the enemy they had been battling for over 300 years.

In 978, Aethelred II indirectly murdered his half brother so he could get the throne. However, he was not ready, as he was unable to organize a resistance against the Danes (earning him the title "Unready"). Even though this was not the end of the Anglo-Saxons, it did weaken them greatly, possibly even causing their end later on.

This is an important event because it marks the beginning of the Anglo-Saxon failure.

As you know, after 2 failed attempts made by Northumbria and Mercia to unite the kingdoms, a third attempt was made by Wessex, and they finally managed to succeed. All of England ruled by the Anglo-Saxons became one kingdom under King Egbert, who ruled from 827-839 (whose reign continued after his death).

This is an important event because it marks the first king of England.