Alfred the Great and Anglo-Saxon England:

9th century

  • Alfred the Great
  • Like many other historical figures, has “founding father” myths of being a gifted poet and ordained by the Church.
  • Youngest son of King Aelthelwulf of Wessex
  • All of Alfred’s older brothers die before the age of 30, Alfred becomes King of Wessex
  • Conflict with Vikings
  • 865- Vikings invaded
  • Ivar the Boneless is their fearsome leader
  • Alfred’s army is destroyed causing Alfred to retreat to Somerset
  • Alfred lives in exile and under the guise of a commoner for several years
  • Myth of burning cakes
  • Whether the myth is true or not, Alfred’s humility is shown
  • Battle of Edington, 878
  • Alfred’s army rallies and defeats the Vikings
  • 2 major agreements as a result of the Viking defeat
  • Danish king and all of his followers will be baptized
  • Danelaw-the Danes/ Vikings live in an area Northeast of Wessex
  • Changes to Anglo- Saxon culture after Viking defeat:
  • Language (Danish/Scandinavian mingles with Anglo-Saxon)
  • Cultural intermingling
  • Alfred’s Reign:
  • Focus on defense
  • When a civilization doesn’t have to worry about constant invasion they are able to have stability, goodwill, and prosperity
  • Alfred was educated, he knew both Latin and Anglo-Saxon (the language of the people)
  • “Dom boc” or Doom book- codified English law so that uniform application and enforcement of the law occurred throughout the region.
  • Supported the Church- monasteries were built. Monks educated nobles and other monks to transcribe books thereby also promoting education.
  • Re-established London as a city, which goes on to become the cultural epicenter of England and the British Empire.
  • Norman Invasion
  • Harold Bluetooth, a Danish/Viking king, successfully infiltrates Normandy with his forces
  • He has a variety of cultures under his rule
  • Over the next 200 years, the Norman and Viking cultures become indistinguishable.
  • Battle of Hastings, 1066
  • 2 noblemen believed they had the right to the throne of England when the king died without an heir
  • William, duke of Normandy, sailed across the English Channel to wage war on Harold
  • William conquers Anglo-Saxon England
  • Repercussions:
  • the cultures of Anglo-Saxon England, Scandinavian/Viking, Germanic, and French are now combined
  • English culture and language will take on Francophone characteristics and will no longer be connected to the Scandinavian world
  • Long Term Results:
  • Language- Anglo-Saxon/ Old English becomes French influenced
  • Kings of England are vassals to Norman France- French becomes the language of British nobility
  • Dynastic struggle between kings of England and France, eventually a major contributing factor of the 100 years war